Alpha’s Virgin Stripper

Lake:

I was more than determined to find Jesse Wyatt and make an unholy example out of him. I was willing to put every single resource I could gather, willing to comb the ends of the earth just to make sure that I found him. He was Jojo’s father and he had treated her wrongly. It was safe to say that he was also the reason why Jojo had to endure hardship all her life. I was going to find him and make him pay for it. It was the least I could do for her.

Meanwhile, Neil had still not been able to find her or anyone we knew who was related to her. He had even tried to find my mother, just to ask of Jojo’s whereabouts, but my mother was nowhere to be found as well. It was almost as though they had disappeared into thin air, vanished from the pack.

But that was just one of my many problems. The most important thing right now was the call I had gotten from Mrs. Jane Lockwood, Kenji’s mother. I cannot say I wasn’t expecting the call. After my father had promised me to Jade, it was only natural that they invite me to their family home.

What bothered me was the fact that Mrs. Lockwood had to do it herself by calling my private line at 9:00 in the morning.

I did not know what I was going to say to her, or Jade. However, I drove to the Lockwood mansion. The huge steel gates opened in front of me and I drove my white Tesla into the building. I parked my car by the water fountain. Their butler was at the door to usher me in. I tried to keep a straight face, but the thought of being in the same room with Jade made me frown on default.

I was ushered into the famous library of the Lockwoods. This room in the house was catered for and kept by Mrs. Lockwood herself. It was her safe haven. The woman was a popular author who was famous for her works on child fiction and adventure. It was only normal for her to adore her library more than any other room in the house.

I stepped into the large room and found Mrs. Lockwood seated on a crimson colored sofa. There was a round glass table and a couch in front of her. She rose from her seat when she saw me, her brown eyes flashed with a smile and I found myself smiling as well. She was always so easy, radiant and filled with energy.

“Lake, my boy. I wasn’t expecting you so early.” She called out. I watched her open her arms to offer me an embrace. I walked briskly towards her and allowed myself to be pulled into her motherly arms.

“My father taught me never to leave beautiful women waiting,” I replied, while I disengaged myself from her embrace. I settled into the couch in front of her and she shook her head, still smiling.

“Then he taught you well.” She replied.

When we were finally seated, I decided to speak first. I knew that she must have had a million questions in her mind, seeing as I never wanted to be with Jade.

I leaned out of the couch and cleared my throat.

“Mrs. Lockwood, I must say that you are like a mother to me, even more. But if this is about Jade…”

She scoffed and waved her right hand at me.

“Oh no! Lake. This isn’t about Jade. To be honest, I do not support that union. I rather wish she would get over you and move on. She has been in denial about your rejection for far too long, it is beginning to give me a cause for concern.” She replied.

My heartbeat began to steady slowly. I was relieved to see and know that there were still adults who thought with their brains and not their ego.

But, if I wasn’t here because of Jade, then…

“Is there a problem, Mrs. Lockwood?” I asked. My eyes were already narrowed on hers.

She did not reply my question. Instead, she turned to her right, picked up a fancy wooden box and held it out to me. I sat still, not sure of what to make of it.

“What did your father tell you about keeping beautiful women waiting?” She asked out loud, a knowing smile on her face.

I chuckled and reached out for the small rectangular box. I placed it on my lap and continued to stare at it.

“Come on, open it. I promise there’s nothing dangerous in it.” She added, verbally teasing me. I managed a chuckle, even though it was a stiff one.

I found the lid of the box and flung it open. A red satin fabric lay on a soft pillow-like material, there was a golden pin on it. At first glance, it was absolutely elegant and breathtaking.

My eyes raised to meet hers on their own accord.

“I’m confused. Is this a wedding gift, or?”

Once again, Mrs Lockwood laughed as she leaned into her chair.

“It is a wedding gift, alright. But it was from your mother.”

Mother.

That word caused me to frown in that instant. She must have seen this, because her smile dissolved from her face and her eyes became clouded with worry.

“Before she left, she told me to give it to you on your wedding, for your wedding. But, I have waited for so long and I’m finally tired of waiting. I decided to give it to you now. Even though she knew she would not be present, she wanted you to feel her presence.”

I continued to stare at Mrs. Lockwood. With the way she spoke, one would have thought that my mother was a saint who actually cared about me and what I became. I refused to be fooled.

My eyes wandered to the red fabric. I picked it up and held it out, spreading it open.

There were letters embroidered onto the fabric with golden thread.Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

“EM loves LK?” I read out loud, but it ended up leaving my lips as a question.

“Emerald loves Lake, she made it herself.” Mrs. Lockwood replied.

My eyes refused to leave the fabric, no matter how badly I wanted to bundle it into the box and return it, I could not bring myself to move, or tear my gaze away from it.

“Listen Lake, I know that I would be going against your father by saying this to you, but you need to know the truth. You deserve to know the truth about… well, everything.”

My orbs dropped from the antique muffler to Mrs. Lockwood’s bright colored face and heavy brown eyes. It was then I noticed the pearl necklace on her neck and her black cotton dress.

Truth. She spoke of truth.

What other truth was there to know?

“Mrs. Lockwood, I do not want to…”

“Your mother was not a bad person, Lake.”

I scoffed. I placed the muffler back into the box and closed it.

Like there was any other word for a woman who abandoned her son, but I let Mrs. Lockwood continue.

“Listen Lake. Even though your mother would not speak out about the things she was going through with your father, we could see it, we could all she the smallest bits of everything that was going on. And all the things we saw… they were…”

I narrowed my eyes on her. She heaved a sad sigh and leaned out of her chair.

“They were all bad, Lake. Emerald suffered, she did. At a point, she was suicidal, she thought about ending her life more times than normal. You were the only thing that kept her sane. Your father… he loved someone else. But he banished her from the pack, along with her lover, because she did not love him back. He was angry and heartbroken, but his love for her never died.”

I was forced to lean out of my chair. It did not make sense.

My father had been rejected by two women in his life?

“When your father lost the woman he loved, he began his search for an heir. Your father and mother met at a gala and must have spent the night together. When she got pregnant for him, Cole had to marry her for the child she was carrying, since it was rumored he had difficulties in… getting women pregnant.”

I shifted in my seat, I was visibly uncomfortable with her last statement.

“But the marriage was hell for Emerald. Your father did not care for her, he did not love her. Emerald often told me how he mentioned the name of his ex-lover in his sleep, even when they tried to… you know, make love. Your mother suffered, she really did. To be honest, I was one of the happiest people when she finally decided to leave your father. She had plans to elope with you, to take you along with her. But your father found out and threatened her. He was going to kill her entire family if she dared to leave with you. But, she would have died sooner if she stayed, it was for the best that she left.”

I did not know what to say. I was visibly stricken and tongue-tied. No one had ever told me this part of the story before.

“I know you think she abandoned you, but all she did was find love and seek happiness. She did not commit a crime. We don’t keep contact anymore, but for the five years that I received pictures and telegrams, she was the happiest she had ever been. And she never stopped wanting to know how you were, she always loved you, Lake.”