Chapter 213

Alaric’s POV

True to my word, I stuck to Cara’s side as much as I could. It was no great ask to keep my arm slung around her waist, her torso pressed into my side.

The kids looked at us strangely, but seemed otherwise pleased with themselves, like they had somehow facilitated this. I didn’t know how to explain that this closeness was strictly to help restore Cara’s wolf, not without hurting them, so I kept that bit of info to myself.

Cara didn’t explain it either. She would hold my hand or hug me, never letting me get too far.

We had evidence of the closeness working, and we were both eager to have Cara’s wolf restored. I knew Cara missed her old abilities, her strength and shifting. She didn’t mention her illness, or how it could eventually kill her. I didn’t know if she even thought about it, but I did. All the time, I worried.

Cara was the woman I loved and the mother of my children. I wouldn’t be able to handle her loss, not to Lilia and not to this disease.

So I stayed by her side and held her, even as my guilt of the past continued to eat away at me.

Cara’s life was more important than my guilt.

That night, I followed her wordlessly to her bedroom. After individually showering and changing, we both stood at the edge of the bed, looking at it.

“Cara,” I said, just as she said, “Alaric.”

We both paused.

“You go,” she said, just as I said, “What did you want to say?”

We paused again.

This time, I simply looked at her and waited.

Realizing what I was doing, she said, “You’ve been lying next to me, which has undoubtedly helped. But tonight, I think… you should hold me.” She glanced away nervously, as if I would say no.

Maybe, in the past, I would have, swallowed by my guilt over how much I had mistreated Aria in the past. Even now, my stomach twisted as my mind whispered, You don’t deserve this.

Against that self-doubt, however, my own, usually quiet wolf growled, “You will hold our mate and bring back her wolf.” He left no room for question.

As my wolf had been mostly silent since Cara’s accident, his words now startled me. I hadn’t realized just how quiet things had been in my mind until I heard his voice again. It filled me with a sense of relief, hearing his voice again, realizing I wasn’t alone.

My wolf understood me better than anyone. If he thought it was time to put our guilt to the side, then maybe it was.

At least for now, so that we could give Cara what she needed. What she was asking for.

“Okay,” I said.

Cara looked back at me, her eyes a little wide with surprise. Had she expected me to say no? She smiled a little then, with no small measure of relief. “Okay.”

She crawled into bed first. I moved after, sliding in behind her. Wrapping my arms around her waist, I pulled her snugly into the curve of my body.

She hummed, satisfied, and I closed my eyes, joy filling me. Despite everything in our past, when I held her like this, it was difficult not to be overwhelmed by the bliss of it all, having the woman I loved in my arms.

Maybe it was only for the night, but for that night, I could die happy.

The next day, I escorted Cara to the last rehearsal before the actual opening ceremony. When we arrived, Cara was greeted warmly by a pair of bear shifters and a mysterious panther shifter. It was odd to see such unusual shifters take Cara under their wing, but it was clear to me that they were all fond of each other.

They noticed my arm around Cara’s waist, glancing curiously. The panther, Georgie, smiled.

“You must be Alpha Alaric,” Georgie said. “We’ve heard a lot about you.”

It pleased me, believing that Cara might be talking about me.

Cara blushed a little. “Yeah, yeah. Let’s just get into position before the director shows up. I’m sure she’s nervous.”

“She’s already been done from her office twice,” one of the bear sisters said. I thought it was the older of the two, but they looked so similar, it was difficult to be sure. “She keeps turning pale and running back.”

“She was holding a bottle of stomach medicine,” Georgie said. “I imagine she’ll be taking those non-stop until the ceremony is over.”

I didn’t understand how an opening ceremony could be a big enough deal to make yourself sick over, but I didn’t say that, not wanting to offend anyone. None of the contenders seemed nervous, though. Maybe it was just the director who was taking this particular show too seriously.

The contenders were likely more focused on the actual events.

“She means well,” said the other bear sister with a shrug.

“I want to do a good job for her and for myself,” Cara said. “I know when I don’t shift with everyone else, I’ll stand out…”

As her friends offered her comforting words, I was relieved to see that Cara had gathered a small but caring group around herself.

I shouldn’t have been surprised, though. Anyone who took the time to know Cara, would come to like her. She was caring and genuine, a hard worker who always did her best.

A pang of embarrassment shot through me as I realized I had misjudged her in the past. Despite what I had overheard, I couldn’t imagine the Cara that I knew staying with me and my family just for the money.

What a massive fool I’d been.

As the director made an appearance once more, coming down the aisle way, I squeezed Cara’s waist and let her go.

“I better get out of the way,” I told her. “I will be back to pick you up after.”

She smiled at me. “Thank you, Alaric.”

“My pleasure,” I told her honestly and made my way off the stage.

Near the exit, the door opened just before I could reach it.

Lilia walked in through the door. We saw each other and both stopped. A low growl built up in my throat, but I held it back.

Once the surprise had faded, Lilia started to smirk. Holding it, she walked closer to me.

“Well, well. Hello, my once lover.”

Cara’s POV

“Don’t look now,” Georgie said, “But there might be trouble with your boyfriend.”

“He’s not my…” I started to say, but the words trailed as I turned to take in the sight.

Lilia was moving way too close to Alaric for my liking.

“Can you hear what they are saying?” I asked my friends. My wolfless ears could detect nothing, but the shifters, with their heightened senses, likely could hear every word.

“She’s flirting with him,” Claudia said.

I didn’t need to hear what they were saying to have been able to guess that. Lilia’s body language said it all. She had her hand on her hip, with her hip jutted way to the side.

Alaric, to his credit, was standing straight, showing his clear disinterest.

Even so, I didn’t like this. At all.

Then, Lilia lifted a hand and placed it on Alaric’s chest.

I saw red.