Alpha Leo And The Heart Of Fire (The Rossi Legacies Book 1)
Alpha Leo and the Heart of Fire Chapter 51

AZURA.

It was so hard having to pretend that he had no effect on me when all I wanted was to be in his arms. My entire body reacted to just his presence being near, I felt giddy, and even breathing became difficult. The way that he had looked at me had made my core clench in desire, but Nikki's presence had been a pretty good slap in the face. I had thankfully been able to keep control of myself and give him the cold shoulder.

I walked into the garden, gulping in a desperately needed mouthful of air.

I needed something to drink...

Jackie excused herself, so Song and I made our way over to the drinks bar. Both of us grabbing a non-alcoholic drink.

"So, was that her?" Song asked softly.

"Yup, that was her." I replied, downing my drink and sighing.

"I can't believe she's in red." Song murmured, trying to keep her voice down.

"Hmm, I guess it was purely coincidental." I replied.

Song frowned.

"I don't like her, and something tells me it really wasn't coincidental."

"Yeah, me neither." I muttered.

Just then, I felt an intense wave of power, and turned sharply to see Leo holding Nikki's wrist.

Even a fool could see there was nothing casual or intimate about it, Leo was exuding rage.

"I have been fucking patient with you, so before I have you thrown out of here... get the f**k away from me." He growled, making everyone go quiet.

My heart thundered as Nikki looked near tears.

Harsh, but she kind of deserved it...

"You're hurting me, Leo."

Then get the fucking hint that he doesn't want you. Seriously, this woman....

"Then don't fucking touch me." Leo hissed, letting go of her.

He turned suddenly, his eyes meeting mine.

Once again, he was consuming me, those steely magnetic eyes burning into mine. My heart pounded as he looked at me with such power, almost as if he was devouring me from where he stood. "Leo?" Jax called him.

He looked away, and the intense connection broke. I turned too, my heart thumping.

"What was that?" Song asked curiously. "I've seen mated couples... but that... damn. You two really have crazy chemistry, and that s****l ten-"

She stopped when I gave her a pointed look.

I didn't know what to say. Even my own head didn't feel right.

"It's probably the hatred." I replied, frowning slightly.

She rolled her eyes with a knowing smile.

"You are stubborn, and I think so is he... He is, after all, a Rossi." She mused, glancing around.

I could tell people were more tentative towards her, with her being a witch. Some wanted to approach me, but because of her, they were not coming closer. This pack was a lot more isolated than the rest, magic wasn't always accepted, but I was glad no one was giving her hateful looks.

I could feel Leo's eyes on me, but I didn't turn back, not wanting to be caught up in him again.

"Oh wow, Azura, I like your lipstick." Corrado complimented as he ran over.

He had spent the last hour watching me get ready and complimenting my dress, but I hadn't put any lipstick on at that point. "Thank you! Oh, we're both wearing red, we should get a picture." I suggested, smiling down at the gorgeous little cherub. "Yes, we should." He agreed, just as Marcel came over, smiling slightly.

"You ladies look beautiful. Welcome to our pack, Song. I hope your stay is going well." Marcel said, offering her a handshake. "Thanks for allowing me to stay, Alpha Marcel. Yes, it's going great, thanks." Song replied, taking the offered hand. "Any friend of Azura's is welcome here." He said, turning to me. "My, you remind me of your mother right now."

I smiled, I didn't need to ask him if he meant Mama or Indigo. We all know who the queen of red is. "Thank you. Winona really does have an eye for clothes." I said, brushing my hand along the fabric.

I had been pleasantly surprised to replace that she was the one who had purchased the clothes that Leo had gotten for me. Despite her wearing neutrals and plain clothes, she had an eye for this stuff. I mean, some of that lingerie was pretty sexy. I would never have guessed she was the one who had purchased it. Even seeing her in that black dress that Marcel had ordered for a woman of her size and shape, it had been a dress that complimented her slender frame so beautifully.

In return, Song and I had made sure she wore some make-up to go with it, and right now I wondered how the hell Leo hadn't chosen her for a girlfriend over Nikki. Winona was gorgeous inside and out, and I could tell she was getting a lot of attention as she walked around making sure everything was in order. She was even the perfect mother to Corrado...

"She does indeed." Marcel agreed, smiling down at Corrado as he almost touched his hair, but Corrado ducked.

"Not the hair, granddad, I styled it." He said, smoothing his fringe.

"Sorry son, my mistake. Do forgive me." Marcel grinned as he turned to look over towards Leo. "Well, I think I should make a toast before we get this party on its way."

"Thank you, Marcel, for tonight. You really didn't have to do this." I said.

"It's nothing at all." He replied, as Corrado now observed Song.

"Who are you, miss?" He asked innocently.

"I'm Song, a friend of Azura's." She said, crouching down. "What's your name?"

"I'm Corrado Herrmann Rossi." He said proudly, puffing out his chest.

Song laughed.

"Oh, that's an impressive name!" She complimented.

"Yes, it is." Corrado agreed.

"Can I have everyone's attention?"

I turned to see Marcel standing next to Leo, who now had an alcoholic drink in his right hand, a cigarette between two fingers of the same hand. He turned towards Marcel, as always oozing s*x appeal, power, and arrogance. Damn, he looked so good tonight... Hell, when did he ever not?

Why was he created so perfectly?

I forced my eyes away as everyone became quieter, giving their Alpha their full attention.

"As everyone knows, I called this party on short notice, and I appreciate everyone who dropped everything to attend. The guest of honour for this evening is Azura Westwood. It's an immense pleasure to have her here, amongst us... As you all may already know, she is... holding a very important part of this pack." Marcel spoke clearly. At his last sentence, I saw Leo look at him sharply, his gaze snapping to Corrado as Marcel continued smoothly. It was clear he wasn't about to just drop the bomb on Corrado. Leo needed to just calm down.

Idiot.

"Tonight, we drink and celebrate in their name. I do have another announcement, however as it is not part of this celebration, I will save it for the end of the evening. Thank you and enjoy the evening, ladies and gentlemen." Marcel finished, raising his glass. Everyone clapped, and I could feel many eyes on me, I could hear the whispers as well.

But surprisingly, there weren't any negative ones, aside from a few emphasising on me being a Westwood. Most were just compliments on my looks and how amazing I looked.

See Leo, your pack thinks I'm pretty decent.

"Can I offer you ladies a drink?" Jax asked, coming over, a smirk on his lips.

Instantly, I felt Leo's attention on me, and I smiled slightly.

"Thank you." I said with a toss of my hair, taking a glass as Song thanked him and took the other.

"The décor looks good." Jax remarked.

"It does, doesn't it." I agreed.

"It goes perfectly with the colour of Azura's dress." Song said.

"Only nowhere near as beautiful." Jax said with a wink.

Oh, he was doing it on purpose, and I was certainly not complaining.

"Want to dance?" He asked as I sipped the wine.

"Jax." Leo's menacing voice came.

Jax smirked.

"Maybe later, my lady in red." He said lightly, before turning and walking over to Leo.

So, what was he going to do? Growl at any man who comes near me?

I was about to say something to Song, when Eric and Jackie came over.

"Congratulations on that news." Eric said smiling as he glanced at my stomach and gave me an exaggerated wink.

I smiled back and, reaching over, patted his face.

"You look extremely handsome, Eric, but my fingers are itching to work on that beard of yours..." I said with a smirk.

I'm sure behind that beard of his he had a handsome face. Bless his soul, some men suited beards, but in Eric's case, I was sure a trim would do him much good.

"Thanks Lun- Azura." He said sheepishly, smoothly moving away from my touch. I gave him a dangerously sweet smile. Maybe I'll focus on Jax instead, he seemed to not be as scared of Leo as Eric...

"Oh, Brody!" Corrado called, running after another child and leaving the four of us alone.

Jackie muffled a yawn, massaging her temples.

"If you want, I know a spell or two for getting good sleep." Song offered.

"I'm ok, thanks though." Jackie replied, smiling gently, although it didn't reach her eyes, which were full of pain.

Earlier inside, I had just wanted to get away from Nikki, but now I wanted to speak to her.

"Mind if Jackie and I leave you for a bit?" I asked the other two.

"Not at all, I'll keep your friend occupied." Eric replied with a grin.

"Yeah, take your time." Song said before turning to Eric. "Want to dance?"

"Me? Sure." Eric said with a shrug. "Not that I've danced much..."

"Don't worry, I'll lead." Song replied with a laugh.

I smiled slightly and looked at Jackie, who looked concerned.

"Is everything ok?"

"Yeah, come on." I said, feeling Leo's eyes searing into my back.

We walked together through the crowds, although I had to stop a few times as people introduced themselves and complimented me. A few even ask about the baby.

I saw Song begin dancing, her grey dress with silver sequined flowers sparkling under the fairy lights above. Although Eric said he couldn't dance, he was doing pretty good.

When we were finally on the other side of the garden near the pool, which looked pretty with red petals and floating led candles, we took a seat on one of the benches as an upbeat song began playing. Even though we were in a secluded area, we could still hear it clearly. The rustle of the leaves in the trees and the whisper of the wind could be heard too.

"Don't be scared, the only person who should be worried around me is Leo." I said with a small smirk. "I didn't say it inside, but you know, if you ever want to talk about anything, I'm here..."

"Thanks, and I'm not scared! Just more... just disappointed, I feel like I really did fail you. You know, I didn't even tell Nikki about the baby, but with Emmet... Sometimes we just tell our mate things we usually wouldn't, I never thought he'd tell anyone but yeah, he didn't. He just did way worse." Her voice was pained and bitter. "I can't believe he'd ever hurt a child, but he did, he did."

She ran her hands down her face, I placed my hand on her knee.

"I get that, it's just the way the bond is. Sometimes I wonder why the Goddess makes some pairings, like did she make a mistake?" I murmured, looking up at the faint moon that was beginning to get brighter.

Like mine.

Why did she pair us?