KEISHA’S POV
Nadia and I went to my house after breakfast.
There wasn’t much to pack. A few changes of clothes, my toiletries, my charger, the book I had been ignoring on my nightstand for three weeks. I stood in my bedroom looking at the broken door fra and felt a strange combination of violated and embarrassed that I had let it rattle as much as it had.
"That’s it?" Nadia looked at the small bag on my bed with a frown on her face.
What had she expected to pack? My mind darted to Vanessa before I could stop myself and I berated myself inwardly. That was Vanessa. I wasn’t going to the mansion to be permanent. Just for a while.
"I travel light." I shrugged, zipping up my bag.
"You live light. There’s a difference. It’s honestly amazing because I don’t think I could ever." She said as she picked up the bag. "Co on."
We walked back to the mansion and the morning was cold, wind brushing against my skin as we walked.
Nadia was quiet, looking through her phone, while occasionally looking at to make sure I was okay, because I was shivering slightly under my coat.
Fuck.
Maybe it was a terrible idea to co out in the chilly night in just a flimsy nightwear.
Becca was in the kitchen when we got back and she had kept our breakfast warm.
Nadia sat down imdiately and I sat beside her and we ate.
She brought up light talk about things in the pack as we ate, and I listened carefully, bringing in my own opinions.
The doorbell rang while I still had food on my plate.
Becca went to check who it was.
Nadia looked toward the entrance hall. Then at . "I wonder who that is. It’s quite early and I don’t think Dad has any etings." She looked at Callum at the end of the table. "Do you?"
He let out a grunt. "No."
A mont later, Becca appeared in the doorway. "Alpha." She said to Callum who had co down the stairs. "Visitors at the door. The Coldridge delegation. Saying their goodbyes."
Callum looked at Dane who had appeared from the corridor.
Nadia looked at and I looked at my plate.
They ca into the main entrance hall and I heard Riven’s voice before I saw him — that voice of his that had beco embedded in my brain after a while of him staying here again. I heard Callum greet them and Mara’s voice saying sothing warm and sweet
I finished eating and stood up. "I should go... Check."
Nadia grabbed my arm. "You don’t have to go out there." She said quietly.
"I know." I nodded.
I went out anyway.
Riven saw imdiately. His face did the thing it had been doing all week— that complicated mixture of guilt and sothing warr underneath it that he hadn’t fully learned to keep off his face.
Mara saw see him and her expression went carefully neutral.
"Keisha." Riven said.
"Safe journey." I said pleasantly.
Callum was watching from beside Dane and his face gave nothing but I felt the way he tensed beside .
Like he hadn’t expected to co outside.
Riven said sothing to Callum about the implentation tiline and keeping communication open between packs and Callum responded and they shook hands.
Matter of fact, the whole conversation they had while I stood in the back was very formal. Then, they rounded up and Riven turned to with a small smile.
"Can I have a word?" He asked.
"Riven—" Mara said.
"Just a word." He turned to her.
Callum’s jaw tightened fractionally. "May I ask why?"
"It’s fine." I said to him.
Callum looked at . I looked back at him steadily and after a mont he looked away.
With that, I stepped to the side with Riven and we moved a small distance from the group.
"You’re really staying." He muttered under his breath.
"I’m really staying." I nodded.
"I could get you sothing good in Coldridge." He said. "Senior communications position. Your own office. You wouldn’t have to—" He looked around briefly. "You wouldn’t have to be anyone’s assistant."
I looked at him.
"I’m not anyone’s assistant." I said. "I have a job I’m good at and a pack that feels like ho and people here who—" I stopped. "I’m not coming back, Riven."
"I know." He smiled. "I just needed to try."
"Why?" I said.
He was quiet for a mont. "Because I owe you better than what I gave you." He said. "And this is the only thing I had left to offer."
I looked at him for a long mont.
"You don’t owe anything." I said. "We’re done. Properly done. And I need you to let that be true and stop reaching back for it." I held his gaze. "Don’t contact after today. Don’t send ssages through Nadia or anyone else. Let it be done."
Sothing moved through his face but he didn’t push. "Okay." He said quietly.
"Okay." I nodded. "Goodbye Riven. Seriously. Safe journey back."
Sothing like resignation moved through his face. "I’ll miss you."
I turned back toward the entrance.
Mara was there.
She had moved without noticing and she was standing two feet from with that composed expression and her hands folded in front of her.
"I hope everything works out for you here." She forced a stiff smile at , but I could tell she was happy that they were leaving without any incident between Riven and I.
I looked at her.
"He’s going to keep looking back." I told her plainly. "That’s not sothing I’m doing to you. That’s just who he is." I held her gaze. "The only way that stops is if you give him sothing worth looking forward to." I paused. "I hope you figure out how to do that."
Her expression flickered just slightly.
"Have a safe journey." I said.
I walked back inside.
Nadia was in the hallway and she fell into step beside without saying anything and we walked back toward the kitchen together.
Sothing in my chest eased slightly at the thought of what I had given myself just now. Sothing I had ached to go before.
Closure.
Through the front window, I could see Callum shaking Riven’s hand one more ti.
Riven looked toward the house once.
I looked away. And when I looked back... He had already turned away.
Maybe this ti for good.
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