Bound by the Alpha: Hybrid Villainess Obsession

Chapter 8: Confrontation and Jealousy

Shezafera confronted Luiz in a curious and accusing tone. "Why did you so readily agree to that outcast's request?" She demanded, her tone laced with disbelief.

"Mouth, Shezafera! He might hear you!" Shezafera was surprised that her husband had called her out for calling that outcast an outcast.

"Do you not realize the precarious position it puts us in?" She said.

Luiz met her gaze, his expression was calm and reasoned. "We cannot afford to offend any of the De Laurentiis family, Shezafera," he explained, his voice steady. Such foolishness "could jeopardize our standing, our very safety."

"But to be linked with that outcast? His own family barely acknowledges him!" Shezafera retorted in a frustrated tone.

Luiz sighed, a hint of weariness creeping into his voice. "I fear the consequences of rejecting Draiken far more than any rumors. Besides, handing over Aetheria to him—what message does that send to the De Laurentiis that we gave them blood kin a human? We must tread carefully." His voice seemed to be a whisper in an attempt to conceal their family's shades.

"And what about Aetheria?" Shezafera inquired.

"What? You care for her now?" Luiz threw a disapproving look at her wife.

"Our Ashara is so fond of her—"

"Shezafera, enough of this topic," Luiz grabbed her arms and stared into her eyes. "Just be happy that it isn't our Ashara who got to be acquainted with that outcast," Luiz said.

"Indeed, a human and an outcast sound like a match made in heaven." Convinced, Shezafera let out a laugh. Unbeknownst to them, on the other side of the door, a servant from Draiken's estate heard everything.

Meanwhile, Aetheria took Draiken to the garden and confronted him, her questions sharp and probing. "What are your intentions? Why would someone like you have any interest in a human like me?" she demanded, searching his face for any hint of deceit.

Drain met her gaze calmly. "I was captivated by you," he confessed, his voice carrying a sincerity that took Aetheria aback. "From the moment I heard of you, I knew I had to see for myself."

"But werewolves have their mates," Aetheria pressed on, her voice tinged with skepticism. "What happens when your true mate appears?"

Draiken's response was immediate, delivered with a confidence that left no room for doubt. "I am an Alpha, Aetheria. I choose my own mate," he stated, his deep blue eyes locking with hers in a silent vow of his seriousness.

The dialogue between them, charged with tension and unspoken questions, slowly began to weave a new narrative. Draiken, with his calm demeanor, undeniable attractiveness, and unwavering pursuit, embodied the qualities of a suitor who was determined to achieve his heart's desire, regardless of the obstacles.

Aetheria, caught in the whirlwind of Draiken's attention, found herself reluctantly drawn to the Alpha before her. Draiken was not a man to be easily dismissed or underestimated, his actions were driven by a conviction that was both intriguing and, in its way, admirable.

Their conversation was interrupted by Ashara and her friends. Ashara approached Draiken with confidence, bolstered by her friends' presence. "Do you realize that Aetheria is human?" she inquired, her tone laced with a mixture of curiosity and disdain, expecting her question to unsettle Draiken.

Draiken's response was calm, unbothered. "I am well aware," he stated simply, his acknowledgment leaving no room for further questioning on the matter.

Ashara, taken aback by Draiken's nonchalance, struggled to maintain her composure, her attempt at a smile faltering under the weight of her annoyance. It was clear that Draiken's indifference to Aetheria's humanity—and, by extension, his disregard for Ashara's implications—irked her deeply.

Pushed by her irritation and perhaps a desire to regain some control over the conversation, Ashara pressed on. "But why Aetheria?" she asked, her voice betraying a hint of her frustration.

Draiken's reply was laced with sarcasm, a sharp retort to Ashara's thinly veiled condescension. "Should I have chosen you instead?" he countered, his words catching Ashara off guard and leaving her visibly embarrassed in front of her friends and Aetheria.

Without waiting for a response, Draiken turned his attention back to Aetheria. He took her hand and gently kissed it, his gaze locked with hers. Then, with a final glance that seemed to convey a multitude of unspoken promises, "I shall see you tomorrow, Miss Frostborne," she whispered, loud enough for others to hear.

The girls who had accompanied Ashara, witnesses to this exchange, were envious of their views, as they silently lamented the attention and regard Draiken bestowed upon Aetheria—a human, and, until recently, an object of their derision. Ashara, meanwhile, was a tempest of annoyance and embarrassment. Her attempt to belittle Aetheria and question Draiken's intentions had backfired spectacularly.

As the group departed, leaving Aetheria alone in the aftermath of the encounter, the silence enveloped her like a cloak. She let out a deep sigh, her mind a tumult of thoughts and emotions.

"Why does Draiken persist? What could he possibly want with someone like me?" She mused, her soliloquy a reflection of her inner turmoil. The idea that an Alpha of Draiken's stature would take an interest in her, a human, was both bewildering and unnerving. "Does he seek to use me as a pawn in some larger game, or is there a more genuine interest behind his actions?" Aetheria pondered, her heart caught between hope and skepticism.

Lost in her thoughts, Aetheria barely noticed the approach of another until Quinlan's grip on her arm snapped her back to reality. His arrival was sudden, and his demeanor was clouded with emotions he seemed unable to fully comprehend or control. "How do you know Draiken?" Quinlan demanded, his voice tinged with a jealousy he hadn't intended to reveal. His questions poured forth, each one betraying his possessive emotion, despite their recent separation.

Aetheria, taken aback by Quinlan's intensiveness, tried to deflect his inquiries, her responses aimed at calming the storm brewing within him. "I don't have anything to tell you," she said. She does not have the energy to explain to him that she met Draiken because he saved her.

"Did you cheat on me while we were still together?" Quinlan's question brought shivers down her spine, and before she could even realize it, her hand landed on his face.

"I am not like you, Quinlan. You're misunderstanding the situation! Aetheria exclaimed, and before she could even realize it, her hand landed on Quinlan's face.

But as Quinlan's questions grew more pointed and his jealousy more apparent, Aetheria's patience began to fray. The emotional weight of the confrontation, combined with her confusion and the day's earlier events, pushed her to a breaking point. "Quinlan, you have no claim over me, not anymore. We are no longer together, remember?" Aetheria declared, her voice steady but laced with an emotion she struggled to keep in check.

Quinlan's face registered shock, the reality of her words sinking in. The grip on her arm loosened, not from a lack of desire to hold on, but from the undeniable truth in her statement. For a moment, he stood frozen, the consequences of their severed ties and Draiken's interest in Aetheria colliding within him.

Aetheria, seizing the opportunity, gently removed herself from his hold. She looked at Quinlan, not with anger but with calmness. "You must understand, Quinlan, that our paths have diverged. Whatever Draiken's intentions, they concern me, not us," she said, emphasizing the last word.

Upon realizing that Aetheria was an independent woman with the freedom to live her own life, Quinlan was at a loss for words. The same jealousy and possessiveness that had pushed him to approach her now felt out of place, like a relic from a relationship that had lost its significance.