I stared at Zira’s shocked expression, waiting for her to answer my question. The fact that she was taking a long time to answer didn’t help my anger. I knew she loved him but I wanted to hear her say it. Isaiah was caressing my shoulders but I felt him tense up when I asked her. Maybe I was directing the question to the wrong person.
“A simple yes or no would suffice,” I said impatiently after a few moments went by.
Zira’s expression quickly changed and now I could tell she was getting annoyed. Like I could give two fucks. She's the reason we’re in this predicament in the first place. She stood up a bit taller this time around and squared her shoulders.
“Yes, I do,” she answered and I could feel Elena pushing to the surface from hearing someone was in love with her mate. “But not in that way. Like I said, we’re friends. So we've been there for each other.”
Bull shit I thought. My eyes quickly looked at the necklace she was wearing. She must have seen me so she lowered her head to cover some parts of it. I moved out of Isaiah’s touch. It was clouding my mind, making me more benevolent than I wanted to. I walked closer til I was only a foot away. Through the bond I could feel Isaiah’s uneasiness but he stayed put. Good boy.
I lifted her head so she was looking at me. Then I trace the lining of the wolf pendant hanging from her necklace. “Hmph, just friends, huh?”
She must have thought I was stupid. I was in her shoes once. In love with another girl’s mate. I knew the signs and they were ridden all over her face and wrapped around her neck. She stepped back from my reach.
“I can assure you Luna. I am no threat. I am like most pack members. I believe in the scarcity of the mate’s bond. I wouldn’t dare get between that.”
I squinted my eyes at her to see through her facade. Was that a hit against me? Did she know about my past involvement?Her face was expressionless so I couldn't tell if it was a dig or not. I closed my eyes as I took a deep breath and slowly let it out.
When I opened them she was looking back down at her feet. Once again I felt Isaiah’s hands circle around my waist pulling me flush against him. I wanted to hate how his touch could instantly calm me but still I embraced it.
“Look, we're here to figure out how to handle this situation for everyone involved. So what can I do to make this better,” he asked while placing kisses down my neck.
I didn't say anything at first. Just staring at Zira, coming up with a plan to fix all this my way. I didn't want her to be pregnant with Isaiah’s child. I didn't want to sit here trying to figure out a way to be amicable. I wanted her gone. I wanted her baby gone but Isaiah would not agree. He already banned her from leaving so now I have to sit here and watch her give birth to my mate’s child. Then it hit me.
“There’s something you can do to make this situation a bit more bearable for all of us.”