Chapter 57
Chapter 57
+25 Points
Sage lay sprawled across the bed in her chamber, the moonlight slipping faintly through the curtains. Sleep had evaded her for hours, every time she closed her eyes Laura’s words replaying in her head like an unwelcome echo.
“What if she’s right?” her wolf, Kira murmured in the quiet of her mind. “Jason has been distant. He hardly listens anymore.”
Sage turned sharply onto her side, clutching the pillow as though it could block out the thought. “No, ” she whispered under her breath, defiant even in the stillness. “Jason wouldn’t dare. He knows better…he belongs to me.”
“Do you believe that, or are you just saying it?” Kira pressed.
Sage squeezed her eyes shut, refusing the sting at the corners. “I know I’ve got him wrapped around my finger,” she hissed softly. “He’ll always belong to me. He knows no one else can handle him the way I do.”
Nova gave a low rumble, not quite agreement, not quite challenge. “Perhaps. But even the strongest leash can snap if pulled long enough.”
Sage swallowed hard, staring at the shadowed canopy above her bed.
In the morning, Sage crossed the corridor leading to Jason’s chambers, her ears caught the hurried footsteps of someone approaching from the opposite direction.
She paused just in time to see Alice, one of the newest pack members, slipping out of Jason’s room. Alice’s hair was slightly tousled, her eyes darting nervously before they landed on Sage. For a heartbeat, none of them spoke.
Sage’s gaze narrowed. “Alice? What are you doing here so early?”
Alice froze for half a second too long, then forced a polite smile. “Oh, Luna Sage. I was just… dropping something off for Alpha Jason.”
“Something?” Sage repeated, her tone sharp. “What exactly?”
Alice’s lips parted, but she hesitated, a faint pink rising in her cheeks. “Just something he needed, nothing important…I think it’s better you ask him.” She gave a quick bow, then hurried down the hallway before Sage could press further.
Sage’s eyes followed her retreating figure, suspicion curling in her stomach. The girl’s smooth
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but evasive tone only deepened her unease. She stood there for a moment, her heartbeat drumming in her ears, before turning sharply toward Jason’s door.
When she stepped inside, Jason was sitting casually by his bed, a pile of folded clothes resting on a chair nearby. He looked up, a faint flicker of surprise crossing his features.
“You’re awake early. What are you doing here?” he asked lightly.
Sage raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean by that? You mean it’s too early for me to be in here? This is supposed to be my room too.”
Jason sighed. “That’s not what I mean, Sage, don’t twist my words.”
Sage rolled her eyes and then folded her arms across her chest, her eyes hard. “By the way, I just saw Alice leaving your chambers.”
Jason’s brows lifted, feigning nonchalance. “Yes. She came to drop off some laundry I asked her to handle herself.” He gestured vaguely toward the folded clothes, his voice smooth.
Sage didn’t move. “Laundry?” she echoed. “That’s all?”
He stretched on the bed and took a deep breath, meeting her gaze with calmly. “What else would it be? I mean…I just told you, right?”
“And since when is Alice responsible for your laundry?” Sage asked angrily.
Jason rolled his eyes. “And what exactly is your point? You know I’m very careful with my
clothes and I…”
Sage’s jaw tightened, anger sparking in her chest as she interrupted, “Exactly! How do you trust someone like her with your clothes?…do you take me for a fool, Jason? She couldn’t even tell me what she came to drop off. She looked like she was running away.”
Jason’s lips curved into a faint smirk. “Maybe because you cornered her like a criminal. Not everyone can withstand your interrogation, Sage.”
The remark stung, but it only fueled her anger. “Don’t turn try to make me feel stupid. I know what I saw, and I know how she looked. If you think I’ll sit back while some girl sneaks in and out of your chambers at will, you’re mistaken.”
He raised an eyebrow, his tone suddenly colder. “Careful with your accusations, Sage. Just because you’re my mate doesn’t give you the right to question every woman who comes around me.”
The words hit her like a slap. Her heart clenched with hurt, and insecurity rose unbidden, mingling with her anger…it was almost as if she was going to explode. “So you think I have
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no right to ask?” she snapped. “You think I should just ignore it when another woman slips out of your room at dawn? If you are hiding something, Jason, I’ll find out. And if she’s part of it, I’ll deal with her, I’ll make sure she regrets setting foot in Silver Hollow. ”
Jason’s eyes darkened, his voice dropping dangerously. “You’ll do no such thing. Don’t start problems in this pack because of your baseless suspicion. I won’t tolerate you threatening anyone over your insecurity.”
Her breath hitched. “My insecurity?” she repeated, her voice trembling as she walked up to him. “That’s what this is to you? You think I enjoy feeling like I’m second to every woman who throws herself at you?”
Jason’s expression didn’t change. He could feel his own anger rising too.
Sage pressed on, her words spilling with rage she could no longer contain. “This must be why you insisted on separate chambers, isn’t it? So you can bring whoever you want here without me knowing. So you can keep your little secrets.”
Jason’s eyes flickered, but he sat up, his tone cold. “Funny. I could say the same about you. You agreed to the arrangement easily, Sage. Maybe because you wanted the freedom to slip into someone else’s bed when it suits you.”
Sage’s eyes widened. “How dare you twist this back on me?”
Jason stood up from the bed slowly, his presence looming as he stepped closer. “Then answer me this. Why didn’t you come to my chambers last night?”
For a moment, Sage was speechless, her thoughts scrambling. He knew exactly how to deflect, how to throw her off balance. And she wasn’t about to let him know she was keeping her distance to teach him a lesson… that’ll weaken the effect.
“That’s not the point,” she whispered, her voice raw.
He tilted his head, his eyes glinting. “It’s exactly the point, dear Sage. You speak of distance, of mistrust, but you create it as much as you accuse me of it.”
Sage’s chest rose and fell with ragged breaths, torn between anger and pain. Every word, every glance felt like a battlefield–him pushing, her resisting, yet neither willing to step back.
“Jason,” she said finally, her voice breaking. “I don’t care how cleverly you turn this around. I won’t stop until I know the truth. If there’s something between you and Alice, I will uncover it. And when I do, you’ll regret underestimating me.”
“Be careful what you wish for, Sage,” he murmured. “Sometimes the truth does more damage than the lie…you of all people should know that.”
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