Chapter 169
Ellie POV
I clear my throat.
“I didn’t mean to snap.”
Lucas waves a hand dismissively.
“You always snap.”
I stare at him.
“That wasn’t an apology.”
A faint smile touches his lips.
“I know.”
I roll my eyes.
Of course he does.
For a moment, neither of us says anything.
Then his expression changes.
The teasing disappears.
He studies me again, more seriously this time.
His eyes move over my face like he’s trying to read something hidden beneath the surface.
“Dang.”
His voice is quieter.
“So this is it.”
I look up.
“What?”
“You’re not going to leave him.”
It isn’t a question.
It’s a statement.
And for some reason, that immediately irritates me.
I lean back in my chair and cross my arms.
“Oh?”
My eyebrows lift.
“And how exactly would you know that?”
Lucas shrugs.
But there’s no humor behind it.
“Because every time you talk about him…”
He pauses.
“You look different.”
I scoff.
“That’s not a real answer.”
“It is to me.”
I open my mouth.
Ready to argue.
Ready to tell him he’s wrong.
That he doesn’t know anything.
But I’m tired.
So tired.
Lucas leans forward slightly.
His voice softens.
“You love him.”
The certainty in his tone makes something twist in my stomach.
Ew.
I look down at the table.
My fingertip traces the faint scratches carved into the wood.
What would denying it even accomplish?
What would telling him the truth change?
That it’s a contract?
Is this survival?
That love has nothing to do with it?
If I told him that…
And Dominic found out I said it…
Or found out I was sitting here with Lucas…
It would only create another disaster.
And I already have enough of those.
So instead…
I shrug.
“You’re right.”
The words feel strange.
Almost foreign.
“I love him.”
The silence afterward is immediate.
Lucas goes completely still.
Really still.
He leans back slowly.
His expression is impossible to read.
Then he lets out a quiet breath and runs a hand through his hair.
“...Yeah.”
That’s all he says.
Not surprised.
Not convinced.
Just…
Accepting.
And somehow, that feels worse.
Before I can figure out whether he meant it as comfort or something else, a shadow falls across the table.
I nearly hit my head on the wood.
Dominic.
His arm rests along the back of my chair.
He isn’t touching me.
But he’s close enough that I feel his warmth through my shirt.
A quiet reminder.
A subtle claim.
Territorial without being obvious.
Anyone else might miss it.
I don’t.
“Having a good time?”
His voice is calm.
Smooth.
The same tone he uses during meetings.
The same tone he uses when dealing with people he doesn’t trust.
Not the tone of someone who just argued with me less than an hour ago.
And definitely not the tone of someone happy about finding me here.
Lucas looks up slowly.
“Not at all.”
His voice is light.
Almost playful.
“Just congratulating your wife.”
Wife.
The word lands strangely.
I look down at my water glass instead.
Watching condensation gather against the side.
“Can I just get my pizza?”
My voice is tired.
“Please.”
Neither of them looks at me.
Of course they don’t.
Lucas holds Dominic’s gaze for another second.
Then he pushes his chair back.
He grabs his laptop and tucks it under his arm.
“Enjoy your lunch.”
Polite.
Controlled.
But completely fake.
The look he gives Dominic isn’t surrender.
It’s not defeat.
Then he walks away.
Leaving me alone with the aftermath.
I wait.
I know what’s coming.
A sharp comment.
An accusation.
Something cold and Alpha-like.
The version of Dominic I know.
The version that gets angry when he feels challenged.
The version that doesn’t like losing control.
But when I finally look up…
He’s smiling.
I blink.
What?
I narrow my eyes immediately.
“Why…”
I gesture vaguely toward his face.
“Why do you look like that?”
His eyes stay on mine.
“You said you loved me.”
Oh.
He heard that.
Heat creeps up the back of my neck.
I force my expression into something neutral.
“I did.”
My voice stays even.
Dominic studies me.
Like he’s trying to pull the truth out from somewhere I’ve hidden it.
He moves around the table.
Then, without asking, he takes Lucas’s abandoned seat.
“You looked angry when you said it.”
I blink.
“That’s just my face.”
The corner of his mouth twitches.
A tiny almost-smile.
“Why are you here?”
I fold my arms.
“Am I allowed to exist unsupervised for five minutes?”
I tilt my head.
“Or is that against Alpha policy now?”