E & Alexander


    E


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    The charity auction was everything I’d expected it to be–packed with socialites who were all dressed to the nines, elegant white linens and crystal chandeliers, and tables full of auction items lining the walls.


    Alexander and I had been making the rounds for about an hour, his hand never moving away from its position on my lower back as we moved from table to table, examining the various items up for bid.


    A weekend getaway to the mountains. A vintage wine collection. A private dinner with a celebrity chef.


    All of it felt hollow and meaningless when so many other couples were bidding on the more intimate options, and all the while I was wearing a fake mark and pretending to be madly in love with a man who could barely stand to touch me.


    “Smile,” Alexander murmured in my ear as a photographer approached. “Look interested in the jewelry.”


    I stered on my Luna smile and leaned closer to examine a diamond tennis bracelet on the table in front


    of me. The photographer snapped a few pictures, and I made sure to angle my neck so the fake mark was clearly visible.


    Just another performance in our endless charade.


    Once the photographer grew tired of us, we moved to the next table, where Alexander struck up a


    conversation with another Alpha about some business deal while I perused a collection of rare antique


    books. I was actually reading the spines, trying to find something that Lilith might like, when I felt something m into me from behind.


    I stumbled forward, catching myself against the edge of the table, but I felt something catch on the corner


    and snap against my neck. The delicate chain of Lilith’s locket broke, and I watched in horror as the piece of jewelry fell to the floor.


    “Oh my Goddess, I’m <i>so </i>sorry!”


    I turned to find Sophia standing behind me. She was wearing a stunning red dress, and her blonde hair was


    swept up into an borate style.


    “I didn’t see you there,” she said. “How clumsy of me!”


    Before I could react, she stepped forward as if to help, but her heel came down directly on Lilith’s locket with a sickening crunch.


    “No!” I gasped, hand flying to my throat as I stared down at the ne. The delicate engravings were


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    scratched and dented beyond repair, and the chain waspletely destroyed.


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    Lilith’s family heirloom. Generations of history, crushed under the heel of Sophia’s shoe in the span of one


    night.


    “Oh dear, it’spletely ruined, isn’t it?” Sophia said airily. “What a shame. It looked so… quaint.”


    Quaint.


    She knew exactly what she’d done. This wasn’t an ident.


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    I turned slowly to look Sophia directly in the eye. For a moment, I seriously considered pping that smug expression right off her perfect face. My hand actually twitched with the urge.


    But I caught myself when I saw the onlookers staring at us from behind their folding fans and sses of champagne. Causing a scene at a charity auction wouldn’t help anyone, least of all me. It would only give the gossips more ammunition and make Alexander look bad..


    “idents happen,” I said quietly, clenching my hand into a fist at my side.


    Sophia gestured to the tables around us. “Well, at least you’re surrounded by plenty of jewelry to rece it


    with.”


    I didn’t trust myself to respond to that. Without another word, I turned and stalked away, weaving through the crowd toward the bathroom. I could feel Alexander’s eyes on me, but I didn’t look back. He’d probably


    side with Sophia anyway–he always did.


    The bathroom was mercifully empty when I reached it. I locked the door behind me and finally let the tears


    fall.


    It was gone. The one real thing I had these days, the symbol of someone’s unconditional love for me…


    destroyed.


    I leaned against the sink, trying to pull myself together. I had to go back out there, of course. People would begin to ask questions soon.


    But as I straightened up, the room suddenly tilted sideways. My knees went weak, and I had to grab the edge of the sink to keep myself upright. The familiar weakness was back, only this time, it was worse than


    before.


    I gripped the cold marble until my knuckles went white, waiting for the dizziness to pass. My reflection in the mirror looked pale and drawn, and for a terrifying moment, I wondered if this was it. If I was finally going to copse for good.


    But slowly, the room stopped spinning. I managed to steady myself, although my hands were still trembling. I sshed cold water on my face, careful not to ruin my makeup, and took a few deep breaths.


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    Then, I stered that smile back on and returned to the auction.


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    33


    Alexander


    I stooped to pick up the broken pieces of the ne and felt my heart ache. Earlier, I’d overheard Lilith


    giving this jewelry to her; she’d said it was a family heirloom. E was so upset she had just run off without


    picking it up.


    “Gabriel,” I called, motioning my Beta over. When he reached me, I handed him the broken <i>pieces </i>of the locket. “Take this to the best jewelry maker in the territory. Tell them to fix it, <i>no </i>matter the cost.”


    Gabriel frowned as he looked at the damaged silver. “It’s pretty badly damaged, Alpha. Are <i>you </i>sure it can be repaired?”


    “It has to be.” I felt a muscle feather in my jaw, recalling the moment I had overheard earlier, when Lilith had given it to E. It clearly meant everything to them. “It’s irreceable.”


    Gabriel nodded and pocketed the ne. “Very well. I’ll take it to the jewelry maker tonight.”


    “Good.”


    As Gabriel left to handle the locket, I found myself wandering aimlessly through the auction disys, my mind spinning. I couldn’t spot Sophia anywhere, as if she had left abruptly after the ident.


    Finally, I stopped in front of a disy of delicate jewelry. Most of it was too shy for E’s tastes, but one piece caught my eye: a simple silver bracelet with a small charm in the shape of a cherry blossom.


    It was a ridiculous impulse. E didn’t need more jewelry, and she certainly didn’t need gifts from me. Our rtionship was contractual and temporary. I had no business buying her presents on a whim like this.


    But I couldn’t stop staring at that bracelet. The cherry blossom charm was delicate and perfect, just like the flowers E loved so much. The ones I’d brought to her hospital room without really understanding why.


    “You’re going soft for her,” my wolf’s voice echoed in my mind.


    I pursed my lips. “It’s not like that. I just feel bad.”


    “It’s because you want her. You love-”


    “Enough.”


    My wolf went silent at mymand, but I could still feel his amusement as he curled up and went back to sleep.


    Before I could talk myself out of it, I found the volunteer managing that particr table and ced a bid. It


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    was a charity auction, after all–everything was for a good cause.


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    “That’s a lovely piece,” the elderly woman said as she wrote down my bid number. “Your wife has excellent


    taste.”


    “Thank you.”


    Twenty minutester, I was the proud owner of one silver cherry blossom bracelet. I slipped the small jewelry box into my jacket pocket, all the while trying to convince myself that I was only doing this to make up for what had happened to the locket.


    Nothing more.


    I made my way toward the bathroom, nning to wait for E to emerge so I could give her the bracelet.


    As I rounded the corner, I saw E already stepping out of the bathroom. She lookedposed again, her


    makeup refreshed and her smile firmly in ce.


    She turned toward me and began to approach. But before she could reach me, her knees buckled beneath her, and she began to pitch forward.


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