Chapter 313

Olivia

Nathan looked at me as though I had just suggested we move to the moon. The word ‘therapy’ seemed to hang in the air between us, almost tangible, like you could reach out and touch it. I felt a knot form in my stomach, my wolf letting out a low growl of nervousness in the back of my mind.

“Couples therapy?” he finally asked, his voice tinged with disbelief.

“Yes,” I said, holding his gaze and hoping he would see the seriousness in my eyes.

“But… Why? You’ve never mentioned therapy before.”

I sighed. I had expected Nathan to be at least somewhat averse to the idea given his past, but it was still a little frustrating to hear him being so reluctant.

“Listen,” I said gently, trying not to press too much. “We’ve been through a lot, Nathan. A tumultuous past, and that’s putting it lightly. If we don’t do something about it, something to deal with it, it’s just going to affect our future.”

“But I can handle myself,” Nathan argued, casting me a sideways glance. “Everything that’s happened… I’m at peace with it. Aren’t you?”

“Are you, though?” I asked. “Or are you just bottling stuff up, just like you bottled up your abandonment in the woods for twenty years?”

For several moments, Nathan was silent. Outside, I could hear the sounds of the city below: car horns blowing, music blaring, people talking. It was a stark contrast to the quietness of our town, but right now, it was welcome in my mind. I would take this over the deafening silence.

“Man, I… I don’t know,” he said quietly, running a hand through his hair. “Maybe you’re right. I’ve just never even considered therapy as an option for, well, anything. The idea of opening up to a stranger like that…”

I sighed. “I know. But it would be so helpful, Nathan. Especially for the twins as they get older. They need a solid home life, and we owe it to them—and ourselves—to do what it takes to provide that.”

Nathan looked away, his blue-green eyes studying the patterns on the rug. He was silent for a long moment, and I felt the tension in the room build.

“I’ll think about it,” was all he finally said, breaking the silence, though his voice was more subdued than I’d ever heard it.

Relief washed over me. It wasn’t quite the ideal response I had been hoping for, but it was a step in the right direction. I just hoped that, with time, he would warm up to the idea. Going to therapy to delve into our past was scary to me, too, but I knew that it was necessary.

“Thank you, Nathan,” I said. “That’s all I ask.”

He looked back up and managed a smile. “For now, could you stay with me tonight instead of running off? We’re still on our little weekend getaway, after all. And I had plans for tomorrow.”

The corners of my mouth turned upwards slightly. “I think I’d like that,” I said, surprised at how much warmth those simple words could carry.

Night settled in, and we prepared for bed quietly, both of us too lost in our thoughts and too exhausted to say much.

As we climbed into the cozy king-sized bed, though, I couldn’t help but notice that we both chose spots far from each other. The middle of the bed was like a no-man’s land, untouchable, filled with unsaid words and lingering doubts. But I was willing to take this over not sharing a bed at all.

I closed my eyes and took deep, even breaths, trying to shut out the tension that seemed to have followed us into the bedroom. My wolf, Jade, was uneasy too. I could feel her restlessness, her urge to close the distance between us and Nathan.

And then, in the quiet of the night, I felt it—the bed shifting ever so slightly. I opened my eyes to find Nathan moving closer, the gap between us shrinking. I felt my heart quicken as he settled in, just inches away now.

Unable to resist the magnetic pull, I moved closer too, until we were finally touching. I felt his arms wrap around me, pulling me into the warm cocoon of his body. My wolf let out a contented sigh, her anxiety melting away, and I realized mine had too.

Nathan pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead, a simple gesture of love in his sleepy state. I found myself nuzzling down into his arms, content at last.

…

The morning light streamed through the gaps in the curtains and filled the room with a soft orange glow. I stirred awake, feeling unusually warm and content. It took me a moment to realize why—Nathan’s arms were still around me, his body pressed close to mine, his even breathing a comfort after being away from him for so long.

A smile crept onto my face as I relished the moment. For the first time in a while, I felt at home. It was as if the physical closeness had somehow begun to mend the emotional distance that had crept between us over the past few weeks.

“You awake?” Nathan’s voice, gravelly from sleep, broke the silence.

I turned to face him, still encircled by his arms. I looked up into his face to see two sleepy blue-green eyes staring down at me and a messy mop of blonde hair on top of his head.

I was unable to stifle my laugh; Nathan had always been the type to move around a lot in his sleep, contributing to one hell of a bedhead. Even when we were kids and would have sleepovers, he always looked like a zombie when he woke up in the mornings. But it was cute.

“Yeah,” I murmured softly. “I am.”

He looked down at me, his eyes searching my face. “How did you sleep?”

“Better than I have in a long time,” I replied, the truth of the statement hitting me only after I said it.

“Me too,” he admitted, his voice soft.

A slow smile crept across my lips. “I won’t lie, it’s kind of nice waking up to the sound of quiet instead of crying babies.”

Nathan smirked. “You’ll miss it someday when they stop needing mommy in the middle of the night.”

We lay there for a moment, our eyes locked, both of us understanding that last night was more than just a peaceful night’s sleep. It was a tentative step towards rebuilding something that had been fractured, but was far from broken.

My thoughts drifted back to the idea of couples therapy, and for the first time, I felt a flicker of hope that Nathan might actually agree to it. But for now, this was enough—a morning wrapped in the arms of my mate, a night spent bridging the distance between us, and the promise of many more to come.

I settled into Nathan’s embrace, my heart lighter than it had been in what felt like an eternity, as the morning sun continued its slow climb up the sky and cast its warm glow on the start of a new day.

“So,” Nathan said, breaking the silence once more. “Breakfast?”

I nodded with a sheepish grin, elated by this sense of normalcy in our lives, even for just a moment. “Breakfast.”