Realization flashes in his eyes, and the darkness of his anger seems to spread around his aura, menacingly, frightening me.
“Noah ismyson?! Is that what you're saying?!”
Seeing no point in dragging this out any longer, as if it's supposed to be a pleasant revelation, I nod. “Yes. Noah is your son.”
Tyler's jaw clenches as he glares at me, as if spearing daggers into me. “Youliedto me?!” he spits venomously. “This whole time, you've been lying to me! You left Portland withmychild?! How dare you, Arianna?! How fucking dare you?!”
My body shudders and flinches with every word he throws at me as if I'm being struck.
What was I expecting, anyway?
That we'd cuddle after I told him I'd been lying to him all this time? That he'd kiss my lips with reassurance, and we'd return home and be a happy family?
The only reason I'm telling him is so that he knows it's his son who's in danger, who James wants. This is only for Noah, but right now, I can't see the goodness coming out with the truth.
“I lied to protect myself!” I retorted. “I lied to protect myself and my son!”
“Oh, so now you're telling me the truth because it suitsyourneeds?!” he throws back with a scoff, pointing in the direction of his house. “It's suddenly convenient for me to know that he's my son because someone's after him, huh? Not because it mattered that he's my flesh and blood, and you kept me away from him for four years?” he slams his chest, his voice cracking with anger.
“What did you expect me to do, huh?!” I bite back coldly, forgetting all the warm feelings I had. “Yourejectedme, Tyler! Did you really think I was gonna wait around for you to come back after four years, and only want me because I had your child?!”
Tyler's furious glare is frightening when he steps forward. “So, you ran off and kept him away from me to punish me?! That's cruel, Arianna. It's—”
“Not true!” I cut in, almost screaming as a sob lodges in my throat. I'm fighting to keep the tears back, to show him that I'm strong, even if I'm breaking inside by revealing the truth I've spent so long hiding. It was the only way to survive, the only way I kept myself from breaking.
But it's happening again, like it did four years ago.
“It's not true! I ran away because I was heartbroken, okay? I wouldn’t have survived in Portland while you were gone and having your son. I left to stay sane. And no, I didn't have another man in my life, and thank Goddess for that, because the one time I did try to move on from you, I couldn't go through with it. Turns out, he's a mutated rogue wolf who only wanted to get close to me to get to Noah!” I laugh sardonically. “But you want the truth, Tyler? Apart from the mate bond, which you and I both know is real, I loved you. You broke my heart, and I did what was right formeby leaving. You couldn't choose me, so I chose myself!”
Tyler stares at me, his face paling as his jaw drops. Blurting out everything I've been holding back for so long feels like a weight off my shoulders, but I no longer feel grounded enough to stop the tears from falling.
“Still, you had no right to keep it a secret from me,” he grunts as if what I said means nothing. “You came back, and you had every opportunity to tell me he's my son, and you didn't. For that, I can't forgive you.” He shakes his head. “I can't forgive you, Arianna. I—” He spins around, giving his back to me, his chest heaving with rapid breaths. “I can't even look at you right now.”
Without another word, Tyler shifts into wolf form, and my chest tightens with his grief and anger, feeling his emotions as if they're my own. He disappears into the woods withoutglancing back, and I'm left to sink to my knees as the weight of regret comes crashing into me.
A pair of gentle hands settles on my shoulders, reminding me that coming back wasn't in vain if I've discovered who I truly am, and I can protect Noah here.
That's all that matters now, even if I've broken the alpha's trust.
He won't allow his child to be in any kind of danger, and that's all I've been working toward—to protect Noah.
Chapter 20 - Tyler
I can't stop running, clinging to adrenaline as it pulses through my veins, setting fire to my wolf paws and stopping me from losing my mind.
Noah is my son.
The curious, smart little boy who'd somehow nestled into my heart simply for being who he is, is my son.
It all makes sense—why I've always felt protective over him, and why my inner wolf is drawn toward him.
The blurring trees on either side of my vision as I race through the woods act like a portal for memories to come flashing into my mind. Memories of the first time I met Noah, the night he found me in the hallway and asked for a late-night snack, building a house with blocks.
Then there's the memory of his conception, the night I tasted Arianna's lips for the first time and couldn't resist going all the way.
There's also the way I brutally rejected her when she brought up being true mates, denying the existence of a bond that led to the creation of a child between two very powerful creatures.
An alpha werewolf and a witch.
