Chapter 220: Pretending To Be My Mate

Hayley’s POV:

I felt conflicted. Hera urged me impatiently, “Hayley, why don’t you choose Benjamin? He’s our destined mate. You always go out of your way to ignore him and push him away. It hurts me.”

With a resigned sigh, I said, “Fine, I’ll give it a try.”

Without wasting any time, Thomas drove me straight to Southwell Group. The marble floors were sparkling clean and reflected my slender figure as I walked. This wasn’t my first time at Southwell Group. People here knew me well enough, and when they saw me, they greeted me respectfully with a polite, “Ms. Carson!”

“Ms. Carson, is there something I can help you with?” asked one of Benjamin’s assistant betas.

I paused for a moment and then asked, “Is Benjamin here?”

The assistant smiled and replied, “The Alpha is in his office. I’ll contact his assistant right now.” The assistant quickly dialed Tyrone’s number.

When Tyrone found out I was here, he came straight down to meet me. “Ms. Carson, you didn’t give me a heads-up. The Alpha is in a video meeting. It’ll be a while before he’s free.”

Tyrone led me to the lounge on the top floor. “Please wait here, Ms. Carson. Once the Alpha is finished, I’ll let you know.” I thanked him. After that, he left.

As I sat in the lounge, a nervous feeling settled deep inside me. I had shown up uninvited; what if Benjamin said no? After all, pretending to be someone’s mate was more than a little awkward. I absentmindedly picked up a magazine and flipped through it, but my mind wasn’t on the pages.

After some time, I could feel Hera growing more excited. That’s when I realized he had arrived. Sure enough, the door to the office opened, and Benjamin walked in with long, confident strides.

As soon as he saw me, his usually stern face softened. He asked, “Did you come to see me about something?”

I heard his voice and couldn’t help but feel my heart beat faster. I quickly asked, “Are you finished?”

Benjamin glanced at the magazine in my hand and smiled. “You’re holding it upside down.”

I quickly looked down at the magazine, embarrassed, and put it aside. “Are you busy later?”

Benjamin fell silent for a while before answering, “Not really.”

I nodded, but inside, I was rehearsing in my head how to bring it up. Benjamin saw through my struggle and said, “If you need something, just say it.”

I lifted my eyes to meet his. After a long pause, I finally spoke. “I do need your help.”

Benjamin locked eyes with me, waiting for me to continue. I took a deep breath, gritted my teeth with determination, and said all at once, “Benjamin, can you pretend to be my mate? Just for one night.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, the room seemed to fall into silence. Benjamin’s intense gaze stayed fixed on me, but he didn’t answer immediately. Hera kept urging me to get closer to him, to close the distance even more. I fought to control the impulse and managed to hold Hera back. I nervously swallowed and stared into his eyes, waiting for his response.

“Will you pretend to be my mate?” I asked again, my voice filled with hope.