Claimed And Marked By Her Stepbrother Mates novel Chapter 77

Chapter 77: 77-My Father Buried Me.

Helanie:

"What a jerk!" I groaned, furious that he acted as if I’d flashed him on purpose. Even though it had been almost two minutes since he left, I still couldn’t settle down.

"I should have just signed the papers," I sighed, slumping onto the couch and staring at them from across the room. My thoughts were interrupted by a phone beeping nearby.

"I don’t have a phone," I muttered, glancing over at the coat beside me.

"Oh!" Realization dawned quickly—he’d left his coat in his hurry to leave, and in his coat pocket was his phone. But why did he act like he was the one embarrassed? I was the one who got exposed! What exactly was going on with him?

I shook off the thought as the phone buzzed again. I wasn’t usually nosy, but Norman was a strange man, always involving himself in my business. Maybe I had the right to see who was blowing up his phone—what if it was something urgent? Or maybe he was calling himself, trying to locate his phone.

After convincing myself with every excuse possible, I slipped my hand into his coat pocket. Instantly, I was hit by the strong, hypnotic scent of his cologne, intoxicating in a strangely unsettling way. I held my breath and pulled out the phone, realizing that he hadn’t even locked it before putting it away.

What a rookie mistake.

My heart was pounding as I held the phone in my hand. Technology is dangerous; these days, our entire lives are stored in these little devices. One glance could reveal everything. That’s exactly how I felt as I looked down at his unlocked screen. Seeing that he had no screen lock timer made it worse.

My fingers hovered over the notifications, where I saw multiple missed calls from someone named Jessica.

Who was Jessica?

Then there were messages from his brothers, his father, and one other person. For some reason, that last contact grabbed my full attention. It was because of the brief message snippet that showed on the screen.

Joe: Her name is Helanie—

That half-sentence made my heart skip. Was he talking about me? But why, and who was this person he was talking to?

Without thinking twice, I clicked on the conversation. What I found in those few minutes made me want to die a thousand times over.

The conversation was between Norman and a guy named Joe. Norman had instructed—or maybe reminded—Joe about a task he’d given him.

Norman: Get me her data.

Joe: Her name is Helanie Niles, and she’s from a pack called The Vicious Banes Pack.

I barely had a moment to catch my breath before another message popped up, revealing even more information.