CHAPTER 63. SCARED
RYDER
I couldn't say a word, I didn't move either. My feet seemed to have stuck at a spot, all I could do was stare at them.
The thumping of my heart against the walls of my chest could be heard from a thousand miles. I was perplexed down to my marrows. Weak and perplexed.
Earlier today, I had a lot of imagination about this night. I pictured it to be fun, like a date night for Hara and I. We have random discussions over sweet wines, have a slow dance on the dancefloor, get to introduce her to my acquaintances, and then close off the night by locking ourselves in her bedroom and having a nice, enchanting fuck.
I never saw this twist coming. I never imagined Roland to show up here and for Hara to wind up in his arms a few seconds after he showed up.
I was itchy to go yank Hara away from his arms, but I didn't wanna create a scene. We had a handful of spectators, and it made me wanna be cautious of my next move. Evelyn had just created such a mess a while ago, I don't wanna create a bigger mess. I can't afford to be involved in a scandal at this point in my life. It's gonna be a huge setback to me and my plans.
But it's fucking hard to keep the surge of emotions I was feeling in check. I felt my patience snap as Roland lowered his hand from her back to her waist, snuggling her to himself.
I could hear the reverberation of Evelyn's words, she was mouthing off again and might have said pretty nasty stuff which made the crowd gasp. But I paid no attention to her, I don't give a shit about what she said. All I cared about was the woman in front of me, and how cozy she was in another man's arms.
She seemed to be in a daze, still staring into Roland's eyes. It would make me feel a lot at ease if she snaps out of it and breaks out of Roland's hold.
"It's been a while, mate," Roland said, smiling at her. Hara didn't say a word, she was still staring at him without even blinking.
Even if I didn't wanna get involved and make a scene, my wolf was already pissed off as Roland called Hara his mate.
The low rumbling of my wolf prompted me into action. I had to get Hara away from Roland. If she spends another second in his arms, Red, my wolf, will break out and get real unruly, like he always does.
I walked to them and gently but firmly pulled Hara away from Roland. I was gonna walk away with her, but Roland held her other hand, stopping us from leaving.
I turned around in fury and he was flashing me a defiant stare. He was daring, it made me wanna knock his teeth out.
Funny how times change, the first time I met him in his pack, he scurried to his knees, begging me to spare his life. And now, look at him, all bold and daring, holding onto Hara like he owned her.
I tugged at her hand, gesturing at him to let her go but he held her other hand firmly. My teeth clenched in anger.
If there weren't so many audiences, I would have torn that hand of his into shreds. The longer he held Hara, the more furious I got. I was beginning to consider throwing caution in the wind and beating him up.
“You two got to let me go. You're hurting me,“ Hara finally spoke up. Her eyes were on me, and they glistened with tears.
I didn't need to tap into her mind to know how she was feeling at the moment. Everything I needed to see was in her eyes – the confusion, the hesitation, the revived feelings.
It broke my heart to pieces knowing she still had lingering feelings for her ex-mate. It was getting harder for me to control my emotions, I needed to get away from here, and I'm not leaving her behind. I can't do that.
I mind-linked Darius, asking for a little assistance and he showed up almost immediately. He glanced at me, at Hara, and then, at Roland. His expression changed when he saw Roland, he stared at Roland like he recognized him from somewhere.
"Darius," I called him, snapping him out of his reverie.
"Yes, Ryder. You asked for my assistance," he said, sounding a bit disoriented.
"I need you to make him let go of Hara's hand. If I do it myself, I might not be able to control the urge to crush his hand into pieces," I told Darius.
He nodded but hesitated in getting Roland's hand off Hara. I might be wrong, but Darius seemed scared of Roland. It was weird, Darius is never scared of anyone.
He managed to remove Roland's grip on Hara, and I pulled her along as we both left the building. It was rude to leave like this, with no goodbyes to the host of the party and my acquaintances. But it's either leaving this way or watching Hara teeter between the lines of unleashing her feelings for Roland and fighting him off.
Her indecisiveness a while ago cast a shadow of sadness around the walls of my heart. I could feel Red recoil to the back of my mind, no doubt he felt it as much as I did.
We got to the VIP garage and I opened the passenger door for her to get in. She was about to do that when we heard her name from a distance.
“Hara! Please wait!“ It was Roland. He was sprinting to get to us but stopped a few meters away from where we stood.
Where the hell was Darius? He was supposed to keep this idiot on a leash until Hara and I are out of here.
“We need to talk, please,“ His voice was calm and soft.
My hold on the door was shaky. I feared what Hara's decision might be. Would she agree to go talk with him? Would she leave me standing here and go right into his arms? Will I return home alone, because she chose to go with her ex-mate instead? So many questions ran through my mind. I was scared, so fucking scared.
Her gaze met mine and she flashed me a small smile before sliding into the passenger seat. I quickly shut the car, got into the driver's seat and we drove off.
The ride home was silent as none of us said any words to each other, despite how lost in thought we both were.
We arrived home and it was already past midnight. She headed into her room and turned to say goodnight to me. I rushed in after her, slamming the door shut.
“Ryder–” I crushed my lips on hers, slamming her back against the wall, refusing to hear whatever she wanted to say.