Chapter 116: Confession.
Alessandro’s POV
“How could you take the one thing I wanted most in the world from me, Alessandro? How could you?!” Leonardo yelled as he raised his hands as if he wanted to punch me.
“I didn’t take anything from you, Leonardo. You did this to yourself. I told you didn’t I?
I told you not to go along with the stupid idea that you would pretend to be with Lena enough to get evidence to stop the whole wedding so you could be with Aurora.
Then you pretended and told Aurora to her face that you were not in love with her over and over again.
When she was accused by her own mother that she seduced Marcus, you didn’t stand by her but instead believed Marcus’s lies.
You denied her in front of Alpha John that she was just your step sister and now you are here saying I stole her away from you when you made me promise you to protect her.
And that’s what I am doing, Leonardo. I am protecting her.”
Leonardo scoffed. You are protecting her? By having feelings for her?”
I clenched my jaw, my patience wearing thin.
“I never planned for this to happen,” I admitted, my voice steady but firm.
“But I won’t apologize for it either.”
Leonardo’s eyes darkened with rage. “So that’s it?
You swoop in the moment she slips through my fingers? That’s the kind of brother you are?”
I exhaled sharply, running a hand through my hair. “You lost her, Leo.
Not because of me, but because of your choices. You keep blaming everyone else instead of looking in the mirror.”
His fists tightened at his sides, his whole body trembling. “I still love her,” he growled.
I nodded. “And I’m sure a part of her will always love you too. But that doesn’t change the fact that she’s not yours anymore.”
Leonardo let out a bitter laugh, shaking his head in disbelief.
“You think you’re better for her?”
“I think I’d never make the same mistakes you did.”
That was it. That was the breaking point.
Before I could react, his fist connected with my jaw.
Pain exploded across my face as Leonardo’s punch landed, knocking me a step back. I tasted blood on my lip, but I didn’t move to retaliate.
I exhaled slowly, shaking my head. “That’s not going to change anything, Leo.”
He was breathing heavily, his fists still clenched. His eyes burned with frustration, heartbreak, and something deeper—regret.
“You think I don’t know that?” he spat. “You think I don’t wake up every damn day wishing I had done things differently?
That I hadn’t pushed her away? That I hadn’t been so goddamn blind?”
I stared at him for a long moment, then wiped the blood from my lip.
“Then why are you fighting me, Leonardo? You should be fighting for yourself, not against me.”
Leonardo let out a sharp, bitter laugh. “That’s easy for you to say when you’re the one standing next to her now.”
I sighed. “I didn’t plan for this, but I won’t walk away from her just to make you feel better.”
His eyes darkened again, his body tensed like he was about to swing at me again.
But this time, he stopped himself. He took a step back, his chest rising and falling with deep breaths.
“This isn’t over,” he said, his voice low.
I met his gaze, unwavering. “I didn’t expect it to be.”
With that, he turned and stormed off, leaving me standing there under the cold night sky, my heart beating with everything unsaid.
I stood there for a long moment, watching as Leonardo disappeared into the night. His words still echoed in my mind, but I pushed them aside.
This wasn’t about him.
This was about Aurora.
I ran a hand through my hair, exhaling sharply before heading back to my car.
I needed to clear my head, to figure out what the hell I was going to do now.
Would Aurora ever be able to choose me without the weight of Leonardo’s past mistakes pressing down on her?
Or would I always be the one caught between what my heart wanted and what my brother believed he still had a right to?
As I gripped the steering wheel, I made a silent promise to myself.
No matter what, I wasn’t going to hurt Aurora the way Leonardo did.
If she chose me, it would be because she wanted to.
Not because she was running from him.
Just then, a song began to play inside my car.
"If you’re not mine, then why does your heart return my call?
If you are not mine, would I have the strength to stand at all?"
I clenched the steering wheel, closing my eyes for a brief moment as the lyrics sank deep into my chest.
Fate had a cruel way of mocking me.
Aurora wasn’t mine.
At least, not yet.
And the question that haunted me was would she ever be?
I exhaled sharply, gripping the wheel even tighter. The song played on, each lyric cutting into me like a blade.
"I don’t want to run away, but I can’t take it, I don’t understand
If I’m not made for you, then why does my heart tell me that I am?"
Damn it.
I turned off the radio, the silence that followed somehow heavier than the music itself.
My mind was a mess, filled with thoughts of Aurora, Leonardo, and everything that had led us to this point.
I told myself I wouldn’t push her. That if she chose me, it would be because she truly wanted to.
But waiting, waiting was hell.
I ran a hand through my hair and let out a bitter chuckle.
"Get it together, Alessandro," I muttered under my breath.
I needed to clear my head, to focus on something else. Anything else.
But how could I, when the only thing I wanted was her?
I let out a long breath, leaning back against the seat. I had spent years mastering self-control, pushing aside emotions that didn’t serve a purpose.
But this, this was different.
Aurora wasn’t just anyone.
And the thought of losing her to Leonardo again made something dark coil inside me.
I shook my head, forcing myself to focus. I couldn’t let my emotions drive me to make mistakes. If I truly cared about her, I had to let her come to me on her own terms.
Just then, my phone vibrated against the dashboard.
A message from Rafael.
Leonardo’s a mess. You should stay out of his way for now.
I stared at the message for a moment before tossing the phone onto the passenger seat.
So, Leonardo was losing it. I wasn’t surprised.
He was realizing too late what he had thrown away.
And as much as I didn’t want to admit it, I knew the feeling all too well.
I gripped the steering wheel, my knuckles turning white. I should have ignored Rafael’s message and go home, but something kept me rooted in place.
Leonardo was a mess.
That meant he wasn’t giving up.
I exhaled sharply, shaking my head. This isn’t your fight, Alessandro. Let her decide.
But the thought of Leonardo running back to Aurora, trying to fix things, trying to claim her again it made my blood boil.
I turned on the ignition, but I didn’t drive off. Instead, I sat there, staring out the windshield as Daniel Bedingfield’s voice filled the car.
"Cause I miss you, body and soul so strong that it takes my breath away."
I swallowed hard, gripping the steering wheel tighter.
It was ridiculous how much those words hit me.
How much they reflected everything I had been trying to ignore.
I closed my eyes for a second, taking a slow breath. Get a grip, Alessandro.
But no matter how much I tried, I couldn’t shake the truth.
I missed her.
And maybe, just maybe, I had never stopped wanting her.
“And I breathe you, into my heart and pray for the strength to stand today, cause I love you whether it’s wrong or right, though I can’t be with you tonight, though my heart is by your side.”
The lyrics echoed everything I had been denying.
I couldn’t do this anymore.
I couldn’t keep pretending that my feelings for her didn’t exist.
Then I made a decision.
I would tell her how I feel and not hide it any longer.
Without hesitation, I turned off the engine and got out, my heart hammering against my chest as I rushed toward the pack house.
Straight to Aurora’s room.
I would admit my feelings. I would run to her and tell her how I truly felt.
And then, I would finally hear what she had to say.
I knocked softly.
“Aurora.”
After a moment, the door opened, and there she was, standing with her hair still wet, wrapped in a bathrobe.
She looked surprised to see me.
“Alessandro?
What are you doing here? I thought we already talked on the phone tonight.”
I nodded, trying to steady my breath.
“Yes, we have. But I feel like I should tell you this before it’s too late.”
Aurora’s brows furrowed in confusion. “Tell me what?”
I swallowed hard, my heart pounding against my ribs. This was it. No more running, no more denying.
“I have feelings for you, Aurora,”