Chapter 36

Ella POV

"You’ve certainly pulled it off," Alexander said with a look of amusement on his face. "The news has reached the far corners of the kingdom. It’s all anyone’s talking about."

I was sitting on the bed in my room, video calling with Alexander. I felt strange, almost like I was dreaming.

It was only this morning that I and the rest of the wedding guests had caught David and Amanda in the act. So much had happened since then.

My parents were upset—more so than I had expected. After all, they had known that David was a bad match for me, and I had foolishly insisted on going forward with the wedding. I thought that they should have been relieved.

But I knew that they were heartbroken on my behalf. They had no way of knowing that I had already grieved for my relationship with David.

I smiled awkwardly into the phone. "Yes, it seems the plan worked perfectly," I said. "Now the truth is exposed."

"You don't have to force yourself to smile," Alexander said softly. "It's okay to still feel sad about this. After all, there was a time when you loved him, right?"

I stared at my phone, his words hitting me harder than I expected. He was right—there had been a time when I loved David.

Seeing David and Amanda together... It wasn’t just that it hurt my pride—it broke my heart in a way I hadn’t anticipated.

"Thank you," I said softly. "I'm just glad that I can put this all behind me and move on."

Alexander’s gaze lingered on me, searching my face as if he could see through my words, through the lie that even I wasn’t sure I believed.

"Are you sure about that?" he asked quietly.

I opened my mouth to respond, but no words came out.

"I'm fine," I lied, my voice hollow. "I knew this would happen, after all."

"That changes nothing," Alexander said, his voice full of understanding. "Just because you know something will end in disaster doesn't mean you won't still be hurt by it."

I was touched by his concern. I hadn’t expected that from him. What we had was an arrangement, not a friendship. But now, I was starting to feel that maybe we were becoming something more.

I didn’t know if I would ever be able to allow myself to fall in love again. Even so, what I felt for Alexander was strong, and I couldn’t deny it, at least not to myself.

"Now that you’ve gotten out of your marriage," Alexander added, "our relationship can move forward."

"Not too quickly," I cautioned him. "We don’t want it to look as if we were just waiting for the opportunity."

“I don’t see much reason to wait,” he said. “I’m looking forward to showing you what it’s like to be treated well by a lover. I promise you, you’ll find life as my fiance much more enjoyable.”

“You make it sound like this isn’t just a deal,” I said softly. My face was red with embarrassment at his words. “I’m serious, we have to be mindful about how we do this.”

Alexander grinned. "Don’t worry," he said. "I know how to choose the right moment."

I did worry about it, though. I worried about it for the next two days while word continued to spread of what had happened.

I hadn't noticed at the time, but it seemed that a couple of people had pulled out their phones to record the surprise party and got more than they bargained for.

Those videos had gone viral, and it seemed like everyone had seen them. Honestly, it embarrassed me—I hadn't planned for something like that.

I even found myself feeling a little bit bad for Amanda.

It seemed that she had been forced to go into hiding. Her parents hadn't made any public comment about the matter either, not that there was anything they could say that would have made it better.

I only hoped that she might actually learn something from this, although I doubted it.

The look of hatred on her face when she killed me in the original timeline would never leave my memory.

David, on the other hand, was forced to make a public statement.

I refused to go to the event in person. It would be televised, and that would be enough for me. I didn’t want to be in the same space as him ever again if I could avoid it, and I certainly wasn’t ready to do it yet.

My parents seemed to understand this. They felt that I was still grieving the loss of my relationship.

I was content to let them believe that, if it allowed me to avoid seeing David. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to hide my hatred for him when I saw him again.

When the time came for the public address, I went downstairs and sat on the couch with my mother and father. The TV was on already and tuned to the appropriate channel.

Neither of my parents said a word to me as I sat between them, but my mother leaned over and kissed me on the side of my head, and my father put his arm around my shoulders in a show of support.

Once again, I felt a huge wave of relief wash over me. The fact that they were here and we were all a family again was something that I would never stop being grateful for.

What had happened was awful, but it was necessary in order to protect them. I would never allow David or anyone else to use my family against me again. I would protect them no matter what it took.

If destroying David’s reputation was all that I did, then it was a mercy considering what he truly deserved.

I watched the television screen as David and his father approached a microphone stand. There must have been a dozen reporters in front of them. Although they weren't shown on the screen, I could tell by the way that David's eyes were darting around.

Alpha Derrick stepped forward first, his eyes fixed directly into the camera. He spoke in a slow, firm voice.

"As Alpha of the Lunar Lake pack, I would like to offer my sincerest apology to the Rowanwood pack, and especially to Ella Rowan. The actions that my son took were disrespectful and a violation of the oath that he swore to you. It was regrettable and never should have happened. For that, I offer my deepest apology. We will be paying the price due to your pack within the week.."

Alpha Derrick stepped back, ignoring the questions the reporters shouted after him.

Then David stepped up to the microphone. He had a sheet of paper in his hand; it seemed that he had written down what he wanted to say, which was probably a good idea so that he wouldn't make a fool of himself.

He looked down at the paper as he spoke into the microphone. "I'm David of the Lunar Lake pack, son of the Lunar Lake Alpha and Luna," he said in a monotone voice. "I am here today to offer an apology to the Rowanwood pack and Ella Rowan. My actions are..."

David suddenly crumpled the paper in his hands and lifted his eyes up to the camera.

"It wasn't just poor judgment," he said in a harsh voice. "Ella, I'm sorry that I hurt you. I never meant to do it, and I never would have done it if it weren't for Amanda. You and I both know what she can be like—how she is when she wants something."

"David," Alpha Derrick said angrily as he reached to grab his son's arm. David pulled away from his grip and continued to speak.

"What happened wasn't my fault. Amanda attempted to seduce me. It's the same dirty trick she played in the restaurant during our engagement party. I don't know how she did it, but I know that she's the one to blame, and I'm going to find a way to prove it to you."

The TV screen went black suddenly, then the faces of two confused-looking reporters appeared on the screen.

"We seem to be having technical difficulties," one of them said.

I looked at my father. He was staring at the TV with rage on his face.

"I can't believe he just did that," I said.

"Neither can I," my father agreed.

I looked back at the screen, trying to process what had just happened.

I thought that I was finally free of David, but clearly, he still wasn't ready to give up. My heart sank as I worried that I was never truly going to be able to free myself from him.