He Rejected The Wrong Wolf

Chapter 20

Brielle’s POV

In the end, Wren agreed to let Thaddeus drive them for one reason and one reason only.

“Train stations smell weird,” she announced while throwing her suitcase into the back of the SUV like she was doing everyone a favor. “And if we get stranded for eleven hours because of weather, I’ll become violent.”

“You’re already violent,” Brielle muttered.

“Emotionally,” Wren corrected.

Thaddeus closed the back hatch before either of them could continue arguing. Rain still fell steadily around them, misting across the dark pavement while cool morning air curled through the estate grounds.

Brielle honestly still wasn’t sure how this had become reality.

An hour ago she and Wren had been quietly sneaking out before sunrise.

Now she was somehow climbing into a car with the same man who had rejected her less than a week ago.

Life had become deeply confusing.

Wren slid into the back seat immediately. “I’m claiming this row so the unresolved romantic tension can sit in the front where it belongs.”

“Wren,” Brielle warned.

“What? I’m helping the atmosphere.”

“You are the atmosphere.”

“That’s fair.”

Thaddeus looked like he was actively choosing not to respond while Brielle climbed into the passenger seat before the conversation could somehow get worse.

The inside of the SUV felt warm and dry compared to the damp morning air outside, carrying the faint scent of cedar and coffee. Brielle pulled the seatbelt across herself while Wren continued talking behind them like silence caused her physical pain.

“If either of you starts dramatically confessing feelings before I’ve had breakfast, I’m jumping out of the car.”

“You’re being ridiculous,” Brielle muttered.

“You’re blushing.”

“I am not.”

“You literally are.”

Brielle turned toward the window immediately before Wren could prove her point.

Beside her, Thaddeus started the SUV without commenting, though Brielle caught the faintest flicker of amusement on his face before he looked back toward the road.

Traitor.

Rain streaked across the windshield as they pulled away from the estate grounds, headlights cutting through the dark early-morning fog stretching over the territory roads. For a while the only sounds inside the vehicle were the steady rhythm of rain and Wren aggressively opening snacks in the back seat like she hadn’t eaten in weeks.

Brielle rested her head lightly against the window, watching familiar territory blur past outside.

The farther they drove from the pack house, the lighter something inside her started to feel.

Not healed.

Not fixed.

But lighter.

Maybe because for the first time in days, nobody was staring at her.

Nobody was whispering.

Nobody was waiting to see how badly the rejected wolfless girl would fall apart afterward.

“You’re thinking too hard again,” Wren announced from the back seat.

Brielle didn’t look away from the window. “You say that every time I’m quiet for more than thirty seconds.”

“Because it’s always true.”

“She’s not wrong,” Thaddeus said casually.

Brielle turned toward him immediately in betrayal. “Why are you encouraging her?”

“I’m surviving this drive.”

“That’s the smartest thing he’s said all morning,” Wren informed her.

Brielle shook her head, but despite herself, another quiet laugh slipped out before she could stop it.

The sound seemed to surprise all three of them slightly.

Because things between them should have felt awkward.

And maybe they still did.

But right now, somewhere between the rain, exhaustion, and Wren’s nonstop commentary, the atmosphere inside the car felt strangely normal too.

Dangerously normal.

Several hours later, the rain finally started easing as the roads widened into highways leading farther away from pack territory. The scenery outside shifted gradually from forests and smaller towns into busier roads lined with larger buildings and crowded exits.

Wren sat up straighter almost immediately when the first distant skyline appeared through the windshield.

“Oh my God,” she breathed dramatically. “Civilization.”

“You say that like we lived in the wilderness,” Brielle muttered.

“We basically did.”

Thaddeus huffed a quiet laugh under his breath.

Wren pointed toward him immediately from the back seat. “See? He understands me.”

“I said nothing.”

“Emotionally, you did.”

The city skyline grew larger the closer they drove, towering buildings rising through the cloudy afternoon sky while traffic thickened steadily around them.

Brielle stared out the window silently.

Even after visiting as a child, the capital still felt overwhelming.

Alive in a way the territory never was.

Everything moved faster here.

Cars.

People.

Energy.

For the first time since leaving that morning, nervousness twisted properly through her chest again.

Thaddeus glanced briefly toward her. “You okay?”

Brielle nodded automatically before realizing he was actually watching her closely enough to notice she was lying.

“…Maybe.”

The honesty slipped out before she could stop it.

His expression softened slightly, almost too subtle to notice. “You’ll get used to it.”

Wren leaned forward between the seats immediately. “And if not, we’ll distract ourselves with bad decisions.”

“Please stop making bad decisions part of the plan,” Brielle sighed.

“No promises.”

Thaddeus shook his head quietly like he was trying not to laugh again.

And somehow, seeing that almost unsettled Brielle more than the rejection had.

Because she was starting to realize something deeply inconvenient.

She liked him better like this.