Hudson’s POV
The room was too quiet without her.
I had asked Christina to leave, told her I needed rest.
She hesitated, then left, and the soft click of the door behind her.
I told myself this was for the best. She deserved a life unshackled by soone half-broken, soone who might never hold her the way she deserved again. Better to push her away now than let her waste years watching struggle.
And yet, as I lay there staring at the empty chair, the weight in my chest grew heavier with each breath.
The minutes dragged. My hand throbbed with a dull ache, a constant reminder of what I might have lost. My heart ached worse.
I tried closing my eyes, tried drifting back into the fever fog, but sleep wouldn’t co. All I could think of was her face when I had turned her away. The hurt she tried to hide, the way her eyes lingered on as though she wanted to fight my words but forced herself not to.
"You’re making the biggest mistake of your life," Lycaon growled in my head.
"She doesn’t need to be tied to a crippled Alpha," I shot back silently.
"She needs YOU. And you need her. Stop being so damn stubborn."
When the door opened again, I thought I was imagining it.
But there she was. Christina.
She stepped inside, determination written across her face, as if she knew she was catching in the middle of a pity party I hadn’t admitted to myself.
"You didn’t think I’d really leave, did you?" she said softly.
I blinked at her. "You did leave."
She lifted a small box in her hand. "Only to get this."
I pushed myself up against the pillows, my pulse picking up. "What’s that?"
She walked closer, until she was right beside . Then, to my complete shock, she sank down on one knee.
"Christina—what are you—"
She opened the box. Inside were two rings, simple yet striking, every line of them touched by her craft. My chest tightened painfully.
"Last ti, you proposed to ," she said, her eyes never leaving mine. "Now it’s my turn."
For a mont, I couldn’t breathe. Of all the things I had imagined in the silence of this room, this was not one of them.
"You can’t be serious," I managed.
"Deadly serious." Her voice was steady, her hands firm as she held the box up to .
I swallowed hard. Part of wanted to reach out, to pull her up, to say yes without hesitation. But the fear was still there, unrelenting.
"Christina," I said quietly, "don’t do this out of pity."
Her brows pulled together. "Pity?"
"You heard the doctors. There’s a chance my hand won’t recover. I might not be the Alpha you thought I was. If this is your way of... softening the blow—"
She cut off, her voice fierce. "Stop. This isn’t pity. It’s love."
I froze. She had never said it like that before. Not once.
She leaned closer, her eyes burning into mine. "I want to tell you sothing, Hudson. Sothing I should have told you a long ti ago."
My throat went dry. Lycaon suddenly went still inside , attentive.
Christina took a deep breath. "Niall was my fated mate once. When he broke , when he rejected , I thought I’d never love again. I stopped believing in mate bonds altogether."
Her words hit . I’d suspected, but hearing her confirm it...
"But then you appeared," she continued, her voice growing stronger. "You loved before I even recognized you. You waited patiently for to love you back. You were devoted, patient, loyal—everything I’d dread a true mate would be."
My heart hamred against my ribs. Was she saying what I thought she was?
"The Moon Goddess gave a second chance with you, Hudson. Do you really think I’d be stupid enough to throw that away?" Her eyes shimred with unshed tears. "I was weak before. I couldn’t see what was in my own heart. But now I understand."
She squeezed my good hand, her touch sending electricity through my veins.
"I love you," she said, each word clear and deliberate. "I love you. I love you."
Lycaon howled with joy inside , the sound echoing through my mind so loudly I almost missed her next words.
"The Alpha of The Sabreridge pack isn’t defined by his hand, Hudson. He’s defined by his heart, his mind, and his unwavering commitnt to protect what’s his. That’s you. That’s always been you."
She lifted the ring from the box, her hand trembling only slightly. "So I’m asking you now. Will you marry ? For real this ti. No contracts, no conditions. Just us."
For once in my life, I didn’t overthink. I let myself feel.
I held out my left hand. "Yes."
She slipped the ring onto my finger, her smile trembling with tears she didn’t bother to hide.
I pulled her up, ignoring the protest of my weak arm, and kissed her—long, deep, with everything I’d been holding back for weeks.
When I finally broke away, I rested my forehead against hers. "I’ve been waiting for you to choose. And now I have my answer. I’m never letting you go again."
She laughed through her tears, brushing her thumb along my cheek. "Good. Because you don’t get a say anymore. You’re stuck with , Alpha Hudson."
"I can live with that, Luna Christina," I whispered against her lips.
The weight lifted. The fear didn’t vanish completely, but it no longer ruled . She had chosen, and that was enough. My mate had chosen .
We stayed like that, tangled together in the stillness of the hospital room, and for once, I didn’t think about the company or the future or the hand that might never heal. I thought only of her, the woman who had turned my world upside down and then put it back together in ways I never expected.
The woman who was mine. My mate.
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