Chapter 431-He Leaves Me To Spend Time With Her

Verity:

"Yes, Alpha King Ragnar is getting engaged. You can attend his engagement ceremony. That way, you’ll get to meet his family, and you can all get to know each other better."

I had no idea why I’d spoken up, but I had, purely out of annoyance.

Every pair of eyes turned toward me, and I immediately stared straight ahead, pretending not to notice Ragnar slowly turning his head in my direction.

I could practically feel him judging me.

"Oh, I did hear some rumors about that," Brenda remarked. "But I thought after your girlfriend’s abduction, she would want some time to heal first. Don’t you think it’s a little too soon?"

Well, thankfully, Brenda and I agreed on one thing.

"Too soon, shmoon. It’s fine. She’s fine. Alpha King Ragnar loves her a lot, and he takes very good care of her. He’s made sure she’s healed properly," I continued.

Oh, for fuck’s sake.

This version of Verity was supposed to be decent, composed, and professional.

She wasn’t supposed to run her mouth in front of Ragnar, especially during important meetings.

So why the fuck did I always manage to make a fool of myself?

It was almost as though I were on some personal mission to make him dislike me.

Even Brenda was staring at me now, judging me so hard that I could practically hear her telling me to shut the hell up.

"Anyway, those are matters for another time," Ragnar smoothly intervened. "Why don’t we head down to the shore this evening? I’d like to see for myself what exactly you’ve all been finding so unsettling about this island."

And just like that, he changed the subject.

He was a master at it, honestly. He could redirect an entire conversation so casually that nobody even seemed to notice.

Meanwhile, I felt like my head was about to explode.

I couldn’t understand why I was so angry, but something about Ragnar’s behavior was getting on my nerves.

Why was he acting like this?

He was always going around presenting himself as some ridiculously loyal man.

He’d never even flirted with me, so what the hell was so special about Brenda?

Why was he suddenly being so sweet to her?

I didn’t know, and the more I thought about it, the angrier I became.

"Yes, that sounds wonderful, Ragnar! I’ll even get you to try my favorite coffee. It’s a pumpkin latte, and since it’s Halloween season, you absolutely have to taste it," Brenda giggled, drawing her shoulders inward in a rather coy gesture.

I couldn’t help secretly mimicking her.

"Sure. Although I don’t usually participate in these kinds of seasonal traditions, I suppose a pumpkin latte doesn’t sound too bad."

Oh, really?

Ragnar, the same man who usually avoided such things like the plague, was suddenly interested?

He was actually taking an interest in Brenda.

He liked her.

But what exactly did he like about her?

Her plunging neckline?

Was that it?

Because if I wore something with a neckline that low, my breasts would look even bigger, rounder, and fuller than hers.

What the fuck was I doing?

Why was I comparing myself to another woman?

That was so disrespectful, and I knew it. I was perfectly aware of how ridiculous my thoughts were becoming.

Brenda was a gorgeous woman. There was no denying that.

But what I couldn’t understand was why Ragnar seemed so completely taken with her after just one meeting, especially when he’d spent half that meeting rejecting her attempts to become his secretary.

"Yay! I’m so excited! I hope you’re staying for more than three days, though, because I’m not letting you leave that easily, Mr. Alpha King!" Brenda exclaimed, placing a hand on her waist and pointing at him in an almost childish manner.

"Forgive her. She has this childlike side that tends to come out whenever she’s excited about sharing her happiness with others," her father explained, gently taking his daughter’s hand and lowering it.

"It’s all right. I understand. Anyway, I’ll head back to my hut for now, and we can meet again around sunset," Ragnar replied as he slowly rose from his seat.

I began gathering the files and stuffing them into my document bag.

Our warriors had arrived before us and arranged our accommodations.

Two beautiful huts had been reserved for us, standing side by side, so close that we could practically hear each other’s footsteps.

Both were situated on slightly elevated ground overlooking the shore, each with a beautiful staircase leading down toward the beach, decorated with lanterns that gave the entire place a fairytale-like appearance.

These were the huts we would be occupying during our stay in the Last Eagle Pack.

There were several other activities planned for us as well, or should I say, activities Brenda had personally arranged.

Ragnar and I got up to leave while Alfred, his daughter, and their royal beta remained seated to continue their discussions.

I followed Ragnar, practically stomping my feet with every step.

I’d shoved the files into my bag so carelessly that I was certain some of the pages had already been bent.

There was also a shared living room connecting the back of our two huts.

Instead of entering through the front, we took the stairs leading up to that common area.

The moment we stepped inside, I dropped my bag onto the sofa with such force that several files spilled out, scattering papers across the cushions and onto the floor.

"What is this behavior?" Ragnar demanded, sounding irritated as he locked the door behind us.

"What? I’m sorry. It just slipped out of my hands," I retorted bitterly, planting my hands on my hips while tapping my foot against the floor.

"What the hell is wrong with you? Why are you giving me this attitude? And you didn’t have to bring up my engagement back there. We were in the middle of a professional meeting," he complained.

"Oh, so I wasn’t supposed to bring up Gigi? Why? Because you didn’t want me talking about your girlfriend while you were, let’s say, flirting with an alpha’s daughter?"

I genuinely didn’t know what had gotten into me.