Chapter 112

Aria

I rushed away before Darren or anyone else could stop me. Darren shifted back and shouted something after me, but I didn’t stop. I couldn’t stop.

“Bella!” I shouted over the crowd, trying to keep track of her head of dark hair as she hurried away. “Bella, wait!”

Of course, she didn’t wait. But the reporters parted for me, if only because they were still unsure whether werewolves ate humans for sport or not, and so I had a path to her. I shoved through the narrow walkway, ignoring the flashing cameras and shouts that followed me.

Finally, I broke through the crowd and ran around the side of the building. It didn’t take me long to find Bella sitting on a bench beneath a tree, where the air was quiet and peaceful. I stopped a few paces away, panting.

“Why did you run from me?” I breathed, although I already knew the answer.

Her jaw tightened and she looked away, folding her arms tightly across herself. “Go away.”

“Bella…” I stepped forward, reaching out to touch her shoulder. She smacked my hand away.

“I said, go away.”

“No.” Frowning, I plopped down on the bench directly beside her. “I’m not leaving.”

She grit her teeth, but didn’t force me to leave—nor did she get up herself. We sat there in silence for a few minutes, Bella seething while I just stared at her, waiting for her to speak.

Finally, she ground out, “How long? How long have you known?”

I swallowed hard and stared down at my hands. “A few months now.”

Her eyes widened as she whipped her head toward me. “You’ve known that werewolves are real for months and you didn’t tell me?”

“Bella, it’s not that simple. I—”

“I don’t want to hear your excuses, Aria,” she cut me off. “We’re supposed to tell each other everything. Everything.”

I didn’t know what to say to that, because frankly, Bella was right—as she always was. We had made a promise to each other a long, long time ago that we wouldn’t keep secrets. And I had broken that promise, even if my reasons behind breaking it were pure.

“I’m sorry,” I finally whispered. “I really am sorry, Bells.”

“Don’t call me that.” Bella huffed and looked away again, shaking her head. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

I took a deep breath. “Because it was dangerous,” I explained. I turned my palms over and splayed my fingers wide, watching the moonlight dance across my skin beneath the tree branches swaying in the wind. “When I first found out, they almost killed me.”

Her brow furrowed. “Darren almost killed you?”

Despite myself, I couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought of that, even if it was a hollow sound. I shook my head. “No, not Darren. Never Darren. It’s a long story.”

Bella’s eyes narrowed. “I’ve got time.”

That took me as no surprise. Bella wasn’t the type to accept anything less than every little detail, no matter how small. And she deserved to know. She deserved to know everything, from beginning to end, even if it took me all night to explain.

So I told her.

Surprisingly, she was quiet as I told her my story, only interjecting with the occasional gasp or question. And as I spoke, her expression gradually shifted from hurt and angry to something more understanding, her shoulder slowly leaning against mine over time.

When I was finished, we were left in silence. The only sound between us was that of the wind gently rustling through the leaves and the distant reporters on the other side of the building, who were still in a frenzy while Darren addressed their concerns—likely doing his best to keep them occupied and focused on him rather than invading my space, in typical Darren fashion, which I appreciated.

Finally, Bella took a deep breath.

“So you love him,” she said softly.

My mouth parted, surprised by her sudden statement. “I…” I snapped my lips shut and looked down at my lap for a moment before I nodded. “Yes,” I admitted quietly. “I do. I love him more than anything. Not just because he’s my mate, but because of… everything.”

Bella was quiet for another moment before she turned toward me and took my hands in hers. Her fingers were warm and solid as they wrapped around mine, and it was only then that I realized a single tear had slipped free during my speech. It was dry and sticky now from the breeze, but I could still feel it lingering on my cheek.

“Then I’m here with you,” she said, squeezing my hand. “All I ever wanted was to see you happy and in love. And that’s still all I want now.”

“Bells—”

“You’re my sister, Aria,” she cut me off, meeting my gaze. “In all the ways that matter. From the moment we met in the youth home to now, despite all the ups and downs, I’ve always seen you as my sister. In blood, in water, and in wine.” She smirked at that, and I couldn’t help but laugh, too.

“You really mean that?” I asked softly, my voice breaking slightly. “You’re not mad at me anymore?”

Bella scoffed. “I’m still fucking pissed at you for not telling me the truth sooner. But my best friend is a fucking werewolf. How lame would I be if I dipped now, just when things were getting interesting?”

I couldn’t help but laugh again. I leaned closer, pressing my forehead to hers, and inhaled deeply. Her perfume smelled like patchouli and sage, just like always, and we sat like that for a few moments, just sharing each other’s breath.

“You always come first, you know,” I said after a moment. “I want you to know that I never intended to leave you behind—that not being able to tell you the truth always ate away at me. And there were times when I considered leaving this new life behind just so I wouldn’t have to lie to you anymore.”

My friend huffed softly and pulled back, shaking her head. “You’re ridiculous.”

“It’s true.”

Bella chuckled at that. “Well, the truth is out now for everyone,” she said. “So I guess you get the best of both worlds. Me and your hot werewolf mate.”

I inhaled sharply. “I guess so.” I paused, glancing toward the side of the building, where some of the noise had died down. It seemed that Darren had handled the media frenzy, at least for now. But it was only the beginning.

Finally, I said, “I want you to have the best of both worlds, too.”

Her eyebrows rose. “You think there’s a sexy werewolf boyfriend out there for me?”

I snorted. “Maybe. But I mean… I want you to be by my side. I want to show you everything. Tell you everything. No matter what happens between the humans and werewolves.”

Bella took in a deep breath, her eyes flicking down to our joined hands. She seemed to hesitate, but not in a bad way—just taking it all in.

“I think I’d like that,” she finally said, shooting me a small, tentative smile as she looked back up at me. “In fact, I’d like to do my best to help you with all of this. If there’s anything I can do to help the other humans see that werewolves aren’t bad or scary, then I’d like to do it.”

I paused, unsure of what to say. How much could one girl really do in this situation? It seemed like such an enormous, fear-inducing process that couldn’t possibly be tackled in one lifetime, let alone by one person.

But just as I opened my mouth to speak, a deep, comforting voice echoed across the small courtyard.

“Actually, Bella, there is one way you could help.”

Bella and I both jerked our heads up to see Darren standing a few paces away. His hands were in his pockets, the wind gently rustling his raven hair around his shoulders.

Despite everything that had happened tonight, he was… smiling.

And so I couldn’t help but smile, too.