Chapter 198
Chapter 198
ELENA
Was I crazy?
+25 BONUS
I might’ve been.
I kept asking myself that the entire walk down the Moonstone hill, the hem of my coat swishing around my knees and the crisp night air curling against my neck. I had said yes. I had agreed to go on a date–with Derek. Of all people.
And now I was doing something even more dangerous.
I was looking forward to it.
I spotted him before he spotted me. He was waiting at the base of the path, right where the road curved into a grove of old trees strung with fairy lights. He stood beside a sleek black car, his coat collar turned up, hands in his pockets. The air around him shimmered with the glow of soft lanterns swaying in the breeze.
He looked… calm. Not the tense Alpha in front of a summit. Not the protective father snarling at the world. Just Derek. Patient, watchful, quietly striking in that maddening way that made my breath catch even when I didn’t want it to.
He turned when he heard my steps, and when our eyes met, his face broke into the smallest smile.
“You came,” he said.
“I said I would.”
“I half expected you to change your mind.”
“I almost did.”
He grinned at that–no smugness, just amusement. “Should I be nervous?”
“Only if you do something stupid.”
He opened the passenger door with a little flourish. “Then I’ll try my best to behave.”
***
He took me to a small restaurant tucked into the side of a hill overlooking a river. Not the kind of place that made headlines or showed up in the gloss of a pack magazine—but intimate. A place with only eight tables, handmade pottery for dishes, and windows that opened fully to the night air.
We sat by the open window. The sound of crickets drifted in with the breeze. Somewhere farther down the hill, I could hear frogs croaking.
The food came slowly, course by course. Warm bread with salted butter. Soup with roasted shallots and cream. Pasta with wild mushrooms, foraged nearby. It wasn’t extravagant–it was thoughtful. Beautiful. Every dish told a quiet story.
“You remembered I like mushrooms,” I said softly.
He looked up. “Of course I did.“.
F
We didn’t talk much about the past. Just enough to acknowledge it, like glancing at a scar instead of poking it.
He asked about the festival. About Aiden’s new obsessions–space, puzzles, dragons.
I asked about the stables. About the wild horse that still wouldn’t let anyone touch him.
We talked. We laughed.
I didn’t even realize how much I’d missed the sound of my own laughter until I heard it echoing across the table.
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Chapter 198
+25 BONUS
At one point, the server brought out a dessert plate: one spoon, two forks. I arched an eyebrow at Derek.
“Not my idea,” he said. “But I’m not complaining.”
He handed me a fork. The dessert was rich and tart–dark chocolate and something citrus, maybe blood orange. When our forks clinked in the center, his fingers brushed mine.
Just a second.
But it sparked like it always did.
That was the thing with him. That stupid, impossible pull. It never faded. Never dulled.
Even after everything.
***
We walked together along the riverbank after dinner. The lights from the restaurant glowed behind us, casting a soft halo of gold over the water. I didn’t say much. Neither did he.
He didn’t try to touch me.
Didn’t try to hold my hand.
And that was the part that got me most.
Because I wanted him to.
I stopped walking near the edge of the water and looked up at the stars. The moon was half–full, high above the trees, silver light stretching across the leaves.
He stepped up beside me, quiet.
“You’re not who I thought you were,” I said.
He didn’t look at me. “I know.”
“I still don’t know what that means for us.”
“I’m not asking you to decide tonight.”
“I don’t know when I’ll know.”
“I’ll wait.”
I finally turned to face him. His eyes were gentle. Open. For once, not guarded or veiled.
I didn’t think.
I just leaned in and kissed him.
Softly.
On the cheek.
His eyes closed for a heartbeat, just one. When he opened them again, he looked like he was holding his breath.
So was I.
