THE SUBSTITUTE LUNA (IRIS and DRACO) novel Chapter 22

IRIS.

I couldn’t help my face from heating up from all the stares we were getting. No one said anything, but I was sure they would talk once we were gone from here.

I felt the Alpha’s hand on my back as he steered me toward the cashier. He placed everything he was holding on the counter and pulled out his wallet. I would have volunteered to pay for this with the money he gave me, but I wasn’t sure if it was enough for all these garments he chose.

Also, my pants, where the money was, were inside the paper bag, and if I pulled them out, my soiled shirt might fall, as they were wrapped around together.

So I remained quiet and let him pay.

“It’s in the house, Alpha,” Tricia said as she stood at the other side of the Alpha, anchoring her arms on the counter. Their arms brushed against each other.

“No. I’ll pay for it.” He said as he instructed the female who was attending the cash register to let him pay the total.

“It’s a gift from the shop, Alpha. We’ve been hitting way above the target sales, so we can afford to give you…”

“I chose all of these, so I’m paying for them. However, feel free to send gifts for Iris. Send it to my house.”

“Your house?” She repeated.

“If you want the gift to get to her, yes, send them to my house.” He answered as he slipped his card back into his wallet while I took the paper bags from the cashier, who smiled at me.

“Thank you,” I told her.

“Draco, let’s talk.” I heard Tricia say in a low voice, and when I turned to them, I saw her holding his forearm.

My eyebrows raised, not just because she touched him but because she called him by his first name.

My ex-husband had many mistresses, and even if they showed affection to him right in front of me, I had never felt possessive of him. Never confronted them as well.

In fact, if they were only nice to me, I would be willing to befriend them. That was how much I never wanted him, but I felt totally different when it came to the Alpha.

“Some other time. I need to be somewhere,” he told her in a cold voice before his gaze shifted to me. “Ready?”

I nodded, hoping he didn’t see my reaction to them. He motioned with his hand for me to go ahead. But I saw Tricia looking at me with a scowl on her face, and the little fire of jealousy within me became a big flame, eating all of me.

Instead of walking ahead as the Alpha wanted me to do, my hand raised and grabbed his hand, entwining his fingers with mine as I pulled him out of the shop.

I eventually fell asleep when the sky started to light up, and I woke up when the sun was already up. I hurriedly took a bath and went down, hoping I would not get reprimanded for sleeping so late.

I’d been dying to ask where he was or if she knew where he spent the night, but I didn’t. I doubted she knew the answer.

I was done with breakfast when we heard a commotion coming from the entrance. We both took a peek and saw one of the helpers talking with someone with long, black hair—Tricia.

My jaw clenched, not liking that she was here.

Did the Alpha send her here to pick up something? Maybe his clothes. Did he spend the night with her?

If this were me in my old house, I would just back out and hide in my room. But not this time. I wanted to know more, so without saying anything to Janice, I stepped forward and headed for the front door.

“Is there anything wrong?” I asked as I approached them.

My eyes locked with Tricia, and I didn’t like the sarcastic smirk that tugged on her mouth. It was like she knew something that I didn’t.