Cara and I found our way back home, our hearts feeling lighter than ever after we placed our differences aside.

Still, she remained silent all week long. But all I cared about was the serene gaze as her eyes roamed over the dense forest, where her other half belonged.

At least she was doing better.

I knew I'd never get back the Cara who smiled so brightly, but I was grateful to even have her by my side.

Especially after the foolish things I've done.

My eyes follow Cara's retreating figure as she enters the pack house with slow and steady steps. I follow her right after and smile when an image of my mate enters my mind.

I wanted to give her a back hug and shower her with kisses, but I already knew something was wrong the moment I entered my territory.

I could feel my fretful pack members panicking and I could also feel the absence of my mate.

But somehow, I don't feel an ounce of concern. I trusted her with all my heart. My wolf could feel Alexandria's satisfaction through the mate bond.

That could only mean that her wolf just accomplished something so triumphant and satisfactory that I could feel it through the mate bond.

My wolf yips at me, overjoyed, because this told him that somewhere out there, his mate's consciousness still resides in her.

I could feel like walls that separated us break down little by little. Maybe, just maybe, today is a day we would finally decide to move on to the future.

I open the doors of the pack house and immediately, hundreds of distressed wolves move their attention to me.

I hold back a chuckle when my eyes land on Emilio, sitting on the edge of a table, his knees bouncing up and down anxiously. Scarlett rubs his back in an attempt to calm him down and places a blanket around him.

"Theo, I—," he starts but I stop him when I toss my coat at his face.

His downturned lips tug even lower when I throw him my biggest smile of reassurance.

I don't think it's working.

Instantaneously, there was a pause in all movements. I meet Celestina's eyes as she gapes at me with uncertainty and disbelief. I watch a little kid blink at me repeatedly, stopping midway in the process of biting her nails.

The ambience seems to shift and my people eye me up and down as if I just stole something from them. Sorry, I don't steal.

Unlike someone else I know—ehem.

"What the actual fuck?" I hear a voice mumble to themselves.

"Don't worry. I've got it handled. You all trust me, don't you?" I question them. When there was no response, I raise a skeptical brow at them, prodding them for an answer. The only reply I received was a slight nod.

I unbutton my cuffs and then my shirt. Slipping the dress shirt off my body, I fling it at Gio, who narrows his eyes at me suspiciously. I smirk when I see the dried blood in his arms and say, "Nice tattoo, Gio."

I ignore his grumbling and march towards Emilio, who eyes me with a frown on his face. His brows furrow when I yank the blanket off of him.

"I'm borrowing this," I tell him shortly. I grab two large black shirts that were yet to be worn from a basket by the door. Twisting the knob open, I ignore the stares as I leave the pack house.

"Are you sure they're even mates?" I hear an exasperated voice ask another. I shut the door close.

I rush to the woods and undress completely, shifting into my wolf.

I feel my bones mend and my skin turn into dark grey fur. A surge of energy channels through me and I let my wolf surface.

And I let him guide me to Alexandria as we run north as fast as we could.

___

There she was, playing with a pebble like it was the most interesting thing ever.

I couldn't take my eyes off of her captivating light brown coat and the most alluring scar that runs through her side—a sign of her strength.

Taking a step forward, I note her wolf tense and she turns to me. She growls at us, incapable of feeling the mate bond.

"I don't think mate likes you," my wolf tells me.

"As if you're any different, Eliseo," I sigh.

Taking another risky step forward, my wolf wags his tail to show that we mean no danger. She stares at us with a look of indifference and I land another paw on the ground.

I drop the clothes I held with my teeth.

Feeling that we were starting to get too close, she stiffens and growls at us lowly in a threatening manner.

"Aw, that's so cute!" Eliseo informs me sarcastically.

Still, I could feel his spirit go down unintentionally. He wanted his mate back but it was something we both knew would take time.

Ignoring his mate's lack of affection, he treads towards her. We both earn a skeptical look from her but my wolf disregards this.

Unconsciously, he paces towards her like an idiot because we both lack brain cells. I groan mentally when I realize it might look like we were trying to attack her.

And as if it couldn't get any worse, my wolf jumps at her for an embrace.

Instead of a hug, we receive a hard hit to the scruff of our neck. The only pain I could feel was a slight sting before the cut closes up, leaving no indication of her attack.

Shaking off the surprise and shrugging it off, my wolf continues to throw himself at her without a single fuck in the world.

Alex's wolf continues to back away, questioning our actions.

Whenever she took a step back, we took a step forward. And whenever she growls at us, he growls back playfully.

Not wanting to wait any longer, my wolf prances towards her and rubs his muzzle on her fur. When there was no response but an emotionless glare, he turns to his underbelly as a sign of goodwill.

Her wolf circles us and eyes us warily. My wolf persists and yaps at her repeatedly.

Finally, she caves in.

Lightly landing a paw on his head, I could feel Eliseo feel overjoyed. He flips back to his legs and licks her muzzle. This time, she doesn't retract but instead, she consciously rubs her muzzle on his fur.

"Mate likes me," Eliseo yips at me mockingly.

I don't reply and scrutinize Alex's wolf sit down on her belly with closed eyes. My wolf continues to rub his face on hers until we feel her consciousness slip away, allowing sleep overtake her and letting us know that she trusted us enough to protect her.

And they lay there for as long as I can remember before I sense my jubilant wolf recede to the back of my mind without a word.

I shift back into my human form and quickly change into my clothes.

Lowering myself until my knees land on the ground, I take in the wolf's beauty. Carefully placing a hand to caress her fur, she leans even more to my touch.

I grin, overjoyed by the progress we were making.

Her intimidating, yet captivating red eyes flutter open and I move my hands to pet the top of her head. I laugh when she yips at me with glee.

"Will you shift back?" I ask her. "For me?"

She licks my hand and lets out a triumphant cry of delight.

I hear the familiar sound of bones mending, but I keep my eyes on my mate's charming face. When she completely shifted, she raises her arms and I slip the oversized shirt over her. Then, I wrap the blanket around her small body and she immediately wraps her arms around me for an embrace.

Oh god, I'm fucking whipped.

I hug her back and sway with her, placing my lips on the top of her head.

"You smell like Cara. Gross," she mumbles.

I laugh and hug her even tighter. "Not anymore."

"Now that's how I like it," she tells me proudly.

I hum and close my eyes, simply basking and enjoying her presence. The silence of the woods were not eerie, but relaxing. I allow myself feel at ease.

"Do you remember," Alex starts off breathlessly. "The time where I got into a fight with your sister and you acted like some jerk?"

"Of course I do. It was a day I was recognized as the number one douchebag in the entire universe," I say truthfully.

"Do you remember what she said?"

I furrow my brows but continue, "That apparently, your mother wishes you well?"

"Yeah," she breaths out and I could tell that her voice was beginning to falter. I start rubbing circles on her back for reassurance.

"Actually," she begins once again with a rather quiet voice. "I—."

My lips tug downwards into a frown, despising my mate's sorrow.

"It's okay. You're okay," I whisper.

"The reason she irritated me is because my mother is dead," she pauses and takes in a deep breath.

I didn't know what to feel. I was both remorseful for Alex and furious at my sister. Yet, at the same time, I was infuriated by myself for letting others step on her.

I open my mouth to speak but she stops me when she lifts her head up to look at me. An aching pang is sent to my heart when I see the hurt on her face.

"I was the one who killed mother," she words out breathlessly. I don't say anything and make sure to listen to her carefully. "There was a day when my wolf went on a rampage and no one could handle it, so the Rogues who took care of me locked me up for a few years, waiting for me to perish. And then it finally came to a point where they agreed to put me down and give up on me.

"Luckily, it appeared to me that there was an attack. Actually, it was so horrifying that I'd call it a war against all rogues. But that war gave me an opportunity to live. The wolves who guarded me had fled for safety, except one person: my mother with a knife on her palms. So I had to, Theo. I wanted to wake up every morning, cherishing a new day. I wanted to survive. I wanted to live."

I gently bring a hand to Alex's face and wipe off her tears with my thumb. A passionate spirit grows inside of me. I wanted to care for her, protect her, and most importantly, love her for the rest of my lifetime.

"A parent who puts their selfish needs over their child is not a loved one. A woman who uses her hands to kill instead of providing comfort for her children is not a mother. A 'family' who makes their child sacrifice to give them the life they want is not a family, but simply strangers," I pause and keep my eyes locked on Alex's honey brown ones. I keep caressing her cheek as a way to comfort her. "You did not end the life of a mother but a killer."

I watch as the tears drop down her cheeks and hear a painful sob escape her lips.

"Evil people don't deserve your tears, mi amor," I say under my breath.

"It's not," she manages to to say and gives me a lovely smile. "I'm crying because I love you so much."

My heart warms up at her words and I stop myself from saying it back. She needs to hear my story and I didn't want to keep my hopes up, wishing that she'll love me forever. If she thinks that what she had done in the past was sickening, then what I've done is unjustifiable.

"There's things I need to tell you first, okay?" I ask her for assurance. "Will you hear me out?"

"Of course."

"I was the cause of Felix's mate's death and the niece I could have had," I admit slowly. I meet her eyes only to see trust in them—not an ounce of distaste.

"In what way?"

"Cara," I begin. "She was mated to the Rogue King and they loved each other deeply. But then one day, she visited another town unaccompanied and she didn't realize that the heat would hit her until she was in total pain. Without a mate and company, she eventually caved in her craving and couldn't resist another man's touch.

"Naturally, her mate, Silas, couldn't bear the feeling of betrayal and left her. But then I found out Cara was pregnant, who refused to tell me whether her rightful mate or the unnamed stranger was the father. I was enraged and waged war against the Rogue King, furious by the way he handled the issue. I was foolish, Alexandria. I didn't think of the pressure I gave Cara and her baby. I let Felix's mate, who was frail and inexperienced, walk through a path with savage wolves. I allowed loved ones, unmated wolves who had another waiting for them, and mated wolves who could've had families to die just for my foolish and selfish acts."

Keeping my eyes trained on Alexandria, I ask, "So, my love, do you really want to love me?"

"I'd rather love a truthful and educated man who has seen the world than a flawless and inexperienced boy who hasn't," she tells me genuinely, not wasting a second. "Theo, it's your choice. Do you want your past to simply be a mistake or a lesson?"

I thoughtfully study her face, her beauty making me breathless. I keep my eyes locked with hers as my heart becomes lighter.

Who allowed me to love such a beautiful woman?

"Alexandria, will you be mine for eternity and be my rightful Luna?" I ask her, mustering up as much sincerity as I could into my voice.

"Took you long enough," she laughs out with a lopsided smile.

And that was all it took to get my heart soaring and I lean in for a kiss. My lips press unto hers delicately and she takes in the liberty of pushing my body closer to hers with her hands on either side of my neck. My hands roams past her shoulders and down to her waist, holding her in place.

Enjoying the taste of her lips, I deepen the kiss and she responds almost immediately. I pull apart and let my lips trail her jaw and down to her collarbone.

My teeth grazes the skin on her neck where my mark should be. Swiftly, I plunge my canines and wait only a short second before retracting them, marking her mine. My wolf howls in pain when we hear her whimper, only for it to be replaced by a moan of pleasure.

Placing another kiss on her forehead, I slowly say, "I love you."

"I love you, too."

Her little signature smirk reaches her lips and I copy her actions.

"Copycat," she breathes out.

And we burst out in heaps of laughter.