Chapter 310

Judy’s POV

“Love?” The word was only a whisper on my lips. I was at a loss for words; I stared at the man in front of me, the vulnerability and truth in his eyes shining through. My heart was stuttering out of place as I stared at him, my eyes brimming with tears. “You…” I swallowed. “You love me?”

Before he could reply, a waiter came and poured us two glasses of red juice. I raised my brows because we hadn’t ordered anything yet. Gavin smirked and took a sip of his juice, nodding at the waiter, who nodded back before retreating.

“I hope you don’t mind, I took the liberty of ordering ahead to save us some time,” he explained.

“Save us some time?” I asked. “Are we in a rush?”

“Not exactly, but we do have to be somewhere after this, and I thought dinner would go by smoothly if everything was prepared for us before we got here,” he explained.

I nodded and took a sip, my stomach a mess of butterflies. I had no idea what was happening; was this all about a love confession? Was he doing all of this because he loved me? I had so many questions for him, and I wished that I could have a little liquid courage to help me ask these questions. But I couldn’t because I was pregnant. That still was mind-blowing to me, being pregnant.

I had never tasted juice as good as this, and I had to close my eyes as the flavors hit my taste buds.

“It’s handmade juice,” he explained.

“You didn’t have to do all of this,” I told him, setting the glass down.

“You’re worth it, Judy,” he told me without missing a beat, making my heart, once again, skip a beat. I looked up at him and saw how serious he was; I wasn’t sure what to make of all of this.

“I feel underdressed…”

“You’re perfect.” His words made a blush creep up my cheeks. “I should have treated you better before you left. I can’t rewind time and fix what had happened… what I broke… but I can vow to make better choices in the future and to make sure you are included in those choices.”

“Gavin—”

“Let me finish,” he said, cutting me off. “I’m not good at this. I know that sounds stupid considering who I am, but I’ve had a total of 2 serious relationships. One being my wife and fated mate. You snuck up on me, Judy. I wasn’t expecting to feel what I feel for you, and I’m not sure when it happened… But I am sorry for making you feel as if you are not good enough. Because the truth of the matter is… You are more than enough.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat; suddenly, my mouth had gone dry, and the words failed to leave my lips.

A couple of different waiters came with platters of food, and my eyes grew wide. They made my favorite dishes. I stared up at Gavin, who smiled at me, his eyes shining with a love and devotion that I had never seen from a man before. My heart skipped a beat as I nibbled on my lower lip.

They placed the food on the table, and one of the waiters, the one who brought the juice, asked, “Anything else I can get for you, Mr. Landry?”

“No, Calvin, that’ll be all. Thank you,” Gavin said politely, dismissing him.

The waiter, whose name is Calvin, apparently, nodded and motioned for the others to follow him out. I assumed he was the one in charge.

Once they were gone, I glanced down at all the food, my stomach growling and my mouth practically watering.

“I hope this is okay,” Gavin said, eyeing me carefully. “I know these are some of your favorite meals.”

“How did you know this?” I asked him, glancing at him. I don’t think we’ve ever actually discussed my favorite foods before. We never really discussed much of anything like this before.

He kept his eyes on me, an intense look in his gaze.

“I pay attention to you, Judy,” he tells me. “I always have.”

“But I never told you my favorite foods…”

“You think I'll let you work in my villa, close to my son, and not do any research on you?” he tells me. “There’s very little that I don’t know about you.”

I felt my cheeks heating from his words.

He lowered his voice to almost a whisper.

“I’ve always noticed you, Judy. I’ve always paid attention.”

I picked up my fork and started to eat this incredible food; the flavors bursting in my mouth, and I couldn’t help the moan that left my mouth.

Gavin’s eyes darkened, drawing my attention back to his face. He was watching me intently with almost a hungry look in his eyes, but it wasn’t the food he was hungry for.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” I asked, sucking my bottom lip into my mouth.

A smirk played on his lips.

“Keep making those sounds and I’m going to do a lot more than looking at you,” he said, his voice low and sultry. “We might not make it to the next surprise.”

I looked up at him, trying to analyze his face.

“Why the sudden surprises?” I asked him. “Why now?”

He studied me for a moment.

“I realized what I almost lost.” I blinked at him as he reached his hand out to touch mine, his fingers brushing across mine. “I’m not going to make that mistake again. I promise.”

Ignoring the flutter in my heart, I fixed my attention on my food. We ate mostly silently; he kept stealing glances at me, and I kept suppressing my smile. I was still upset with him for his behavior at the Redcliff pack, and a few sweet words along with dinner weren’t going to change that right now. But I did appreciate the sentiment.

When we finished, the waiter returned and brought us dessert, my favorite chocolate mousse. I looked up at Gavin, who was grinning at me as he grabbed his spoon.

“My favorite dessert, too?” I asked him, narrowing my eyes. “You really do pay attention.”

He shrugged.

“Actually, it’s my favorite too,” he admitted. “This was just a lucky shot.”

We ate, and by the time we finished, the waiter returned to collect our things. Everything was already paid for, so there was no bill at the end of the meal. Gavin stood and took hold of my hand, pulling me to my feet.

“Come with me,” he said softly, tugging me along with him. I followed him without hesitation; honestly, I’d probably follow him to the end of the earth. My wolf was practically purring in contentment, and it made me smile knowing that she was happy in our current situation.

We got into the back of Erik’s car and we drove for a bit; I had no idea where we were going, but I was excited to see what the next surprise was. I mentioned when we reached the academy that I had graduated a few weeks ago. I looked at Gavin, who was only grinning; he looked relaxed, and my heart fluttered at the sight of him.

Erik stopped outside the school entrance, right where they typically dropped me off and picked me up.

I was surprised to see that Beta Taylor was waiting there, and in his hands was a graduation gown, along with a hat. My heart stopped beating for a moment.

“W…what is this?” I asked, my voice coming out breathy.

“I messed up,” Gavin told me. “I wasn’t there when you needed me. You graduated from the academy, and I wasn’t there to support you. Instead, I was with someone else. And even though it wasn’t as it seemed, I still wasn’t where I should have been. I can’t exactly rewind time, but I can make things right. I can make new memories, and I want to make these memories with you, Judy.”

Before I could reply, Taylor opened the car door and smiled down at me. He looked tired, so I knew he had been going through a lot lately, probably more than I could comprehend. But the fact that he was here, helping his best friend and Alpha, meant the world to me.

“Hey,” I said to him as I stepped out of the car.

“Hey, yourself,” he replied, putting the robe around my body and placing the hat on my head, making me laugh.

“This is crazy,” I said, turning to Gavin. “You don’t have to have a pretend graduation for me.”

He winked as he took my hand again.

“Who said anything about pretend?” He asked, guiding me through the school entrance. The second I stepped through, my entire body froze. My jaw slacked and my eyes grew wide as I saw the smiling faces of not only my friends and family, but my entire graduating class, along with their families, and all our professors and Dean Rivers.

The vast space of the student quad was set up exactly like the graduation ceremony, and everybody was seated in their seats like they were the first time. The dean was standing on stage, her smiling face shining down on me.

“And here is our guest of honor. I hope you can remember your speech, Judy,” she said, speaking through the microphone.

My eyes immediately found my parents, who were smiling at me, tears brimming in their eyes. Then I saw my best friend with her graduation gown and cap as well. She quickly stood and rushed towards me, her arms outstretched.

“Judy!” She squealed, wrapping me in her arms.

I was speechless.

“I don’t understand what’s happening,” I whispered.

“What’s happening is Alpha Gavin is making things right,” she told me, pulling back slightly. “And giving you what you deserved all along.”

My eyes scanned the crowd, and then I spotted Irene and Matt seated towards the front row, both of whom were grinning at me, and my heart swelled to not only see them both here, but to see them together.

I turned to look at Gavin.

“You did all this for me?” I whispered, my voice coming out hoarse.

He stepped closer, cupping my face in his hands.

“I’d do anything for you, Judy,” he told me. “And I’m prepared to spend the rest of my life proving that to you. Because the truth of the matter is… I love you.”