Alpha’s Hybrid Cinderella
Chapter 99

Peelle

I love spending time with Eda.

Being in her presence is addicting. Her scent, her smile, her laugh, all of it is just so perfect.

She told me random things about her life. Her mom and her did odd jobs and hunted a lot to stay afloat, she didn't know who her father was, and her mom has been a rogue her whole life. She says, "It's weird being in a packhouse and seeing how others have lived their whole lives... it's just... hard to imagine."

I nod as I take her hand and tell her, "That makes sense, it's a bit of a culture shock."

Eda nods her head and I ask, "So, would you be interested in becoming a part of the pack? You don't have to be a rogue anymore. You have opportunities now that you might have had before."

She looks at me with wide eyes I say, "You don't have to make any decisions now, Eda. I just want you thinking about it. Would you be interested in school? Or would you just want to focus on learning what will be expected of you as a Luna."

Her eyebrows furrow and says, "I've... I've never been to school before. I don't think I could do that, aren't I a bit late for that?"

"You've never been to any school? No even like elementary or middle school?"

She shrugs, "My mom taught me stuff, but we couldn't afford to do anything outside the house."

I rub her hand as I say, "We'll figure it all out. I want you to be able to do anything you want in life."

Her cheeks turn red, and I'm drawn to her, I need to kiss her soon. I've never felt this kind of need in my life.

Before I can try to act on it though, there's a knock on the door. Eda stands up to go answer, but just based on the rough knocking, I know that it's Osborn.

She opens the door and makes a startled noise as he pushes past her. He looks at me and the breakfast setup we had and then looks back at Eda and he asks, "Why aren't you two at breakfast?"

Eda looks like a deer caught in headlights and I hate how Osborn's presence makes her so uncomfortable. I answer, "I thought it would be best to spend some time in private to get to know each other better. Besides, there's so many people at our breakfast table, I thought it could be overwhelming for Eda to meet everyone at once."

Osborn lets out a low grumble and Eda's eyes flicker between him and me. I breathe out as I stand up and walk to her side. Osborn keeps his eyes on me the entire time. I tell him, "You're welcome to join us, Osborn, but could you calm down. Can't you see you're scaring her?"

His eyes flicker to her for a moment and his face softens a little and it makes me happy to see that on some level he does care about her.

He breathes out and says, "No, it's fine. Enjoy your breakfast."

He turns to leave, and Eda watches him with a confused expression and once the door closes, she whispers, "He doesn't like me... does he?"

My heart hurts for her and I kiss her head before telling her, "Stay here, I'll be right back."

Osborn

My feelings toward Eda is... complicated.

When I went down for breakfast, I looked forward to being able to see her and know that she is doing good. But she wasn't there.

Alita said something about Peelle and her spending some time alone and a red-hot rage fueled me.

Eda is my mate! Why should he get so much time alone with her?

Shouldn't they have at least offered to include me? I could've joined them for breakfast.

But in the back of my head, I keep thinking about the fact that she is a rogue and rogues don't deserve to be in such a nice place. I'm making exceptions for her because she's my mate, but it doesn't change who she is.

I storm into my office, perhaps taking a trip to a new pack is just what I need. It can get me away from her and allow me to process my feelings in private.

I sit down in my seat and immediately there's a knock on my door. I breathe out and say, "Come in."

Peelle walks in and closes the door behind him. Before I can say a word, he says, "Look, I know we're not close. I know that I'm not your favorite person or whatever, but this girl, Eda, is both of our mates. You can't storm in acting like you own her whenever you haven't even tried to spend anytime with her!"

I stare at him, surprised by his outburst. Peelle has always been calm and had a go with the flow kind of attitude that seeing him stand up to me and be this angry over a girl is interesting.

Then again, this girl is his mate and men do crazy things for their mates.

He shakes his head and runs his hands through his hair before he asks, "Do you even realize the affect you have on her?"

I don't respond and he curses under his breath before saying, "Osborn, you've looked for this girl for freaking years! What is wrong with you? I thought you would treat her well because you seemed so desperate to have a mate."

I say, "Nothing is wrong with me. She's a rogue."

"So what? She's your mate! And if you would take a few minutes to actually talk with her then you would realize she's so much more than just a rogue"."

I wave my hand, dismissing him, as I say, "Leave Peelle."

He shakes his head at me in complete disbelief and then says in a warning tone, "I'd be careful if I were you, Osborn. You might lose her forever if you don't chance your behavior."

I growl lowly, my wolf feeling threatened, and I yell, "Get out!"

He closes the door and I force myself to take deep breathes to prevent myself from shifting, my wolf angry that he would say those words to us.

But deep down I know that he is right. If I'm not careful, I could lose her. But... I don't know if I really want her. I need her at arm's length so I can keep her safe.

I breathe in deeply, unable to ignore the faint scent of her. I wish I could be with her the way Peelle is, but that's too risky.

I won't let you get hurt, Eda. I know you can't see it, but you mean more to me than you'll ever know.