26 If Only He Knew.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chalice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At first, I was jealous of the stunning woman strolling about the party like she had the entire world right under her Louboutin clad feet until Gavin walked up to our table and dropped the bombshell on us;\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was Leilani.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Pesky little Leilani. My stupid naive sister.\u00a0<\/p>\n
First came surprise then annoyance. And then it morphed into an overpowering rage when it finally dawned on me that all this while, while I\u2019d hoped she was living the absolute worst kind of life, she maybe wasn\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She had slowly morphed into this beauty that\u2019s got all men around mesmerized. And to top it all, she had the most eligible bachelor, Jarek\u00a0<\/p>\n
Frostclaw, following her about like a pup on a\u00a0<\/p>\n
leash.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cUrghhh!\u201d I growled in annoyance. \u201cWhy is she here?\u201d But then after remembering that I was meant to be the \u2018sweet unassuming sister\u2019, I cleared my throat and turned to Gavin. \u201cI just hope she isn\u2019t here to cause any trouble.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
At the sound of my voice, Gavin\u2019s gaze softened. He tucked a stray tendril behind my ear and smiled softly. \u201cI hope not.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cCan she not be thrown out?\u201d That was dad. I\u00a0<\/p>\n
smiled before turning to him with my head lowered. \u201cNo, papa. This is the first time we\u2019re seeing her in four years, we cannot\u2026 you cannot possibly want to throw her out now.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
All this while, mom said nothing but I didn\u2019t miss that expression akin to longing passing across her face as she stared pointedly in Leilani\u2019s\u00a0<\/p>\n
direction. I frowned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cLet me go talk to her!\u201d I exclaimed sweetly, picking up a glass of wine as I approached her slowly and not failing to notice the way she spoke so freely with Alpha Jarek Frostclaw.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And I hate her for having everything I wanted\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
and even more.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I sneakily tipped the glass as I approached her and poured just as she bumped into me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
By the goddess, I had been half expecting her to embarrass herself by screeching, or by allowing our lifelong beef seep into her actions. But she did none of that.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Instead, she glared at me coldly. Aloof-ly. Her voice did not rise by even an octave as she regarded me like I was some stranger.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What irritated me the most was how she seemed to have Alpha Frostclaw completely wrapped\u00a0<\/p>\n
around her finger and when she denied ever meeting me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, she had just begun to walk away with him when a beautiful opportunity presented itself to me. I grabbed her arm, knelt before her and dropped my head in a gesture of submission. A lot of people in the crowd gasped.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I smirked. \u201cI know you must be mad at me, Leilani, for everything\u2026 but I am sorry. I really am and I can prove it to you. For four years, I\u2019ve tried looking for you to apologize but I just couldn\u2019t find you. I am\u2026\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cChalice stop!\u201d Father barked from behind me and due to the sharpness in his tone, I found myself flinching in surprise before gathering myself to my feet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPapa.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou are the reason she has become so unruly. You let her hurt you and then you apologize all\u00a0<\/p>\n
the time. She\u2019s a bitch and we all know that-\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI see you all are forgetting that she\u2019s with me. And I can make you pay for speaking to her in that manner.\u201d Alpha Jarek cut in and I scooted backwards in fear when he casually stalked closer\u00a0<\/p>\n
to me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I noticed\u2014saw it-when father gulped too, and then dropped his eyes, refusing to look at Leilani or Alpha Frostclaw. He looked\u2026 scared.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2026in fact, I think\u2026\u201d he drawled, turning to Leilani, who has been quiet the entire time, \u201c\u2026what\u00a0<\/p>\n
should I do with them?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018With them\u2019 like we weren\u2019t people ourselves.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018With them\u2019like our fates now were in her hands.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I balled my hands into fists when Leilani raised her head to glare coldly at us, and in that moment, I saw it. I felt it. Something akin to fear lanced through me when I realized to my\u00a0<\/p>\n
absolute horror that she was unshaken by everything that\u2019s just happened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t care one bit that after several years, this was all she got from her family.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She was so hard. So cold. I had to look away in\u00a0<\/p>\n
discomfort.\u00a0<\/p>\n
She drawled. \u201cIgnore them. They\u2019re not worth\u00a0<\/p>\n
shit.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
And with that, she strolled off, not even bothering to wait to see our reactions. Our parents gasped; even Gavin looked taken aback, and I\u2026 I felt like I wanted the ground to open up\u00a0<\/p>\n
and swallow me whole.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alpha Frostclaw smiled politely at us like he hadn\u2019t just insulted us so openly. He bowed curtly and muttered; \u201cif you\u2019ll excuse me!\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou need to know that she\u2019s a viper!\u201d Gavin said quickly, earning himself a stunned look from\u00a0<\/p>\n
Alpha Frostclaw. \u201cShe\u2019s evil and vile\u2026 and a murderer.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cReally?\u201d Now, Alpha Jarek seemed genuinely invested. \u201cHow so?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
A sultry smile made its way onto my face when I noticed the curiosity in his features. I leaned closer to him and with my voice barely above a whisper, I said; \u201cShe may act like she doesn\u2019t know us, but she does. She\u2019s my sister\u2026 our family. And everything my brother just said is\u00a0<\/p>\n
true.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNo shit.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe killed our grandmother\u2026 but it was an accident, I assure you. She may hate me but she\u2019s not an intentional murderer.\u201d I said slowly,\u00a0<\/p>\n
choosing my words carefully to get the reaction I desired.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I did.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Because for the first time that night, Alpha\u00a0<\/p>\n
Frostclaw flashed a genuine smile at me and something about it made my stomach dip. He drawled; \u201cI think I\u2019ll need to set up a meeting with you later, beautiful Ms Blackthorne, but for now, I need to go to my companion.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
And with that, he waltzed away, leaving me\u00a0<\/p>\n
grinning like a fool as I watched his retreating\u00a0<\/p>\n
frame.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My smile didn\u2019t leave my face when I turned to my parents, and it certainly remained when Gavin pulled me into a crushing hug.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou may bag that job you\u2019ve been dreaming about soon!\u201d He squealed excitedly. And while I also thought about that, that wasn\u2019t the only thing I wanted anymore.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Now, I had grown quite greedy. I wanted the job. I wanted the man. And I wanted my sister back to where she belonged\u2026 below me. Not sashaying\u00a0<\/p>\n
through elite crowds like this.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And certainly not hanging on the arms of one of the most eligible bachelors in our circle.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I cannot seem to shake off however is Leilani\u2019s relationship with Alpha Frostclaw.\u201d Gavin said suddenly, catching my attention, \u201cThey seem pretty close, and I hope to the heavens that she doesn\u2019t try to ruin your chances of working with him out of spite.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think he\u2019s her sugar daddy,\u201d I muttered quietly, smiling secretly when everyone\u2019s faces hardened. \u201cShe won\u2019t have anything to do with my work. She only has to be in his bed,\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u2018For now.\u2019 I thought to myself but didn\u2019t say that out loud\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe really is shameless,\u201d Father spat darkly. \u201cOnce a whore, always a whore.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cShe isn\u2019t a whore.\u201d I cried softly, causing\u00a0<\/p>\n
everyone to turn to me in surprise for a moment before Gavin began to berate me for having a\u00a0<\/p>\n
very soft heart- as usual.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I smiled. If only he knew\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella\u2019s storytelling style is immersive and addictive\u2014perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.<\/p>\n
Healing Slowly But Surely By R. Joseph 26 26 If Only He Knew.\u00a0 Chalice.\u00a0 At first, I was jealous of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-23229","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-chosen-by-none-feared-by-all"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23229","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=23229"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/23229\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=23229"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=23229"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=23229"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}