SEQUEL: THIRTY-TWO

Roman rang up his personal assistant as he approached the airport, beside him, sitting on the passenger’s side was Alina who was fast asleep.
“Did something happen?” Lou asked, concern in her voice.
“You could say that,” Roman answered vaguely, “I’m on my way back.”
Lou went silent for a few seconds and her moment of realization was almost audible, “You’re bringing her?”
“She asked,” Roman said shortly.
Lou was stunned by this response, silence blooming on the phone call for a couple of endless seconds. “Iyla lives here,” She found herself whispering although there was no chance of Alina hearing her.
“And? If she doesn’t like the company, she’s free to leave.”
Lou huffed out a breath, she couldn’t believe that Roman couldn’t see how much trouble this move would cause.
Roman did see it, he just didn’t know how to relay to Lou that Alina seemed very different from the person she used to be. Also, he didn’t feel right about turning her away after she had asked for his help, it was all down to if she would keep to her words.
It was a win-win situation, if she kept to her words, it would be peaceful and if she didn’t, he would make her leave which would also keep things peaceful.
He hung up after a short exchange and focused on the road, it was pretty late but the airport was open twenty-four hours in the day and he would rather not spend the night in a hotel.
Alina practically sleepwalked during the entire process of buying tickets and boarding the plane, only to go right back to sleep after they settled in. Roman actually preferred it this way because he would rather not be required to hold a conversation with Alina for the entire duration of the flight.
She woke up properly when the flight was about to come to an end, Roman had his attention on his phone and although he could tell that Alina had woken up and was currently staring at him, he pretended like he didn’t notice her for a few moments.
“How did you sleep?” He asked abruptly, flicking his eyes in her direction.
Alina jumped slightly at this, convinced that Roman was unaware that she had woken up. “Good,” She mumbled, looking out the window to avoid his gaze.
It was still late at night or better still, very early the next day and she could see twinkling lights from the towns they flew over.
“You didn’t sleep?” She blurted out before she could stop herself, genuinely concerned although she didn’t want Roman to know that she was worried about him.
“I’ll sleep in my home.”
A tense silence fell after this, stretching out until the speakers overhead started to go off with instructions and the pilot informing the passengers that the plane was about to land.
Roman had told Lou not to bother with picking him up but she had insisted on driving out so late to get him. So after they got down from the plane, Lou was there to get them.
“Welcome back, Boss,” She smiled at Roman, shooting a dark look at Alina afterward, “Your Highness.”
“Hi, Lou,” Alina said politely, “I’m really sorry about how we met last time.”
Lou did a double take at this, shooting Roman a look of horror, “It’s alright,” She found herself saying after clearing her throat nervously.
Roman was just as surprised, he didn’t expect Alina’s newfound kindness to extend to Lou as well. He didn’t believe that it would last though, she was just being nice because she hit her head, it would pass soon. The car ride was filled with awkward silence, one that he refused to partake in by pretending to be busy on his cell phone.
Alina didn’t even look to be interested in a conversation, she just tucked her legs under her and stared out the car window.
“You can have your pick of any guest room you want,” Lou said to Alina when they got to Roman’s mansion.
Roman just went up to the third floor where his office and bedroom were, needing to put some distance between himself and Alina to straighten his thoughts out.
Alina watched him go with curious eyes, “Is there a guest bedroom next to Roman?”
Lou had to make sure she heard that well, “I’m sorry, what?”
“You said I could have my pick of any guest room so…” She trailed off, her dark eyes steady. “Can I have a guest room next to Roman’s room?”
Technically, every other room was a guest room so there were definitely empty rooms on the third floor. Lou had been the one to put her foot in her mouth but she hadn’t been expecting Alina to make such a request.
“Ah sure,” Lou agreed, “Come with me.”
Alina didn’t want to be too far from Roman, not tonight at least so she quietly followed his second in command up the stairs. She was dressed in sweatpants and a loose top which was dusty and dirty from the rollercoaster of a night she just had.
“Roman’s room is just down the hall,” Lou said out of obligation when she showed Alina to her room, she had put the princess in the room furthest from Roman without rousing her suspicions.
Alina didn’t even bother to look in the direction that Roman’s room supposedly was in, she had no intention of bothering Roman’s sleep, she just needed to know he was nearby.
“Thank you, Lou, good night.” She smiled politely before stepping into her room and closing the door.
Lou stood for a few seconds behind the closed door, at a loss. She never imagined that a day would come when she would think of Alina as a nice person. If Alina had truly turned over a new leaf and was acting polite, the least she could do was return the energy, so she went downstairs with a plan.
Alina really wanted to just collapse on the bed in the room, fall asleep, and never wake up again. But she had to clean up, she couldn’t stain Roman’s sheets with her dusty clothes so she forced herself to head to the bathroom to take a shower.
Just as she stepped out of the shower, wearing a bathrobe with a towel wrapped around her hair, there was a knock on the door. She walked over to the door and opened it to find Lou standing sheepishly on the other side.
“Is something wrong?” She asked.
Lou pushed her free hand through her blonde hair, convinced that Alina was going to slap her or say something harsh to her. “I guessed you didn’t have anything to wear so I brought something for you,” She muttered.
Alina brightened at this, “Thank you…”
“I’m only being nice because you are, if you make any funny moves, we’re going to go back to being enemies.” Lou cut her off, all of her awkwardness leaving when she said that. She was prepared to have Alina completely switch up after that ultimatum.
Alina didn’t do any of that, instead, her smile widened. This was the best way to end her night, finding another person who was nice to her without being influenced by her status. “Deal!” She beamed, taking the clothes and drifting happily back into her room.
Lou turned away slowly and walked off, in a state of shock. She didn’t break out of it till she returned to her shared room with her girlfriend.
“Let me guess, she threw the clothes in your face and tried to slap you.” Iyla said immediately the door opened without even bothering to turn around.
“She didn’t,” Lou said, walking in.
Iyla whipped around, she had been seated at the table in the room, dressed in nothing but Lou’s shirt and panties. “She tried to stab you?” She asked with genuine horror.
“No, she smiled and thanked me then took the clothes.” Lou corrected, walking over.
Iyla made a face, “Did she suffer brain damage?”
“That is our current theory,” Lou said absently, kissing Iyla’s hair before walking over to the bed. “Don’t spend too long working,” She cautioned before getting under the sheets.
Iyla just closed the laptop and rose to her feet, being under Alpha King Roman’s wings meant that her past demons could no longer touch her so she was free to do what she wanted to do. Currently, she was supporting Lou with the running of things.
“I’m already done for the night, move over, you’re in my spot.” She said, her pale green eyes flashing with humor.
She hadn’t imagined that she would fit in so quickly and seamlessly with Lou and the dynamic she had going on with the British Werewolf King. She was still loyal to Alpha King Lukas but she also liked it here, very much.
-+-
Alina woke up early the following day which was only a couple of hours after she had gone to bed. The night before, Lou had given her a sweatshirt and pajama bottoms but she quickly found that the pajama bottoms couldn’t fit her and the sweatshirt was big enough to double as a short dress. She would have to order more clothes or maybe she could go shopping herself this time, she wanted to make some changes to her wardrobe after all.
She stepped out of her room and glanced in the direction of Roman’s room, she turned away and started down the stairs, knowing that it was best not to bother him. Just as she got to the last stair, she stumbled into the very last person she expected to see.
Alina’s eyes widened, and a series of emotions played out in her dark eyes, from shock to confusion to betrayal.
Lou was in the room so she immediately hurried over and put herself protectively in front of Iyla, “Are you going to listen to reason?” She bluntly asked.
Alina glared at her, “What reason? She tried to fucking murder me?”
“That was a while ago, Roman made her stop.” Lou said without mincing words.
Alina frowned, “What are you talking about?” Iyla had literally attacked her just a week ago.
“You heard her, I have no interest in taking revenge on you anymore, I haven’t done anything since the scene at Silverfall.” Iyla said in a drab voice, sounding very disinterested. “You can confirm from Alpha Roman, I’ve been staying in his mansion for weeks now.”
Alina’s frown deepened, and instead of continuing the confrontation, she turned around and silently walked up the stairs. She didn’t want to believe Iyla’s words so she went straight to Roman’s room and knocked.
Roman opened the door, his ice-blue eyes in slits as he squinted down at her, shirtless with a cigar between his lips. “What are yo-”
“Did you stop Iyla from attacking me?” She cut him off in a quavering voice.
Roman took a deep drag of his cigar, the scented smoke filling the space between them. “I did,” He answered quietly, sure that things were about to go to shit.
“When?”
“After the last attack in Silverfall.”
“Last?”
“Yeah, I planned to take her into custody for attacking royalty,” Roman started, omitting the important fact that he had done it so that he would stop getting dragged out of the comfort of his home to play knight in shining armor. “I changed my mind after finding out her reasons and getting her promise to stop.”
Alina had stopped listening after Roman’s first words, her thoughts whirling around in her head. It meant that during the week she had spent holed up with Madeline, thinking it was one of the best weeks of her life, her ex best friend was not just plotting to take her life but had also made an attempt already.
“I see,” She said absently, turning to walk away with unfocused eyes and an unsteady gait.
She had pushed everything that had happened down to the deepest darkest parts of her heart but this new information reawakened it. It felt like her heart was slowly catching on fire, it really hurt.
Roman watched Alina stumble away with narrowed eyes, he really wanted to go back into his room and go back to sleep but he had literally seen the moment her heart shattered in her eyes. The more he learned about the real Alina, the harder it was not to pity her. She would probably despise his pity, but the least he could do for her at the moment was check up on her to make sure she was alright.