The Rogue Alpha’s Claim

“Hello ladies,” Ariel put on a wide smile as she met the ladies, but now that she thought of it, she must have come up as a creep.

“Hello, can we help you?” One of the ladies replied, although she barely spared Ariel a glance. She was on her phone, smiling brightly with no care for the world.

“Yeah, I booked a room here the night before.” Ariel explained, hoping it would catch their attention, but none of them would pay any heed to her. “I am new in the area, and I was hoping you knew somewhere I could get an apartment, preferably an affordable one.”

All the ladies’ heads snapped up, and they stared at her with a similar icy gaze that gave her goosebumps before they returned their gaze to their phones.

“Excuse me, I asked a question.” Ariel reminded them when seconds had passed and they didn’t answer her question.

“Excuse me, can’t you read the sign outside? Huh? This is an inn, a place to stay, and if you don’t like it here, you can take your shit and go.”

Ariel’s mouth hung open at the disrespect. “Excuse me? I only asked a question; you could just politely decline or tell me you had no idea.” She hissed in a venomous voice before she left for her room.

She had forgotten how humans could be so rude, especially as there was no clear-cut hierarchy. She was tempted to give them a low rating, but she walked back to her room, and she dumped herself on the bed.

“Ahhhh.” Ariel screamed in frustration, fisting her hair and pulling it. Who told her that running away was going to be the right decision?

She had managed to lose everything in one night, and she had no idea how to pick up her life from here.

It begs the question: What next?

Ariel rolled to her stomach, planting her face in the white sheets, and continued wallowing in her misery.

She was too drained to even think of a revenge plan.

For years, she had been sheltered and always cared for, and for the first time in a while, she was truly alone.

She picked up the phone Maddie had brought for her and scrolled through the content when the phone vibrated in her hands as a message came through.

“Hey, it’s Maddie; you can reach me via this number in case you need anything.”

And that was all the message had said, yet despite the sorrow in her heart, Ariel managed to smile.

It was ironic that the lady who wanted nothing to do with her was the one who was helping her. But it gave her a little hope; despite everything that was going on in her life, there was someone who cared, even if they were her archenemy.

***

It was almost time to check out, and Ariel was ready. She had taken a warm shower and had worn the clothes Maddie had packed for her.

They were nothing too fancy-skinny jeans and a cashmere sweater. They weren’t exactly her favorites, but she couldn’t afford to be too picky.

She packed all of her belongings in the parcel, the thought bringing tears to her eyes. In the past, her things would barely contain seven suitcases, but now they manage to fill a box.

Ariel took a final look at the room, and she shook her head before she went outside.

She had been able to find a parking lot that didn’t charge so much; she had kept her car there with a promise to be back, and she headed for the nearest bar.

She was going to drink away her sorrows tonight, and tomorrow she could take care of herself.

Ariel entered the dimly lit bar, the music too loud for her liking, but she couldn’t care about all that. She beelined straight to the front stool and sat down to order a drink.

“Just give me something a little stronger; I need to forget about my problem.” The barman gave her a quick once-over, as if to say he wouldn’t be responsible for whatever happened to her, and Ariel waited as he prepared the drink.

She took the first sip, and instantly she was cringing.

What the hell!

That was the strongest shit she had had in a long time, and the drink continued to burn the path down her throat until it settled in her stomach, but she took another sip and another, slowly drowning in her sorrow.

“Hey, beautiful, what are you doing drinking alone? Mind if I join you?” Ariel looked up at the man who was interrupting her drinking session, and for some reason, the anger didn’t come.

Maybe because he was polite enough to ask, but she shrugged her shoulders. “Sure, you can sit; it is a free world.”

“I will have what she’s having.” The man said in a slightly accented voice that Ariel couldn’t pick it up. If she were herself, she knew she would have asked, but right now, she couldn’t care.

“Wow. Are you trying to kill yourself?” The man asked as he took the first sip of his drink.

“I don’t know, I guess.” Ariel slurred, her shoulders slumping against her head.

“I don’t want to be nosy, but what exactly is wrong? It is not every time you see a young lady trying to drink herself to death on a Tuesday evening.”

“Ahhh.” Ariel released a deep breath, and she glanced at him. He was slightly older than she had thought, and his face reminded her of her high school teacher. “I have no place to go.”

“What happened?” He asked out of genuine curiosity.

“I ran away from my abusive boyfriend, and I didn’t have a chance to take anything with me. Now that I am broke and stranded, I don’t have a place to stay and…” Ariel sniffed, and some stray tears came down her eyes.

She didn’t know how she did it, but as she started talking, the lie continued flowing. Although her conscience pricked her for lying about Kane like that, the murderer deserved it after everything he had done to her.Nôvel/Dr(a)ma.Org - Content owner.

“It is alright; it will be fine.” The man patted her back awkwardly, not sure what to make of the situation.

“How can it be fine, I have no place to go.” She continued wailing, knowing full well she was attracting attention, but right now, a girl had to do what she had to do.

“I can help you.”

“Really?” Immediately, the tears cleared from her eyes, and she regarded the man with bright eyes.

“Yes. I own a building here, and you are in luck because there is a vacant apartment, and you can stay there for as long as you can. You can pay me when you begin to work.”

“Really?” Ariel sniffed, refusing to believe her luck. It was too good to be true.

“Of course. It takes a lot of courage for you to leave an abusive relationship, and I hate seeing pretty girls like you cry.”

“Thank you, thank you so much.” Ariel threw herself on the man, hugging him tight.

The alcohol had cleared from her system, and the smile refused to leave her face. She had spent the rest of the time getting to know the man.

Apparently he was a big name in the real estate world, and he had come to survey some of his estates here, and he had decided to cool his head.

They finished their drinks, and he led Ariel to his car, driving them to her new home.

They stopped in front of a brown door, and he unlocked it, opening the door wide for her to see.

“Welcome to your new home.”