Chapter 87

Mira

The honeymoon period ended before it even began.

While we hadn’t planned a trip or vacation or anything just yet, I had expected that we might take at least one day to ourselves after the Mate ceremony. So much had been leading up to my trial and the wedding, that we both deserved some time alone together with no plans or responsibilities to fulfill.

But then Celeste returned, and my plans crumbled to dust.

I could at least be thankful that Dominic and I had had our time together in the woods, consummating our union and sharing the intimacy that we both longed for. In my fantasy we would have kept sharing that intimacy for another twenty-four hours in the privacy of our own apartment, but that was not going to be the case.

My heart almost mutinied against logic when I woke up and he wasn’t next to me in bed.

“Dominic?” I called out, half awake and the day already off to a rough start.

“Good morning!”

He sounded chipper as he poked his head out from the bathroom, toothbrush busy in his mouth. I wondered what time he had woken up and decided to leave me, but gave him the benefit of the doubt in that he probably just wanted me to get more rest.

I sat up in bed, pulling the sheets up to cover my bare chest. I had decided to sleep naked, thinking I might seduce my husband in the early morning. Now, I sat there feeling self-conscious and exposed.

“You’re up so early,” I said, my voice sounding small and pitiful as it carried across the room. “I thought we might sleep in. Wyatt even offered to bring us a breakfast tray, so we wouldn’t have to leave.”

“Yes I already spoke with him,” he said, coming back towards the bed. “He’ll bring you something whenever you get hungry.”

He was fully dressed and smelled minty and clean. I hadn’t bathed yet, wanting to keep his scent on me for as long as possible. It felt naughty and delicious in theory, and now seemed unsanitary.

“You’re not…are you leaving?” I asked.

“Just for a little while,” he placed his hands on the bed and leaned over to kiss my forehead. “I need to meet Celeste, see that she spent the night alright. She was pretty shaken up last night, and my father and I want to hear more about the Rogues that took her.”

“Can’t that wait until later, or tomorrow?” I asked, crawling to the end of the bed as he walked away from me. “It seems strange that you’re going off to see your ex.”

He turned back, his hand caressing my cheek and down to my shoulder. It was affectionate, but not suggestive.

“Celeste is one of us, a Grey, and she needs our support,” he said, as if my comment was heartless. “But you are my Fated Mate, and my wife. Nothing will change that.”

He squeezed my arm then walked away. I kept at him.

“We’ve barely been married for twelve hours, we should still be celebrating.”

I tried to make an innuendo out of the last word, and he barely seemed to notice. He was looking at his phone, sending a brief text.

“I’ll see you for lunch,” he said absently, “go back to sleep if you want.”

He gave me a last look, tilting his head to the side, and for a moment it was just us again. Then he blinked and the Alpha returned, mind set on the business in front of him.

“I love you.”

There was no response, verbally or mentally, and I heard the outer door to the apartment click behind him. The silence was choking me, and I didn’t even fight to hold back the tears that slid down my face.

I didn’t have an appetite for breakfast, so I went for a run to shake off my frustration. While I would usually go to the woods immediately, this time I chose a circuitous route around the compound. As the new Luna, it felt right to be running among the homes and buildings that made up our little town. People waved and smiled at me, though looked confused to see a new bride out on her own the morning after her wedding.

Movement was helping, but I ended up pushing myself harder than I might normally. The burn in my lungs was a welcome change to the crushing feeling in my heart. Dominic had not intended to hurt me when he left so soon, but nonetheless I felt I’d been abandoned.

My anxiety spiraled as I chewed through the miles of my run, and I wondered if Celeste’s arrival was the beginning of the end. With his first love returned, would he still have space in his heart for me?

I realized I had never been this jealous before. Not when I was younger, witnessing happy families while mine was stolen from me. Not even when Ward left me Tessa did I feel any speck of envy for her.

But now, I was fantasizing about my wolf tearing Celeste apart. It was not a particularly honorable feeling, but in the moment it felt good to indulge in petty behavior.

My legs had brought me close to the hospital, so I stopped in to see Cinda. She was hungover, but happy to see me.

“What a night!” She said as we sat in the break room with coffee. “Such a beautiful ceremony, fun party, and then visited by the ghost of Celeste!”

I frowned, and Cinda took a more serious tone. “Honey, what is it?”

“Did he really love her, do you think?”

Cinda’s eyes softened as she heard my question, and she sighed before speaking.

“That’s not for me to say, but I do recall they made a happy couple all those years ago.”

“But…do you think he loved her more than me?”

“Mira, that man has never looked at anyone the way he looked at you last night,” she said, her hand reaching across the table to take mine. “He and Celeste knew each other for a long time, it was only natural that they would choose each other. But you two, you were chosen by the gods. Remember that.”

I sat with that, feeling a bit better.

“But why didn’t I know about her?” This point stuck with me— I had never even heard her name before Celeste appeared last night. “Did everyone swear to keep her a secret from me? I feel like I’ve been tricked or something.”

“I think,” she paused, rerouting. “It was so hard, for so many, when she disappeared. Dominic was a mess, could barely speak her name, and so others stopped speaking of her too. Sometimes we have to ignore the worst pain in order to move on, to survive.”

I walked home slowly, marinating over Cinda’s words. The bond between Dominic and Celeste was real, but it had been over three years since they were together as a couple. Surely they would still have some feelings there, but we were married now. There was no way she would try to break up our marriage and disrupt the order of Pack leadership. Would she?

My steps quickened as I remembered that I was meeting Dominic for lunch, and I hurried home to clean myself up. I chose a simple sundress to wear, a halter that revealed my upper back just enough without seeming inappropriate. I’d never put effort into dressing for a man, but memories of my wedding night made me eager to entice my husband any way I could.

I slipped the nettle necklace over my neck and walked to the dining room.

Dominic was already there, seated next to his father who took the head of the table. On his other side was Celeste.

“Mira,” Davos said, rising to greet me. “So lovely to see you, you’re looking radiant today.”

Dominic did not stand, but smiled as his father hugged me. I sat down next to Davos, across from Dominic and Celeste. I couldn’t help thinking she sat a little too close to him.

“I’m sorry if you were waiting for me,” I said, “I went for a longer run this morning, had to clear my head.”

“Ah yes,” Davos answered, “I think we were all a little foggy after last night’s festivities. I woke up wondering if Celeste had actually returned or if I’d just imagined it!”

He meant it to be a joke, but none of us were very amused.

“And how are you today, Celeste?” I decided to be the bigger person, olive branch or whatever. “Have you decided where you’ll go next?”

“Oh, I’m great, thanks,” she said casually. I wanted to pinch the dimples out of her ivory cheeks. “And yes, we’ve been talking about that all morning, and I think I am going to stay.”

“In the Pack?” I said, feigning curiosity. “Do you have a house, or a host family?”

She smiled at me, then looked at Dominic. He was watching her too.

“I have an incredible generous host family who has offered me a guest room, for now,” she said conspiratorially.

I didn’t get it. “Oh? Where is that?”

“I’m going to stay here, in the Alpha mansion."