Tasting 193

193–I Am A Drama Queen

Nora:

“Calm down. Drink some water,” Nash said, sitting beside me on the bed, while everyone else

inspected the room and checked the windows to see if someone had sneaked in while I was away.

“But who could have done it?” Silas asked, looking confused and lost. However, I wasn’t lost. I knew

exactly who could have done it.

“I know who did it,” I muttered grumpily, wiping away tears and clearing my cheeks with the back of

my hands. Their eyes turned to me and then to their father, waiting for him to ask further questions.

Cain stood in the doorway as usual, leaning against the frame with one hand in his pants‘ pocket

and the other holding a brush, gently stroking it between his fingers.

“Who did it?” Lord Atwood took the lead, briskly walking back from the window to stand by the bed.

“I think she should rest,” Cain intervened, which made things even creepier. Did he know Natalya

did it, and was he trying to cover for her?

“No, I don’t need to rest. I know who did it,” I said angrily, making eye contact with Cain and

gesturing for the others to follow my gaze.

“It was Natalya.” As soon as I said her name, they looked at me before. glancing back at Cain.

“She was in the mansion, and she did this. There’s no other

explanation,” I insisted. I was certain she was behind it. For her to come here and for my dress to

be ruined on the same day wasn’t a coincidence.

“Hmm, I don’t think Natalya did anything,” Cain said calmly, tilting his head.

“But she was here, and we know they’ve been having troubles,” Lord Atwood grumbled, giving his

son a disapproving glare.

“There’s no way Natalya did that. She left the mansion an hour ago, and I escorted her to the exit

myself. She didn’t go to any rooms in between,” his confidence in defending her side irritated me,

and I jumped off the bed.

“You’re lying! You’re covering for her. If she didn’t do it, then who did?” I yelled, not realizing my

tone or behavior.

“You think I would cover for her if she had done something wrong? I am not just her boyfriend but I

am also the pack’s alpha king. I have some duties–,” before he could finish his ramblings, I

intervened.

“You are very much capable of lying.” I yelled and his eyes darkened.

“Tone!” Cain hissed, straightening his back. “There’s a working camera in front of my bedroom. We

can take a look,” he muttered, sending shivers down my spine as I recalled standing outside his

room for too long, peering inside.

“Shall we?” Cain asked, but it was Nash who dismissed the idea.

“That won’t be necessary. The truth is, someone messed up her dress. She was so excited when

she received it,” Nash sounded slightly bothered by the situation unfolding in our lives.

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1931 Am A Drama Queen

I couldn’t understand why Cain was defending her so vehemently. He knew she had done it, yet he

was taking her side?

“I understand you all want her to be comfortable, but why is it that every time something happens,

my girlfriend is being questioned?” Cain addressed his brothers directly, not even looking my way.

“Because she–” as I tried to make a point, he turned hastily towards me, pointing his finger.

“Not talking to you! I’m talking to my family,” he grunted through clenched teeth, making everyone

visibly uncomfortable.

“Cain!” Lord Atwood interjected, urging him to be polite with me, though it sounded more like a

request.

“No! If there’s a problem, I’ll never bring my girlfriend here again. I’ll consider this place Nora’s home

only,” he made it clear he wouldn’t tolerate any disrespect towards Natalya again.

As he stormed out of the room, I watched his brothers and father sadly eye his empty spot. In that

moment, I sensed their urge to stop him, which filled me with a strange sense of guilt. Was I truly

coming between them and ruining their happiness?

“Don’t worry about the dress; we will arrange something else for you,” Lord Atwood placed his hand

on my head, but the lack of eye contact was concerning. It had been happening so often that he

would be lying if he said he wasn’t slightly uncomfortable with the drama.

They all left while I stayed in my room, confused as to why Cain took Natalya’s side. After a few

minutes of silence, a knock on the door made me open it to find Cain standing outside with a laptop

in his hand. He didn’t say a word but turned the screen to me, showing me footage from outside his

studio. At first, I thought he was threatening

to show it to Lord Atwood, but as I watched further, I realized he was simply showing me that after I

left, Natalya walked out of the room with Cain. They went downstairs together, and then Cain

returned to his studio alone.

“I think you should stop accusing others so bluntly because at this point, it seems like you’re doing it

on purpose. I suggest you stay out of everyone’s life and not mention Natalya or say her name

again,” his tone was stern. I wasn’t sure if it was a warning or advice, but he didn’t stick around to

explain.

As he left, I paced around my room in bewilderment. If she didn’t do it, then who could have?

I felt so lost that I lay down on the bed and dozed off. I didn’t understand why all of this was

happening to me, but I was afraid of burdening everyone around me.

Soon, I heard another knock on the door and woke up to realize dinner time had passed. Strangely,

Lord Atwood hadn’t called me this time either. He had made it seem before like he didn’t contact me

out of guilt, but what about this time? Was he changing too?

I sighed and got up from the bed, walking to the door. As I opened it, a bewildering sight awaited

me.