Joseph’s POV
I wanted to rip Ryan’s head off for pulling away from Ava. But it seed he had discovered why Ava was upset with .
"Joseph, Ava knows," Ryan said as soon as we stepped into Draven’s family library.
"Knows what?" I asked, confused.
"About yesterday, your encounter with Sophia at the social club," Ryan explained.
"What are you talking about?" I looked at him blankly. Before going to Ryan’s place for poker, I had ntioned to the guys about what happened between Sophia and .
"It was a trap, man. Sophia planned the whole thing, and you fell for it. Vanessa took a photo of Sophia hanging all over you and sent it to Ava," Ryan explained, and suddenly everything made sense.
"How did you find out?" I asked.
"Because Ruby freaked out, saying she’d cut my balls off if she found out I was with Vanessa! I had no idea what she was talking about, so I pressed her until she told . She said Eleanor had already cald Ava down and would investigate the matter." Ryan paced anxiously. "Goddess, I’m worried Vanessa might try to set up too."
"Relax, Ryan. You already know how these vipers operate, just don’t fall for it," Luke tried to calm him down.
"I’ll sort things out with Ava," I said. "Things went better than I expected yesterday. I think she might have forgiven if it wasn’t for Sophia’s setup."
"Whatever you do, don’t take her to your apartnt," Draven warned. "The minute she walks in, she’ll rember your cheating and want to burn the place down."
"I’ve already prepared everything at the house. I’ll take her there again. I want her to decorate it herself, you know, make everything her own," I told my friends.
"Alright, let’s get back to our won," Nate said, rubbing his hands together.
When I returned, I spotted Ava talking with my mother from a distance. They seed to be getting along well. My mother had already told how much she liked Ava. It made happy, incredibly so.
While I sat down to enjoy all the desserts she and my mother had ordered, Ava said she was going to get sothing to drink.
That’s when I spotted her chatting with that Alpha Kenneth.
Dean roared in my mind, "We need to get that Alpha away from our mate. NOW."
As I approached, I listened carefully to what they were saying. When I heard Ava say, "I care about him very much," I felt elated. Ava was probably too shy to admit she loved outright.
But that was practically the sa as loving . However, Alpha Kenneth’s subsequent words were strangely cryptic. It was as if he knew secrets about Ava that I didn’t, which infuriated .
I imdiately sent a mind-link to my Beta, Jared. He responded quickly.
"Alpha Joseph, shouldn’t you be at Alpha Draven’s wedding right now?" Beta Jared asked, surprised.
"I am. But I need sothing from you. How’s the investigation on Alpha Kenneth that I asked you to conduct?" I replied.
Beta Jared was incredibly efficient—I could always count on him to handle pack matters. Sure enough, he said, "I’ve compiled all the information. It’s waiting in your study at the pack house."
"Great. Thank you." I severed the connection.
I had a general idea about Alpha Kenneth, having crossed paths with him at Alpha Council etings. I only knew the basics about his territory and business interests, considering his territory was practically worlds away from Harbor Bay. But my impression of him wasn’t good.
This Alpha gave a cold feeling. On the surface, he was all smiles and warmth, but in reality, I suspected he would betray anyone without hesitation for territory and profit. The typical profit-above-all type.
His frequent contact with Ava made determined to investigate his motives thoroughly.
Seeing approach, he had the sense to leave. For the rest of the evening, I stayed by Ava’s side, following her wherever she went. When it was ti to leave, she tried to escape by riding with Nate and Elle, but I pulled her back and let Nate go without her.
"No way. You’re coming with ," I said, embracing her.
"Joseph, I want to go ho tonight," Ava said, looking like she had sothing urgent to take care of.
"I’ll take you ho," I said, leading her toward my car.
When I parked the car in the garage of the house I’d bought, Ava let out a huff and shot a glare. Before getting out, she complained.
"I said I wanted to go ho."
"Ava, this is your ho," I said, lifting her into my arms and carrying her inside.
"Hmm, no roses today?" she asked, seeing only pillows, rugs, and a small side table.
"Not today." I pulled her in for a quick kiss. "Today I just want to talk and clear things up."
"Good. Planning to clear up the matter of Sophia clinging to you yesterday?"
"Exactly," I sighed.
"Great! I hope you have at least two bottles of wine," Ava said, sitting down on the pillows.
"Just one glass. I want you sober so you understand everything I’m about to say."
"You’re no fun!" Ava stuck her tongue out at childishly.
I smiled at her and went to the kitchen. I returned with wine, glasses, a plate of cheese, and so small desserts. She smiled when she saw them. I poured her wine and started talking, telling her everything that happened after I left her place yesterday.
"That’s what happened, Ava. I can show you the ssage Vanessa sent ." I took out my phone and opened the app but couldn’t find the ssage.
I panicked. The ssage was gone. This was terrible! They had planned it so ticulously that there was no evidence it had been pre-arranged. That bitch Vanessa had sent a ssage that could only be viewed once, disappearing after opening.
"Looks like you don’t understand," Ava sighed. "Joseph, you know what, sit down, let’s just enjoy this wine and relax."
"I want more than relaxation. I want to kiss you," I said seriously, almost pleading.
"I won’t stop you," Ava said simply, and I could no longer contain myself.
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