TEMPORARY MATES PERMANENT CRAVINGS novel Chapter 174

One hundred and seventy four

Lisa POV

“What is going on?” I leaned toward my mother as I looked for an answer.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” she said.

Alpha Kieran stood with Nadia, but his eyes stayed locked on my mother, a smile stretching across his face.

“We should excuse them to talk,” my mom whispered. She didn’t look at me; her eyes remained fixed on Alpha Kieran.

I shifted my gaze to Nadia. She usually wore clothes like a shield of high fashion, every hair a perfect coil. Today, the makeup was gone. Her outfit was simple. She gave me a nod, her eyes dropping to the curve of my stomach before she turned back to Cameron.

“Help me with lunch,” my mom said to me.

In the kitchen, the air felt thick. I gripped a carrot under the running water, rubbing the skin until it squeaked. Nearby, my mom’s knife clicked against the cutting board, but it kept stopping.

She would tiptoe toward the doorway to catch a sound from the other room, only to turn back and give me a shake of her head.

No clues.

But Franklin’s earlier order to keep Cameron here, mixed with this surprise visit, made my pulse quicken.

“You think there’s trouble in paradise?” I asked, lifting a heavy colander of dripping vegetables. “I feel we have something to do with it.”

My mom’s knife hit the wood. “Lisa, you worry too much.” She wiped her hands on her apron. “Stress is not good for you or the baby.”

I looked down at my middle.

“Well, it’s not my fault I’m curious”

“Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll find out.”

Later, the only sound at the table was the clink of forks against ceramic. Cameron sat like a statue. Alpha Kieran leaned in, asking Cameron about his head and the dizzy spells, but Cameron didn’t blink. Instead, his eyes tracked me as I set down a plate and walked back toward the kitchen.

When Cameron reached for his water, his fingers lingered around the glass. I stared at his hand until he noticed my gaze. Only then did he lift the cup and drink.

“Lisa, Cameron says your doctor took his blood for testing.”

I gave a nod.

“That’s good,” Kieran said. A forced laugh bubbled out of him. “Nobody could convince this mule-headed boy to take a test, and you just did. Very good.”

My mom joined the laughter, but it sounded thin. Nadia, Cameron, and Franklin kept their faces like stone. For the rest of the meal, I kept my head down, watching Cameron from the corners of my eyes. He stayed silent, letting questions hang in the air without an answer.

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“Thank you for the food, Susan,” Nadia said. “I can’t remember the last time I ate something this good.”

My mom’s cheeks turned a faint pink. I waited for the conversation to finally break open, to hear why they were really here, but Kieran stood up. They were leaving.

“Is everything fine?” I followed Cameron upstairs. He was grabbing his shirt from the bed.

He kept his back to me. A beam of afternoon sun hit the carpet, glowing between us. I reached out and pressed my palm against his shoulder.

“Fine,” he said. The word was unreadable. He turned, leaning down to press a quick kiss against my forehead.

“Let me help you,” I said, reaching for his buttons.

His chest stayed stiff, then he let his arms hang.

“I wish I could stay,” he muttered. “The world out there is so, so confusing.”

I slowed my fingers on the last button, looking straight into his eyes, waiting for the rest of the thought. He didn’ speak. He leaned in as if to kiss my lips, but stopped just inches away.

“I’ll call you,” he said. He turned and walked out.

From my room, I listened to the front door thud shut. The engines of two cars started and faded. Franklin, Cameron, and Nadia were gone. Alpha Kieran’s car was still in the drive. I stayed put, staring at the ceiling. If my mom and the Alpha needed to talk, I didn’t want to be the one hovering in the hallway like a ghost.

I flipped on the TV. Bright colors of a sitcom flashed across the screen, and canned laughter filled the quiet room. My eyelids grew heavy even as my brain spun in circles.

A sharp, jagged scream snapped me awake.

“No!” my mother’s voice rang through the floorboards. “Absolutely not!”

I kicked off the blankets and scrambled to my feet. Her voice wasn’t angry; it trembled with a sharp edge of fear.

“I said no, Kieran!” she shouted as I reached the hallway. “I’m not putting her in the middle of this!”

I hurried down the stairs, my hand sliding over the railing. I stopped just before the final turn.

“I will protect my daughter,” she yelled, her voice booming over Kieran’s low, calm tone. “I just got her out of one mess. I’m not throwing her into another! You don’t have control over Lisa. None of you do!’

“Mom, what’s going on?”

They both jerked around. My mom’s face went pale, her eyes wide and fierce.

“Lisa, go upstairs. No. It’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing, Mom. You woke me up from a nap.”

She winced, her expression softening into an apology. “I’m sorry. Just go upstairs.”

I stepped off the last stair and shook my head. “What is going on? Why is everyone acting strangely?”

My mom looked at Alpha Kieran, her jaw set. “She doesn’t need to hear this.”

“She already has,” I heard him mutter.

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I walked into the center of the room. Alpha Kieran’s forehead was bunched into deep, worried lines. “Please tell me,” I said. “Is this about Cameron? The baby? Evangeline?”

Kieran stayed quiet, his eyes shifting away.

“What now?” I felt my voice rise. “Has Evangeline decided she doesn’t want the baby anymore?”

“Calm down,” my mom said, reaching for my arm. She looked at Kieran with pure frustration. “You see? This is why it’s not wise to tell her.”

“You’re wrong, Susan,” he said. “If you can just calm down…”

My mom turned her back to us, hugging her arms tight across her chest.

Kieran looked at me. He opened his mouth, closed it, then tried again. “It’s about Cameron,” he said, his voice hesitant as he searched for the words.

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