His dark hair fell into his eyes, and for a split second, I caught a glimpse of that roguish charm that had drawn me in from the start. I hesitated, my hands suddenly sweating, but when I finally noticed that he was carrying Annabelle in his arms, her blonde waves bouncing with each step Damon took, I started seeing red.
I wasn't jealous; I was way past that. I had made up my mind that I was going to leave Damon no matter the cost. It didn't matter that severing our bond as mates could weaken my wolf abilities. I saw red because I was reminded of how much Gideon had suffered because of them.
I was reminded how selfish Damon was, and how badly we were treated by him when we were supposed to be his life. Annabelle was only his childhood friend, and yet he treated her better than he ever treated me or Gideon. I resented them to the core.
"Hey, Dakota, what’s going on?” she asked, glancing between us as she pretended that there was nothing odd with the situation we were in.
Annabelle was a great manipulator; she always knew how to act innocent and play the victim card well. I just found it funny that Damon kept falling for her acts.
I looked between her and Damon, his expression unreadable. “It looks like Dakota is about to leave,” he said when I didn't answer Annabelle at all, his voice a mix of annoyance and provocation.
“Leave?” Annabelle echoed as one of her brows lifted. “Oh, please, Dakota. You're not actually thinking of leaving because of this, are you?”
She pointed at her and Damon as if telling me that her being carried by my mate was not a big deal. I took a deep breath, trying to steady my racing heart. I didn’t want to hash out my internal struggles in front of her; I didn’t want her to see the cracks in my resolve. But at the same time, I badly wanted to teach her a lesson.
“Annabelle,” I started softly, but she cut me off, which was probably for the best since I was barely containing the urge to say something I'd probably regret.
“No, Dakota. I was injured during training. Since the pack hospital was too far, Damon, being the kind protector he is with me, decided to take care of me here," she said, her gaze flicking back to Damon. “You don't mind, do you?”
For a moment, it felt like the world around me faded away. The noise of the street, the buzzing of the city—none of it mattered. All that existed was the three of us, bound by untold words and unresolved feelings.
I wanted to say everything that was plaguing my heart to unload the heaviness I was feeling after losing my precious child, but I knew it would be useless. It was clear to me that Damon never saw me as his mate. He never loved his own son either, so I couldn't see the point of telling them anything.
"No, I don't. You can do whatever you want. Please, feel at home,” I finally said, my voice barely above a whisper.
I was fed up with our dynamic, so I took a step forward, ignoring Damon's piercing gaze as he slowly let Annabelle down on the sofa. He called out to me again, but I didn't bother to stop or look at them. I continued toward the door as if I was deaf and just as I took a step out, Damon roughly yanked me back inside.
"What is your problem? Are you trying to get some attention again, huh?" Damon angrily questioned as his grip tightened around my upper arm.
I looked at him with a blank stare and simply tried to shake his hold off of me, but the look he gave me should have made all the hair on my body stand up. His stance was menacing and dangerous. Surprisingly, I felt calm.
"I don't have a problem. I just want to leave," I boldly answered, knowing that even though I wanted to cut ties with him, he could still impose his power as an alpha on me.
"Stop being an attention seeker, Dakota," He sneered as he got in my face.
Normally, I'd feel a bit afraid when he would do something like this in the past, but after everything that had happened, fear was the last emotion I had for Damon. I felt nothing but disgust at this point.
I was so disgusted by how he treated our son that I didn't want to bother explaining myself anymore. I only wanted to get the hell out. When I was met with silence, I made a move to walk out the door, only to hear Annabelle mutter under her breath.
“You’re being dramatic, Dakota. Damon's just helping me. Stop being so jealous of me all the time,” she said, her tone dripping with condescension. I was supposed to ignore her. That was the plan.
However, Annabelle continued to provoke me by suddenly bringing up Gideon. I felt the air thicken around me. Her words echoed in my mind, more painful than I ever wanted to admit. She casually compared him to me, calling him a weak little wolf, just like she said I was for always playing the victim. At that moment, the anger I held back turned to rage.
"What did you say about my son?" I asked, my voice was low and steady.
