Ditched Cheating Alpha, I Led My Daughter to Life's Peak novel Chapter 229

"That's it?" he asks.

I don't say anything. I fluff my pillow, getting comfortable.

He sighs, laying down as far away from me as possible. "Fine."

We sit in silence. I finally start to feel my exhaustion.

It's around that time of night when everyone's too asleep to notice the heat's not working as well as it should be. The cold seeps in. The shivering starts.

I pull the covers closer, staring at the wall. Today's events play over in my mind, because my brain does what it wants to in these hours. I think about Axel. Carson. Luca and Onai. Ethel too. Bri and Krys. My family. This town. Aiden, of course. And even Suzie.

Suzie. I linger on the thought of her for a while. Get me on your guard shift, she says. Michael thinks it's a good idea, but do I?

I look at Aiden. He's staring at the ceiling, unmoving. I wonder what he would think if I could talk to him about this. About my worries. About my doubts. About my fears-even of him. What would his unbiased opinion be? Would he tell me to run, or To dig further into the truth of the pack? Or would he ask me to turn away and pretend like nothing's happening?

That's a viable option too, living in ignorance like I am. It could be a good life. Sheltered, but happy. Three boyfriends. A loving family. Great friends. I could ignore everything else.

"What?" Aiden's eyes shift to me.

I pull my pillow closer, shaking my head against it. "Nothing."

"Hm." He doesn't say anything else. I don't expect him to.

We sit in silence until I ask, "Do you trust Suzie?"

"...Suzie?" he asks.

I nod. "Do you trust her?"

"Where's that coming from?"

I look at him. "I had to see her on the tour today, remember?"

"Oh, that." He stares into space for a while as if she were right in front of him. As if he could weighing everything she is and isn't on a visible scale. "Yeah. I suppose I trust her."

I try not to look as surprised as I really am. "Yeah? How much?"

He shrugs. "It depends."

I sigh. I just want an answer. Any kind of idea. "On a scale of one to ten, Aiden."

There's no method or logic behind it, but he thinks about it for a second. "Nine."

I sit up a little. "A nine?"

"My brothers and Ethel get a ten so." He nods.

I stare at him incredulously.

"Are you surprised?" he asks.

I nod. "You could say that." I watch him, waiting for the lie.

"What's surprising you?" he asks.

"I don't know. I guess our scales are different, because "I'd only give a nine to someone who I'd trust my life with."

He doesn't say anything.

My jaw drops. "You don't trust me?"

"In general?" he asks. "No. I mean, I trust you with my life. I guess. But." He shakes his head. "You ask too many questions, and you think you have all the answers to them."

I stare at him incredulously.

He gives me a blank expression. "I'd give you a five at best."

This boy! I should've left him in the bushes. Before I can even protest, he cuts me off. "Don't you feel the same way for me?"

I hesitate. I stay quiet.

I know that Aiden wouldn't let me die if he could help it. To do so would be to kill himself. But do I trust him? I stare at him, taking all of him in.

"Exactly," he says.

I sit with my back against the headboard, like he is. "Whatever."

"We haven't even been together for a month," he says. "Give us a break."

I rest my head in my hands. "I guess you're right."

"I am."

I roll my eyes.

He stares towards the wall again. "What was the point of asking all of that anyway?"