Chapter 58

Renee’s POV

“It’s just not fair!” Debbie whines over the sound of the front door slamming shut.

“Life’s not fair!” I yell back, hearing the words of a mother I never knew echo out from me.

“What’s going on?” Eric asks stepping into the foyer. He’s still in his work clothes, telling me he just got back from dinner. I glance at the grandfather clock to my right, it’s past 8:00 pm.

If I didn’t know any better, I’d accuse him of cheating on me.

“Mom didn’t like my talent,” Debbie says accusingly while pointing her finger at me. I shrug out of my winter coat and roll my eyes.

“That’s exactly right,” I reply back sarcastically. Debbie folds her arms over her chest and frowns at me.

“You told me that I shouldn’t have to hide my wolf,” Debbie says.

“I don’t think that’s what I said,” I tell her thinking back to that one conversation we had about her transforming in my car after I picked her up from being kidnapped, for the second time.

“Wait, what?” Eric chimes in again, this time stepping closer to us. I take a deep breath and gauge the look on his face. Maybe he’ll be on my side for this. Perhaps we’ll be able to co-parent together on this one and discipline Debbie together. I won’t have to be the lonesome bad guy.

“Debbie transformed into a wolf, on stage, in front of everyone,” I tell Eric. He looks at me, his eyes widening.

I nod. “Everyone,” I repeat hoping he understands this means Mia and Nilo as well.

Eric turns his look of surprise towards Debbie. “No way,” He says, except he sounds excited- not exactly what I was hoping for.

Debbie picks up on his tone of approval and proceeds cautiously. She nods slowly.

“That’s awesome! I bet everyone was so shocked,” Eric beams and holds up his hadn for Debbie to high-five, and I continue to stand off to the side dumbfounded.

“They were!” Debbie confirms. “No one saw it coming, some people shouted out from the audience,” Debbie says, relishing in her limelight.

I try to see it from her perspective and it’s easy to see why she’s so happy. For once she isn’t just known as the sick girl. Debbie proved that she can be a wolf just like her peers, that she’s strong and healthy like them.

The other side is that I will also continue to be the talk of the town. After the videos of me leaving the airport went viral, it basically became confirmed that I am the Alpha’s Luna and Debbie is our offspring.

If there were any lingering speculations, they would have been demolished by Debbie’s display of transformation. This is sure to add fire to the fuel as far as the media is concerned which will only make me leaving more of a debacle.

Besides, Nilo realizes that Debbie is part wolf and asks who her dad is, which means he’s putting it together that he’ll no longer be able to call Eric Daddy. My heart breaks for him, especially because he’s the one who really wants to be with Eric.

Up until Debbie even met Eric, she would have been fine with anyone being her dad. As for me, I’m not even sure if I want to be with Eric. I’m still trying to figure him out.

Eric looks at me, his eyebrows furrowed. “Well, what does it matter?”

I sigh. Really, what all this means is that the more public we make ourselves the less control over the situation I have. Of course, Eric won’t understand that. Eric doesn’t think anyone, except him, should have control over anything. I shake my head at him.

“Before you came into the picture, Debbie and I had an understanding of when she could and shouldn’t turn into a wolf for the sake of her health. Now she thinks because you’re her dad that all my rules go out the window,” I fight back the tears in my eyes.

“I was always supposed to be in the picture,” Eric says. I laugh. Of course he’s making this about himself.

“Right,” I say bitterly. “I’ll go then,” I say and storm out the front door before he can see my tears fall.

I put the car in drive before I even know where I’m going. It’s impossible to know how to feel around Eric. I turn on the radio and put the volume on blast.

I don’t feel like deciphering my feelings right now. The loud music suppresses any thoughts from entering into my brain, instead my ears are filled with the heavy thumping of drums.

Eventually, I pull into Jasper’s neighborhood. I turn the volume way down, my ears left ringing. It’s pitch black out and my headlights shine right on his house.

I text him that I’m here and before I can even make it up his steps, the front door opens.

“Renee,” Jasper greets pleasantly surprised. “I mean, Annie,” he adds sheepishly. I shrug him off.

“I don’t know who I am yet, either,” I say absent-mindedly and ignore the confused look Jasper gives me. He opens the door wider so I can step inside.

His house greets me with a small of pasta. I smile and like to think I taught him that.

I was only outside for less than a minute, but the temperatures have dropped to freezing levels and are cutting through my jacket.

“Not that you aren’t always welcome here, but what are you doing here?” Jasper asks. For an instant, I think that maybe I’m intruding.

Maybe he’s expecting someone. I haven’t talked to him in a few weeks, it’s possible he’s moved on. I’ve definitely caused enough craziness in his life to make anyone want nothing to do with me.

Then I look up at him and see the warmth in his eyes, more than that- I see the concern and I know he still cares for me.

“Eric is just becoming a bit too much,” I tell him, keeping my answer vague enough that it answers the question, but sets the boundary that I don’t want to go any further into it.

Jasper nods understandingly.

“Care to join me for dinner?” He say, changing the tone of the evening to a lighter one.

Just then my stomach growls audibly enough for the both of us to here. Jasper laughs.

We step into his kitchen and his red walls radiate warmth.

He has some files spread over the kitchen table that he quickly scoops up into a neat pile. For a moment, I feel sad for him thinking about him cooking himself dinner and eating all alone, focusing solely on his work after leaving a long day of work.

“Sorry for the mess,” he says. “Work,” he adds as a way to loosely add more explanation. “You know how it goes,” He says and I nod, but then I stop myself.

“Actually, I don’t,” I admit. I haven’t done anything work-related since I’ve been fired.

Jasper moves his files to his granite countertop. “You still haven’t moved forward with your own business?” He asks.

Suddenly guilt washes over me. “I’m going to give you your money back, I promise. I haven’t spent it or anything, I just-”

“Whoa,” Jasper cuts in. “It’s okay,” He assures me with a smile. “I don’t want the money, anyways.” Jasper puts his hand on my arm. We lock eyes and I notice for the first time how blue they are. “I want you to open your own business with it,” he says.

Hope begins to spread through me. “You still think I can?” I ask.

Jasper gives me a look like I’ve just spoken some new language. “I think now more than ever you should, it’ll keep your away from Eric,”

I think about that for a minute. Jasper’s right. One thing Eric can’t control is how I do my business. Maybe I can start with that, and who knows- I’ll become busy enough that Eric will leave me.

I smile at Jasper. “I think you’re right,” I tell him.