Protecting Her Secrets At All Costs.

MAISIE

Oh.My.God.

My heart thundered in my chest when I saw my worst nightmare standing in front of me, looking so surreal that I feared that I might pass out at any moment. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw him.

Zayn Cardinal was here, and he was definitely not happy to see me.

I tried to avoid any direct eye contact with him, especially when his handsome face was covered with a layer of frost, enough to freeze a city. He wore a light blue fur jacket that covered the black clothing underneath, looking like heaven and sin mixed in one person. His silver-white hair was now shorter than I remembered, leaving some long bangs to the front to cover his sharp eyebrows.

His icy blue eyes landed on me for a second, and then I felt it. Pure unadulterated rage slipped through the iron-clad door he shut on our mating bond, making my face go deathly pale.

I felt my grip around my champagne glass loosen, spilling the contents on the Persian rug my husband had just acquired last week. The sound of glass shattering cut through the festive music around him, inviting silence and the attention of our pack members toward me.

“Maisie!” My husband's face twisted in a scowl when he stared at the rug. His angry eyes pinned me in position as he chided me in a low voice, “What the hell are you doing?”

“I'm sorry, I don't feel so well.” My face flushed in embarrassment, causing me to step back. I tried to rein in my distress and flashed them a weak smile in return. “I think it's time for me to retire for the night. Please excuse me.”

After leaving them, I immediately ran upstairs without looking back. I spotted a couple of pack teenagers making out in the dim hallway but I was too shaken and nervous to tell them off. By the time I reached my bedroom, I had managed to regain back some of my composure because I knew it was not the time to show any form of weakness.

I could not let Zayn Cardinal see my son, no matter what. I whipped out my phone from my purse and called my son's bodyguard, Knute as I walked out of the room.

“Ma'am?”

“Knute,” I tried to keep my voice calm. “I want you to bring Alexei out of the party. Help him pass through the stairs the maids use and bring him upstairs.”

“But Boss gave strict orders that he was to attend the party-”

“I don't care what he freaking said, Knute!” I screamed, unable to contain my anxiety. Fear hit me so badly, that I could feel my knees trembling. “I want my son out of that party. Now!”

Knute paused for a bit before responding. “Yes, Ma'am.”

Moments later, my heart sank with relief when I spotted a small boy dressed in an attire similar to mine walking towards me from a distance. I rushed to him and checked his slicked black hair, nervously examining his face before I told him, “Come on, sweetie. We need to go since you have a busy day at school tomorrow.”

Alexei obediently nodded, portraying a calm demeanor that seemed too mature for his age. He tilted his head to the side as his light blue eyes scanned my face. “Is everything alright, Mother?”

“Yes, sweetie.” My heart swelled with love and pride as she bent down to drop a kiss on his soft, chubby cheeks. Every sad feeling I had instantly vanished upon seeing the blush on his cheeks, so I couldn't resist the urge to tease him. “Do you want to go back to the party because of Heidi? What about me?”

Alexei's cheeks reddened further when he heard my words. “I want to stay with you.”

“Such a sweet boy. Let's go to bed.”

The next morning, I jolted awake with a sense of urgency to send my son to school. After I was done, I joined the pack women in the kitchen to prepare breakfast for our visitors. I was not thrilled with the thought of seeing Zayn Cardinal again, but it was customary for an alpha to receive an alpha during official visits in the northern region of the Great Landmark.

The room was filled with a tense silence immediately after I arrived, but I pretended not to notice it as I joined my friend in kneading dough.

“Hello, pretty lady.” My friend, Gwen elbowed me in greeting with a warm smile. “You woke up early today, what's the miracle?“

I gave her a brittle smile that betrayed my current mood. “I didn't have a good sleep last night.”

“No one did,” Gwen reassured me. “Everybody is talking about the hot bodies who just came into town. Especially, their alpha.”

My heart somersaulted when I heard her words, so I lowered my eyes and concentrated on using my hands to mold the soft dough. “I see.”

“That's the reason why everyone is here today,” Gwen confessed to me. “After hearing that he is single, they are all hoping to seduce him into taking them into his bed.”

My hands clenched the rolling pin tightly, feeling the weight of the wood cringe underneath my fingertips. I knew I had no right to get jealous, but something in my heart hurt whenever I thought about his long line of lovers.

A maid scurried into the room and whispered some words in my ear. I turned to my friend and said, “I have to go now. My husband wants to see me.”

“Go and see Mr. Narcissist before he loses his temper.” Gwen rolled her eyes, not bothering to hide her displeasure for my husband.

I followed the maid to the living room to see Lincoln standing near the door fumbling with his wristwatch. I quickly offered to help him and gave him a satisfied smile while dusting an imaginary lint off his shirt.

I complimented him, “You look good.”

“So do you, Maisie,” Lincoln regarded my dress with suspicion in his gaze. “Are you sure you are not one of the women hoping to see the alpha of the Frost Fang pack?”

My heart skipped a beat but I managed to roll my eyes with feigned annoyance. “We have already talked about this, Lincoln. I don't know that man, Zayn Cardinal.”

It was obvious that my husband didn't believe me, but I was determined to keep up the ruse. My peaceful life in the Moon Stone pack depended on it, so I decided to do my best not to make Lincoln doubt me and my son.

But at that moment, a knock resounded through the hallway, indicating the arrival of their guest. Lincoln answered the door and welcomed Zayn and his men into their home. I couldn't help but be a bit apprehensive when I saw him stroll in, his rugged masculinity and charisma radiating from every pore. The pack women rushed out of the kitchen, admiring his toned arms and broad shoulders as he greeted them, dressed in a plain white T-shirt and faded blue jeans that blended seamlessly with his silver-white hair knotted behind his face.

My wolf snarled at them as they left the house, staking her rights over her mate while I simply let them leave the house in silence.

After breakfast and some small talk, Lincoln left the room to retrieve a document from his study, leaving both Zayn and me alone. The air was thick with tension and awkward silence until my phone rang, signaling my cue to leave.

“Wait.”

My heart pounded with fear as I met Zayn's calm blue eyes. His voice was icy as he spoke. "I see you are doing well, Maisie. You and I need to talk. You can decide the time and place, but this conversation must happen before I leave the pack."

My voice was barely above a whisper when I turned to him, not wanting my husband to hear the conversation. "We have nothing to talk about, Zayn. You and I are now nothing more than strangers."

“Oh, really?” Zayn's rigid jaw clenched at my dismissive tone, and his body bristled with anger. “We'll see about that.”

When my husband walked into the room, my heart sank. The atmosphere was tense, and I could feel Zayn's gaze still fixed on me. Lincoln's smile faltered as he sensed the unusual tension in the room, so he probed them, "Is everything okay, Zayn?"

The Frost Fang alpha summoned a reassuring smile for his host to ease the tension in the room, but his gaze did not leave his wife. He explained, “It’s nothing serious, Lincoln. I was just telling your wife here that she looks very familiar to a woman I know. Someone who betrayed my trust and then ran away to be with another man.”

Before Lincoln could speak, he turned to me and gave a very dangerous smile as he confessed to my husband, “She was my mate.”