CHAPTER 24
=-Dale’s POV=-
I sighed while following Jacob into the balcony. Initially, I thought he would stay there, but he didn’t. Instead, he walked toward the vacant room, where Bethany used to sleep.Exclusive content © by Nô(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.
As I have mentioned before, Jacob dealt with several women, and after Amber, there was Bethany. I could say that what he felt for Bethany was genuine, not just about lust, but pure love. Several years have passed but Jacob couldn’t move on from Bethany.
I watched him being emotional at the doorway before he went inside. Sometimes, I wondered if Jacob really wanted to see me as a friend, or if he just wanted to visit the room where Bethany used to stay when the woman worked for me.
“Do you still miss her?” I asked.
“I do,” he replied.
“Then, why don’t you do something about it, Jacob? You probably know where to find her and your daughter,” I told him.
“I wish I am free to do that without endangering her life, Dale. You know my situation right now, and it’s not good for me or Bethany,” he replied.
“So, what is your plan now? Perhaps, should we have coffee first before talking about your sad love life?”
“Of course. Anyway, about your plan to marry off Amber McBride to one of my brothers, did Amber agree to it? I don’t know what’s wrong with you Dale, but you seem to worry so much about the omega,” he stated.
“I told her before, and she tried to run away,” I admitted the truth.
“She ran away? But why? The marriage will be good for her, especially with her current status,” Jacob explained.
“I also told her about the benefits of marrying one of your brothers, Jacob,” I said.
“Good. Tell her to get ready. We are leaving for Clayland this week. They have already prepared everything in the plantation and all she had to do was to show up there and say ‘I do’ to my brother,” Jacob added.
“Don’t worry, Jacob. She’s going to marry your brother whether she likes it or not. She’s not that stupid to waste this opportunity of improving her living situation.”
“And what about, Dale? Don’t you want to stop the wedding?”
“I have no reason to do that, Jacob,” I replied.
“Oh really? You can fool anyone else, Dale, but not me. You may be able to fool Amber into believing you despise her presence, but I know you are doing this because you want to keep her by yourself,” Jacob stated a fact.
“No, that’s not true. She’s a woman who has slept with your father, Jacob. It’s not good to think of her as my woman, and she will never become one,” I proclaimed.
“Right. Anyway, Clayland is too far from here, so my brother wouldn’t know every detail about her. He would only know that Amber was once a woman in the palace who worked for my father, but that’s all. Besides, he was so stupid to know,” Jacob said.
I sighed. Actually, I regretted giving my consent to the marriage, but it was the only nice thing I could give her. I didn’t want her to remain a servant all throughout her life.
Deep inside, I wished her to be happy, and that marrying Jacob’s stupid brother would be better than being my servant forever.
At the balcony, where Jacob and I had coffee, we talked about several things concerning the pack, as well as our lives.
“How’s Lucy by the way?”
“Probably heartbroken,” Jacob replied.
“Oh God, Jacob! What did you do? If you don’t want her anymore, just send her back to Alpha Travis,” I suggested because I thought it was unfair that he should continue hurting the innocent woman.
“You know I can’t do that, Dale. I need her to strengthen my authority in the pack. You know how those old bastards are, they love to make fun of me, trying to usurp the throne from me!”
“But you didn’t want it in the first place, Jacob! You even leave the pack and became a rogue!”
“Wrong. I left the pack because my father was a bastard, that’s all. It’s true that I don’t want the title of being the Alpha, but I couldn’t let those bastards ruin my people. I wouldn’t permit it!”
“Wow, dude! Being the Mayor of Claybourne has really helped you become a better person,” I teased him, and then he slapped my shoulder. “So, as I was saying, what is your plan for Lucy? Now that Amber is getting married, you can’t use her name to provoke your wife anymore,” I reminded him.
“She believed the reports that I made Amber pregnant,” he said.
“And that stupid intel report will probably ruin Amber’s life in Clayland,” I warned Jacob. “Although your brother was said to be naïve and stupid, who knows if the news about Amber’s pregnancy would reach him?”
Jacob just shrugged his shoulders instead of responding to my inquiry.
“Still, he wouldn’t have a choice. As the Alpha, he had no choice but to follow my command, and I commanded him to get married to Amber McBride. Whether he likes it or not, he had no choice, Dale.”
“I hope that everything will be alright soon,” I said because I suspected that Jacob just made a decision that would probably complicate everything.
“Yeah. Anyway, I am starving,” he said.
“Then, let’s go to the breakfast room. Amber has been preparing our breakfast. It’s probably ready by now,” I told him and he smiled because he loved Amber’s cooking since last night.
Or it was just one of his tactics to seduce Amber?
Whatever his reasons were, I wouldn’t allow her to seduce Amber. It was enough that one of his brothers would marry my mate. It was enough that Amber would become a sacrificial lamb once again.
Jacob and I were descending the stairs when I heard my phone ring. I didn’t expect anyone to call me, except for one person; Bethany. Jacob had no idea that I was in contact with Bethany, and over the years, Bethany and I have become close friends.
“It seems urgent, Dale,” Jacob said.
“Yes, I think so too. I’ll take this call first. Please go ahead,” I told him and then I immediately answered Bethany’s call. “Hey, what’s up?”
“Where are you, Dale?”
“I am at home. Why? Do you need anything?” I inquired.
“My daughter is sick,” she said on the other line.
“W-what? Then, how is she doing? Did you take her to the hospital?” I questioned the woman because I was worried for the little girl.
“Not yet,” she replied.
“Why not? Oh God, please wait for me. I will be there in thirty minutes,” I assured her before disconnecting the call, then I went to the breakfast room.
Jacob raised the tip of his eyebrows upon seeing me, but it was Amber’s expression that caught me off-guard.
“What’s wrong, Dale?” Jacob asked.
“Something came up, Jacob. Do you mind if I can’t join you for breakfast? I will be back as soon as possible,” I informed Jacob that I had to attend to an important matter.
“Sure. Go ahead,” he said. “I am sure that I won’t be bored since Amber is here to keep me company,” he added, but he immediately closed his mouth the moment he saw the anger in my eyes.