Chained By The Alpha Jessica Hall

"I wonder how Deacon would feel knowing you' re hanging out with random Alphas?" comes Lydia's taunting voice. I turn to find her leaning on the railing of the porch, looking smug as usual

"He gave me a lift home, that is it; I was looking for my phone."

Lydia chuckles and stands up, coming down the steps toward me. "Sure you were." She pauses beside me. "But I guess we will find out if Deacon believes your lies," she laughs before walking back inside

Sighing, I head inside and to my room. Lydia has always had a thing for Deacon. She makes

sure I know it, too, with the way she is always touching and flirting with him whenever he 1s near

Later that night, Linda calls me down to help make dinner. With a groan, I heave myself off the bed. My stitches tug painfully, and I instantly reach for my painkillers. Snatching them off the bedside table, I head downstairs, where I find Linda standing in the kitchen

"You look like shit," she says, and I can't help but chuckle. She's right, I do look like shit

Linda's wearing a simple white summer dress with short sleeves and white flowers. Her hair is down with curls hanging lazily about her face

She's wearing silver hoops in her ears

A slight smile tilts her lips as she glances up

She's standing at the counter, a pot, and spatula in hand, with a bowl on the counter. I can smell

the aroma of food wafting from the pot

"Your father told me that you ran into Alpha Zayn this morning?" she questions as I grab my drink bottle from the fridge. I nod before popping my painkillers in my mouth and swallowing themCcontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

"Here, come stir this," she tells me while grabbing a chopping board from beside the microwave. Glancing in the pot, I find it's chili

"When will Dad be home?" I ask her while stirring the pot as she cuts up something to add to it

"He'll be here shortly," she says when Lydia comes into the room all dressed up in a skin- tight body-con dress

"Hmm, chili," she says, moving past me

"You look cute," Linda tells her

"Always do," Lydia chirps, and I roll my eyes. "I'm heading over to the new nightclub that opened," she informs her mother when I remember I am supposed to sneak out there and meet Deacon

"Are you coming? I can give you a lift into the city?" Lydia asks, and my brows furrow. Since when does she voluntarily want to spend time with me?

"She's grounded!" Linda tells her, and I press my lips in a line

"Seriously?" Lydia chuckles. "Grounded like a child?" she laughs, and I feel like slapping her

Linda shrugs. "That is what her father told me."

"But depending on if she tells the truth, I may be able to sway her father," Linda adds, and I glance at her over my shoulder

"Excuse me?" I ask, wondering what she is getting at. She leans on the counter, her arms folded across her chest

"Where did you go this morning, and don't feed me the same bullshit you told your father," she states. I look at her and then at Lydia, who is watching keenly "To look for my phone," I lie

"Really, because Samuel was there this morning and didn't mention you being there. He was helping with the cleanup," she tells me

Pressing my lips into a line, I know I have been caught out when I hear the front door open up. I

growl, knowing she has set me up. My father wanders into the kitchen. He pecks Linda on the lips before taking the spatula off me. He dips it in the chili, tasting it

"Hm, I love Chilli," he beams. I have to give Linda one thing, she is a great cook

My father takes in the room before glancing between us all while Linda and I are locked in a staring competition. "What's going on?" Dad asks. Linda raises an eyebrow at me, and I try to keep my face neutral, yet my heart beats fast in my chest

"Well?" Dad asks, looking at me expectantly,

but before I can open my mouth, Linda cuts me off

"Cleo lied about her whereabouts this morning, she was not looking for her phone. I spoke to

Samuel earlier, who had been at the Hotel helping to clean up the mess from the rogue attack. Since daybreak, she has never been there," Linda tells him

My father turns to look at me. "You lied?" he asks me. I say nothing, knowing he'll take her side over mine any day. He always does since she is his mate and he can't seem to see what a manipulative bitch she 1s

"I went to visit Zayn," I admit. My father blinks at me

"And why would you do that?" he asks, and I growl. He knows exactly why I would do that!

"Cleo?" he demands, and my eyes dart to his

"Because you are letting your ego get in the way of your judgment. You had him remove his men

from our borders when they are the only thing keeping the rogues out!" I tell him, and his face reddens with his growing anger

"You went behind my back to a rival Alpha

Disobeyed your Alpha?!" he growls angrily

How does he not see the risk he is putting the pack in?

"Yes, because you are putting the pack at risk

How can you not see that!" I snap back at him

"That wasn't your call to make. You have no idea how to run a pack, and you certainly are not entitled to try to make treaty alliances without my say so!"

"Ts that what you will tell the pack when their

loved ones are killed because of your stupidity?" Task

"Excuse me?" he demands, but I don't stop

"Or are you hoping this arranged marriage you've decided you can force me into with Alpha Dane's son will be the end to your problems?"

"Arranged marriages are part of pack alliances, Cleo. You know this! Is this what all this is about? You're having to marry to help your pack?" he demands. I scoff at him

"Have to? I am not marrying Boyd, I am not allowing him to take over my mother's pack because you are too blinded by your ego to allow Zayn to help!"

"You won't have a choice. You want the pack

You have to make sacrifices. This is one of them!"

"Exactly, father. Call Zayn and fix our borders;

don't dump that on me, too. Somehow, I don't think our pack will agree with you risking them for your own selfish reasons. Or do you plan to tell them your ego was worth more than your pack members?" I ask. "Let's just hope they believe your ego is more important than their lives!"

We stand in the heavy silence of the argument weighing on me. My chest tightens as I stare at my father, the Alpha, with defiance burning in my eyes