127 iv. Greed

“Are you okay, queenie?” he pressed a kiss on her hair as he rubbed her cheeks.

“You looked paler than usual. If you need to rest, we can stop for a while. Do you need anything? You have to tell me these things, my queen. Don’t keep it all inside. This is the only way I can take care of you, my love,” he pressed tender kisses on her cheeks.

“No, please don’t worry. I am fine. The weather has just gotten so much cooler than I expected. There will be snow soon,” she smiled to reassure him.

“How can I not worry? You are everything to me, queenie,” he snuggled closer into her.

She laughed and ruffled his hair, “You still behave like a child. If you behave like that even more, you will have to call me noona.”

He frowned hearing her say it, “You know I hated calling you that. It’s different from you calling me daddy. Calling you noona is just something I do when I had no choice, if you don’t know yet, I say it out of spite.”

She giggled and pressed a kiss on his cheek, “Don’t frown too much. I think we are finally near the cabin.”

He caressed her cheek, “Do you know I hated being with the others when we can have a vacation with just the two of us?”

“Don’t be so greedy,” she giggled and looked up at him. “Greedy doesn’t suit you, alpha.”

.....

“With you, I can only be that way...” he lowered his head to hers and claimed her lips.

It was a kiss filled with hunger and passion. She felt like a fire was being started on her whole body as his tongue danced with hers.

“The kid might see,” she pushed him away and smiled.

She opened the window and stared at the cabin getting larger in their view. “We have arrived,” she smiled.

He smiled seeing her eyes shine like that. If it’s spending time with his kid that makes her so happy then he will oblige her.

His only misgiving is that the mother of the child needed to come too. He has become more wary of her since the night she confessed her ‘love’ to him and her desire to keep the marriage intact.

Simply put, it felt like a threat, a declaration of war to his beloved. That’s why he didn’t want this holiday to happen with Cinderella in tow.

Of course, she had to come, she wouldn’t let Jiro stay alone with them for sure. It irks him to think she might be intending to use the child in her favor. A concept even he found aggravating.

He carried her as they walked down the snowy path. She struggled, of course, insisting on being allowed to walk.

“I have my own legs for what?” she asked frustratedly.

“To spread wide for your alpha,” he teased her.

“Baka,” she tugged on his collar and gives a peck on his cheek.

“You make me want to turn tails and leave. Such torture to not touch you while we deal with the others,” he whispered as he stood in front of the door with her in his arms.

The door opened, revealing a blonde woman with deep blue eyes. She was really comely, with a slender waist, and a youthful glow in her.

It always strikes Mary to see his wife like this, so filled with life and beauty. The jealousy from deep within her heart rose once again.

Between she and this woman, what does the alpha see in her? She couldn’t still understand. If it was familiarity or love, or was he simply blind all this time?

“Hi, come on in. We were waiting for you,” Cinderella greeted them cheerfully, making her feel even worse.

Now she felt like a snake being invited into this woman’s home. She tugged on his collar and whispered, “Please let me down.”

He pressed a kiss on her cheek and hesitantly let her down on the wooden floor. This was one of the more homey cabins, located in the snowy mountains of the north.

It is hers and Dominus’s vacation house, and yet she felt like an outsider. Glancing at the rather large stone in Cinderella’s wedding ring she felt like her heart was being torn apart.

“Hey, baby,” Dominus felt her restlessness and rubbed her cheek. “Is everything alright?”

historical

She nodded and forced herself to smile. It is she who wanted and asked for this, so she couldn’t complain right now.

“Auntieeee...” the voice of an excited child, made her turn her head.

There he is. The little boy with raven hair and eyes that belonged to his father. Jiro.

She felt all her sorrows drift away from the sight of the excited child who rushed to her and embraced her tightly. “What took you so long?”

She ruffled his hair, “Your father had a meeting with the elders before going here.”

“About what?” the little boy tilted his head.

“About adult stuff,” she smiled and took his small hand into hers.

Dominus smiled as they walked away as Jiro insisted on the specifics of the meeting. He was about to follow them when Cinderella gripped his arm.

“Please stay for a bit,” her voice was softer than he expected.

He turned and looked at her, “Why?”

“I haven’t seen you in weeks, husband. Do you think it is too much for me to ask for you to stay?” she is even more meek than what he is accustomed to.

“What do you want to talk about?” his voice was serious and business-like.

He couldn’t risk looking soft towards her, lest she has any wrong ideas about them and keeping this marriage ‘intact’.

“Can we talk when we have a bit of privacy, I just need to talk about Jiro and Mary,” she smiled kindly.

She knew her ticket is to use the child and the woman’s relationship. Since the child seemed important to Mary and the latter is the most important to the alpha, then as long as she had the child with her, she can direct all their steps.

“Let’s talk another time then,” he nodded toward her.

“I am uncomfortable about my son being a subject of deceit. It is one thing to try to deceive the public about the true nature of your relations with your elder sister. It is entirely another to make a fool out of your own son and heir,” she continued, stopping him from stepping away.

“Are you threatening me?” his voice was hard as steel.

“I am bargaining with you. There is only one thing in this world I desire more than ruining her happiness... You. Give me a bit of your time and I shall keep silent,” she assured him.

“You greedy, shameless woman,” he said in disgust.

“Yes, I am greedy and selfish. But you were the one who made me into this. You made me into a miserable fool who couldn’t do anything, couldn’t feel anything but greed. I asked you, begged you for your time, and you have laughed at my misery, not letting an hour of a day spent with me,” she was teary-eyed, her voice desperate as she held into his arm.

“Remove your wretched hold from me. I have never been so disgusted with anyone the way I am with you. I have never met a woman as cruel and as desperate as you are,” his voice was low but there was an undeniable warning in it.

“I am just suggesting a way out of this mess. We both know how the child will feel towards the homewrecker concubine of yours once he has found out the whole truth of her identity,” she continued though she has removed her hand from his arm and has stepped back with caution as she looked at him.

With one step he removed their distance, his hand circling around her neck as he squeezed hard into it. Her lungs were subjected to slow torture as he choked her.

She desperately tapped into his arm, but it was only when he heard his grandma’s voice that he let go of her. Looking at them both with contempt he turned away and walked to search for his beloved.

“You really are a foolish young woman,” the family’s matriarch was left with the young lady as she gasped for breath.

“This family has made me desperate and foolish. Since no one is for me in this family, then I must watch out for myself,” she justified, trying to hold her head high as she looked at the old lady.

“This is not the way to get my grandson’s affections. The more you chase him like this, the more he becomes sure of your evil nature and despises you,” the old lady pointed out.

“I am not waiting for his affections. What I am after is his attention and time. It always starts that way, doesn’t it? If I need to compete with that woman he needs to spend more time with me,” she hissed.

The old lady laughed hearing her answer, “You really are a fool. Can’t you see, in his eyes, no one can surpass her? Competing with the woman he values more than life itself, isn’t that too much to ask, considering he never once looked at you,” the old lady looked at her pitifully.

“Don’t give me that look, if you are not going to help me. Then at least stand aside. Stand aside and watch me separate the two. I’ll show you how greedy I can truly be,” she swallowed the bitterness in her mouth.

It is true she is ruthless but the circumstances forced her to be. By refusing to give even a bit of his heart to her, she has become even more desperate.

“Since the world is not fair to me, then I should not play fair as well,” she smiled bitterly at the old lady whose pity made her even more pathetic.