Chapter 468

Olivia

“Dan? Clarissa?”

I stood frozen as the imposing silhouette of Alpha Dan filled our front doorway.

Behind his hulking form hovered the delicate Clarissa, uncertainty playing across her graceful features. In her elegantly manicured hands she carefully cradled a colorfully wrapped gift box that was tied with an elaborate bow.

“Good evening.” Dan’s terse voice filled the space, his cold eyes sweeping over me.

With mere moments, Nathan had swept into the foyer. I felt myself relax a bit at the feeling of his arm securely wrapping itself around my waist. “What a surprise,” he said, polite as ever. “What brings you here, Alpha Dan and Luna Clarissa?”

“Apologies for the unexpected visit,” Clarissa said softly, her hazel eyes glancing between Nathan and I. “We heard rumors about your upcoming gender reveal party, and I couldn’t help but stop by to bring a gift.”

As she spoke, she held out the box with a soft smile. The look in her eyes eased some of my previous tension, but Dan’s harsh silhouette still made me nervous.

“I suppose our invitation got lost in the mail,” Dan blurted out. “Luckily, we heard mention of the party through the grapevine.”

I glanced over at Nathan. Dan and Clarissa were never invited; it was supposed to be a small, intimate party with our closest friends. I wondered for a moment if he had invited them without telling me.

But judging from the look in Nathan’s eyes, he was just as surprised as I was.

“Oh, it was actually a private—” he began, but I cut him off with a subtle nudge in the side.

“Come in,” I said, not wanting to be rude—at least not to Clarissa, who had always been kind to me. “Please, there’s room for two more.”

Nathan and I stiffly stepped aside to let Clarissa and Dan in. Nathan shot me a wary look, but I just nodded almost imperceptibly and plastered a welcoming smile across my face; it was for the best. Besides, they had come all this way.

I wasn’t about to turn them away, no matter how much I disliked Dan.

Dan brushed past us with ease, already seeming to scrutinize every corner of our small house. His probing assessment raised the hair on my arms, and I knew what was coming. After we had visited their enormous estate, it was no wonder that our little villa seemed dinky and shabby in comparison.

“What a beautiful home,” Clarissa breathed, her eyes widening as she looked around. “Olivia, it’s like something out of a fairytale.

I couldn’t help but smile at her words. “Thank you, Clarissa. It actually belonged to my aunt back in the day. We’ve updated it since then.”

“Yes, quite the… charming little place here,” Dan remarked as he leaned forward to peer at the china cabinet that sat in the hallway. “Very… what’s the word? Kitsch?”

I ground my back teeth at the subtle condescension. But before I could formulate a reply, Angela suddenly appeared in the hallway behind Dan, looking utterly bewildered.

Clearing my throat, I jumped into the hasty introductions. “Angela, please meet Alpha Dan and his lovely wife, Clarissa. They were gracious enough to… stop by tonight.”

Even to my ears the explanation sounded thin, but Angela simply nodded politely—albeit warily.

Wanting to be courteous despite our surprise guests, Nathan offered drinks and ushered everyone toward the living room.

I noted his shoulders tensing under Dan’s heavy palm as they walked away together, evidently still just as on edge over this unexpected development as me. But for the sake of hospitality—and for those funding checks for our pack—we would power through somehow.

After all, it was just one evening, right?

I lingered back a bit, still struggling to process this invasion into our celebration. Suddenly, however, a warm hand pressed a gift box into my arms.

“This is for your new little one,” she explained, smiling warmly. “I wasn’t sure about the gender…”

I offered her a smile of my own. “It’s a boy.”

Clarissa drew in a sharp breath, her eyes misting over. “Oh, a little boy,” she said softly. “That’s so wonderful.”

I didn’t know why, but something about her tender tone made me impulsively lean into a fierce hug.

My breaths grew unsteady as I inhaled Clarissa’s floral perfume, her slender arms wrapping around me with little hesitation. It was strange. Like being cradled by a mother I couldn’t fully recall, but desperately missed on a primal level.

Suddenly, an electric current ran through us and we broke apart hastily.

Mortified at my bizarre emotional response, I dabbed at an unexpected wetness on my face. “I-I’m so sorry,” I said, forcing a laugh. “I don’t know what came over me.”

Clarissa offered me a warm smile, although I couldn’t help but notice the mistiness in her own eyes. But she quickly hid it, nodding her head toward the box instead. “Open it,” she said. “I think your little boy will love it.”

Nodding, I shakily lifted the lid off of the box and peered inside. A small gasp escaped my lips as I pulled out the contents: a little blue wool coat, hand-knitted with a golden crescent moon and stars.

“Clarissa, this…”

“I like to knit in my spare time,” she said with a chuckle. “I thought something like this might suit your little one, boy or girl.”

I swallowed as another wave of tears threatened to come. “Thank you,” I whispered, already clutching the little sweater to my chest. “Thank you so much, Clarissa.”

…

I stood in the kitchen a while later, my eyes still misted over as I gazed at the little sweater on the kitchen table. Already, I could picture our new little boy all wrapped up in the soft blues and yellows.

“Spill.”

I quickly looked up to see Angela standing in the doorway, holding an empty chip bowl in her hands. She marched over to the counter and set the bowl down, then whirled on me, placing her hands on her hips.

“What the hell is going on, Liv?” she whispered.

“Look, I don’t know why they came,” I replied quietly with a shrug. “They weren’t invited, and don’t get me wrong; Clarissa is sweet as can be, but I don’t like Dan. Especially his patronizing comments about my house.”

Angela furrowed her brow, leveling me with a knowing gaze.

“I was talking about whatever is going on between you and Clarissa,” she clarified. “I saw you two earlier, and I’ve noticed how you keep staring at her. Are you okay?”

Angela’s words made me stiffen. I swallowed, following her gaze toward Clarissa, who was seated in the living room next to Dan. Dan was telling some animated story, the center of attention as always, as the others looked on.

“I, um… I don’t know,” I admitted. “I feel this strange… connection to her, almost. Like I know her, somehow.”

“You two look awfully similar.”

I sighed. “Lots of people have said that.”

Angela took a step closer, lowering her voice even more. “If lots of people are saying it, and if you feel a connection, then maybe it’s worth exploring,” she said softly. “Maybe she’s a long-lost cousin or something.”

“Maybe.” My gaze was still fixed on Clarissa, on her honey-golden hair with the gray streak and her warm hazel eyes. Maybe everyone was right; maybe we were somehow related. Maybe, at some point, I’d mention it to her.

But not tonight.

Grabbing fresh trays of tea and cookies, Angela and I returned to the party. I offered Nathan a smile as I entered, setting the tray down on the coffee table. The evening was almost over; while Dan’s presence wasn’t particularly welcome, it was tolerable for the sake of our pack.

But then, what he said next made me question that entirely.

“Ah, our lovely hostess joins us again,” he declared loudly. “Do pour me a drink, won’t you, dear?”