The air around was thick, like the forest itself could feel the storm coming. I could hear my footsteps crunching over leaves, but all I really heard was the question pounding in my head.
Had he been with soone else?
It wasn’t just the scent. It wasn’t just the way Darius had changed—the silence, the guilt in his eyes, the way he flinched when I got too close. It was the space between us, like a wound that hadn’t healed.
And I couldn’t take it anymore.
I found him by the river, sharpening his blade. Like always, he acted like he didn’t hear coming, but I knew he had. Darius always knew when I was near. Even now, his shoulders tensed, but he didn’t turn around.
That alone made angrier.
"You hiding from ?" I said, my voice harder than I expected.
He set the blade down. "No."
"Then look at ."
He turned. His face was calm, too calm. Like he was waiting for an explosion.
I gave it to him.
"What happened while I was gone?" I demanded.
He didn’t answer.
"You know what I an," I snapped. "Don’t make say it."
He looked away.
"I’m asking you straight, Darius. Were you with soone else?"
He ran a hand through his hair. "Luciana..."
"Don’t say my na like that," I cut in. "Say the truth. That’s all I want."
His jaw clenched. "Yes."
I froze. The world tilted. My breath caught in my throat.
"Yes," he said again. "I was."
My heart sank like a stone in water. "How long?"
"Once," he said. "It happened once. That’s all."
"When?" My voice shook.
He looked right at . "A month after you left."
I stepped back. It felt like sothing cracked inside .
"She was just there," he said. "And I was angry. Lost. I thought you’d left forever."
"That gave you a reason to sleep with her?"
"No!" he shouted. "There’s no excuse. I know that. I hated myself after."
"Who was it?" I asked.
He hesitated. "Soraya."
Of course. The she-wolf who always hung too close. Too soft-spoken around . Too bold around him.
"She’s been around lately," I said. "Following you like a shadow."
"I told her it was a mistake. I told her it ant nothing."
"Then why hasn’t she gone?" I asked bitterly. "Because it ant sothing to her."
He was silent.
"I see how she looks at you," I whispered. "Like she already won."
"She didn’t."
"She had your body."
"But not my heart," he said quickly. "That’s always been yours."
I laughed—sharp and bitter. "You think that makes it better? You broke , Darius. You ripped the one part of I trusted and set it on fire."
He stepped closer. "I know. I regret it every day."
"Do you still want her?"
"No."
"Do you still think of her?"
He looked away.
That silence said everything.
"I was out there risking my life," I said, my voice rising. "Trying to bring back my family. Trying to fulfill a prophecy I didn’t ask for. I did it for us. For this pack. For you."
"I know," he said softly.
"Then why wasn’t that enough?"
"Because I’m weak," he said. "Because I thought you wouldn’t co back. And I broke under the weight of missing you."
His voice cracked on the last word. And for a second, he looked like a man lost in a storm.
But I couldn’t let myself soften. Not yet.
"You should’ve waited."
"I know."
"You should’ve had more faith in ."
"I know."
We stood there, breathing hard, the silence full of flas.
"I can’t undo what I did," he said. "I wish I could. But all I can do now is ask—can you forgive ?"
My hands were shaking. "I don’t know."
He stepped closer again. "I love you, Luciana."
"Then show it," I said. "Because right now, your words are just ashes."
He reached for my hand. I pulled away.
"I need ti," I said.
"I’ll wait."
"Will she?"
He didn’t answer.
That told everything.
I didn’t go back to the packhouse. I walked through the woods until my legs gave out. I sat under a tree and buried my face in my hands.
I wanted to scream. To shift. To run until I forgot his scent, his voice, his touch.
But I couldn’t.
Because I still loved him.
That was the cruelest part.
I closed my eyes and let the tears fall. I cried for the girl who believed in fairy tales, for the wolf who wanted loyalty above all, for the mate who thought love could survive anything.
Maybe it still could.
But not tonight.
Tonight, I had to face the fire alone.
--Tonight, he would face .
He stood at the far end, shirt off, sweat glistening on his chest, fists wrapped. He was mid-swing against a training dummy when he froze—sensing .
Slowly, he turned.
His eyes darkened. "Luciana."
I didn’t slow down. "We need to talk."
He wiped his face with the back of his hand. "Now’s not the ti."
I folded my arms. "Then make it the ti. I’m done pretending everything’s fine."
Silence stretched between us like a drawn bow.
"What do you want to say?" he finally asked.
"The truth." I stepped closer. "Not what you think I want to hear. Not the sugar-coated version. I want the *real* truth."
He looked away, jaw clenching. "You won’t like it."
"Try ."
A long pause. Then he said it—so quiet I almost didn’t catch it.
"I did sleep with her."
The words hit like a slap.
My throat tightened. My eyes burned. I tried to speak, but my voice cracked. "When?"
"After you left," he said. "When you crossed into the human world. I didn’t know if you’d ever co back. I felt... abandoned."
"That doesn’t give you the right—"
"I know," he cut in, voice sharp now. "I know it doesn’t. I made a mistake. A big one."
"No," I said, voice rising. "A mistake is burning dinner. A mistake is forgetting soone’s na. You *chose* her. You let her into your bed. You let her scent cling to you!"
His eyes flashed. "And what about you, Luciana? You ran off without telling anyone! You risked your life, took Kiani and Aira through a portal while John’s n chased you. You could’ve died. What do you think that did to ?"
"I did it to save my family!"
"And I tried to save *myself* from losing you!" he shouted.
We were both breathing hard now, the fire between us no longer warm—but burning.
I stepped back, voice trembling. "Do you love her?"
His face twisted. "No."
"Then why her?"
"I don’t know. She was there. And I—" he stopped himself, exhaling sharply. "I hated feeling helpless. I hated not knowing if I’d ever see you again. She gave sothing I thought I needed."
I shook my head. "That’s not love. That’s weakness."
"I never claid to be strong."
"But I did," I whispered. "I believed in you. I waited. Even when it hurt. Even when I doubted... I still ca back to you."
Darius looked pained. "I know. And I don’t deserve it."
I stared at him for a long ti, heart breaking in slow motion. "I asked myself over and over, ’Did he touch her? Did he kiss her like he kissed ? Did he whisper things in her ear that he used to say only to ?’"
He closed his eyes.
"I imagined it so many tis it made sick," I said.
He took a shaky breath. "Luciana..."
"I’m not asking for an apology," I said, voice cold now. "I’m asking for honesty. All of it."
He opened his eyes, and this ti, they didn’t dodge mine.
"She ca to when I was a ss. I let it happen. Once. And I regretted it the mont it was over. But it was already done."
"Do you still see her?"
He hesitated.
That was all I needed.
I laughed, bitter and small. "So you do."
"It’s not like that."
"Then what is it like?"
"She ca to again, after you returned. I told her it was over. But..." He trailed off, rubbing a hand over his face. "We share a past. She keeps showing up."
"You didn’t push her away hard enough."
"I’m trying—"
"Try harder," I snapped. "Or let go."
His face twisted. "Don’t say that."
"I have to." I turned away. My voice was soft now, broken. "Because if you can’t choose completely... then I don’t want to be chosen at all."
The wind picked up, rustling the leaves, and I felt the crack in my chest grow wider.
"I never stopped loving you," Darius said behind .
I didn’t turn around. "Then show it. Prove it. Because right now... all I see is fire. And we’re both burning in it."
I walked away, not looking back.
But my wolf howled inside the whole way ho.
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