Chapter 19
Reyna Cruz:
“I don’t need an umbrella, he refused to stand under it when I stretched my arm out to shield him from the rain. He was all wet and shirtless, which I didn’t understand the reason behind.
“Why are you here?” I finally asked after a few minutes of silence and a bit of a struggle with the umbrella, as we both tried to keep it over each other’s heads.
“I suppose we need to talk,” he said, grumpily folding his arms over his chest.
“Oh, is it about me not thanking you the other night?” I pretended to be clueless, trying to avoid the other topic.
‘I don’t need your thanks or whatever. If you hadn’t run away that day, we wouldn’t be standing here having this conversation,” his tone was much harsher than before. But his face was still pleasant to look at, likely because he was my second chance mate.
“Look, can we go over there and talk?” I suggested, feeling bad as he continued to get wet, and the rain made it hard to see his expressions.
“Okay,” he replied and followed me to the entrance of my house. But as soon as we were under the roof, he stopped and didn’t even step inside.
“What now?” I asked with an eye roll.
‘I don’t enter stranger’s homes, his attitude bothered me. He reeked of pride and ignorance.
“Yeah, you’d rather stand outside and make them uncomfortable,” I taunted when I couldn’t take it anymore. I wasn’t the one who asked him to come here, so why was he acting like I had forced him into my house?
“That’s because my mate is a coward and she ran away as if I was forcing her for acceptance, he mumbled while shaking his head. “Look, I believe we started off on the wrong foot. You saw me in the woods, and you perceived me as a… bad guy.” He knew that wasn’t the whole truth. I didn’t think he was a had guy, but his journey into the woods in the darkest hours of the night didn’t exactly paint a positive picture.
I’d heard that the woods were often occupied by bad people or criminals. He might not be a bad person to me, but maybe- he committed other kinds of crimes, or perhaps he had unsavory friends who could follow him to my home.
“Listen, before you even continue with your speech. I have to say something. I decided not to put him in an awkward. position and just express what was on my mind.
Do you need a blanket?” I suddenly stopped talking and asked.
“Give me your coat,” he said, raising an eyebrow. I stared at his face in disbelief and then took off my coat with a loud grunt. Thankfully, I was wearing blue shorts and a white tank top.
He grabbed the coat and put it on, frowning as he looked at me. “Why is it so small?” he complained with a straight face.
“Because it’s a woman’s coat,” I replied, tapping my foot on the ground in response. Even though it was an XL, it was still small for his build..
“You were saying something?” he asked/leaving the buttons open so his abs continued to peek through the coat.
“I’m not ready to accept a mate,” I said with a deep breath and a steady heart rate.
“Look, you’re not my fated mate. You’re actually my second chance mate. My fated mate basically screwed me over, and I
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Chapter 19
still haven’t healed from my past. That’s why I don’t want to start anything, and… you live in the woods. I don’t feel safe about it. I bit my tongue after adding that part, It could have been left out because the instant I said that, his frown deepened.
“The woods will soon be a safe place because the rogue king” I interrupted him as he began to talk about the rogue king. I used to think the rogue king was doing a great jols until I found out he was collaborating with the alpha king on everything.
“Yeah, well, he’s doing everything for his own benefit, I frowned and muttered.
“Excuse me, what did you say?” he suddenly stopped blinking his eyes, narrowing them as he stared into my face. His hands Casually went to his waist, as if resting them there would help him scrutinize me more sternly.
“I don’t believe the rogue king is doing this out of the goodness of his heart,” I repeated myself without any fear. I was sure my second chance mate was no stranger to the life of the woods. He must know that all this was just a massive business deal for him.
“And how can you be so certain?” he asked, slowly folding his arms over his chest and leaning in closer to hear me clearly. “Of course, I won’t share the gossip with anyone else.
“Why would he ask for the help of the alpha king, who had kicked these people out in the first place? It’s like both of these powerful creatures think we’re idiots. One of them kicked as many people out as he could, and the other is coming off as a savior, but also collaborating with the person who made these people homeless in the first place,” I scoffed and shook my head in disbelief.
They might be able to fool others, but not me. I’ve analyzed everything, and it turns out, I’m not wrong.
“Alright, and you reached this conclusion based on that?” he asked, one eye squinting as if he was trying hard to grasp my words.
“Either that, or the rogue king is just an idiot, I mean, he hasn’t even come out or visited the shopping malls or the buildings he’s constructing. He’s just a clueless kid who somehow got rich, how? I don’t even know,” I sighed and then remembered the reason I had brought him to the entrance of the nunsion.
“Listen, I can’t be with you. I have too many issues that I-” I finally returned to the main topic, but his response cut me off abruptly.
“I see that now. You have way too many issues, his eye roll and taunting tone bothered me, but I held my tongue. He was my second chance mate, and I’d seen his wolf. I didn’t want to provoke him.
“Good! So you won’t chase after me again?” I asked, and he scoffed, shaking his head to himself.
“Bye!” he said, “but this won’t be the last time we meet.”
I was about to thank the Moon Goddess for his understanding when he added that comment, leaving me perplexed.
“Excuse me, I tried to follow him, but he walked away so swiftly that I couldn’t catch up.
“What about the rejection?” I even yelled after him, but he soon disappeared down the road, leaving me with nothing but
concern.
“He said we will meet again. What does that mean?‘ I scowled, unsure of what to make of the situation.
That means the handsome hunk isn’t giving up, Nera announced with excitement, clearly embracing the possibility of meeting him again and perhaps expecting more.
At this point, I was beginning to feel like I was the only one who didn’t want the second chance mate. Him, his wolf, and my wolf all seemed eager for us to happen.
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