Chapter 86

Ember

Robert covers my eyes as he leads me down a small path. I was skeptical of his intentions at first, but our long nights of travel have made me remember why Robert and I had been friends once, a long time ago.

I roll my eyes before remembering that he can’t see them and let out a soft laugh.

There’s a smile in his voice when he speaks. “I think I know you well enough to be sure you’re laughing at some private thought and not anything I’m doing.”

I laugh again, this time because he’s right. “No, no, you’re very funny don’t worry.”

Robert chuckles and continues to lead me along the path. After a few minutes we come to a stop. “One, two, three.” Robert drops his hand. “Surprise!”

I blink to allow my eyes to adjust to the brightness and then turn to him in shock when I see that he has led me to a small cottage. “What did you do?”

Robert grins as I glare at him. “Please tell me you didn’t-”

He cuts me off. “Don’t worry it’s just a rental, but I did go ahead and put down the first year of rent, in your name of course.”

My mouth falls open. “You what? Have you lost your mind? Actually, don’t answer that. I know you have.”

I smack him on the arm, and he has the decency to look ashamed, although there’s still a slight glimmer in his eyes. “Look Em’ I don’t want you to feel weird about this, okay? I’ve done really well for myself these past few years in the guard, and honestly, I’ve earned some of that money doing things I regret.”

He lets out a breath. “I want you to know that I mean it when I say I’m sorry that I hurt you and that I continued to treat you like shit after that. This is my apology.”

I try to think of something to say, but I’m stunned. I just shake my head.

Robert smiles shyly. “Now we’re friends again, okay? I abandoned you once and I won’t do it again. I’m going to stick around until I know you have steady work and everything else you’re going to need to support yourself and your pup.”

A thick lump forms in my throat, but I finally find my words. “Robert, it’s too much. I can’t accept this.”

Robert shakes his head, “Don’t think of it as charity, so much as my penance. Besides, I deserted too. I rented this place just as much for myself as I did for you.”

I think about continuing to protest, but his mind seems made up. The help would be nice. Even with a year’s rent taken care of I still need to buy food and other essentials in addition to shelling out for a healer to make sure my pregnancy is coming along okay.

I nod. “Okay. Thank you.”

Kaine

I spend the next two days holing up in my office deciding what to do. Ember knows that she is my mate, and she still betrayed me and got pregnant with another man’s pup.

I don’t care if he was her former mate, or that she was in love with him first. She is my current mate, and she never even gave me a chance. If she really wanted to be with Robert, she should have rejected me, damn the consequences.

I think of her raising a child with Robert and my stomach turns. She is my mate. Whether she meant to or not, she has betrayed me.

My head throbs as I consider my options. The smart thing to do would be to reject Ember and wash my hands of the whole thing. She’s made her choice and it’s not me.

I lean back in my chair and close my eyes, picturing her face. If that’s the smart thing to do why is it so hard.

I let myself think back to Ember’s time at the Palace. I knew that there was something special about her from the moment I assigned her to be my personal guard all those months ago. I rationalized it by saying that it was because she stood up to me, and to keep her close for Bianca’s sake, and that was true to an extent, but there was something else about her that made me want to keep her nearby.

It wasn’t the bond either. There is something else about Ember, a spark.

I think about when we met, not that day, but the night before, when the bond made her seek me out. My heart beats faster at the memory of her there before me, coming undone.

It was more than attraction. It still is. Even without the bond influencing me, I couldn’t stay away from her.

I was engaged to her sister, and yet I still found myself seeking her out at every opportunity. Our kiss that night in the infirmary had been a mistake, but it hadn’t been an accident. I wanted her as badly then as I do now, I just couldn’t justify it.

I still want her. She’s run away carrying another man’s pup and I still want her. She should repulse me, but in the back of my mind some part of me wants her back.

I realize I wouldn’t trade all of the late nights going over files and losing sleep for anything. Even when we were fighting, even when I was being a dick, I was happy to have her close.

I’m an idiot for missing her. I’d be an even worse one if I went after her, but some part of me knows that I can’t let go, not without trying.

The thought of raising another man’s pup still puts me ill at ease, but I’ll have worry about that later, because when it comes down to it I love Ember. Even without the mate bond I was falling for her, and it’s impossible to deny that now.

It doesn’t matter how long it takes. It doesn’t matter if her and Robert are already married, I have to find her. She might reject me on the spot, but I have to try.

As I open my desk to pull out a sheet of paper, I feel Rafe’s approval. “You’ve finally decided to start acting like a man, like an Alpha.”

My irritation flares at his words, but I do my best to shove it aside. He had been suspicious of Bianca long before I had, and he had been right about Ember. I should have heeded his concerns.

I decide to let it go as I begin drafting a plan. She could be anywhere so I will need to be thorough. It doesn’t matter.

I will search the entire Kingdom and beyond if that’s what it takes to bring her back to me.