Free Web NovelChapter 236: Chapter 236
Aria’s POV
My eyes widened, and my heart slammed violently against my ribs. I nearly stumbled forward as I shoved the door open and rushed inside, my instincts screaming.
In the center of the living room, Sophia was holding Lana.
My heart stopped.
“What are you doing?!” I shouted, sprinting across the room.
I tore Lana from her arms without hesitation, pulling my daughter tightly against my chest. My wolf surged forward, furious, protective, ready to bare fangs. I scanned Lana from head to toe, breathing in her familiar scent, making sure she is safe and unharmed.
Only then did I release a shaky breath.
My angry gaze snapped back to Sophia.
She smiled wider.
“Sister,” she said sweetly, her eyes glittering. “Why are you so nervous?”
“How did you get in here?” I demanded, my voice low and dangerous. I adjusted my hold on Lana, shielding her instinctively with my body.
Sophia didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, her expression changed in a heartbeat. From smugness to fragility. Her eyes reddened, her lips trembling as she hurried past me and moved straight to Nathan who had just stepped in from his study.
“Nathan!” she cried.
Nathan’s POV
I entered the living room and was greeted by a scene. My eyes darted slightly toward Sophia who had approached me, before they rested on Aria.
For once, she wasn’t looking through me like I didn’t exist. She wasn’t calm, or guarded, or distant. frёewebηovel.cѳm
She was furious.
Her glare hit me head-on, sharp and unrestrained, like I was an enemy who’d crossed a forbidden line. My brow twitched instinctively, my wolf bristling at the challenge. No one looked at an Alpha like that without consequences...yet something in my chest tightened instead of flaring.
“Nathan,” she snapped, her fists clenched, her scent spiking with rage and fear, “I don’t care what you and Sophia have going on, but why would you let her near Lana?”
The room felt suddenly smaller.
My gaze dropped to Lana in her arms, then shifted to Sophia. My wolf assessed both instantly. Sophia reacted quickly, lifting her hands, her eyes wide with innocence.
“Sister, you misunderstood,” she said softly. “The nanny was just going to prepare Lana’s dinner. I happened to be here and thought I’d help.”
She even smiled, warmth coating her voice. “Lana is so adorable. Who wouldn’t like her?”
Aria laughed, but there was no humor in it.
The sound was cold, sharp enough to scrape bone.
“Is the Hemsworth Group bankrupt?” she said icily. “Or is Hemsworth Villa so poor it can’t afford a second servant? Why would the future Luna of the pack need to take care of a child?”
My wolf growled low in my chest.
“Enough.”
I rubbed my temples as I spoke, my voice low but heavy with authority. The air obeyed immediately. Silence slammed down, thick and absolute, the way it always did when an Alpha asserted himself.
Sophia swallowed whatever she’d been about to say.
Aria, however, didn’t retreat.
Her mocking smile only deepened as she met my gaze head-on, defiance blazing in her eyes.
Something stabbed sharply in my chest.
I frowned, my jaw tightening. “Sophia was just helping with Lana. There’s no need to be so aggressive.”
The moment the words left my mouth, I knew they were wrong.
Aria’s expression froze, then shattered into pure derision. Her scent shifted instantly, distrust rolling off her in icy waves.
She held Lana tighter, her stance unmistakable.
A mother wolf guarding her cub. My own wolf faltered.
“You should leave,” I said finally to Sophia, pressing my fingers harder to my temples as the pressure in my head grew.
Sophia hesitated, clearly sensing the tension, but not before casting one last lingering glance at Aria and Lana. Interest flickered across her face.
“Alright,” she said sweetly. “I’ll go now, Nathan.”
The room didn’t relax after she was gone.
Aria stayed where she was, Lana still cradled against her. She faced me like an opponent across a battlefield, and the stubborn chill radiating from her made my head throb.
“She was just holding Lana for a moment—”
“Who gave her permission?” Aria cut in, her voice sharp as a blade.
Her eyes locked onto mine, fearless.
“Lana is my child. Not even you, let alone Sophia, should touch her without my consent.”
My expression hardened.
“Aria,” I said coldly, “must you make everything so difficult?”
She didn’t answer, she didn’t need to.
The frost in her gaze spoke clearly enough. Lines were drawn, boundaries set in stone. Our wolves pressed against each other beneath the surface, neither willing to yield.
Her arms tightened around Lana until they trembled.
Finally, she looked away.
And for the first time since I’d become Alpha, I felt a painful pang pierce through my heart. When will she stop treating me like this..like I don’t matter?
