Alpha’s Virgin Stripper
Chapter 77

Lake:

My eyes glanced around my studio at his command. It was instant, the swift sweep of my orbs around the room I now knew as my safe haven. How he has gotten into this place, I neither knew nor understood. But it did feel good to have check up on me.

Everything seemed to be driving me crazy these days, this room was the only room I could sit and think. What could be better than sitting in a dark room filled with your paintings while beating your best friend who liked to run his mouth, at mortal combat? I'll tell you, nothing.

However, when I did as he asked, all my eyes caught were paintings of a beautiful and delicate woman. Porcelain skin, moss green eyes, and waves of hair that shared the color of the evening sun burning red, faint freckles scattered all over her rosy cheeks.

Jojo.

Not one, not two, and not three.

For some reason, I found myself smiling with warm cheeks as I stretched my hand to cover Kenji's eyes.

"Do not look at those, some of them are nude." I spat out.

It was only now that he pointed it out, I realized I had drawn more pictures of her in the past thirty days than I had ever done since I met her. On several occasions, I had come in here to draw, the only thing that gave me peace, but I always ended scribbling her name, or drawing her hair, and most times, her whole body.

Kenji laughed and turned away from me.

"Why would you want me to do that? Isn't she just a stripper?"

The question fell on my ears like a missile. I found myself clutching my pad with more force that I was supposed to. I felt my jaw harden and my thoughts began to spiral. His eyes were on me, I could see and feel him watching me like a hawk. He was carefully searching for my reaction to everything.

I heaved a small sigh, exhaling to calm my nerves down. If he had been any other man, I could guarantee you he would have been on the floor, grinding his teeth against the walls of the pad on the table, with blood oozing out of his gum. Yes. I would have made that happen.

He was my best friend, so I ignored the comment and took my anger out on his player instead. Since I could not beat him physically, I did not fail to make an unlawful mess of his Mortal Kombat character. His avatar fell to the ground, after my fatal victory was declared.

I smiled to myself, now feeling satisfied. But, Kenji did not take his loss lightly. He had a lot to say, he always had a lot to say.

"Hey! That's not fair! We had just finished a heartfelt conversation, I was not even concentrating!" Kenji drawled.

I stared at him with a smug smile on my face. The satisfaction from making him eat his words was tremendous.

"I never asked you to lose focus, did I?"

He turned away from me and dropped the pad on the table, frowning with a childlike annoyance. Being the only child of two parents in a stable home and a loving relationship made Kenji act like a baby sometimes. His frown finally died. He turned to me and relaxed against the chair with the side of his shoulder.

"Honestly, Lake. I need you to tell me something. I am going to ask you a question, and I am going to need you to be brutally honest with me. No jokes, no sarcastic remarks, just pure honesty." He started. No sarcastic remarks? That will be hard.

"Ask me no questions and I will tell you no lies," I replied to him, but he did not take me seriously. Instead, he adjusted his posture by sitting up and narrowing his eyes on me.

"What do you think about Jojo? What do you really want from her? For her?" He asked.

Of all the questions in the world, Kenji had to ask me this one. The one question I had been avoiding, the one question I did not even want to asky myself. And he was expecting an answer? Yeah, right.

I said nothing and turned away from him. He was not the one who would cause me to face the demons I had carefully tucked away.

He soon realized I was not going to speak on it. Kenji moved closer to me, but I did not look at him anymore.

"Come on, Lake. We are brothers, we have always been brothers. You know you can speak to me if shit's going on. Right now, I am the only one who can really understand what's going on. I know how you feel, trust me when I say I can understand. But, I need you to speak to me, to know and acknowledge that I've got your back no matter what..."

Okay. That was enough softness from a man to another man. I had to say something, or Kenji's speech would not end.

"I don't know, okay?"

I saw him relax against the chair when I finally spoke up.

My eyes found my most recent painting of her. She was in neon green lingerie. I inhaled deeply and exhaled sharply, tearing my gaze away from the painting, before I continued.

"I really do not know. I made sure to keep her far away from me, so as to forget and avoid her. But, it's like the harder I try, the more her memories come on strong. I see her everywhere, Ken. In the shower, in the kitchen, I smell her when I lie on my bed, I see her when I am trying to work at the office, I feel her when I'm at the gym, I taste her in my coffee. She is everywhere I turn, even her scent lingers on my clothes. How can someone be able to mess with all my five senses like that? I thought keeping away from her would help me, but I only feel drowned and trapped."

It felt as though a huge rock had been lifted from my shoulders, and pulled out of my chest. It was oddly relaxing, too relaxing that I found myself leaning my back against the chair.

Kenji heaved a sigh. I was very certain he had not seen my wholesome confession coming.

"Have you tried rejecting her?"

"Yes, I..." I paused. The pause was quick and sudden, so was the realization that hit me straight in the head like a bullet.

"You knew we were mates?" I asked.

Just a heads up: Narugi.com is the only place to read the complete version of this book for free. Don't miss out on the next chapter-visit us now and continue your journey!

He chuckled, throwing his head back in slight laughter.

"Come on, don't be ridiculous. You either told me, or I figured."

"Could you figure out if two people were mates?" I spat out. Hus eyes swept over me, before he scoffed.

"Naturally, no. But with you my friend, even the blind can see it. Your imprints are everywhere around her. It's almost disgusting."

I was automatically uneasy.

"I have been that obvious?"

"Obvious, and oblivious of that fact? Yes, you have been, my friend. It's only a matter of time until your father senses it too. Goodness, the goddess alone knows how many more people have figured it out." I shifted in my seat.

I had to be careful then.

"So, what do you plan to do?" He asked, and I looked up at the ceiling.

"What's there to do? I'll have to reject her. That's the only way to get rid of this... thing." I replied.

Kenji gave me a slight tap on my right shoulder, before he spoke.

"On a lighter note, I did see Salome at the party. She was looking radiant, very beautiful." Kenji started.

On a lighter note? He really thought Salome was "a lighter note"?

"She asked after you." He continued.

"I'm surprised she doesn't hate me," I said out loud. I heard Kenji sigh.

"I'm sure she understood."

I scoffed. I wished they did, but they never did.

"Salome didn't understand, Jade doesn't understand and Jojo... Jojo would not understand. It's just the reality of my life."

I heard Kenji chuckle, before he tapped my right leg and rose from the chair.

"Okay, mister heart breaker. Let's go out and eat. I have developed a strong likeness for the lady at that restaurant we went to."

I looked up at him and cast him a knowing glance.

"Is she the one making you must about family and shit?"

His face squeezed, and his brows squinted.

"What? No..." He paused, and a thoughtful look appeared on his face.

"Well, yeah... never mind."

Yes, guilty.

A knowing smirk appeared on my lips, I chuckled as he pulled me up from my chair.

My phone vibrated in my pocket and I pulled it out immediately. One look at the caller ID told me it was Neil.

As Kenji and I stepped out of my studio, I answered the call and pressed the phone against my right ear. "Hello?"

"Alpha Lake..." His voice sounded urgent.

"Alpha, I... I have news. Dorcas Wyatt is awake; she's opened her eyes!"

I stood on my spot.

What?

"What?"

"There might be some complications. I'm not quite sure, but..."

He didn't have to finish his statement, before I felt my heels touch my back as I dashed out of my room.