Marked by the Alpha Team (Luna Merrick) novel Chapter 106

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Chapter 106

Chapter 106

Luna’s POV

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The drive back to campus was a lot quieter than the drive to Theo’s packhouse had been, and honestly, I was grateful for it. My entire body still felt warm from the kiss we had shared on the basketball court, and no matter how much I tried to act normal, I could still feel the memory of his lips on mine.

It was incredibly annoying because I hated how easily Theo managed to get into my head. The worst part was that he knew it too. He had looked entirely too pleased with himself after the kiss, and even now while driving, I could still catch the faintest smirk on his face every now and then whenever he glanced in my direction.

I leaned my head against the window and tried to focus on the scenery outside instead of thinking about him. The sun was already beginning to set slowly, and the road ahead of us was calm and mostly empty. Theo’s stupidly flashy red car purred softly as he drove, and fortunately for me, he was not talking nonstop.

The silence should have been peaceful, but instead, it somehow felt too noticeable. Maybe it was because my mind refused to settle down after everything that had happened today. Meeting his mother, seeing the packhouse, kissing him willingly while fully conscious for the first time, it all felt like too much for one day.

Moon, of course, was absolutely delighted by everything. “You liked kissing him. Just accept it, and let us enjoy being with our mate,” she sang happily in my head.

I immediately frowned and mentally snapped back at her. “Can you just stop talking for five minutes? I’m trying to get some peace and quiet.”

“No,” Moon replied shamelessly. “You kissed him first and then melted into him like butter, and I enjoyed every second of it. We should do it more often.”

I felt my face heat up again and groaned softly under my breath. “Just let me breathe, you horndog,” I muttered internally.

Moon only laughed at me before finally going quiet again, though I could still feel her satisfaction lingering in the back of my mind. Wanting to escape both her teasing and my own thoughts, I closed my eyes again and tried to get some shut eye during the drive back to school. Unfortunately, peace never lasted long around Theo.

“I hope you’re not upset,” Theo suddenly said, breaking the silence so unexpectedly that I opened my eyes immediately.

I turned my head slightly to look at him. “About what now?”

Theo kept one hand on the steering wheel while the other rested casually near the gear shift. “About the fact that we spent the whole day getting to know me,” he replied calmly, “and I made almost no effort to get to know you.”

I immediately gave him an irritated look. “You really need to stop being so full of yourself,” I responded dryly while crossing my arms over my chest. “Trust me, I could not care less whether you asked about me or not.”

Theo chuckled softly like my irritation amused him instead of bothering him “Well,” he said lightly, “I’m happy to know you’re not upset then.”

I rolled my eyes and looked back out the window again, already regretting answering him in the first place

Theo continued anyway because apparently silence physically pained him. “I was saving getting to know you for our next date,” he explained casually. “I figured you should get to know me first.

I turned back to stare at him like he had genuinely lost his mind. “You are utterly ridiculous,” I told him flatly. “And if you keep talking, you may not even get the privilege of seeing me speak to you again, much less go on a second date with you”

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7:33 pm PPTM

Chapter 106 —

heo laughed again, and the sound somehow filled the car too easily. “You throw a lot of empty threats,” he pointed out with amusement in his voice.

“Try me and find out just how empry they are.” I shot back immediately.

Instead of looking apologetic, Theo only looked even more entertained by my response, which was honestly beginning to annoy me more than it should have. It was like nothing I said ever truly bothered him. If anything, the more annoyed I became, the more amused he seemed to get. I genuinely did not understand how someone could enjoy being insulted so much.

Thankfully, after that, he became quiet again for a while, and I relaxed slightly in my seat. I stared out the window while the trees blurred past us, and little by little, my exhaustion started catching up to me. Today had been emotionally exhausting in ways I had not expected. Meeting Theo’s mother alone had drained half my energy, and then there was the rest of the day with Theo constantly teasing me, flirting with me, and somehow managing to make me feel things I was not prepared to deal with.

I was just beginning to drift again when Theo spoke up once again. “Can I ask you a question?”

I did not even bother hiding my annoyance this time. I slowly turned my head toward him and sighed dramatically.

“You’re going to ask anyway,” I responded tiredly, “so you might as well just get it over with.”

Theo smiled slightly at my answer before his expression softened a little. “Have you spoken to your mother yet?” he asked quietly. “About your father, I mean. Don’t you want to know who he is or where you come from?”

The question instantly made the comfortable tiredness inside me disappear.

I stiffened slightly in my seat and looked away from him again. Just hearing my father mentioned was enough to ruin my mood immediately. I still did not even fully know how to process the fact that I was apparently half werewolf because of a man I had never met before in my life. A man who had disappeared before I was even born and left my mother alone to struggle raising me by herself.

“My mother is sick,” I answered after a few seconds of silence. “So I’m not asking her anything until I see her in person.”

Theo nodded slowly beside me but stayed quiet, clearly waiting to see if I would say more.

“As for my father,” I continued more coldly, “I honestly could not care less who he is or where he came from. I’m not interested in a man who abandoned my mother.”

The words came out harsher than I intended, but I did not regret then. rowing up. I had watched my mother work herselt to exhaustion every single day just to keep us alive. I had watched her come home exhausted from work with swollen teet and aching hands while still trying to smile for me like everything was okay Meanwhile, somewhere But there, my father had apparently continued living his life without ever once caring about the child he left behind

So no, I did not care about him, not even a little

Theo was quiet for a moment after I spoke, and when I finally glanced toward hum again, his expression looked thoughtiul rather than judgmental.

“If you ever change your mind,” he said calmly, “you should tell me I’ll help you find out who he is

I snorted softly and shook my head. “How generous of you,” I replied sarcastically “But may be mind your business

Theo surprisingly did not get offended. Instead, he just nodded once like he understood my reaction completely Tm serious though,” he told me quietly. “Now that you have me, you don’t have to figure everything out by yourself

His tone caught me off guard slightly, and there was no teasing hidden in his voice. He actually sounded sincere, and

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7:33 pm P

Chapter 106

55 vouchers

Somehow that only made me more uncomfortable. I preferred it when Theo acted ridiculous and flirted shamelessly because it made it easier to keep my guard up around him. Moments like this, where he suddenly sounded serious and genuine, were much harder for me to deal with.

“I’ve been figuring things out by myself my whole life,” I muttered quietly while looking out the window again. “I’m used to

it.”

The car became quiet after that, but this time, the silence between us felt different, though. It no longer felt dry. Instead, it felt thoughtful and almost heavy. I could feel Theo glance at me once or twice while driving, but thankfully, he did not push the conversation further and seemed to understand that I did not want to talk anymore.

I rested my head against the seat and stared out at the darkening sky while my thoughts drifted unwillingly back to my mother. Guilt immediately settled heavily inside my chest. I still had not called her since finding out about being a werewolf, and part of me felt terrible about it. Any normal person probably would have called immediately after discovering something life changing like this, but every time I thought about telling my mother the truth over the phone, something stopped me.

I wanted to see her face first, I wanted to understand why she had hidden this from me my entire life, and most importantly, I wanted to know if she had been scared all these years too.

“You’re thinking too hard again,” Moon suddenly muttered inside my head.

I sighed softly. “Can you blame me?”

Moon was quiet for a second before responding more gently this time. “No.”

I blinked in surprise because softness was rare from her. Before I could respond though, Theo suddenly slowed the car slightly and glanced toward me again.

“You look tired,” he observed quietly.

“I am tired,” I admitted honestly.

Theo hummed softly before turning his attention back to the road. “Get some sleep then,” he said. “We still have a bit of driving left.”

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously at him immediately. “You’re not going to start talking again the second I close my eves

He laughed under his breath. “No promises.”

I groaned dramatically while he chuckled again, and despite myself, I felt some of the tension inside me case slightly so instead of continuing to think too deeply, I simply closed my eyes again and tried very hard to ignorf both Theo’s unused glances and the way Moon kept giggling happily in the back of my mind like she already knew something Ishid not

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