She glances over her shoulder at the group of she-wolves who’ve followed her since she was a teen, and giggles condescendingly.
“So, the rumors are true; you’re back…” she drawls, then flits her gaze to Gio. “Oh, and you have a son now.”
One of the other she-wolves leans in and whispers something that causes Sarah to chuckle as she sizes me from head to toe.
“Motherhood looks good on you, Yvonne. You’ve changed a lot.”
On the surface, it might sound like a compliment, but I recognize the sneaky glint in her eyes and the way her lips are curled into a smirk.
Her backhanded compliment is bound to lead to an insult. I just know it. But because I’ve changed, it also means that I won’t stand idly by and let Sarah insult me the way she used to in the past. The last thing I need is for this to end up in a bickering match, and one glance to the side where Gio sits is all I need to take a deep breath to calm myself so I can handle this with poise.
“Thank you, Sarah,” I say with a forced smile. “Motherhood is definitely the most fulfilling thing that’s ever happened to me.”
“Is it, though?” Sarah quips, lifting a brow. “Isn’t being mated the most fulfilling for a she-wolf?”
I know exactly what she’s implying, but I don’t let it faze me.
“Of course,” I respond with a curt smile. “That’s how Gio was born, after all.”
My condescending smile seems to irk Sarah, who doesn’t have more to say when Gio tugs at my sleeve. He climbs onto the chair and hugs his little arms around my neck, then presses a kiss on my cheek.
“Mama…” he whispers. “We go home now.”
I nod curtly and turn back to Sarah, who seems shocked that I have a voice. “If you’ll excuse us, Sarah, I need to lock up the library for the night.”
Sarah frowns, but does not attempt to insult me as she leaves with her lackeys following close behind. In the past, I would have coiled into myself, hung my head, and allowed her to trample all over me with her words without saying anything.
This time, standing up for myself feels fulfilling, though the traces of the past linger like cobwebs in the furthest corner of my mind. I still wear the scars of my past, but they’re healing now because I’m a mother.
And a mother will do anything to protect her child.
Even face her old pack at a gathering the next night.
***
“You didn’t tell me the seats would be at the main table…” I whisper into Rissa’s ear while dinner is being served.
“If I told you, would you have come?” Rissa giggles, her emerald eyes sparkling with jest as she leans back and fluffs Gio’s hair.
Shaking my head slowly, I turn my gaze to the table, trying my best to stay hidden as I push myself to mold to the chair. Luna Aurora is seated on one side of me, with Rissa on the other, between Gio and me. I’m having a hard time understanding why I’m seated beside the luna as if I’m an important member of the council.
I hate that I’ve been put in the spotlight here.
What’s worse is that Dawson is seated across from me, his imminent presence undeniable and forcing me to face the thing I’ve been trying not to think about.
That kiss….
“Thank you all for gathering here today,” Alpha Elias addresses the feast attendees spread out through the town hall, holding his wrapped baby in one arm while he lifts a champagne flute with the other. Listening intently, I decide to focus on what the main alpha of the pack has to say about the birth of his son.
That’s the only way I’ll get my mind off Dawson.
When Alpha Elias is done thanking his pack members, he helps Aurora to her feet, and they share a tooth-achingly sweet kiss for all to see. I have to drag my eyes away quickly, but as I do, I briefly meet the crystalline blue pools of Dawson’s eyes.
My breath catches, forcing me to lift a hand to my throat as I keep my eyes lowered. The rest of the celebratory proceedings continue, and I go through the motions robotically, trying to remain as detached as possible.
It’s only when Luna Aurora taps me on the shoulder that I snap into the realization that I’d been eating dessert without paying much attention to its sweetness.
“Y-yes?” I stammer, still slightly disorientated, when I catch the alphas across the table laughing lightly at some joke Alpha Thane just told.
