Fated An Alpha Male Romance - K. Alex Walker Page 0,54

hands, but I was beginning to hate this shit. I wanted her to fall asleep and wake up with me. She’d already met my friends, was about to meet my grandfather, and I’d even considered driving to the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women to tell my mother that I’d found someone who chose me. To understand exactly how big of a deal that was, I hadn’t seen my mother in the twenty-eight years since I left Baton Rouge.

“Just remember that, in all of the effort not to do something because it didn’t ‘feel right,’ this doesn’t feel right either,” I told her. “I don’t know how you feel about me, but I’ve told you as much. I won’t wait forever.”

Yet, something told me that even if I didn’t want to wait forever, it was inevitable. I wouldn’t ever find this again.

I gently released her grasp and left the room.

-----

Alexandra

Ethan’s pain and disappointment resonated inside of me. I could feel every ounce of the hurt visible in his eyes, but I’d still been weak and stupid. Fucking stupid. All this talk about being free and finding myself was complete bullshit. I was still the same scared, meek, and controlled Alexandra that I’d always been.

My feelings for Ethan were clear as polished glass, and yet I couldn’t even open my mouth to tell him that I loved him simply because it was a step I was too afraid to take. I yearned for this man and felt a connection to him that terrified the hell out of me. He was it for me. Point blank. It was something that I just knew, although I didn’t know how.

He made a good job of saving face over breakfast with Kellen and Tayler, who happened to be an excellent cook. For breakfast, she made us fried eggs over white rice with a side of plantains and café con leche. I followed Ethan’s lead, laughing and smiling as though nothing had gone down in the bedroom, but he was solemn again by the time we were on the road. We didn’t speak during the entire ride to his grandfather’s assisted living facility.

The facility was more upscale than some of the other facilities that I’d seen around the state. The entrance reminded me of walking into a ranch-style home with its dormer windows, quaint porch, and stone accents. It certainly looked to be a step up from how Ethan had described his grandfather’s old home.

We parked in the front lot and Ethan hopped out, walking ahead of me without tossing a glance over his shoulder. I didn’t blame him for being upset; I knew that he was hurting. I was hurting too. I would have given anything to make the situation easier. I wanted to be with Ethan, but I’d tricked myself into thinking that I was strong enough to withstand the same treatment from my family that Gia received. I loved my sister, but I was not entirely sure that I could handle not having their support.

Inside, the facility was just as beautiful. I’d envisioned living facilities to be mundane institutions with white walls that smelled of bleach, and imagined the sound of squeaky wheels moving down never-ending, linoleum hallways. This place was carpeted and had a modern, urban feel to it. Everything was painted in soft colors, and there were signs directing residents to a fitness center, theatre room, and banquet hall. I could only imagine how much it cost to live there, but with the way Ethan credited his grandfather with “saving his life,” I got the feeling that he would still willingly pay the fee even if it meant that he’d have to go penniless.

“Hi Dr. Stewart,” a bubbly, auburn-haired woman at the front desk greeted. She wrapped chubby arms around Ethan’s shoulders and her green eyes looked over him like a mother checking to make sure that her child was eating while away at college.

“Hi Maureen,” he replied. “How have things been with you?”

“Wonderful.” Two deep dimples appeared in her cheeks. “Bryce just got accepted into the LSU School of Medicine, so we’re happy that he doesn’t have to go too far from home. Thank you so much again for your letter of recommendation.”

She finally noticed me standing behind Ethan and her smile grew even wider.

“Oh, who do we have here? Is this her? Is this Alexandra?”

I suddenly felt both miserable and giddy at the same time. There I was, ready to do cartwheels because I found out that Ethan had been