Chapter 88

Dominic

I glanced at him, one brow raised as he came to stand beside me at the railing.

“I’d have to be blind not to,” he added. “I hope you have no intention to tell me to back off.”

His lips twitched, the ghost of a smirk. “No… from what I've heard of you, Neil, you're not the type to listen even if I did.”

There was silence again, but didn't feel hostile.

“I’m not going to hurt her,” he said at last, voice low.

“Neither will I."

The wind blew. The air was cooler on the balcony than I’d expected. Late spring, early summer with just a hint of winter's chill still clinging on. Somewhere in the in-between. The breeze still smelled like snow-capped trees but carried just enough pollen to signify that flowers would be in bloom soon. The gathering was still going strong behind us, plates clinking, voices buzzing, but Neil stood like a wall at my side, steady and unreadable.

Maybe trying to figure out a path forward. Good on him, I was too tired to. The things I'd heard about Neil had rocked me. I couldn't remember being so notorious at his age, popular too. Sure, I had draw because I was the son of the alpha of Brightclaw, but Neil's rumors, his fame and so on had nothing to do with his father really.

High educated, top of his class with Renee, powerful young wolf, slated to be alpha whether his older brothers stepped aside or if he married an alpha's daughter. He was someone to watch. The Panel at large schemed about getting him in their families, but his father was notorious for not even humoring marriage alliances before his children had graduated whatever academic path they'd chosen for themselves.

I did not envy the man. Having nothing but sons had to be rough.

The problem was that all the rumors did nothing to tell me what the hell kind of man Neil was and what Renee might see in him. I wasn't blind enough to even think that perhaps she didn't have feelings for him.

And given everything that was going on, regardless of how hard I fought, there ws a chance that Neil would be the one standing beside Renee in the future.

Not me.

He looked out over the darkened treetops, his arms folded loosely across his chest. Not tense. Just alert. Watching. Calculating.

"What exactly is your relationship with her?" Neil asked. A flicker of a smile ghosted his mouth. “I’ve seen the way you look at her. It’s not subtle, but don't strike me as a rash man, nor one who has fully committed to the pursuit.”

I barked a short laugh. “The last part is incorrect."

"Why wait until the court case is over?"

I drew up short and met his gaze.

"Are you offering me advice?"

"I'm trying to figure out what kind of man you are."

"So glad we have that in common."

We stood in silence for a long moment after that. It wasn’t exactly comfortable, but it wasn’t hostile either. Just… weighty.

“I’ll admit,” I said finally, “I didn’t expect you to agree to talk. I thought I’d have to corner you at the office."

"How unprofessional."

I snorted.

“I thought about telling you to go to hell." I cocked an eyebrow as he flashed a vicious grin that seemed so different than the expressions I'd see on him around Renee, but aligned with some of the rumors I'd heard about him.

"Are you?"

"No," he said. "Renee deserves better than that. She deserves peace. And if that means I have to make peace with you, then that’s what I’m doing.”

That landed heavier than I expected. I stared at him.

“You really care about her.”

His brow arched. “You don’t?”

“I do,” I said. “I just don’t know how to show it without ruining everything.”

Neil was quiet for a beat. “That’s not surprising.”

I stiffened slightly, and he caught it.

“I didn’t mean that as a jab,” he said. “It’s just… Renee’s the kind of person who notices everything but keeps it all to herself. She feels more than she lets on. She gets overwhelmed, and then she hides. If you push her too hard, she locks up. If you leave her alone too long, she spirals, and ends up blaming herself. She is… very hard on herself, and she doesn't even realize it.”

I swallowed hard. His words settled over me like cold water. I hated how true the words felt and how he seemed to know her so well.

“You know her better than I do."

Neil’s eyes flicked toward me again, assessing, but he didn’t gloat.

“She lets me in,” he said simply. “Not all at once, and not everything. But enough… it helps that I spent a hell of a lot more time with her than the father of her frenemy.”

I winced, looked away, jaw tightening. “It wasn't something I allowed myself to do when I realized… I might have started developing feelings for her. It wasn't as if I had always seen her in that light…"

"The Ceremony?"

I nodded.

"I take it… something happened."

"You're incredible and irritatingly perceptive."

"Comes with the territory," he said, but I had no idea what that meant.

I took a deep breath. "I thought I would get over it. Then, I realized that I could, and I thought I needed to keep my distance… to hide it. But with the court case, everything with Vivian., and everything else, I’m realizing... how wrong I was."

Neil turned toward me slightly, leaning one elbow on the balcony rail. “Renee’s pragmatic. When she’s decides to shut a door, good luck prying it open. But that door isn't closed, it's not even partially ajar." His tone grew harder. "I'm not entirely sure if there even is a door, so much as a hole in the wall for you."

That... was comforting, but he sounded like he hated to say it.

"Odd for you to be assuring me of such a thing." He shrugged.

"No matter what you've heard of me, I don't believe me being cruel was in it."

That was true.

“She’s living with Arielle,” I said after a moment. “I imagine her thoughts on relationships will start to... evolve.”

Neil smirked. “You mean she might start to think monogamy is optional?”

I shrugged. “I mean she’s being influenced by someone who has no shame about living life as she wishes, in every way. It's good for her. She could use a lot more shameless self-interest.”

Neil laughed at that. "That we can agree on!"

I chuckled. "I'm glad. I'm also saying this, full disclosure before we may end up in a fight." He snickered. "I'm not not sure how my wolf will ever feel about sharing…"

My mind went to Hazel. If she'd told me that she wanted an open relationship, or to have a third, would I have been okay with it? I had idea.

Neil hummed, and I had the distinct feeling that Neil now knew something about me I hadn't meant to tell him. Fuck. I probably shouldn't have said that.

"For what's it's worth, she wants to talk to us,” Neil said then. “Both. All of us. Together.”

That startled me.

I looked at him. “She what?”

“She said the three of us should sit down and talk about it.”

I blinked, then laughed. It was ridiculous. It was so damn Renee, and… a relief that I didn't know I needed.

Neil didn’t laugh. He just smirked.

I grinned back. “What’s she planning? A whiteboard and a marker? Flowchart?”

I rocked back, imagining it. "Maybe a manual on positions. Hand-drawn diagram? I'm sure Arielle will be happy to provide her all of that.”

"I'd imagine that Renee… is actually more of a hands-on learner.”

That broke me. I bent over, laughing hard enough that it echoed out into the trees. The stress slipped away on the breeze. My eyes welling with tears.

"Seems a bit advanced, maybe we should start with a short lecture." I chuckled, shaking my head. When I looked at him, I found him staring at me with this strange look on his face. His eyes were narrowed. Inquisitive, like he'd figured something out.

He hummed and turned back to the view, his lips twitching into something like a smile.

"What?"

He shook his head. "I'll add it to the meeting agenda."

And … what was that supposed to mean?

I tried not to think about it much more, sure that it would indeed be on the meeting agenda.

“You know, I didn’t think I’d ever laugh about this.”

“I didn’t either.”

"And I was hoping that you would be just another Tyler."

"Don't insult me, and how can you think so highly of him still knowing what you know?"

I chuckled. "Fair."

My phone buzzed I pulled it out.

"I know we know nothing about one another, but we have time to figure this all out with her." I snorted. "We're certainly a long way off before even the thought of hands-on learning can be realized."

He smirked and glanced at me, a glint of light in his eyes. “You sure about that?”

And with that cryptic little smirk, he walked back inside.

I stared after him, blinking. Then pulled out my phone too text Renee.

When exactly were you planning to have this meeting of yours?