Fated To Three, Betrayed By All… Until She Rose novel Chapter 36

**Healing Slowly But Surely**
**By R. Joseph**
**36 The Uninvited Guest.**

Leilani. Oh, how my heart sank at the sight of Zevran on my porch. My initial reaction was one of sheer bewilderment.

Here I was, a perfectly rational person, or at least I liked to think so, grappling with the absurdity of the moment. I tiptoed across my living room, sinking into the plush embrace of my couch, and listened as he continued to hammer on the doorbell, the sound reverberating through my home like a melancholy tune on repeat.

But there was no way I was going to open that door. Not now, not ever.

As the initial confusion ebbed away, it was quickly replaced by a surge of anger intertwined with an insatiable curiosity. How on earth had he tracked me down? What was he doing here? Had he followed me? Why couldn’t these people just let me have a moment of peace?

Minutes dragged on like hours, and finally, the incessant ringing ceased. I peered through the peephole, watching him as he leaned in, squinting in a futile attempt to see me. It was almost comical when he shook his head in frustration and turned away, as if realizing that the peephole was not a magic portal.

So much for being the smartest triplet!

Moments later, he climbed into his sleek Porsche and sped off, leaving me in a whirlwind of emotions.

About forty minutes later, as I was in the kitchen, busily preparing some Chinese noodles, the doorbell rang again. I glanced at the intercom, my heart racing as I braced myself to unleash a torrent of curses if it turned out to be anyone related to my family or the triplets. But when I saw the delivery guy, relief washed over me. I opened the door, my curiosity piqued.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, trying to keep my tone light.

Silence hung in the air. He didn’t respond. “How did you even get here? I didn’t order anything.”

“And I knew you were in; you just didn’t want to see me.”

My heart sank. That voice. I recognized it all too well, and it sent a shiver down my spine.

Suddenly, the delivery guy dropped the carton of milk on the floor, and he began to step closer, his dark sunglasses shielding his eyes from my gaze.

“Leilani, I only wish to talk to you. Just for a moment. You don’t have to be nice to me; all I ask is that you hear me out.”

“Zevran?” I gasped, a mix of surprise and anger bubbling within me. I couldn’t believe he had returned so quickly, and I was furious that he had managed to pull this trick on me.

The tremor that shot up my spine was involuntary, and I felt an electric jolt course through my body as he stood too close, our chests nearly touching. My heart raced uncontrollably.

“Yes, it’s me,” he whispered softly, removing his sunglasses and cap in one fluid motion. “I’m sorry. I just really wanted to talk to you.”

I crossed my arms, trying to project an air of indifference. “What now?” I scoffed, rolling my eyes. “Are you here to remind me how much money you’ll make if I let you collaborate with Frostclaw? And how that would magically improve my sister’s life?”

Zevran gasped, clearly taken aback. “No, I didn’t…” He paused, glancing around as if the walls had ears. “Can we go inside and talk?”

“And you’re even more foolish than you look if you think I’ll let you into my house after everything that’s happened,” I shot back, my voice cold and biting. Even I was surprised at how icy I sounded.

He sighed heavily, rubbing his face in frustration until it turned a shade of crimson. A tense silence stretched between us before he finally spoke again. “Don’t you think it’s time you returned to your family?”

I froze, my mind racing. What the hell was he talking about?

Remember when I said Zevran was the brightest triplet? Well, I take that back. He was even dumber than Chalice had ever been!

“What gives you the right to come here and demand anything from me? You think I’ll just jump at the chance to do your bidding?”

“Nothing except the fact that I am still your Alpha,” he replied quickly, the conviction in his voice unwavering. “You were never branded a rogue; you simply distanced yourself from your family out of jealousy for your sister. And honestly, I can understand that. I’d be furious too if everyone adored Kael and Caelum and left me feeling insignificant.”

“Zevran…”

“I’m telling you that I understand how you felt!” he continued, his tone insistent. “Though you went too far with your theatrics. You lied, hurt your sister time and again, even made rogues attack the pack and killed your own grandmother… but I don’t know, I don’t think I hold it against you anymore. Your family doesn’t seem to care much these days.”

A laugh erupted from my throat, dark and bitter. I couldn’t help it; I laughed until tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, gasping for breath as his stupidity became unbearable.

One look at his self-righteous face made me cringe internally. I shrugged, forcing the laughter down. “So now that you’ve laid out all my so-called crimes, what do you think I can do to fix this mess?”

Suddenly, it hit me. I muttered, “We don’t have to do the ritual.”

His eyes widened in disbelief. “Why? Do you realize how badly that will affect Chalice? How can you be so selfish?”

Of course, it was always about Chalice. It had to be.

I rolled my eyes, irritation bubbling within me as I scrutinized him, wondering what had made my younger self so infatuated with him.

I scoffed. “I’m not trying to latch onto you.”

“That’s not convincing.”

“Well, I’m not trying to convince you!” I snapped. As my voice rose, I glanced up at my neighbor’s veranda, mortified to see a few people standing there, observing our heated exchange.

They were humans, so they couldn’t hear us, but the embarrassment was already too much to bear.

I lowered my gaze and spat, “I’m not trying to latch onto you guys… honestly, there’s nothing to latch onto. I just want us to perform the rejection process without any rituals because I think it’s no longer necessary.”

“It is… that’s the only way—”

“I now have a wolf!” I interrupted him, my voice firm. “So you can get your brothers over—not over here, by the way—and we can wrap this nonsense up!”

Zevran froze.

His dark, penetrating eyes roamed over my body, disbelief etched on his face. Then, too quickly for me to react, he grabbed my arm and pulled me inside my house, shutting the door behind us.

“You what?”