Chapter 119

Arthur

The hospital corridor is blissfully quiet and empty as I pace up and down it. The only sound other than my rapid footsteps is the buzzing of a fluorescent light flickering annoyingly at the end of the hall, as if it’s mocking me.

Iris is a werewolf. A fucking werewolf. And not just any werewolf—a Willford. The lost Willford heir.

My mate.

The woman I’ve loved for years. The mother of my child. The woman I thought I knew.

How did I not see it? How did I miss something so fundamental about her?

Footsteps approach from behind, and I already know who it is before he speaks. My wolf bristles beneath my skin just at his presence.

“Arthur.”

Caleb’s voice makes me tense. I don’t turn around.

“I don’t want to talk to you right now,” I growl.

“I don’t care what you want,” Caleb says, stepping closer. “This isn’t about you or me. It’s about Iris.”

Her name stabs at my heart. I whirl around, ready to tear into him, but he stands his ground, proud as ever. As if he didn’t try to put himself between an Alpha and his mate.

“You’re really going to lecture me about what’s best for my mate?” I snarl, stepping forward until we’re almost chest to chest. “After you convinced her to lie to me for a week?”

“Yes,” Caleb says simply, adjusting the wire-rimmed glasses on his nose. “Because right now, you’re acting like a child.”

My fist clenches reflexively. I’ve wanted to hit Caleb for years, and tonight, it might actually happen. “Watch yourself, Willford.”

“She needs you in there,” Caleb continues, ignoring my warning. “Not out here sulking because your feelings are hurt.”

“My feelings are—” I start, then cut myself off with a bitter laugh. “Do you have any idea what it’s like to find out your mate has been keeping something this massive from you? That she’s been confiding in another man—in you, of all people?”

For a split second, something like genuine regret flashes across Caleb’s face. It’s so unexpected that it momentarily takes the wind out of my sails.

“It’s my fault,” he says, and the admission sounds like it pains him. Has Caleb ever admitted to being in the wrong before? Certainly not in front of me, he hasn’t. “I convinced her to wait. I told her we needed more time to figure things out. I was… being overprotective.”

I stare at him, trying to decide if this is another one of his games. But I don’t see any of Selina’s calculated manipulation in his expression, which surprises me. Those two were always like peas in a pod. Selina might not be a Willford by blood, but she had to have learned her mannerisms from somewhere.

“Why?” I finally bite out. “Why would you do that?”

Caleb shrugs. “I’ve only known about Iris for a week myself.” He looks at me directly. “It’s a major risk to have her identity revealed to the public before we’re ready. Hence all of the etiquette lessons—I wanted her to be prepared so no one can go after her. Your parents being concern number one.”

The honesty in his words catches me off guard. My parents are certainly shrewd and judgmental, and that’s putting it lightly. They’ve always had issues with the Willfords; they really wanted me to become the Supreme Judge of Ordan, which is technically more powerful than the President, but Caleb got the position before I did. Alpha President was just a backup plan, and they’ve been bitter about it ever since.

Regardless, they only tolerated my arrangement with Selina because she made a perfect Luna. On the outside, anyway.

If they were to find out about Iris’s identity before she’s prepared, they might use it as an excuse to start a real feud with the Willfords.

“I know we’ve never gotten along,” Caleb continues. “I know you think the worst of our family because of what happened with Selina. But Iris is different. She’s special. And the idea of her being put in the spotlight, open to criticism when she’s not ready, especially knowing just how brutal this life can be…” He shakes his head. “I wanted to protect her.”

“She’s my mate,” I say, but the anger is draining from my voice. “It’s my job to protect her. Not yours. You should have told me.”

“No offense, Arthur, but you and I don’t exactly have a shining degree of trust between us.”

I study his face for a long moment. I hate that I’m thinking this, but he’s not wrong. If I had been in his position, I might have done the same.

“Anyway, you need to talk to her,” he adds when I don’t respond. “It’s about the kiwi drink. Something about your father being involved…?”

For a moment, I want to laugh. The idea is absurd. My parents might be cold, calculating, and overly focused on bloodlines, but attempted murder? That’s a stretch.

But even as I think it, the first tendrils of doubt begin to wrap around my intestines. They’ve never accepted Iris. They’ve made that painfully clear.

With a nod, I turn and make my way toward Iris’s room.

When we return to Iris’s hospital room, she’s sitting upright in bed. The sight of her pale, drawn face makes my steps falter. I want to kick myself. I almost lost her tonight, and here I am, pacing around like a caged animal because my feelings are hurt.

Caleb was right about me, wasn’t he?

She perks up when she sees me, and her amber eyes begin to shimmer immediately with tears. “Arthur, I’m sorry—”

I cross the room in three strides and sit on her bed, wrapping my arms around her and holding her gently. “No. I’m the one who should apologize,” I say softly into her hair. “I’m sorry I walked out.”

She lets out a small sigh of relief, but when she pulls back, her face is grim. “Arthur, I think your parents might have known about the kiwi. Your father gave me the recipe for the cocktail, and he was oddly pushy about me drinking it. And then Caleb told me they left so quickly when I collapsed…”

“I’ll talk to them,” I promise her, squeezing her hand gently. “I’ll find out the truth.”

She blinks. “You believe me?”

“I believe you’re concerned, and that’s enough for me,” I say. “I can’t imagine my parents doing something like that, but if you think it’s a possibility, then I won’t rule it out.”

Tears well up in her eyes again, and she blinks them back. “I’m so sorry, Arthur. I should have told you everything from the beginning. I wanted to, so many times, but…”

“But Caleb asked you not to,” I finish for her, casting a glance at the man still standing near the door. He has the grace to look slightly ashamed.

Iris nods. “It wasn’t just that. I was scared. Finding out I’m a werewolf, a Willford… my whole identity has been turned upside down. I didn’t know how to tell you, really, and I kept making up excuses in my head. Anything to keep putting it off.”

That doesn’t surprise me as much as it probably should. I reach up, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. My fingers linger against her temple, and she leans slightly into my touch, her eyes never pulling away from mine. “It must feel like you’re walking in a dream,” I say.

She nods quickly and lets out a wry little laugh. “Yeah. I keep pinching myself so much that my arms hurt.”

I can’t help but laugh at that. Even Caleb, still standing in the doorway, snorts slightly. “My mate is a werewolf,” I muse. “After all this time… Do you feel any different?”

Iris shakes her head. “Not really. I think that’s why I’m having such a hard time wrapping my head around it. I still feel like a human, and I guess for all intents and purposes, I still am. It’s not like I have a wolf or anything.”

I open my mouth to respond, but just then, a familiar little presence comes barrelling into the room.

“Mommy!” Miles leaps onto the bed, making Iris wince slightly—but she’s smiling as she wraps her arms around him and pulls him close.

I look over to see Alice and Hunter standing in the doorway, both slightly out of breath. “We came as soon as we could,” Alice explains. “But there was an accident on Main Street and the police had it blocked off. And someone refused to use a GPS for the detour.” She shoots Hunter a withering glare.

Hunter’s face reddens slightly. “I thought I knew the alternative way to the hospital, but I was wrong.”

Miles eyes the medical equipment with suspicion. “Are you still sick, Mommy?” he asks.

“I had an allergic reaction,” Iris explains gently. “But I’m going to be okay now.”

Miles nods solemnly, then tilts his head. “What were you and Daddy talking about? I heard you say you’re a werewolf.”

Iris looks at me, and we share a brief moment of understanding. In the most palatable terms we can manage for a five year old, we explain the situation. Hunter and Alice gasp from the doorway, whispering amongst themselves, but they don’t interrupt as we explain.

When we’re finished, Miles seems to consider for a moment, then breaks into a wide grin. “Cool! Does that mean I have an extra grandma and grandpa now?” He wrinkles his nose. “I don’t really like the other ones.”

I have to hold back a snort.

Iris, however, looks uncertain and glances at Caleb. He clears his throat.

“Actually, I spoke with them earlier,” he says warmly. “They want to meet you—all of you—as soon as possible. They’ve been waiting for this moment for twenty-six years.”