99 Times for Alpha’s Bestie novel Chapter 179

Liyah’s hysterical laughter filled the car during the entire ride home. I had lost count of how many times she had reaccounted the expression of Liam’s face, splattered with red wine and yogurt in bursts of laughter.

“Honestly, Claire, that was the best.”

“Okay, enough already!” I finally gasped between breaths, trying and failing to keep a straight face as my own lips kept twitching upward.

“He looked exactly like a clown from Disneyland! Oh my Goddess! Claire, you went absolutely

nuclear this time! I am seriously impressed!” Liyah wheezed, clutching her stomach.

“Any new gossip in your frenemies group chat? Check it quick,” I prompted, curiosity getting the better of me.

“Oh, this is gold,” Liyah exclaimed, scrolling through her phone. “Nora just posted that she got completely ghosted after waiting at the airport for a whole hour! She is absolutely fuming!” Liyah laughed until the muscles in her face ached.

I was surprised that Liam actually stood her up. He always had a change of clothes with him. You would have thought that he’d use this as another jab, but he’s still licking his wounds.

A triumphant smirk curled my lips as the tension inside me finally deflated like a popped balloon.

After returning safely to Edmonton, I dragged my exhausted body through my apartment door. The frantic high–speed drive had sapped every ounce of my energy. All I wanted was to faceplant into my plush and welcoming bed and sleep for a week.

But before I could reach the mattress calling out to me, I collided with a broad, firm chest instead. The familiar scent of pinewood filled my nostrils. Every muscle in my body tensed as I jerked my head eeting eyes so dark they looked like pools of midnight.

“You did you get back so fast?” I stammered.

“You tell me why you left first.” Lucien’s stare was impenetrable, his voice a low rumble.

“It was just a last–minute emergency,” I explained, keeping my lashes lowered as I fidgeted with my shirt hem. “You were sleeping so soundly in the courtyard, I did not want to wake you. I did tell grandmother and Carson to let you know I had to leave, though.”

I stole a glance at his bare chest and felt my face flush.

‘Dammit! Why did he have to be the most incredible specimen of male physique when all I wanted to do was ignore the continuously growing pull towards him?‘

He must have raced back, too, I realized.

He stood there, freshly showered with his robe left open, the belt conspicuously absent. I could see gleaming pectorals still glistening with droplets, ridged abs that looked carved from marble, and that tantalizing V line disappearing beneath the loosely tied fabric.

My cheeks burned crimson as my imagination ran wild. Every nerve ending screamed for escape, but Lucien’s domineering stance, his hands caging me against the wall, left no room for retreat.

“Really? It was that urgent that you broke the internet with your latest trending hashtag? Everyone is talking about the fast and furious Ferrari tearing through the streets.” His velvet baritone dripped with skepticism.

Of course, he saw the trending posts. I scrambled for a better excuse, my cheeks flaming. “Just- uhhh, office stuff.”

“Claire, you honestly expect me to believe that?” Lucien’s obsidian eyes seemed to see straight through me.

Then it hit me, what exactly are we to each other now? We weren’t friends, we weren’t family, but we weren’t lovers either.

So, why did I feel the need to justify myself at all? There was pressure piling on me to be honest, but I couldn’t. I didn’t want Lucien to think it was more than what it was.

A wave of exhaustion crashed over me.

Rubbing my stiff neck, I whimpered, “Lucien, please. I was wronged, and I addressed the matter. It was personal, and it’s been handled. Can we drop it for now? I am so exhausted I could collapse right here.”

Damn it all!

My wolf was losing himself in laughter in my head, as he watched the scene play out in delight.

I had only been waving a finger near her face to test if she was truly asleep. Yet she had actually bitten me.

Eyes narrowing, I painstakingly pried my finger free from between her lips. Was she genuinely asleep, or playing some trick? Fingertips lifted to trace her cheek.

Suddenly, she twisted sideways, trapping my hand beneath her head. At the same time, her other arm hooked around my neck while her legs tangled with mine, her entire body wrapping around me like a clinging octopus.

My breath hitched, turning white hot in an instant. This was the first time since adulthood that I had been this close to a woman, so close that our breaths mingled, sending jolts of electricity through my nerves.

I had always prided myself on unshakable discipline. Over the years, no matter how breathtaking the beauty before me, I had remained utterly composed.

Yet now, with her soft curves moulding to my body like liquid heat, I felt a raw hunger threatening to obliterate my control.

Even my wolf was smitten. He liked the idea of us being promised to one another and the Goddess’s approval, especially since we don’t seem to have a true mate of our own out there.

As I lay there, panicking on how to pry myself away, her arms coiled tighter around my neck. Before I could process it, those pillow–soft lips brushed the bare skin of my chest, followed by a teasing, feline lick.

All rational thoughts disintegrated. I cupped the back of her head, angled her mouth, and our lips collided with desperate urgency–hot, hungry, and consuming.