Sold to Bastard Alpha after My Divorce! Chapter 83

Aria’s POV

My first day at Morrison Industries was a disaster.

I spilled coffee on myself. Twice. I couldn’t figure out how to work the copy machine. I accidentally hung up on an important client because I pressed the wrong button on the phone system.

By lunch, I was ready to crawl into a hole and die.

"You’re doing fine," Mrs. Morrison said when she found hiding in the break room. "Everyone struggles on their first day."

"I’m not struggling." I stared at the coffee stain on my blouse. "I’m failing. Spectacularly."

She laughed. Actually laughed. Like my incompetence was sohow endearing.

"Aria, I hired you because my daughter vouched for you. And because I saw sothing in your eyes during our interview." She sat down across from . Her presence was calm. Reassuring. "You’ve been through hard tis. I can tell. But hard tis make strong people. You’ll figure this out."

I wanted to believe her. Wanted to trust that this wasn’t just another dead end.

But trust didn’t co easy anymore.

Not after everything.

I learned things I’d never needed to know in the wolf world. Spreadsheets. Email etiquette. Corporate hierarchy. The mysterious art of scheduling etings that sohow never conflicted with other etings.

It was exhausting.

But also... exciting?

For the first ti in months, I had a purpose. A routine. Sothing to focus on besides the constant ache in my chest.

My desk was in the corner of the executive floor. Small but mine. I had a computer, a phone, and a plant that Sophie had given as a "welco to the human world" gift.

The plant was already dying.

"You’re overwatering it," Sophie inford during one of her visits. She ca by almost every day. Sotis to help. Sotis to chat. Sotis just to steal snacks from my desk drawer.

"I’m trying to keep it alive."

"By drowning it?" She plucked the wilting leaves off. "Plants are like people, Aria. Sotis they need you to back off and let them breathe."

I stared at her. "That’s surprisingly deep."

"I have my monts." She grinned. That infectious smile that made it impossible not to smile back. "So. How’s the job treating you?"

"Good. I think." I saved the docunt I’d been working on. "Your mom is patient. The other assistants have been helpful. I’m still learning the systems, but I’m getting there."

"See? I told you this would work out."

"You told I could handle anything because I saved your life."

"Sa thing."

I rolled my eyes. But I was smiling.

"Okay, so there’s this café two blocks over that has the BEST sandwiches," she was saying as we walked. "And they make this chocolate cake that will literally change your life. Like, forget everything you thought you knew about chocolate. This is the real deal."

"You sound like a comrcial."

"I should be! They should pay for how much I talk about their food." She linked her arm through mine. "Co on, pregnant lady. You need to eat more. You’re still too skinny."

My hand went to my stomach. Five months now. The bump was visible under my loose blouse. Getting harder to hide.

Not that I was trying to hide it anymore.

Here, in this human world, being a single pregnant woman wasn’t a scandal. It wasn’t shaful. It was just... life.

People were kind. Offered seats on the bus. Held doors open. Asked about my due date with genuine interest instead of cruel judgnt.

It was strange.

Nice strange. But still strange.

The café was exactly as Sophie described. Cozy. Warm. Slling like fresh bread and coffee.

We grabbed a table by the window. Sophie ordered for both of us. Sothing about "not knowing what’s good yet."

I let her. It was easier than arguing.

"So." Sophie propped her chin on her hand. "Tell more about your life before. You’ve been so mysterious about it."

My smile faltered.

I’d avoided this topic. Deflected every ti she asked. Changed the subject or made excuses.

But Sophie had been so good to . She’d gotten this job. Given a friend when I had no one. Treated like a person when I’d forgotten what that felt like.

She deserved the truth.

Or at least... part of it.

"What do you want to know?" I asked carefully.

"Everything!" She leaned forward. Eyes bright with curiosity. "Where did you grow up? What was your family like? How did you end up pregnant and alone in the worst part of the city?"

"That’s a lot of questions."

"I have a lot of curiosity." She grinned. "Co on, Aria. We’re friends now. Real friends. And real friends share their stories."

I took a deep breath. Let it out slowly.

Where did I even begin?

"I grew up poor," I said finally. "Really poor. My mother was... not a good person. She used . Used all of us. My sisters learned from her. Beca just as selfish. Just as cruel."

Sophie’s face softened. "That sounds awful."

"It was." I picked at my napkin. Shredded it into tiny pieces. "I tried to escape. Got married young. Thought it would be my way out."

"And?"

"And it wasn’t." A bitter laugh escaped my throat. "My husband was worse than my family. He didn’t love . Never loved . I was just... convenient. A ans to an end."

The mories hit harder than I expected.

Finn’s cold eyes. His dismissive voice. The way he’d touch like I was property instead of a person.

"He had a girlfriend," I continued. My voice was steadier than I felt. "The whole ti we were married. She was beautiful. Refined. Everything I wasn’t. He would leave alone for weeks. Months. Only ca back when he needed sothing."

Sophie’s hand found mine across the table. Squeezed tight.

"I had a daughter with him." The words hurt. Actually hurt. Like broken glass in my throat. "Lilith. She’s five now. And she... she doesn’t want ."

"What do you an?"

"She chose his girlfriend over . Called her ’mommy.’ Told she hated ." Tears burned in my eyes. I blinked them back. "The last ti I saw her, she pushed . Scread that I was evil. That she wished I was dead."

"Aria..."

"I know she’s just a child. I know she was manipulated. But it still..." I pressed my hand against my chest. "It still hurts so much."

Sophie was crying now. Actual tears streaming down her face.

"That’s horrible," she whispered. "That’s so horrible."

"There’s more."

"More?"

I nodded. Forced myself to continue.

"After my marriage fell apart, I t soone else. Soone who made feel like I mattered for the first ti in my life."

The mory of Kael flooded through .

His black-gold eyes. His rare smiles. The way he’d held like I was sothing precious.

And then...

"He lied to too." My voice cracked. "Everything we had. Every mont. It was all a ga to him. Entertainnt. When I found out, he paid . Like I was a whore. Told to disappear from his life."

"HE WHAT?!" Sophie shot up from her chair. The whole café turned to look. She didn’t care. "ARE YOU KIDDING ?! HE PAID YOU?!"

"Sophie, sit down—"

"NO! I WILL NOT SIT DOWN!" Her face was red with fury. "What kind of piece of garbage does that?! What kind of absolute MONSTER treats a woman like that?!"

"It’s complicated—"

"COMPLICATED?!" She slamd her hands on the table. "There’s nothing complicated about it! He used you! He hurt you! And then he threw money at you like that made it okay!"

I’d never seen her this angry.

It was almost... funny?

No. Not funny.

Touching.

No one had ever been angry on my behalf before.

"And this baby?" Sophie gestured at my stomach. "Is it his?"

I nodded.

"Does he know?"

"No."

"Good!" She crossed her arms. "He doesn’t deserve to know! He doesn’t deserve ANYTHING from you!"

"Sophie—"

"Listen to ." She leaned in close. Her eyes were fierce. Determined. "If you ever see that scumbag again, you punch him right in his stupid face. You hear ? You punch him so hard his teeth rattle. And then—" She made a kicking motion. "You kick him right in the crotch. As hard as you can. Make sure he can never use that thing to hurt anyone ever again."

I stared at her. "Sophie..."

"And THEN—" She wasn’t finished. "You put on the highest heels you own. The pointiest ones. And you stomp on his foot. HARD. And then you walk away. Head high. Shoulders back. Like the absolute queen you are."

"That’s... very specific."

"I’ve thought about it." She sat back down. Still fuming. "A lot. Since you started hinting about your past. I knew it was bad. I didn’t know it was THIS bad."

I couldn’t help it.

I laughed.

The sound surprised both of us. But once I started, I couldn’t stop. The laughter bubbled up from sowhere deep inside . From the place where I’d buried all my pain and fear and anger.

"What?" Sophie looked confused. "What’s funny?"

"You." I wiped my eyes. "You’re just... you’re so..."

"Amazing? Brilliant? Incredibly supportive?"

"Crazy." I was still laughing. "You’re absolutely crazy, Sophie. You know that, right?"

"I prefer ’passionate.’"

"You just told to assault soone."

"He DESERVES to be assaulted!" She threw her hands up. "After everything he did to you? He deserves way worse than a kick to the balls!"

I shook my head. Still smiling.

She didn’t understand. Couldn’t understand. In the wolf world, things weren’t that simple. You couldn’t just punch an Alpha heir. Couldn’t kick him. Couldn’t do anything except submit and survive.

But here, in this human café, with this human girl who cared about for no reason at all...

I could pretend.

I could imagine walking up to Kael Blood Crown. Looking him in those black-gold eyes. And letting all my anger out in one satisfying punch.

It would never happen.

I knew that.

But the fantasy was nice.

"Thank you," I said softly.