Alpha 128

I was stunned. More than shock, I was upset. I did not want our friendship to turn out like this. I would have been happier if

he had come to tell me about someone else who he liked but not me.

The pair of desperate eyes were focused on me. I could hear how his heart was beating faster as he waited for my answer.

How would I reject him on his face? I did not want him to be heartbroken.

“From when?” I asked, trying to compose myself.

He lowered his head and started to speak.

“From the day I met you, from the day Jason brought you to the pack house.”

I looked away from him as I remembered the day when I first met him. He was a nice guy, and his every gesture was kind toward me.

I thought it was because I was his best friend’s sister.

With a heavy heart, I wanted to say that I had never seen him like

that.

“Eric, I-”

“Natalia, I know you are

a single mother. I also know that your children are your life. But believe me. You also have your own life where you are really alone. You need someone w

I frowned at him. “Protect me from what? You know that I am-

“An alpha. I know. But what about your emotional and mental support?”

“Love is not based on need, Eric. I mumbled as a few memories of my past reflected in my mind.

“Love is something we feel for someone even if they are not

aware of it, even if they want to decline our feelings for them,” I murmured.

The days when I used to roam around my ex–

husband just to get his attention returned to my mind. It took me a lot of days to wait for him, and when he finally came back home, it was after

several weeks had passed. I used to love him with all

my heart and soul. However, he never acknowledged my love. In the end, I only had to feel heartbroken.

I felt a hand hold my hand and caress the back of my hand with a

thumb.

I looked at Eric, who gave me a sad look and said,

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“My love is not weak either, Natalia. I have been in love with you for so many

years. I want to be with you. I will always try to make you happy. As you know, I live in this house. You all are my family. You don’t have to think about sta

I got what he meant. He explained to me the advantages of being with him.

I heaved a sigh and tried to move my hand, but he held it tightly. “Natalia, I love your children

like mine. I will give them my name. You will not have to think about them anymore. You don’t have to hide

them as well. You can proudly tell others that they have their own father.”

I felt a pang in my heart. His words really mesmerized me. He was a really sensible man. He indeed loved my children a lot.

However, I could not just destroy his life. I did not have any feelings for him. So, making his life connected with mine would only waste his life. He

would not get anything that he wished to see in his life partner.

I looked at our hands and rubbed his hand, which was over mine. “Eric.”

He shook his head in disagreement. “I know you don’t want to take a risk. I will make sure your second marriage will not break up in any way.”

His statements astounded me. He was talking about marriage.

“Eric, calm down and look at me.

He looked into my eyes. I gestured to him to take a deep breath, and then I spoke to him calmly.

“I didn’t know that you had feelings for me. But you have to understand my side too. You are not

only my brother’s best friend, but also mine. I gave you the position as one of my family members. Without you, my family is incomplete. I also know that

I paused and lowered my head as I could not keep eye contact with him anymore.

“I don’t have any feelings for you. I always saw you as a very close friend. I won’t call you my big brother to hurt your emotions. But you are important to

I took a deep breath and glanced at him. He loosened his grip on my hand. But I did not let his hand go. I continued to speak once again.

“I don’t want this one–sided. It will only give you

pain, just like I felt many years ago. I don’t want to hurt you. You are a good person, and I want you to find your mate soon and

be happy in your life. I am sorry, Eric. I don’t want to give you any fake hopes. I don’t love you.”

Eric took a step back as his hand slowly moved away from my

hand. I stared at his broken look. I felt bad, but it should have

happened many years ago. I di

happened many years ago. I did not want him to compromise his

life for someone who did not even see him more than a friend. It would only be a marriage of compromises.

“Eric,” I mumbled while looking at him.

He lifted his hand to stop me. He turned his head to the other side to control emotion.

I walked to him and reached for his hand. “I’m so sorry, Eric.”

He shook his head. “No, it’s not your fault. You can’t help it,” he muttered as he slowly walked past me. He made his way to the door.

“Eric.”

“Give me some time. I will be fine,” he replied, grabbing the doorknob.

But the moment he opened the door, he froze. His sudden pause perplexed me.

He looked here and there with a pair of wide eyes. He looked worried, and his eyes turned cloudy.

I rushed toward him as soon as I realized that someone was `informing him of something in the mind link.

I grabbed his hand and turned him to me. “What happened?”

He looked shocked as he left the room in a hurry before saying,

“Jason is not feeling well.”