Alpha's Twins Chapter 163

"Good morning, Liana," I said, giving her a warm hug.

Liana Anderson was in her late forties and owned this coffee shop, running it completely solo. And when I say solo, I mean she covered every single expense on her own—no man in the picture to help out.

What drew me to this woman was that she was a single mom, just like I used to be. Maybe that's why she seemed to like me too.

But now I was all alone. I wasn't a single mother anymore—just a single woman with family responsibilities weighing on my shoulders.

Sometimes I wished I could just live peacefully with my kids.

As a medical student, I'd tried getting a job at the Pack Hospitals before applying here, but they told me flat out that their Alpha wouldn't allow them to hire me.

Even though anger burned in my chest, I tried to push it down because that man was taking care of my children. He was giving them a life I could never provide.

He'd accepted my kids in front of everyone. He was planning to celebrate their fifth birthday in just two weeks.

"Hey, Natalia. This is for you," one of the employees said, handing me a folded piece of paper.

I opened it and found another love letter. I couldn't help but laugh.

This coffee shop was right next to the college, so we got tons of guys coming in to hang out with their friends all the time.

A few of them would slip notes to the waitresses. This was the sixth one I'd gotten this month alone.

"You're pretty. They can't help themselves," Liana said, passing me my uniform—a black apron with "Moon Lovers" printed in white letters under a crescent moon.

"They think I'm some teenage girl. If only they knew I'm already divorced with two kids," I muttered with a laugh.

Liana shot me a disapproving look. "Come on, girl. Life's not over yet. Maybe someone new is waiting for you out there. You can't just let opportunities slip by."

I leaned against the counter, resting my chin in my palm. "Oh really? Then why didn't you give yourself a second chance?"

She froze. Clearly, she hadn't expected me to turn that question back on her.

"Sorry if that was out of line," I said, straightening up.

She took my hand gently. "I don't want to see you become another version of me. I lost my chance when I had the opportunity to take it."

I could see the pain in her eyes—the loneliness that came from years of being on her own. Was it really that hard? I'd been alone for six years already. Could I really handle the rest of my life like this?

The bell chimed as customers started filtering into the coffee shop.

I quickly crouched down behind the counter to grab menus to hand out to the other employees.

But when I stood back up, I heard Liana let out a sharp gasp.

Her reaction confused me. "What's wrong, Liana?"

She raised her hand, pointing at my chest with a trembling finger.

"Natalia, there are three lines across your chest. They—they look like claw marks!"