CHAPTER EIGHT
KIARA’S POV
The next morning, I woke up to the sounds of chatter outside my room. One of the voices belonged to Risha and the other must have been Cami.
“Damn! My brother has turned into a lovesick puppy! Do you know what he did yesterday night?” Risha’s agitated voice sounded.
“Take a deep breath and tell me exactly what happened?” Cami’s sweet and soothing voice sounded.
“He…that fool… called up ‘Zinnia Apparels and got twelve dresses delivered overnight. No rewards for guessing for whom it is!”
“That is because Kiara doesn’t have any clothes to wear…”
“You don’t understand, Cami. My brother hates shopping. He didn’t buy a dress for me even after I bugged him for ages. He hasn’t even marked her but look at him… He has changed so much… I am afraid I will lose my brother to that scheming b****!”
My heart fluttered at her statement. I had this uncontrollable urge to check out the dresses. My feet got entangled in the blanket and I almost fell while getting out of the bed. Kevin must have covered me up after I slept off last night.
Throwing the blanket on the bed, I sauntered to the large, teak wardrobe. The door opened at a single tug to reveal an array of dresses.
Each one of them looked stunning. Running my fingers over the clothes, I noticed a note stuck on the door of the wardrobe.
‘Kiara, hope you like these dresses.
With Love,
Kevin…’
It was just a tiny note but it made my heart started racing as if it wanted to jump out of my chest.
I was still gazing at the dresses when I sensed his presence. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw him leaning against the wall near the entrance.
I took out the dresses one by one and dropped them to the floor. Kevin kept watching me but he didn’t try to stop me.
Rummaging through the drawers, I found a lighter. I locked my eyes with him as I flared up the lighter. My lips spread in a weak smile as I dropped it on the colorful heap of clothes.
Horror, fear, and anger flashed through his eyes. He grabbed my arms and pushed me against the wall. My heart pounded in anticipation as I waited for him to vent out his frustration.
He placed his hand on my right cheek and whispered, “It is my mistake. I should have asked you what you like to wear.”
What the hell was wrong with this man? I had just destroyed the dresses he brought for me with love. Rather than getting angry, he was apologizing.
I was so stunned that I couldn’t respond. What he did next shocked me further. He thrust a black credit card into my hand saying, “Use this to buy whatever you like.”
He leaned in to place a gentle kiss on my forehead before rushing to the bathroom. I watched quietly as he used a hose to spray water over the lapping flames.
The next week was a real struggle for me. He kept trying to get closer at every opportunity he got. He almost managed to kiss me four to five times. If I had gotten swayed even slightly, he would have been dead by now.
I tried everything I could to make Kevin angry. I insulted him, his sister, Cami, tried to be cheeky, and destroyed several artifacts.
It seemed to not affect him in any way. He sure had the patience of Buddha. He would either laugh it off or apologize instead of me. The only time I saw him getting angry was when I insulted his mother.
He was about to lash out at me but mom stopped him. The pain and hurt I saw in her eyes tore me apart. These tiny squabbles were leading me nowhere. I had to do something drastic.
I got the perfect opportunity when I saw the envelope for the ‘Steel Plant Auction.’ As expected, it had all the details for the bid.
I sneaked into Risha’s room while she was away and found out the contact details of the competitors of Gilkins Enterprises.
The next day, when Kevin and his father returned from the office they looked pale. Father threw the briefcase on the couch and trotted upstairs to his room without speaking a single word.
“Why is dad in such a sour mood?” Risha asked, turning her attention to Kevin.
My heart twisted with guilt when I saw Kevin’s forlorn expression. He licked his lips and ran his hand through his hair. “We lost the Steel Project.”
“How is that possible? You both worked so hard for it! We haven’t lost a single bid in the past ten years…” Mom said in a worried tone as she walked in with a tray of tea.
He let out a long deep sigh and said, “Someone must have leaked the bid price.”
“That is impossible, Kevin. All the important staff members are from our pack. They can’t betray their Alpha.”
Kevin just nodded and trudged to his room. I followed close behind him. It was showtime. He was sure to keep his distance from me after this.
The moment he entered the room, he started rummaging through his files and drawers.
“Looking for something,” I said, waving the envelope in from of him.
His eyes squinted as he took the envelope from me. “Where did you find this?”
“Ah…that… I found it on the study table.” I said shrugging.
“Did you show this to anyone else?”
“No…”
“Hmm… I wonder how the manager of Lengrade Corporation found out about our bid price. We lost to him by a hundred dollars.”
It didn’t seem like he suspected me from his tone. Exhaling deeply, I blurted out, “I mailed it to him.”
“Sorry… what?”
I pretended to be all flustered and ranted, “Of course, I didn’t mean that. How could I possibly know the name of your competitors? How would I find their email id… I… I just…” I let my voice break and looked at him with a guilty expression.
Hurt flashed in his eyes. Shaking his head, he muttered, “You couldn’t possibly do that… you are my mate…”
I shrugged my shoulders indignantly and said, “Why can’t I? A million dollars is a huge amount… anyone can be swayed by it…”
His eyes turned red with fury. The veins on his forehead popped and his jaws clenched. I winced as he gripped me by my shoulders. He kept looking into my eyes for a while. Then, he pushed me away and stormed out of the room.
A long, suffering sigh escaped my mouth as I sat on the bed. It was good that he didn’t kick me out of the mansion immediately. One task was accomplished. He would probably not even talk to me for a few days.
Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep! My phone rang with a shrill tune.
“You are really useless, aren’t you? It has been a week and you have still not found out what the pack’s secret is!” I flinched as Ariana’s blaring voice sounded through the phone.
“I have searched through all the files and papers in the mansion. I don’t think there is anything in here…”
“Why do you have to search? Can’t you just ask Kevin? After all, he is your mate…” There was a long pause before she continued in a cold tone, “Don’t tell me you are up to your old tricks again…”
My heart skipped a beat when I heard this. I couldn’t let her suspect me. “I wouldn’t dare… I just didn’t get the opportunity to broach this topic… It is quite weird to start talking about the pack’s secret and safety abruptly…”
I hadn’t even completed my explanation when the phone went dead. God knew what she was planning to do now…