THE BLACK ROSE

THE OTHER WOMAN LIE OF THE BLACK ROSE

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CHAPTER 8: THE OTHER WOMAN LIE

It started with a picture.

One picture.

One lie.

And four years of healing almost went down the drain.

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Tuesday. 10:00 AM. The Pack Group Chat.

I didn’t even know I was in it until Callen sent me a screenshot.

Elder June: Did everyone see? Alpha’s new mate.

Linda (pack mom): OMG she’s gorgeous

Marcus: About time he settled down

Random Wolf #4: She’s at the gala with him tonight

And the picture.

Ryder.

In a suit.

Standing next to a blonde woman in a red dress.

Her hand on his arm.

Smiling at him like she owned him.

My phone slipped from my hand.

---

10:05 AM. My kitchen.

Jackson was eating cereal.

"Dad’s going to a fancy party tonight," he said. "He said I can wear a bow tie next time."

"Yeah, baby," I said. Voice hollow.

My phone buzzed again.

Callen: It’s not what it looks like. She’s his cousin. From the Chicago pack. It’s business.

But my brain wasn’t reading.

My brain was seeing Ryder’s smile.

The one he used to give me.

Four years.

Four years and he moved on.

And didn’t tell me.

---

12:00 PM. Pack House.

I didn’t plan to go.

But my feet took me there.

Ryder was in his office.

When he saw me, he stood up fast.

"You’re here."

"Yeah," I said. "I saw the picture."

His face fell. "It’s not—"

"I know," I cut him off. "Callen told me. She’s your cousin."

"Then why do you look like that?" he asked.

"Like what?"

"Like I punched you."

I laughed. It wasn’t funny.

"Because I’m stupid, okay? I thought... never mind what I thought."

Ryder came around the desk. "Tell me."

"No."

"Tell me," he said, softer. "Please."

I looked at the floor. "I thought maybe you were happy. With someone else. And I’m happy for you. Really."

"Don’t," Ryder said. "Don’t do that."

"Do what?"

"Pretend it doesn’t hurt," he said. "Because it hurts me too."

---

6:00 PM. The Gala.

I wasn’t supposed to be there.

But Jackson had a fever.

And Ryder called.

"Can you come? Please. It’s pack business. And I don’t want to leave Jackson with a sitter."

So I came.

In jeans and a sweater.

While everyone else was in gowns and suits.

The blonde was there.

Sophia.

Cousin Sophia.

She was beautiful. Tall. Perfect.

She saw me and her smile dropped.

"Oh," she said. "You’re the... human."

"That’s me," I said.

Ryder appeared instantly. "Sophia. This is Jackson’s mother."

"Right," Sophia said. "The secret."

Ryder’s jaw ticked. "Don’t."

Sophia looked at me up and down. "He told me about you. You know."

"Did he?"

"Yeah," she said. "He said you were the biggest mistake of his life."

The room tilted.

Ryder grabbed her arm. "That’s enough."

"What?" Sophia said, innocent. "I’m just saying. He had to leave you to protect the pack. Right?"

I looked at Ryder.

"Did you?" I asked quietly.

Ryder’s eyes were furious. At her. At the situation.

"No," he said. "I left because I was scared. And I was wrong."

Sophia laughed. "Sure. And now you’re playing house with her and the pup? How... domestic."

Jackson coughed from the chair behind me.

Ryder was at his side in a second.

"Hey, buddy," he said, picking him up. "You don’t look so good."

Jackson buried his face in Ryder’s neck. "Mommy?"

"I’m here," I said.

We left.

Without saying goodbye.

---

In the car.

Jackson fell asleep on Ryder’s chest in the backseat.

Silence.

Finally I said, "She’s lying, right? About what you said?"

Ryder stared straight ahead. "Yes."

"Because it sounded like you."

"It’s not me," he said. "Not anymore."

"Then who are you now?" I asked.

Ryder pulled over.

Turned to face me.

"A dad," he said. "And a man who messed up really bad and is trying to fix it."

"By going to galas with your cousin?"

"By doing pack business so the pack leaves us alone," he said. "So you and Jackson are safe."

I nodded. "Okay."

But it didn’t feel okay.

---

That night. 2 AM.

I couldn’t sleep.

So I went to the nursery.

Jackson was asleep. Fever gone.

Ryder was in the chair next to the bed.

Asleep too.

I should have left.

But I sat down on the floor instead.

Ryder woke up. "Hey."

"Hey."

"Can’t sleep?"

"No," I said. "You?"

"Not really."

Silence.

"Sophia was wrong," Ryder said suddenly. "About what I said. I never called you a mistake."

"I know," I said.

"You don’t sound like you know."

"Because part of me believes it," I admitted. "Part of me thinks you left because I wasn’t enough."

Ryder moved fast. He was on the floor next to me.

"Look at me," he said. "You were eighteen. You were perfect. You were everything. I left because I was a coward. Not because of you."

"Then why did it take you four years to come back?"

"Because I thought I’d ruin you," Ryder said. "Because I thought my world would kill you."

"And now?"

"Now I know the only thing that will kill me is being without you and him," he said.

We sat there in the dark.

Close.

But not touching.

"I don’t want to do this again," I said. "The wondering. The not knowing."

"Then don’t," Ryder said. "Ask me anything. Anytime."

"Even if it’s stupid?"

"Even if it’s stupid," he said.

I looked at him. "Are you in love with her?"

Ryder blinked. "Sophia? God, no. She’s like my sister."

"Are you in love with anyone?"

The question hung there.

Ryder reached out and tucked hair behind my ear.

"I think I’ve been in love with the same girl since I was twenty," he said quietly. "She just has a kid now."

My breath caught.

"Ryder—"

"Don’t answer," he said. "Just... think about it. Okay?"

I nodded.

---

The next morning.

Callen made breakfast.

Again.

He was becoming our unpaid nanny.

"So," Callen said. "How was the gala?"

"Terrible," I said.

"Good," Callen said. "Sophia called me. She said you were ‘ice cold’."

"I was," I said. "I’m not doing that again."

Ryder came in with Jackson on his shoulders.

"Morning," Ryder said. "We’re good, right?"

He looked at me.

I looked at him.

"Yeah," I said. "We’re good."

But my chest still hurt.

Because trust isn’t fixed in one night.

And rumors have a way of sticking.

---

Later that day.

I was folding laundry when my phone buzzed.

Unknown number.

You don’t belong here. He’ll choose pack over you. He always does. - S

Sophia.

I deleted it.

But I didn’t forget it.

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END OF CHAPTER 8

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