Shattered by the Alpha Stronger Than Ever novel Chapter 85

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Karissa

The thought of being deceived so cruelly, coming second to someone I always thought I was the only one for, was agonizingly suffocating

A simple nod was all it took. The truth crashed down on me like a rogue wave, leaving my mind swaying in disbelief. Nausea churned in my stomach as the cruel reality settled in: he loved her, and worse still, he might probably still love her. The thought was a cold harsh slap, stripping away the illusions I’d clung to. My vision cleared, and I saw our relationship for what it was a facade, built on unfold

truth.

“What was I to you, Keith? A placeholder? A distraction?” I demanded, my voice rising as I shot up from the couch, unable to contain my emotions. “Was I just a convenient option, easily available until you figured out how to get back to her?” The words spilled out with my pain

“You didn’t just lie to me, Keith. You disrespected me, kept me at arm’s length while your heart belonged to someone else. Every moment we shared, every promise you made, it all feels like a sham!

“No, I loved you too,” Keith exclaimed loudly. “I still do.” The words so hollow and uninspiring, lacking the conviction that once made them meaningful.

“No, you don’t,” I snapped, the anger in my words matching the hurt in my heart. “I was just the consolation prize, the closest option while she remained your first choice.” Keith rose from the couch, his towering frame looming over me, but his eyes betrayed vulnerability, not dominance.

“That’s not true!” Keith exclaimed with desperation. “Rose is…was special. You don’t just forget your first love, Karry. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t love you enough, I did everything right with you, didn’t1 His words tumbled out in a frantic plea, as if seeking validation, seeking forgiveness, or perhaps seeking to convince himself.

“Oh my god!” I breathed, recoiling in shock. The man before me was a stranger, lost in his own delusions. How could he have concealed such monumental secrets behind a façade of love and commitment? The half–truths, the omissions, the outright lies all of it had been a recklessly concealed lie.

I forced myself to take a steadying breath, reining in my anger and confusion. My mind was spiralling on a wheel but I refused to let emotions cloud my purpose. I hadn’t come this far to let him betray me twice – once with his deception, and again with my own vulnerability.

“Are you listening to yourself, Keith?” I fumed trembling with restrained fury. “That’s twisted. What exactly was your relationship with Rose? Were you friends, girlfriend and boyfriend, or something more?” Each word felt like a struggle to extract, as if I was pulling needles from my head or poking more inside.

“No, we weren’t any of those things,” his words spilled out in a rushed confession. “But that doesn’t mean our feelings didn’t exist. We never got the chance. She got engaged, and I was miserable.” He took a step closer, his eyes pleading for understanding, but I retreated, creating distance between us,

“Don’t touch me,” I warned, my voice firm as I held up a hand to ward him off.

I struggled to stay sane, his sickening reasoning had suddenly tied me to a glitching treadmill and I was forced to keep running way more than my capacity and I couldn’t try climbing off fearing the dangerous tall.

“Doll, please,” Keith implored, his eyes welling up with tears. The term of endearment now felt so hollow and cheap, a cruel reminder of my secondary status. I felt a bitter laugh rising within me how could I have loved someone so blindly, someone for whom I was merely an option, à consolation prize?

“Don’t call me that,” I spat, “I’m here for one reason only: I’m pregnant with your child. Don’t sugarcoat the truth, Keith. You cheated on me, emotionally and otherwise. You loved her, and she didn’t love you back. Your unrequited feelings don’t excuse the lies and betrayal.” I trembled with rage and hurt, the words burning my throat like acid.

I’ve been shown exactly where I stood in your life,” I continued. “The moment she reappeared, you jumped into bed with her? Unbelievable! What a sickening fuckery! My voice escalated into a furious rant. “Who knows if you’d been secretly meeting her all Chapter70

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your affair from me?

along, hiding your

“I didn’t have an affair,” Keith protested, his voice cracking with desperation. “That night… It was the only time, Karissa. I was drunk, and it was Rose. I swear to God, it wasn’t planned. It just happened.” His words dripped with remorse, but I remained unyielding, my head still whirling from the blow.

“I talked to Rose, and she told me Taylor set it up for her to be there that night,” Keith continued, his words tumbling out in a frantic attempt to justify his actions. “He knew I was sexually frustrated, and-

“Sexually frustrated? I repeated mockingly. “Two months, Keith. Two months was unbearable for you, and you were so desperate, so starved, that cheating became justified in your twisted mind?” My laughter was laced with disgust and anger. “You can’t even remember our last time together, but you recall every detail of your infidelity, don’t you?” I sneered.

“Save the drunk excuse, Keith. Who gets intoxicated with a almost stranger woman while engaged?” I demanded, my voice scathing. “Only a despicable liar and cheater, that’s who “I jabbed my finger at him, accusation etched on my face. “You knew exactly what you were doing, and now you’re trying to downplay it with disgusting excuses.

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