Chapter Nine #2
“Your mother and I had agreed to try for another child after you married Ares, as we once hoped,” he says, his voice heavy with solemnity, almost in a sigh.
“But then, everything changed. Your sister was discovered. Your mom and I…” He falters, his eyes betraying the difficulty of speaking about her.
“…your mom and I couldn’t, not after everything that happened—everything she did. ”
He pauses, the weight of his words settling between us before continuing. “And now, with you about to be married, the Kaye house will need an heir.”
I feel a lump form in my throat. “Do you really have to do that? Why can’t whoever I marry merge their family with ours, and we carry on the family name that way,” I ask, hearing the desperation in my own tone even as I speak.
I know my suggestion will be thrown out the window—and I’m right. My dad shakes his head even before I finish speaking.
“No.” his voice is strong and adamant. “I will not stand for that. I cannot have the family name merged into another. It’s important for me to have the family name not die out. The family name will not end in my time.”
While I understand that it would hurt him to have his name die out, it hurts that this is how I find out that my dad has decided to start another family. It hurts that I am not enough for him. It seems like I am never enough for anyone these days. I’m constantly being replaced.
I turn on my heels and walk out, leaving them to do as they please. I cannot be here a second longer.
“Leila, please, you have to understand, I—”
My father’s voice follows me, but I tune him out, increasing my steps until I can no longer hear his voice.
My breathing grows heavier with every step. I just need to get out of here. Out of this house. Away from him.
I need to tell Cassie. It’s the first thing that comes to mind. Her mom is involved in this too, so we’re both affected.
I walk to the entrance of the Kaye mansion robotically, thankful when Luke is standing by his post.
“Fetch the car, please.” My voice comes out angrier than I thought it would, but I say nothing else.
Luke regards me for a split second and hurries to do as I bid. The car pulls up, and I get in, slamming the door shut. Luke’s eyes constantly find mine through the mirror, but I pay him no mind, pressing my head against the window.
I don’t mean to shut him off, but it’s difficult to talk when my throat constantly dries up every few seconds from the pain and emotional turmoil in my heart.
I swallow, trying to wet my throat, but it does nothing to help.
“Are you alright?” he asks when he’s driven quite a far distance from the house.
His words are like the key I needed to unlock the words my lips refused to part with.
“How can he be so selfish?” I question sharply. “Does he not think about me in all of his plans? About how I will feel? First, it was who I marry, and now this?”
He’s calm, driving slowly. His eyes constantly travel to me. “Do you want to talk about it?”
I nod, swallow back the lump in my throat, and fill him in on the sight I walked in on.
The car slows to a stop in front of Cassie’s home just as I finish narrating my ordeal. I get out, in a hurry to speak with Cassie.
“Leila,” Cassie calls out happily, appearing out of nowhere as though she had been expecting me. I slow my angry march towards the house and head in her direction.
“I’ve missed you so much. It’s been too long since I’ve seen you.”
I nod, feeling slightly guilty. It’s true that I haven’t visited in some time. I’ve been so busy with all that’s been happening that it’s been extremely difficult to find the time to visit Cassie.
“I’m sorry, Cassie. I’ll try to visit more often,” I say.
“Oh, it’s alright. I know you’ve been so busy. I just miss you coming around more. That’s all.”
I take her in. She hasn’t been traveling as much since finding out that she’s pregnant, so it is easier for me to be the one to visit. Now, her belly is rounder, her pregnancy quite showy.
“I miss you too, Cassie. I really do.”
I hug her to me as the pain in my heart lessens, and the anger in my chest toward my dad and Cassie’s mom begins to seep off me. I pull away and touch her belly.
“You’ve grown so much since the last time I saw you,” I smile, still running my hands across her round belly.
“Yes, soon I’ll be as big as a house,” Cassie giggles, looping her hands in mine and pulling me in the direction of the house.
Her steps are slower and her waddle is so cute, by the time we arrive at the living room, the remnant of my anger has successfully dissipated. The pain, however, still remains.
“I should have tried to visit more, but what with trying to avoid the press and navigating my chaotic life, it’s been quite hectic managing all of it,” I explain.
Cassie smiles and threads her fingers through mine when we sit. “It’s alright. You don’t need to explain. I know everything that’s been happening must be difficult for you. I’m sorry you’ve gone through all of this and had to deal with it on your own.”
I melt at the sympathy and understanding in her voice. It’s nice to know someone truly cares about me without wanting anything from me other than my company and my happiness.
“How are you doing?” I ask, trying to divert the attention from me and also because I’m genuinely curious about what she’s been up to.
She pouts, and her shoulders relax. “I’m getting pampered into uselessness.”
I laugh. “That’s quite dramatic.”
She smiles. “Dramatic, perhaps, but certainly true. Who knew signing up for three mates meant I would not be able to do anything for myself? The moment they see me standing up, they run toward me to make sure that I have whatever I need and tell me I need to put my feet up and rest.”
A smile spreads across my face. I’m happy that she has this life and is fulfilled.
“Perhaps you should let them do all of that. After all, that’s what mates are for. What’s the point of having so many mates if they cannot cater to all of your needs?”
“Maybe you’re right, and I should relax and let them do as they please.” She grins. “It’s too bad I rather like to stay active.”
Her face turns serious suddenly. “So, I saw your expression when you walked in, and I know that this isn’t just a social call. What’s happening?”
My smile falls off, matching her expression. I sigh and fill her in on what I walked in on. Her mouth drops open in shock as she listens. I tell her everything that’s happened including about Dad’s plan to marry me off to save the family name.
“I don’t know how to process all of this. This is all so conflicting. And I also don’t know if I should be angry about Dad and my mom’s situation,” Cassie says with a frown. She tightens her hand around mine. “But how do you feel? Are you okay? A lot has been happening to you recently.”
“I don’t know, Cassie,” I say, a response that fails to convey the degree to which the situation is irking me.
“I wish they could have at least told you about all of this instead of having you find out on your own. It feels like this is a repeat of all that happened in the past. Your dad cheating with my mom and having me was what caused the situation that turned your mom into a villain.”
I swallow back the pain in my throat.
“You’ve had to lose your place as the best Omega to an illegitimate child, and, now, Dad is going back to his old mistress that bore the first child that took your place, trying to create another baby to replace you all over again, this time, an heir to carry the Kaye name.”
Cassie’s words are my feelings spoken into life, although I feel guilty for even thinking any of it. Cassie has been wonderful, and I should not feel any way about the situation surrounding her that’s not good.
I hold back the tears that threaten to fall down my cheeks in a never-ending torrent. “I’m sorry that I even think this way at all, Cassie, but I want you to know that I have never held any grudge against you because of the circumstances surrounding your existence.”
“Of course, I know that.”
“I just feel so guilty because it feels like I’m betraying your love for me by thinking any of these thoughts. I do love you, and I am glad that we are sisters,” I say emphatically.
“And I know that you do. I love you, too, Leila. You don’t need to feel guilty about anything. Just because it concerns me doesn’t mean that your feelings should not matter. Of course, you should feel angry about your situation. It isn’t an ideal one.”
Cassie takes me into her arms and consoles me.
“Our parents can do whatever they want. We cannot stop it from happening because it’s just like Dad says.
He needs an heir to continue the Kaye name, but it doesn’t mean that we both do not deserve to have feelings about the way they have chosen to go about it. ”
“Thank you, Cassie. I really needed that.”
“I’ll visit in a few days, and the two of us can talk to them together. Will that be alright?”
I nod. We enjoy each other’s company for a while, content to simply live in that moment before it is time for me to go. I say my goodbyes with promises of visiting more.
I return to the car and sit, thinking about all that has happened. Now that Cassie has said that I am entitled to my feelings, I allow myself to feel them instead of shutting them off.
The tears finally roll down my cheeks, and I welcome the mix of pain and relief my tears signify. Luke silently hands me a tissue, and I take it, soothed by his presence on the drive home.