<h4>Chapter 139: Chapter 139 Dangerous Bargains</h4>


    Cecilia’s pov


    "I’ll front it," Alpha Sebastian said, his voice low and smooth - like he was offering me a deal, not a disaster.


    I froze mid-spoonful, pasta halfway to my mouth. "Absolutely not. I can’t pay you back."


    He leaned in, that maddening half-smile ying on his lips. "I’ll put you on a payment n."


    I stared at him, fingers tightening around my spoon like it might turn into a weapon.


    For one traitorous second, my heart fluttered like a Disney sidekick. Then reality dropkicked me in the back of the head.


    What was I doing? This man was not a bank. This was not a rom montage. This was my actual life.


    I stirred my soup aimlessly, trying to shovel my dignity back into my chest.


    "So, uh...what’s in this soup? Chicken or beef?" I asked, grasping at the world’s weakest conversational lifeline.


    Alpha Sebastian actuallyughed. Then, without thought, he reached over and dumped the rest of his chowder into my bowl.


    I blinked. "Did you just - "


    "You said you couldn’t taste it," he said, deadly calm. Then he met my eyes and added, like he knew how to ruin my appetite,


    "It’s gotyers. There is too much of a chicken who wants to y but too scared tomit. Or maybe a timid rabbit that only takes but never gives."


    My jaw dropped. I pped both hands over my face.


    "Oh my God. Stop. I get it.I will give you a price that satisfies you, okay?"


    Alpha Sebastian leaned back, clearly enjoying himself far too much for someone who’d just used me of being a romantic roon.


    "Just saying," he murmured, "you might want to try a different recipe next time. Something with a little more honesty. Maybe some courage. A pinch of actual intent."


    I peeked at him through my fingers. "You’re the worst."


    He grinned. "And yet, here you are - still eating the soup."


    Touché.


    I couldn’t take another moment of this. I abandoned my half-eaten chowder and fled.


    ----


    Back in my room, I headed straight for the shower.


    Hot water cascaded over my body, but it did nothing to wash away memories ofst night.


    His hands. His mouth.The way he’d pinned me against the wall.


    I touched the spot on my neck where his lips had been, my thighs instinctively pressing together as my breathing became unsteady.


    This was bad. I’d been doing so well with my self-imposed celibacy.


    Now my body was betraying me, craving things it shouldn’t.


    When I emerged from the bathroom wrapped in a towel, I was seriously contemting whether I should just buy a toy and be done with it.


    Just to bnce my hormones, obviously.


    "Did you have another drink in there?" Harper teased, eyeing my flushed face.


    "The water was hot," I muttered.


    "I think your heart is hot," she replied with a knowing smirk.


    I ignored her and headed to the closet. As I searched for clothes, Harper snuck up behind me and gasped at the sight of my chest.


    "Holy shit! Alpha Sebastian really went for it, didn’t he?" She grabbed my shoulders, spinning me around. "Serious question time."


    "Don’t know, didn’t happen, not telling," I cut her off before she could ask.


    Harper’s face fell. "I thought we were best friends!"


    I removed her hands from my shoulders. "Harper, just find yourself a boyfriend. Experiencing it beats hearing about it."


    She went to the living room, grumbling something about her academic choices.


    After getting dressed, I joined her. "Harper, I need to talk to you about something serious."


    I sat down and exined everything Alpha Sebastian had told mest night, including Mason’s uncle wanting to meet today.


    "Alpha Sebastian is amazing!" Harper punched the air excitedly. Then she sighed dreamily. "This man is too good to be true. He’s gorgeous, thoughtful, and understands you perfectly. Cecilia, if you’re falling for him, don’t fight it. His wolf magic is too powerful to resist."


    I couldn’t bring myself to argue. Instead, I smiled softly. "Whether I can resist doesn’t really matter. Not resisting just means letting myself follow my heart without worrying about consequences."


    "What consequences? Alpha Sebastian will handle everything."


    Iughed, but it was hollow. "I’m just a small Chapter in his life. He has so many responsibilities, so many things to consider. His parents may not force him to mate with Hazel, but that doesn’t mean they’d ept me."


    "Even if we got together, it would be like a beautiful dream. No matter how magical it feels, dreams are still dreams. Eventually he’ll wake up, and I... I’m afraid of facing that moment."


    Harper sighed deeply. "With all this fear, aren’t you afraid he’ll think you’re not interested and choose someone else? You’ll be heartbroken."


    "Then I’ll be heartbroken," I said firmly. "It’ll hurt for a while, but that’s better than losing myself in a dream and waking up with wounds that take years to heal."


    Harper had no response to that.


    She probably thought I was overthinking this - dissecting a beautiful mystery until it became something clinical and bloody.


    "Cecilia, you’re like... an anti-love cultist," she finally said.


    I stared down at my phone, not telling her how much it already hurt just talking about this. Maybe I should keep my distance from Alpha Sebastian.


    He deserved someone purer, someone who wasn’t afraid of love like I was.


    My phone rang. It is from Alpha Sebastian.


    I nearly jumped out of my skin. Had thinking about him somehow summoned him?


    My heart raced as I cleared my throat and answered, "Yes, Alpha?"


    Silence stretched for a moment on the other end.


    "Get ready," he finally said, his voice cool. "We leave in fifteen minutes."


    "Okay." I managed.


    "Cecilia, you sound tense."


    "I’m not," I lied.


    How did he always know?


    Alpha Sebastian’s voice softened. "Let’s putst night aside for now. I’ll apany you to meet your friend first. Let’s handle this matter first, okay?"


    "Okay," I agreed.


    After hanging up, I realized what he’d said. Put aside for now meant... we’d discuss itter?


    When Harper and I arrived in the hotel lobby a few minutes early, Alpha Sebastian was already there with Beta Sawyer.


    "The car’s waiting outside," he said, his gaze lingering on my face with an intensity that made my pulse race.


    As we walked outside, Tang and Levan were waiting with the car.


    Harper was about to sit next to me when she suddenly announced she got carsick and asked to switch seats with Alpha Sebastian.


    Alpha Sebastian graciously agreed.


    I shot her a panicked look.


    He settled beside me. "If you get carsick, you can lean against - "


    "I don’t get carsick. Ever," I interrupted.


    "Sometimes it’s okay to get a little sick," he murmured.


    I turned to the front. "Tang, let’s go."


    Tang gave a thumbs-up and started the car.


    As we rounded the fountain, he took a sharp turn that sent me sliding directly into Alpha Sebastian’s waiting arms.