Tasting
Chapter 73

73-Jealousy Is In The Air

Nora:

We crashed out after finishing off the entire box of ice cream. It was actually me who resisted stashing the leftovers in the fridge; I didn’t want to waste it, and I was just too scared to step out of my room and risk bumping into Ryker again. My earlobe still throbbed whenever I reminisced about the sensation of his kisses. But deep down, I cursed myself for freaking out and not relishing those kisses more. I was so afraid of getting caught that I didn’t fully immerse myself in the moment.

“I can’t thank you enough for looking after me,” Natalya said as I assisted her in walking around, her arm draped over my shoulder, guiding her to the terrace. I hadn’t frequented the terrace much myself. The second-floor terrace was actually quite beautiful, with pristine white furniture and a view of the mountains and the garden below.

“It was my fault anyway. I should have known better,” I said, sinking into the chair after settling her onto the couch.

“It was not though. And there was no way you could have found out about the alpha king’s plans. They are like that. And for them, the pack’s security is always over anything,” she spoke about them with a smile on her lips before she shook herself out of the trance to stare at me again.

73 Jealousy Is In The Air

“Oh! Him!” I was surprised at how quickly I’d forgotten about him.

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“Nothing. After he split from this mansion, I never heard from him,” I shrugged.

“I heard he’s joining our school from to. rrow. He’ll be teaming up with Alpha King Ryker. I think it’ll be a disaster, at least for me,” she sighed, adding that part

“No! Don’t think like that. You’ve already faced your punishment. I don’t think they’ll hold it against you anymore,” I wasn’t sure if Ryker would or not, but I had a hunch he wouldn’t make a big deal out of it.

“Easy for you to say,” she remarked, prompting a raised eyebrow from me.

“I’m just stating the truth. Look at you; your stepbrother takes care of you, then Brody definitely has some feelings for you,” she continued to speak, and I found myself raising my eyebrow higher and higher.

“Brody doesn’t have any feelings for me, Natalya. We only met. once,” I chuckled at her tendency to jump to conclusions.

“I don’t know. The way he looked at you and how he kept striking up conversations with you. You didn’t notice that?” she asked, and I shook my head.

That was a lie. I did feel something when we met, and when he stayed over that night. But after that, especially after last night, I

“Oh! Him!” I was surprised at how quickly I’d forgotten about

him.

“Nothing. After he split from this mansion, I never heard from him,” I shrugged.

“I heard he’s joining our school from tomorrow. He’ll be teaming up with Alpha King Ryker. I think it’ll be a disaster, at least for me,” she sighed, adding that part.

“No! Don’t think like that. You’ve already

d your punishment. I don’t think they’ll hold it against you anymore,” I wasn’t sure if Ryker would or not, but I had a hunch he wouldn’t make a big deal out of it.

“Easy for you to say,” she remarked, prompting a raised eyebrow from me.

“I’m just stating the truth. Look at you; your stepbrother takes care of you, then Brody definitely has some feelings for you,” she continued to speak, and I found myself raising my eyebrow higher and higher.

“Brody doesn’t have any feelings for me, Natalya. We only met once,” I chuckled at her tendency to jump to conclusions.

“I don’t know. The way he looked at you and how he kept striking up conversations with you. You didn’t notice that?” she asked, and I shook my head.

That was a lie. I did feel something when we met, and when he stayed over that night. But after that, especially after last night, I just don’t know. I had started to harbor some hopes from my fated mate. At least, not from Cain, even when he said he was reconsidering rejecting me. I’m sure his decision stemmed from

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replaceing a mate after such a long wait and fear of losing an opportunity to ever replace a second chance mate after that.

“Oh, look! It’s like these hot alpha kings just want to remind you how irresistible they are, and none of us can have them,” she raised her head slightly, gazing down at the garden. I heard her sigh and followed her gaze to replace my stepbrothers standing there. Not all of them, just Silas, Nash, and Cain. Ryker was crouched over, tearing apart a red rosehile lost in thought, listening to his brothers.

“We?” I couldn’t help but laugh at her comment.

“I can’t have them because I’m not that special, and you’re their stepsister, remember?” she laughed as I rolled my eyes at her.

“That’s why I ask you. Why are you dragging me? I’m not even in the mix,” I joked, feeling awkward.

“Oh, look!” she pointed excitedly, then added, “No! Don’t look. That would be wrong,” wrinkling her nose, but I couldn’t resist sneaking a peek.

It was Cain slowly peeling off his shirt while chatting with his brother. That was his problem; he knew he was attractive. His fingers casually roamed across the buttons, effortlessly undoing them and revealing his chest, then his abs. He discarded the shirt onto the nearby table.

Silas and Nash stood before him, scrutinizing his physique. It seemed like Nash was particularly interested in their muscles. I knew he would be; he was obsessed with staying in shape. But oh, sweet Moon Goddess! Cain looked incredibly sexy under the soft sunlight. The rays highlighted the tattoo that I thought he had. I couldn’t quite make out the tattoo from here because

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they were still far away. On top of that, Cain started to remove his pants.

“What the heck, Natalya,” I exclaimed, rushing over to her and pulling her down.

“What? Let me see,” she hissed, attempting to rise again.

“I think he’s working out,” I muttered, cautiously rising to see. what he was up to now.

Well, he still had his shorts on.

“He scared me,” I whispered, and Natalya slapped the back of my head.

“You shouldn’t be watching,” she groaned, casting a judgmental glance at me.

“I wasn’t. I was just making sure you weren’t watching,” I hissed at her. As I continued to rise slightly to steal a glance, I saw Ryker lifting his head, narrowing his eyes at me before gesturing, for me to lower my body and refrain from peeking.

It was Nash watching Cain do push-ups and not getting tired.

My phone beeped, and I lowered my body, letting Natalya be the curious one. No matter how much I tried to pull her down, she wouldn’t budge. She was eagerly ogling at my mate, and for the first time, I openly admitted to myself that her stares at him. bothered me.

But my mood shifted instantly when I saw the ID of the texter and read the message.

R: Can you stop? Do you want me to come up there an