My Guardian Married My Sister But I’m His Alpha Chapter 04
Chiara didn’t answer directly.
Instead, she asked, “Do you think I should?”
Francesca faltered, her voice dropping to a near whisper.
“Chiara, I know you’ve never gotten over my marriage to Griffin.”
She took a shaky breath. “But I never wanted to compete with you. Nightfall had just lost its Alpha, and these past few years haven’t been easy for Griffin. If you need to blame someone, you can blame me.”
She sounded like a kind, older sister, trying to offer comfort.
To Chiara, every word dripped with irony.
“I don’t blame you,” Chiara said, cutting her off.
And it was the truth.
There were plenty of people to blame for the mess her life had become.
But she refused to lay all of their choices at the feet of the woman standing before her.
She had barely finished speaking when she heard footsteps on the path behind her.
Steady. Unhurried.
Chiara didn’t have to turn around.
But Francesca’s expression shifted in an instant.
The tears vanished, and her eyes lit up.
“Griffin,” she called out softly. “What are you doing up here? I thought you were waiting in the car for me.”
Chiara’s back went rigid.
That familiar scent of pine and black pepper drew closer, stopping a few feet to her right.
“You two were taking a while. I came to check,” Griffin said, his tone even. “It’s windy. Your wolf is weak. You shouldn’t stay out too long.”
“I’m fine.”
Francesca smiled, her voice taking on the easy intimacy of a married woman.
“You shouldn’t have brought Chiara here straight from the airport, either. You didn’t even let her rest.”
She walked to Griffin’s side and slipped her arm through his.
The gesture was smooth, practiced.
Chiara glanced at them once, a tight band constricting around her chest.
“…I’m leaving.”
She bent toward her father’s photograph. “Dad,” she murmured, “I’ll be back tomorrow.”
Then she turned and walked away.
“Chiara,” Francesca called after her. “Where are you going? Let Griffin take you. You just got back, you shouldn’t be alone—”
“No need.”
Chiara didn’t look back.
She walked faster and faster, her pace quickening until she was almost running.
At the cemetery gates, she flagged down a cab.
“The Hyatt, please.”
The taxi had only driven a few blocks when her phone vibrated.
Griffin’s number.
She had deleted his contact years ago, but she still recognized the string of digits instantly.
Chiara let it ring.
A moment later, a text message came through.
*Chiara, some things from three years ago weren’t what you thought. Give me a chance to explain.*
She stared at the words for a long time.
Three years ago, he had silently accepted the alliance.
Three years ago, on the terrace, he had told her she was strong enough to survive without him.
Now he was saying it wasn’t what she thought.
Even if it wasn’t, what difference did it make now?
Chiara locked her phone, ignoring the messages that followed.
The cab ride took forty minutes. By the time she reached the hotel, night had fallen completely.
At the front desk, the clerk smiled. “Ms. Moretti, someone upgraded your room. You’re in 1809. Here is your key card.”
Chiara took the card without asking who.
She already knew.
The elevator ascended slowly.
When she reached her floor, she stopped short.
Someone was standing outside room 1809.
It was Arthur, the old butler from the Moretti Pack estate.
He wore his customary charcoal vest and crisp white shirt, the Nightfall insignia pinned to his collar. When he saw Chiara, he inclined his head slightly.
“Ms. Moretti, Elder Moretti sent me. The car is waiting downstairs.”