Abandoned While Pregnant, Claimed by the Alpha novel Chapter 46

Chapter 46

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“Flona, you know how the media loves to fabricate stories. Ashley’s been unwell and needs rest at home,” I lied smoothly, my voice cold and unmistakably final, shutting down the topic right there. “She won’t be attending tonight.”

I had to protect my pride, had to uphold the dignity of an Alpha.

Fiona shrugged lightly. “Well, I hope she gets better soon.”

And then, the hum of voices in the ballroom shifted, the calm sea of conversation suddenly rippling with a wave of hushed murmurs and curious glances. Like a pebble dropped into still water, the disturbance spread rapidly, pulling everyone’s

attention toward the entrance.

That’s when my chest tightened, a fierce, invisible grip squeezing the air out of my lungs.

It was her.

Ashley. She wore a black velvet gown, the color so deep it was like midnight itself. No extra embellishments, just the sharpest, most precise tailoring that outlined her near-perfect figure. Her hair was swept up, exposing her long, elegant neck. That hairstyle… damn it, it looked just like Audrey Hepburn’s.

For a moment, the entire hall’s lighting seemed to exist only to frame her. She wasn’t doing anything, just standing there quietly, yet she had stolen every breath in the room.

And me, Brian Winter, Alpha of the Blackwood Pack? I had just confidently announced in front of another pack’s Luna that she was too sick to even get out of bed.

What did that make me now? A full-blown, lying clown for everyone to see.

Fiona’s look of shock mixed with a trace of pity-it felt like a red-hot needle jabbing straight into my pride. Silvia, at my side, sharply inhaled, the disbelief and envy in her gasp practically cutting through the air.

A storm of rage and humiliation erupted inside me, boiling over like molten lava.

How dare she!

I had sent her an explicit message, making it crystal clear she was not to show up here. This stubborn, infuriating woman who never learned how to obey! She did this on purpose-there was no other explanation. Showing up here, in front of everyone, was her way of slapping me in the face.

And yet… somewhere deep under all the fury, there was a spark of something else-excitement.

Did she come here just to fight for my attention?

Whatever her reasons, it didn’t matter. Nothing justified undermining the respect of an Alpha-or the pack.

I pushed through the crowd in front of me, like a bull seeing red, heading straight for her. I could feel the stares around me— shocked, amused, waiting for drama-but I didn’t care.

“Come with me.” I squeezed the words out through clenched teeth, grabbed her wrist despite her resistance, and dragged her toward a nearby lounge.

With a loud “bang,” I slammed the door shut, locking out all the prying eyes and whispers from the other side.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I pinned her against the closed door, shouting angrily, “Didn’t I already tell you to stay far away from here?!”

I yanked out my phone, holding up the message I’d sent her earlier, the one dripping with disdain, shoving it in her face as if each word carried the weight of my judgment.

“Do my words mean nothing to you, Ashley?!” I roared, my Alpha pressure bearing down on her without holding back. “Or was humiliating me in front of everyone your idea of fun? Does it feel that good to make a fool out of me?!”

Chapter 36

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Chapter 46

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Chapter 46

Ashley’s POV

My back slammed hard against the cold door, the impact so heavy it felt like my insides had been shaken out of place. Brian’s enraged, contorted face loomed inches from mine, his harsh Alpha pheromones saturating the air like acid, burning through every breath I took.

His eyes, blazing with a hellish fury, locked onto me with a look that could tear me apart.

I met his destructive gaze head-on, my heart-battered and bruised so many times by him-now eerily calm.

A cold, emotionless smirk tugged at my lips. “Where I go, who I’m with it’s not your decision to make.” “You’ve got some nerve!” The words shot out like poisoned darts through his clenched teeth. “You’re nothing but a worthless Omega! Who else would want you besides me? A pathetic failure who can’t even awaken her wolf spirit! What are you even doing here? Trying to get my attention? Or someone else’s? This is a gathering for all the Alphas and Lunas of North America, not a place for trash like you! You don’t even have my permission-you shouldn’t be here in the first place!”

Just then, the door hesitated open, barely a crack. Silvia’s pale, “innocent” face peeked through, her violet eyes swimming with exaggerated tears, painting me as the villain in this sordid scene.

“Brian, don’t be like this…” Her voice was soft, sweet, and sickly insincere. She turned her attention to me next; her tone drenched in artificial pity that only fueled my irritation. “Ashley, I’m begging you, stop causing trouble for Brian, okay? Blackwood Pack has enough problems right now. For the sake of the pack, for Brian, just leave tonight, would you?”

“And besides, Brian did want to bring you to the party–it’s you who ruined everything.”

Oh, spare me! The sheer melodrama pouring out of her-she was playing the victim card harder than a bad soap opera lead.

Brian was immediately swayed by her “kind-hearted” act. The fire in his eyes burned brighter, and all his anger was directed back at me. “Did you hear that? Even Silvia is pleading for you! And she’s right-it’s your own fault for ruining this chance to attend the banquet. How much more vile are you planning to be? You’re just like the snake in Eden-spreading nothing but poison and disaster, completely useless! Do you think wearing a black dress makes you Audrey Hepburn? Keep dreaming! You’re just some Cinderella from the slums of Brooklyn, and your midnight struck a long time ago!

“Do you think I’ve forgotten? Your dad’s dead, your uncle didn’t want you, and you’re just a pathetic nobody no one cares about.”

My heart shattered completely in that moment. Those memories I worked so hard to bury-my father’s death, my uncle abandoning me—were now laid bare, with him using them as weapons to humiliate me.

Using every ounce of strength, I yelled back at him, word for word, “If you hate me that much, if you can’t stand me, then reject me, Brian! Do it right now! End everything between us! That way, I will never have to appear in front of you and bother you again!”

I thought for sure he would agree-after all, he detested me so much.

But I was wrong.

“Don’t even think about it!” He grabbed my chin roughly, his grip so strong it felt like he would crush my bones. “I was the one who saved you! I gave you everything you have now! Your life is mine. Everything about you is mine. You don’t get to decide anything!”

And then, a hand-steady and strong-forced his arm away from me.

“I think she made herself perfectly clear.”

Hebert.

He appeared at the doorway out of nowhere, his presence steady and commanding, instantly filling the small space. It was like his aura smothered Brian’s raging energy entirely. Without even glancing at Brian, he pulled me behind him, standing tall and

Chapter 46

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shielding me completely from any harm.

“Get out of here! This is between me and my Luna!” Brian roared like a wild animal pushed to its limits, his anger spilling over as he glared at Hebert.

“Your Luna?” Hebert’s lips twisted into a faint, almost mocking smirk as his icy gaze finally shifted to Brian. “As far as I know,

Ashley is my date tonight.”

Brian’s eyes widened, pupils narrowing in disbelief. The shock on his face was almost laughable, like he had just witnessed some unimaginable betrayal. “You?” he scoffed, the sound dripping with disdain. His poisonous stare flicked over me before snapping back to Hebert. “I didn’t think your standards could be this low, Hebert. Don’t you know how she latched onto me back then? Or are you too blind to see that she’s just pulling the same pathetic stunt now? You’re really okay taking your chances with a leech like her?”

Hebert let out a cold chuckle, quiet but sharp enough to send a chill through the entire room. “A true Alpha with real strength would never blame his failures on a she-wolf.” His gaze shifted to me then, and for the first time, there was something almost blazing in his deep eyes-unmistakable admiration. “Ashley is, without a doubt, one of the most intelligent and capable women

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