The Professor's Mate Clause novel Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19

CHAPTER 19

KELVIN’S POV

Vanessa does not talk to me unless she has to.

Three weeks married and we have nothing to say to each other. She sleeps on her side of the bed. I sleep on mine. We eat breakfast in silence. Pass each other in the hallway like strangers.

This is what my father wanted. A political alliance. A merger of packs. Power and territory and influence.

This is what I agreed to.

But every time I close my eyes I see Freya. That green dress. Adrian’s hands on her waist. The way she looked at him like he was everything.

Like she used to look at me.

I throw back the whiskey and pour another. The glass is heavy. Expensive. Everything in this house is expensive. Vanessa made sure of that. She redecorated the moment we got back from the honeymoon. Got rid of everything that was mine. Replaced it with her taste. Her style. Her control.

I should care, I Should fight back, I Should remind her this is my house too.

But I do not have the energy.

“Drinking already?” Vanessa walks into the living room. She wears a white pantsuit. Hair pulled back. Makeup perfect. She looks like she is going to a business meeting not living in her own home. “It is barely noon.”

“So?”

“So you have things to do today. Your father called. He wants to see you.” She picks up her purse from the table. “Try not to be drunk when you go.”

“Where are you going?”

“Lunch with the pack wives. Someone has to maintain our social standing since you clearly will not.” She does not look at me. Just checks her reflection in the mirror by the door. “I will be back this evening. Do not wait up.”

She leaves without saying goodbye. The door closes with a soft click.

I finish my drink. Pour another.

This is my life now. A cold wife. A demanding father. A house that does not feel like home.

And somewhere across the city Freya is with him. With Adrian fucking Metcalfe. The Alpha who has hated my father for years. The wolf who thinks he is better than everyone else.

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The man who put his hands on what is mine.

I saw them at the wedding. Saw the way he touched her. Possessive. Claiming. Like he had every right. Like she belonged to him.

She does not belong to him. She is mine. She has always been mine.

So what if I made mistakes? So what if I slept with other women? Freya knew what she was getting into. Knew I was not the settling down type. She should have been grateful I kept her around as long as I did.

But she was not grateful. She was angry. Hurt. Acting like I owed her something.

I gave her everything. Paid for dinners. Took her out. Let her be seen with me. What more did she want?

Loyalty apparently. Faithfulness. All those stupid human concepts that mean nothing in the real world.

Wolves are not monogamous by nature. We take what we want. We do not apologize for our needs. She

should have understood that.

But she is too human. Too soft. Too naive to understand how things really work.

And now she is with Metcalfe. Now she is playing house with an Alpha who probably just wants to use her to get to my father. To get to me.

She is too stupid to see it. Too blinded by whatever he is telling her. Whatever lies he is feeding her.

My phone rings. My father’s name flashes on the screen.

I consider not answering. Consider finishing the bottle and pretending I never saw the call.

But I answer anyway. I always answer.

“Kelvin.” His voice is hard. Sharp. The voice he uses when he is angry. “We need to talk.”

“About what?”

“Do not play stupid. You know what. Get over here. Now.”

He hangs up before I can respond.

I set down my glass and grab my keys. The drive to my father’s house takes twenty minutes. Twenty minutes of thinking about Freya. About Adrian. About the wedding.

About the way she looked at me when I asked her to dance. Like she hated me. Like she wanted me dead.

I deserved that look. I know I did. Sleeping with someone else in her bed was low even for me. But I was following orders. My father said I needed to push her away. Needed to make the break clean before the wedding.

So I did what he asked. Like I always do.

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And she moved on faster than I expected. Showed up at my wedding with Adrian Metcalfe. Made a statement. Made sure everyone knew she was not broken. Was not alone.

Made sure I knew I lost.

Except I did not lose. She is still mine whether she knows it or not. The bond we had does not just

disappear because she is angry. Does not vanish because she found someone new.

She will come back. Eventually. When she realizes Metcalfe is just using her. When she gets bored of

playing house with an Alpha. When she remembers what we had.

She will come back and I will forgive her. Because that is what you do for the people you love.

Even if they do not deserve it.

My father’s house is big. Bigger than mine. He lives alone since my mother died but keeps the place like she is still here. Her pictures on the walls. Her furniture. Her garden in the back.

He never moved on. Never found someone new. Just stayed in this house with her ghost.

Sometimes I think that is why he is so angry all the time. Because he lost the only person who mattered and the world kept moving without her.

I knock once and walk in. He is in his office. Papers spread across the desk. Maps. Documents. Phone

in his hand.

“Sit.” He does not look up.

I sit in the chair across from him. Wait.

He finishes his call and sets the phone down. Finally looks at me. His eyes are cold. Gray like stone.” You look like hell.”

“Thanks.”

“I did not call you here for small talk.” He leans back in his chair. “We have a problem.”

“What problem?”

“Freya Reed.” He says her name like it tastes bad. “She is still alive. Still with Metcalfe. Still a threat to everything we have built.”

“I thought you were handling it.”

“I was. Until Metcalfe got involved. Until he decided to play hero.” My father’s jaw tightens. “Now she is under his protection. Living in his building. Surrounded by his pack. Getting stronger every day.”

“Stronger how?”

“Her wolf is awakening. I can feel it. The binding her mother placed is breaking. Soon she will be fully turned. Fully aware of what she is.” He stands and walks to the window. “And when that happens she

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becomes more dangerous than her father ever was.”

I do not understand. “She is just one wolf. How dangerous can she be?”

“She is not just one wolf. She is Alexander Reed’s daughter. Alpha blood on both sides. Royal lineage.” He turns to face me. “If she awakens fully and challenges the Council’s authority they will have no choice but to acknowledge her claim. To give her power. Status. Territory.”

“So what do we do?”

“We end her. Before she becomes untouchable.” His voice is flat. Final. “Before Metcalfe completes the mate bond and ties her to his pack permanently.”

Something in my chest tightens. “You want me to kill her.”

“I want you to finish what you started. You killed her mother. You can kill her too.”

“That was different. Her mother was human. Weak. This is-”

“This is necessary.” He moves closer. Looms over me. “You think I want this? You think I enjoy ordering my son to kill his ex girlfriend? But this is bigger than feelings Kelvin. This is about survival. About

protecting our pack. Our legacy.”

“There has to be another way.”

“There is no other way. She knows too much. She is too dangerous. And Metcalfe is using her to destroy us.” He grabs my shoulder. Squeezes hard. “You will do this. You will find a way past his defenses. Past his pack. And you will end her before she ruins everything.”

I want to say no. Want to tell him I cannot do this. That killing Freya is a line I will not cross.

But I do not say any of that.

Because I am weak. Because I have always been weak. Because when my father gives orders I follow

them even when they destroy me.

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