Chapter 201
Chapter 201
Caroline looked uncomfortable. I didn’t care.
Cassandra gave Aiden a soft smile. “You enjoy your dinner, sweetheart.”
He didn’t answer.
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She turned, her heels clicking against the tile, and Caroline followed—but not before giving me a look I couldn’t quite read.
A mix of confusion and betrayal.
I sat slowly, letting my jaw unclench.
Elena stared at her plate.
“I didn’t tell anyone where we were going,” I said quietly.
She didn’t look up. “It’s fine.”
“It’s not.”
“She won’t stop,” she murmured. “You know that, right?”
I nodded. “She will. Eventually.”
But even as I said it, I wasn’t sure.
***
Back at Silverclaw, the glow of the evening had worn off.
I had dropped Aiden and Elena back off at Moonstone. Elena had been cold and distant the rest of the night and I wasn’t surprised when she just thanked me for the meal and pulled Aiden into the house behind her.
No kiss. No hug. Just a perfunctory goodbye.
I was in my office with Caroline and Joe standing across from me.
Caroline crossed her arms. “I just don’t understand, Derek. She came to lunch with me. She didn’t do anything wrong.”
“She showed up to our table,” I said, voice cool. “Uninvited. She addressed my son.”
“She was trying to be nice.”
“She was inserting herself,” I corrected. “Again.”
Caroline’s jaw tightened. “Can you blame her? You’re parading around that Moonstone-
My growl cut her off.
Low. Deep. A warning pulled from somewhere ancient in my chest.
Joe flinched.
Caroline’s eyes widened–barely–but enough to show she hadn’t expected it. Hadn’t realized how close she was to crossing a line she shouldn’t touch.
I stepped forward.
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Not fast.
Not aggressive.
But deliberate. Each step measured, slow, meant to remind her who I was and what I wasn’t going to tolerate
anymore.
“You will not speak about her that way,” I said, my voice calm and cold. “Not in this house. Not to me.”
On the mantle, the old clock ticked steadily.
Caroline glanced at Joe like she wanted backup, but he didn’t move. His jaw was set, his expression unreadable.
“It’s unkind, Derek,” she said, her voice quieter now, edged with something almost pleading, “You don’t know what Cassandra’s going through.”
I bared my teeth. “Don’t I?”
My voice was still low, but sharper now. Enough to make her flinch just a little.
Joe stayed silent. Still.
Caroline’s throat bobbed as she swallowed. “I just meant-
“I know exactly what she’s done,” I said. “I was there. I lived it. And I’m done pretending she’s the victim.” She faltered, her mouth pressing into a tight line.
I exhaled slowly. Let the tension bleed out of my shoulders, just enough to speak evenly again.
“I’m not asking you to like Elena,” I said. “I’m not even asking you to understand her. But I am telling you this- she is my fated mate. I’m going to try again with her. Slowly. Intentionally.”
I paused. Let the weight of it land.
“And if either of you can’t accept that…”
My eyes flicked to Joe. Then back to Caroline.
“…you’re free to leave.”
The silence that followed was thick and final.
Joe gave a small nod. Steady. Loyal.
Caroline looked like I’d slapped her across the face. Her mouth opened, closed again. No words came.
But her eyes said everything–shock, hurt, disbelief.
She didn’t speak.
And I didn’t let her.
I turned away, jaw tight, and moved behind my desk. My fingers curled against the edge, gripping the wood like it might anchor me there.
Cassandra had scorched every bridge.
She’d lied. Manipulated. Used grief as currency.
And now?
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Now, she was done. Because I couldn’t love someone who saw my pain as leverage.
There was no coming back from that.
Not now.
Not ever.
