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Chapter 10
Zephyr
Hehadn’tcometo their room the entire night, and she'd known it was their room because both their weekend bags were there.
Zephyr had lain awake in bed, staring at the ceiling of the unfamiliar room, tossing and turning, and shedding a few tears because she cried at everything. Sometimes, she watched videos of puppies and cried. One time, she’d been on her period at work and a client had complimented her hair and she’d gotten teary-eyed. Her tear ducts were just extra hydrated, always had been.
Every time she felt dejected, she looked at her ring and reminded herself that it meant something. Him finding that particular ring meant something even if he didn't realize it. It would take time but she had to keep fighting for them.
But it was early morning and Zephyr just couldn’t stay in anymore.
She changed from her sexy pajamas—that’d she’d put on expecting to at least have their first night of sleepover together—and into leggings and a thin sweater, venturing out of their room on the first floor. Down the stairs she went, and out into the gazebo she’d seen the previous evening, enjoying the foggy morning which was a rarity in her city.
A few members of the staff were up and about, already prepping for the big wedding, the lawn behind the mansion turned into something out of a beautiful fairytale. Zephyr simply sat her ass on a cold stone bench in the gazebo, watching them all, wondering if she'd ever get her own big wedding. Zephyr had always wanted one with all her extended family in attendance, with a gorgeous dress and veil, letting everyone see her commit to her love for life. It hadn't been until she'd met Alpha that she'd ever thought she could spend her life with this guy, definitely not something she ever felt for Alec, even though she gave him two years of her life. She was going to try and delay her mother from planning something for six months until the contract ended, and see at the end if she needed a wedding or a divorce.
“Congratulations on your nuptials.”
A dark voice from the side made her glance up. A man stood against one of the pillars of the gazebo, facing away from her, wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, his hands in his pockets, his face not visible to her from the angle.
“Um, thanks,” she replied lightly, looking back at the staff again. “Who are you?”
“A friend,” he answered, something off in his voice. Zephyr glanced at his form again. He appeared tall, muscular but not overly. She could see the muscle definition in his back, but his body didn’t look like a hardcore gym body.
“Have you heard about the murders in Los Fortis?” he asked, a slight accent in his tone, and Zephyr straightened, wondering if he was making small talk or not.
“The hooker murders, right?” That’s what the media had been calling them. The murders had been in the papers recently, but nothing had been solved yet.
“Yes,” the man straightened. “Tell your husband to be alert.”
Zephyr felt herself stiffen, a cold shiver passing over her, suddenly realizing she was in the compound of a mafia boss and sitting alone far away from anyone to call for help.
The man chuckled. “If I’d wanted to kill you, you’d have been dead coming out of the salon last week when your heel snapped, Mrs. Villanova. You need better security.”
What the hell?
She froze on the cold stone bench, watching the man as he brought out a gloved hand from his pocket, dropping a black envelope on the empty stone railing that went around the gazebo. “Give this to your husband. And make sure he reads it.”
Zephyr glanced down at the envelope and looked up, only to see an empty space where he’d been. He’d disappeared, like she’d imagined the entire thing.
Taking a fortifying breath, her body covered in chills, she went to the railing and picked up the paper. The stationery was thick, good quality. The urge to pry it open was strong, but she knew she shouldn’t. It could be something confidential meant only for Alpha, and until he gave her the okay, she couldn’t dig in.
Gripping it in her hand, she went in search of her errant husband.
It took a while.
Not one staff member knew where he was which was ridiculous because how could someone miss a giant man with an eye patch? It was the wedding day, the sun was already rising and bright, and Zephyr was getting seriously pissed, walking around the strange mansion, trying to find one place where her husband could be. For a split second, she wondered if he was in another woman’s room, but she discarded the thought immediately. Until he gave her a reason to think that, she’d keep her overactive imagination contained. He hadn't been with anyone in a while, and if he needed to be with someone, she was right there. Trust was the cornerstone for any relationship, and she needed to give him trust in order to earn it back.
Finally, she caught a break and bumped into one of the guards who told her Alpha was in the training wing. Of course, he’d be there punching at something. Getting directions, her hand holding the envelope, she brisk-walked down the hill to the training building. No wonder people on the property looked extra fit with all the walking they must do daily.
Finally, she reached the gray building. and stopped at the entrance, gaping.
Five shirtless men stood around the mats in the middle, cheering and cursing as her very shirtless husband and a very shirtless Dante went at each other with knives. Honest-to-god knives.
Her jaw open, she watched with fascination as Alpha, despite having a physical disadvantage, danced around the mats, escaping each and every hit coming at him from different angles, counter-attacking with his own set of knives, his hands wrapped in tape, his body a study of scars and ink and sweat. Her face started getting hot watching him move, over and over, the playfulness with which he chuckled when Dante missed, goading him. They were bonding with weapons, and it was bizarre to her, since her idea of sibling bonding involved heart-to-hearts and ice cream, but hey, whatever floated their boat.
They finished their mock-fight, and Dante slapped him on the back, turning to see her standing at the entrance. His eyebrows hit the hairline but he came forward with a smile. “Sister-in-law. To what do we owe this pleasure?”
God, the man was a treasure. The way he’d made her comfortable yesterday, and the way he did so now, she could’ve hugged him.
