Fake Mate Beta Rises to Alpha Heiress (Natalie and Landon) novel Chapter 280

Chapter 280 A Bond?

Natalie’s POV:

Chloe’s blunt nature was actually a relief.

I did promise to help Liam, but I couldn’t keep lying-it would eventually fall apart.

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Chloe saved Liam this time, but with things being awkward between them, Liam didn’t want to approach her himself. He thought she wouldn’t accept his help.

I was just the middleman.

Liam offered five percent of his company’s shares. He wanted me to help Chloe advance her career.

He said that, at the very least, being with me would give Chloe a reason to slip away from the Kelly family’s watchful eyes.

I tried reasoning with Liam. I suggested they just talk things out honestly. If Chloe had feelings for him, and he clearly couldn’t let her go, why make it so complicated?

But he pleaded with me, so I agreed.

Maybe the deeper the feelings, the more cautious people become, and they end up torturing each other.

I looked down and stirred the fruit in my drink.

Trying to sound light, I said, “So, is this a one-sided crush or something mutual?” I suggested, “How about I call him over? You can buy him a drink.”

“Something mutual? Don’t tease me, Natalie,” she mumbled, her voice dropping as the corners of her

mouth turned down.

“Chloe, I’m genuinely curious,” I said, studying her with amusement. As a woman myself, I could sense she cared about Liam. “Why don’t you like him? His character, his capability, his status in Moon-Shadowed Pack… any one of those puts your exes to shame, doesn’t it?”

Chloe stared into her glass for a long time before answering, “It’s not that I don’t like him. I just can’t be

with him.”

“Why not?” I asked,

“Nothing good would come of it for him,” she whispered, her voice like a sigh. “It’s better to end things while they’re still good, even with regret, than to drag it out until it turns ugly.” She spoke these words very seriously to her drink.

I frowned. “Is that what you really think? Do you not have faith in Liam, or in yourself?”

She didn’t answer, just drank quietly. But something felt off.

“Wait, that doesn’t add up,” I said. “If you believe being with you drags people down, then why did you

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Chapter 280 A Bond?

have so many boyfriends?”

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According to her logic, whether it was self-loathing or self-preservation, staying alone would make more sense, right?

Chloe’s POV:

“Because I had to find someone to bond with…” The words burst out of me, sudden and bitter.

It was so frustrating to explain!

My mother’s will had another clause. If I formed a bond, I could leave the Grayclaw Pack right away and claim part of the inheritance they held.

I was too young to understand back then. I was older now, and I realized just how disappointed and distrustful my mother must have been. She handed control of my life over to someone else, either the Grayclaw Pack or my future mate.

As if I didn’t deserve to live without someone to rely on.

I used to resent her deeply for it. Just because Dad was worthless, did that mean I would be, too?

So, the more she defined me that way, the more I rebelled by giving up on myself.

I figured I might as well be a complete mess, a worthless waste, deserving everyone’s scorn.

But over the years, that willful rebellion brought no change. All that was left was my own self-disgust. My mother’s disappointment in me was now carved into my very bones and soul.

I had never told anyone this. I didn’t want to complain. Complaining only magnified the shame and the hurt.

I knew my own limitations. I didn’t have the power to reclaim what was my mother’s. I couldn’t even fight back against the loathsome Kelly family.

Maybe finding a mate was my only way out of the Grayclaw Pack.

But I soon discovered the Kelly family was more despicable than I imagined. They had many underhanded tactics.

The men who got close to me either met with “accidents” or broke things off themselves.

That serious injury Liam suffered was all my fault.

It was not like I never thought about being with Liam.

We grew up together. He was the first to show me kindness. Given how starved I was for affection, I couldn’t resist that warmth.

But just like I told Natalie, sometimes the more I loved something, the less confident I felt, and the more I wanted to push it away.

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Chapter 280 A Bond?

I truly liked Liam. I was also truly afraid to accept him.

In my mind, the only way for Liam and me to last was to stay friends.

But I didn’t expect that trying to control feelings would backfire.

Now that Liam didn’t like me anymore, I found I couldn’t let go.

Natalie’s POV:

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“A bond?” I looked at her, and suddenly some pieces clicked into place. “Is forming a bond also a way for you to leave Grayclaw Pack?” Chloe’s chaotic romantic history, her seemingly self-destructive behavior… maybe it was all a twisted form of rebellion against her mothers arrangements and her fate.

Chloe didn’t say it, but I guessed.

“Is it the Kelly family blocking you?” I asked. “They don’t want you to form a bond and don’t want you to get your inheritance back?”

Chloe glanced at me again and took a deep breath, but she didn’t deny it.

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