Chapter 19. Alpha’s Proxy

Venus POV

His confession immediately took me aback. I had expected anything but this talk about feelings. Not that I had not noticed his subtle admiration of me, but I had hoped that was all there was to it. My wide-eyed reaction to his sudden confession prompted him to continue.

“I don’t want you to think that I only agreed to help you because of my own selfish interests. I just wanted you to know. Gosh, maybe Emmaline was right, after all. You look tense, like I asked you to donate a vital organ.”

He sighed deeply, his shoulders rising and falling in line with his troubled breath. I felt sorry for him, and I had no wish to lead him on with false promises. I took his hand—the contact not too intimate, but enough to hold his attention. I was running late for lunch, but I had to handle the problem at hand first.

“Ma