Chapter 24
ELENA
There was terrible art on the walls–beige and pastel expressionist reproductions that were meant to soothe. I did not find them soothing. I sat stiffly in the reclining chair, the soft hum of the lights above us barely registering in my ears.
Another session. Another attempt to unlock the past that felt just out of reach. The doctor’s voice was calm and steady, guiding me through hypnosis, pulling at the frayed edges of my memories.
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A day in the woods with my brother when we were still kids. Mason daring me to step past the tree line–the edge of our pack territory. I’d smirked at him and dashed off, running far past where he’d expected me to go.
Another memory, coming on faster than the one before it.
Flashes of light. A warm hand clasping mine. Laughter carried by the wind. And… Derek. His voice, low and teasing. His touch, warm and reassuring. The way my heart had once felt
safe with him.
My breathing hitched, my fingers twitching against the armrest.
But before I could grasp more, the images scattered like autumn leaves in the wind. My chest ached from the loss, my mind caught between yearning and frustration.
I forced myself to focus as I left the treatment room, heading toward the nurse’s station where I knew Aiden would be waiting. But the moment I turned the corner, my heart nearly stopped.
Derek stood there, his towering presence impossible to ignore. And beside him, grinning up with childlike wonder, was Aiden. My Aiden. Standing there beside Derek as if that’s where he belonged. Where he’d always belonged.
“What are you doing here?” I asked Derek without preamble.
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Chapter 24
He looked at me in surprise, then down at Aiden.
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“Is this your child?” he asked, without answering me. “I saw you both at the amphitheater, but then-”
“Aiden, come here,” I said, my voice as serious as a heart attack.
Aiden hesitated. “Mom?”
I watched him, standing there next to his father, a picture–perfect replica. A lump formed in my throat, and before I could repeat myself, Aiden beamed up at Derek and blurted out, “Look! I found myself a dad! Isn’t he handsome?”
The air turned thick.
a
Derek scoffed, his expression turning to stone. “You can’t just pick a dad like a toy off a shelf, child,” he said, his voice tight. “I’m not your father.”
Aiden flinched, his small body stiffening against Derek’s side. My chest tightened at the sight of his lower lip quivering.
“Enough,” I said, stepping forward. My arms circled Aiden, pulling him away from Derek’s side. “Alpha Derek is right,” I said, keeping my voice gentle but firm. “He’s not your
father.”
Aiden looked up at me, uncertainty knitting his small brows. “But I-”
“No buts, Aiden.” I gave him a quick squeeze. “And you shouldn’t go around talking to strangers.” My gaze flicked up to Derek, a warning in my eyes. “Especially not him.”
Derek stiffened. Whatever was behind his expression was unreadable, but it didn’t matter. I turned away, determined to end this encounter.
Aiden was glum in the car ride home, staring out the window, his usual bubbly personality muted and forlorn. When I tried talking to him, engaging him in conversation–even about some of his favorite things, like baseball or dinosaurs–he shut me down, telling me he didn’t want to talk.
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When we got back to the packhouse, he went quietly to a corner and began to draw.
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Mason, unused to this subdued version of his nephew, gave me a look not five minutes. after we’d walked through the door.
“What’s his deal?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
I slumped into a nearby chair, sighing heavily. “We ran into Derek at the doctor’s office,” I said. “Aiden expressed interest in Derek being his father.”
Mason’s expression changed dramatically, his eyebrows rising to the sky. He seemed to choose his next words carefully. “And…how did that go over?”
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“Like a lead balloon,” I said, and Mason scrunched his face. Hurting for his nephew. And,
probably, for me. Aiden looked over his shoulder at his uncle, his eyes sad as a puppy dog.
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