Fake Heiress True Luna (Irina) novel Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Reject Me

Irina’s POV

My head snapped toward the door. Julie stood there, leaning against the frame with a smirk that didn’t reach her cold eyes. She looked utterly out of place in the stark, masculine room, like a poisonous flower blooming in a field of granite. She pushed the door closed behind her with a soft click, sealing us in.

“Well, well, well,” she purred, taking a few steps into the room. “Look at you. All tucked up in the Alpha’s own bed.” Her gaze swept all over the place before landing on me in the bed. ” Quite the upgrade from a maid’s cot, isn’t it? I must say, I’m impressed. I knew you were a cunning little snake, but I didn’t think you had it in you to land the biggest fish in the sea by playing the wounded dove.”

Theia, who had been cowed and silent after Aiden’s departure, surged forward with a silent snarl. “f*****g b***h! Don’t let her words get to you, Irina!”

I said nothing. I just watched her, my expression carefully blank. I would not give her the satisfaction of a reaction.

If Aiden didn’t say I was his mate, I wouldn’t reveal that part either. Julie would use that to her advantage, or perhaps she might go after Aiden. She wants to take everything away from me.

Considering the fact that Aiden doesn’t want me, I shouldn’t care, but the truth is…

I do.

Stupid bond.

She stopped at the foot of the bed, her fingers trailing over the dark wood of the footboard. “The whole pack is talking, you know. How the brave, selfless Omega Irina saved the Alpha’s precious pack pups.” She said the word ‘Omega’ like it was a disease. “How the great Alpha Aiden himself carried you through the gardens, so worried about this little servant.”

Her eyes narrowed, the fake sweetness evaporating. “But we both know the truth, don’t we? You didn’t save them out of bravery. You saw an opportunity. A chance to make yourself look good. To catch his eye. And it worked, didn’t it? You’re in his bed.”

She leaned forward, her voice dropping to a malicious whisper. “Tell me, does he know what a fraud you are? Does he know you’re just a pathetic orphan who stole my life? Or are you planning to keep that little secret until after he’s claimed you?”

I slowly pushed myself up on my elbows, ignoring the protest in my ribs. My movement made

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Chapter 16. Reject Me

her straighten up, a flicker of surprise in her eyes, I was not cowering.

Claim

“The Alpha,” I said, my voice quiet but clear, “is concerned with the security of his pack and the lives of its members. My actions last night served that purpose. That is all he cares. about. Unlike you, he doesn’t have time for petty games and imagined slights. And shall I remind you that Elder Austin and our own Alpha, your father, made sure everyone on the continent knew what happened to me?”

Julie’s face flushed with anger.

“Don’t you dare pretend with me!” she spat, her composure cracking. “I see the way he looks at you! I saw him carry you! He’s obsessed!”

“Obsessed with pack security,” I corrected calmly, though my heart was hammering. “Something you would understand if you were a true Alpha’s daughter, instead of just playing the part.”

Slap!

My head turned to the side as her palm connected with my cheek.

No, no, no, no, no.

It doesn’t hurt. Julie can’t land a good hit even if she tries. What scares me is that I’m sure Aiden must have felt it.

“Don’t forget which pack you belong to, Irina. Aiden is not your Alpha; my father and, soon, my brother are. You are my personal maid, my slave, and I will make sure you don’t forget your damn place.”

I slowly turned my head back to face her, my eyes meeting hers. I didn’t raise a hand to my cheek. I didn’t flinch. I just looked at her. She doesn’t know Aiden and me are mates, she just thinks I’m trying to screw him.

“You are correct,” I said, my voice dangerously soft. “I do belong to Blue Moon. And as a member of Blue Moon, I am here under the direct invitation of Elder Levis and the protection of Alpha Aiden for the duration of the Gathering.” I let my words hang in the air, let the weight of their meaning sink in. “He helped me because I saved the pups that went into the woods. Unlike

you, I don’t have a hidden agenda, and instead, you should be thanking me because this means that Shadow Pack will be indebted to Blue Moon.”

Her jaw clenched. She hadn’t considered that. In her petty, self-centered world, every action was about personal gain or loss. The concept of inter-pack diplomacy, of a debt owed, was beyond her. I had just reframed the entire incident not as a personal triumph for me, but as a political victory for Blue Moon. A victory she, as the ‘true heir,’ should be capitalizing on, not

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undermining.

Claim

“You… you think you’re so clever,” she spat, but the fire was gone from her words, replaced by frustrated confusion. She’d come in here expecting to find a cowed victim, not someone who could outmaneuver her with pack politics.

“This is not over,” she hissed as she turned around to leave the room.

I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I knew Julie would try something very soon, but at least I had some time to rest and gather my thoughts.

I woke up because I felt someone staring a hole through the back of my head. An intense, prickling sensation dragged me from a deep, exhausted sleep. My eyes flew open, and I instinctively rolled over-a move I immediately regretted as pain lanced through my ribs.

And there he was.

Aiden was sitting in the chair by the fireplace, the one Cindy said he’d been using. He wasn’t lounging. He was perched on the edge of it, his elbows on his knees, his hands steepled under his chin. His grey eyes were fixed on me, unwavering and so intense it felt like a physical weight. He was completely still, like a predator observing its prey, but the look in his eyes was… complicated. Not angry. Not cold. Just… intensely focused.

A startled yelp escaped me. I jerked backward in surprise and immediately smacked the back of my head against the solid wooden headboard with a painful thump.

“Oww,” I groaned, my hand flying to the new sore spot.

Aiden moved. It was instantaneous. He was on his feet in a fluid motion, taking two swift strides toward the bed. His hand started reaching out as if to check the injury, but he stopped abruptly. His fingers curled into a fist mid-air, and he pulled his arm back as if he’d been burned. He took a deliberate step back, putting distance between us again, his expression shuttering back into its usual unreadable mask.

“When can I return to my room?” I asked, my voice still husky with sleep.

He didn’t answer. He just stood there, watching me, that same intense look back in his eyes. “Are you hungry?” he asked instead. His deep, husky voice sent a shiver down my spine.

But still.

The non-answer was infuriating. “I’m fine,” I said, a little too sharply. “I just want to know when I can leave.”

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Claim

Again, he ignored the question. “You need to eat to regain your strength. I’ll have something brought up.”

This was pointless. He avoided the real issue, keeping me in this confusing limbo. I had to take the cat out of the bag.

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