“Edith, stay with me.”
Edith opened her eyes slowly. She saw Seth staring at her, a worried look on his face. With the strength she still had, Edith straightened up and leaned against the sofa.
She held her head, which was still dizzy from the spinning sensation, after leaving the astral dimension. Edith had the precious experience of actually being able to meet one of her ancestors. She understood more about her origins, and the uncertainty in her heart slowly faded away after the incident.
She wanted to share this experience with Seth. Looking at Seth, who was staring at her intently, Edith smiled to calm the man down. Seth’s furrowed forehead indicated his panic.
“I’m fine. Where is my baby?”
“Are you sure? Julian is with one of the omegas.”
“Yes. Seth, I have something to tell you, in private.”
Seth turned around and gave orders to Jadden, who had been behind him all along, to take his place in leading the ritual. Jadden immediately followed his orders. Jadden immediately left the room and went to the backyard to continue Seth’s order.
Once the atmosphere began to quiet down, Edith opened her voice and said, “I met Queen Veela, and she is my grandmother. She explained everything to me-about our nation, the werewolf and vampire feud, The Golden Wolf and the Imprint.”
“What did your grandmother say?”
Edith recounted everything that happened to her earlier. After listening to the story, Seth thought about and connected the message given by Edith’s mother. He could draw the conclusion that the vampire who attacked one of the werewolves yesterday was indeed looking for Edith in this area.
“I see. Get some rest; you’ve been exhausted all day.”
Seth looked at Edith, who was silent but seemed uneasy. To Seth, Edith looked strange, even though in his eyes she was still adorable. His thoughts of imminent danger were dispelled by the sweet sight.
“Do you have something to tell me?” Seth asked.
“Hmm… can I ask you to be with me just until I fall asleep? I have a bunch of mixed feelings right now. Excited and anxious, I can’t tell the difference; I can’t explain it.”
“Of course I will stay with you.”
Seth saw Edith’s face blush. Seth could tell that Edith must be feeling embarrassed right now. Seth didn’t mean to tease her; he was just saying what was on his mind.
“Come on, let’s go to the room. Do you want me to carry you?”
“No, I can walk.”
Edith stood up from the sofa. She felt her vision foggy, and her legs still felt weak enough to take a step. Edith touched the edge of the sofa to keep herself from falling.
“What a stubborn girl.”
Seth grabbed Edith’s body and carried the girl to the room. Edith was already very embarrassed at this point. She covered her face with both hands and adjusted her breathing rate so as not to look nervous.
“There’s no need to be ashamed. We’ve done it twice, and you’re still shy of me?”
Intent on diluting her embarrassment, Edith tried to delve into Seth’s mind. That man was always quick to provide protection for her. Edith glanced at the visually stern and masculine face that was leading her to the room.
For the few minutes that both of them were in intimate proximity, Edith felt comfortable. Seth’s warm embrace lulled her. Even when she was already on the bed, Edith had yet to remove her arms from Seth’s neck.
“Do you want to keep hanging around like this? I like it, but you must need your hands to do other things, right?”
“Oh, sorry, I forgot. Thank you.”
Silence was ensured as Edith lay smoothly on the bed. Beside her, Seth sat with his face facing Edith. Seth watched the girl interpret all her awkward gestures as their eyes met.
“Are you always nervous like this?”
“Only with you. I never thought that I would become your mate and give birth to your child.”
“Is that something positive?”
“It seems so. All the way you treated me as you promised, you changed.”
Seth was silent. He remembered how he and his friends made Edith the target of their games. His behaviour in the past was annoying, but it was a turning point for him to change.
“Are you starting to fall in love with me?”
Edith took a deep breath. She used the right words to describe her current feelings. Edith’s hatred for Seth made her feel a spark of love.
“I don’t know; I’m just not sure if I feel that way about you yet.”
“That’s fine; I understand. At least I know that you don’t hate me anymore, and that makes me relieved. Rest; I will always be by your side.”
Edith closed her eyes. Part of her felt relieved that she had confessed her feelings to Seth. She just wasn’t sure if she felt love for him. Edith didn’t want to be rash because she still had memories that Seth was the one who had harassed her in the past.
Seth was thinking the same thing. He was so regretful that he had done such a despicable thing to Edith. The bad start of their relationship had left an impression on the person he loved the most. Seth could not be proud for now, even though Edith had given him a second chance.
Seth saw that Edith was fast asleep. He brought his face closer to Edith’s and kissed her forehead. In the quiet atmosphere, Seth murmured, “I’m so sorry.”
*
Edith opened her eyes. She felt refreshed after a night of sleep. She remembered Julian and got out of bed. Edith stepped out of the room and went to the next room, where Julian was.
Edith saw Julian being carried by a woman in her thirties. The woman was holding a milk bottle that the baby was drinking from.
“Can I hold Julian?” asked Edith.
“Oh, sure, Luna Edith.”
“Why do you call me that?”
“I’m Omega Anne; Alpha Seth ordered it that way; I have to obey his orders.”
“Oh okay. Where is he?”
“Alpha Seth is holding a meeting with the pack members. If you’ll excuse me, Luna.”
“Thank you, Anne.”
Edith seated herself on the chair right next to the window. The warm sunlight hit them both. Edith felt the small movement of Julian’s hand touching her skin. She took her baby’s tiny hand and said, “Morning, my little caramel. I missed you.”
Half an hour later, Edith came out of the room after putting her baby to bed. She went around looking for Seth.
“Where’s everybody?” muttered Edith.
Edith looked for someone to ask where Seth was. There was no one in the corridor she was walking through. Until a door opened and Seth appeared with his mom, followed by his two friends behind him.
“Hope? When did you arrive, and where is Seth’s father?” asked Edith.
“I’d better leave you guys; I have something to take care of. Come on, Jadden,” said Seth as he walked away.
“Seth, wait!”
Seth ignored Edith; he kept walking away from both of them. Edith turned her gaze from Seth to Hope, who was beside her. She was really confused by Seth’s attitude of ignoring her.
“Seth didn’t hear my call. What’s wrong with… Hope, what’s wrong with you?”
Edith saw tears running down the woman’s cheeks. The woman’s eyes looked swollen, and Edith realised that something had happened. Edith grabbed the woman’s hand and asked, “Hope, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?”
Instead of answering, Hope sobbed even more. Edith took Hope into her arms, giving the woman some comfort. Edith took the initiative to take Hope to her room to help her feel better.
Right at the doorway of her room, she asked one of the omegas to make two hot drinks for her and Hope. Walking to the edge of the bed, Edith touched Hope’s shoulder to ask her to sit up. She grabbed a tissue from the nightstand and held it out to Hope.
“Drink it while it’s still warm, then tell me what happened.”
Edith handed Hope a cup filled with warm tea. She saw the woman’s hand trembling as she accepted the cup. Edith waited patiently for the woman to tell her what was going on.
Hope put down the cup after taking a sip. Edith took the woman’s hand back and grasped it.
“Tell me, what are you sad about?”
“Christian died after a battle with a vampire. His body was not found in the Gavarnie waterfall. All the packs in Lourdes and Tarbes have searched, but to no avail.”
The woman sobbed again. Edith grabbed Hope and said, “I’m so sorry. I hope we can get through this soon.”