27. Hangovers

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Hangovered mornings were the worst. The splitting headache and the heaviness between your eyes is one that is beyond any mortal comprehension. Nadia had not pictured this was how she would be spending her morning but well, that’s where drinking without limit gets you. She groaned, holding her head while silently wishing it would somehow stop throbbing like somebody put drums inside it the proceeded to beat them to no end.

“Hangover, huh? One of the most mortal things I certainly do not miss,” Drake’s amused voice was enough to push the throbbing headache to the back of her mind, her eyes flying open.

Drake leaned by the door, a cup in his hand while amusement danced in the depth of his eyes. Dressed in a black turtleneck and a pair of dark blue suit pants, his hair a surprising wet mess, he didn’t look too bad.

“W-What are you doing here?” She questioned, clutching the duvet closer to her. How the fuck did she get naked? And where was Collins? Why were the walls cream and not white? She could have sworn they had always been white until yesterday. Wait, yesterday- what the fuck happened yesterday?

“I assumed I would be greeted with a much…warmer tone after saving your pretty ass yesterday,” He casually walked over, handing Nadia the coffee cup, “Its not spiked with anything, if you are worried,”

She glanced at the contents of the cup; the strong scent of freshly grinded coffee beans hitting her nostrils; a little hesitation speeding through her nerves. Drake was not exactly as trust worthy to her as he appeared.

“What do you mean saved?” She questioned in a softer yet surprised tone. Ugh! She really hated the fucking hangover.

“Well, lets just the dragons are not exactly pleased with the murder of their Alpha,” he shrugged, hands deep in in his pockets “,As a matter of fact, furious would be a much fit term for it,”

“Darius? But I didn’t murder him. Why would the dragons attack me?” She asked, taking a sip of the steaming, dark liquid and well, it was a welcome sensation as it lined the back of her throat, burning its way down her digestive tract.

“That’s not how they see it. The dragon, how do I put this? They can be quite a menace and trust me, they got way more pride than the wolves. They can never admit they are at fault,” he paused, “You need to get out of this town before they burn the last piece of flesh on your body,”

“Darius killed my best friend and they think I’m at fault? You know what would have been better? If I had been the one to throw that dagger at him and not Trina,” She placed the cup on the nightstand, her venomous gaze finding Drake’s, “I’m the one who gets to live with the consequence of Trina’s death on my mind and they think they have a right to brand me the murderer of the man that took my best friend away from me?”

“As much as I love that fierceness in you, it really is better if you…go away for a bit,” he walked over to the bedside, sitting on the edge, his gaze boring right into Nadia’s, “I meant every single word I said yesterday. I’ll let you live the life you want,” He reached over, brushing the side of her face delicately with the back of his fingers, “I will protect you, Nadia. If I have to make the entire world worship the ground you walk on, I’ll do it just to see you happy,”

“I don’t acre about you promises, Drake and I honestly don’t understand why you can’t seem to get that I don’t care about you the same you do about me,” She swallowed, “Yes, I remember our past. I remember how happy and at peace I’d feel around. But I was a child who knew nothing about life. At that age I thought it was all about rainbows. But in reality, its not. It’s a hard truth to hear but Collins is the man for me. He makes me feel like I finally don’t have to try to be in his life and-“

“Oh, fucks’s sake! Are we talking about the same little wolf you were crying and cussing at the whole night?” he snapped, his jaw tensed and the anger not admissible in the depth of his eyes as he stood up. He whirled around for a second before turning back, “You had me listen to you moan about that fucking cub and how much you hate him for wanting to tear you apart from the life you built from scratch. Now you sit her and claim that with him you don’t have to try?”

“Drake, I-“

“No, Nadia,” He leaned down, his face just inches apart from hers, “I stopped the fucking war for you because you asked me. I didn’t kill the stupid cub despite my very deserved hatred for their bloodline and I-“

“You stopped the war?” Nadia questioned, her voice quiet and tinted with a bit of shock.

“Who do you think stopped it? I did. I made them stop fighting and retreat,” He closed his eyes briefly, massaging his forehead before letting out an exasperated sigh, the anger dissipating in his eyes and in its place, a look close to vulnerability, “ I did it all for you. That’s how much I fucking care about. I love you Nadia, can’t you see that?”

“And I love Collins,” she didn’t mean to raise her voice that much but the more she said it, the more scared she got, “And now I know I wasn’t mad because he was upending my entire life. No. I was mad at me because I knew Collins had his grip on me. I was mad because I would upend my own entire life that I built, for him. Just how fucking messed up is that? You know for someone to have at their mercy like that,”

“You know what? If he gives a fuck about you, then why didn’t he pick your numerous calls or return the million of texts you sent him to pick you up at the club? If he actually cares that much about you, why isn’t be bothering to call you just to question whether you are safe or not? I’m the one who made sure you are safe and when you vomited on yourself, I had maid take care of that. All this because I’m the one who fucking cares about you. Not him,”

For a second, she remained frozen. She called and texted Collins numerous times? The thought sent panic rippling through her whole body. She had never been desperate for a man before. How could she do that? With a speed quicker than lightning, she reached for her phone on the nightstand and true to Drake’s word, she’d called thirty-three times and left eighteen drunk text whose meaning she couldn’t decipher.

“Fuck!” she muttered, scrolling past all the messages. Well, Collins hadn’t bothered to actually call or text her at all, “I need to go right now,”