The Luna He Rejected: An Alpha's Regret

CHAPTER 18

Seraphine’s POV

Caden’s truck pulled up to Kevin’s house just after midnight, its headlights slicing through the darkness like a much-needed lifeline. The second the engine cut out, he was already outside, long strides carrying him straight across the porch without caring about anything else. His eyes locked immediately on Evan, who sat wrapped in a blanket on the couch, still damp from the harbor but safe and sound.

Caden dropped to one knee in front of him, all that usual commanding Alpha presence was no longer there. His hands moved carefully over Evan’s arms and shoulders, checking for injuries with a gentleness I rarely saw from him. His face had gone pale, his jaw tight with something that looked a lot like fear.

“You okay?” he asked, voice rough.

Evan met his gaze calmly, those serious little eyes steady even after everything he’d been through. “I knew you’d come back.”

Caden swallowed hard. For a moment he just stared at the boy, then spoke.. “I always will, and that's a promise. From me to you.”

The moment stretched between them. Then soft footsteps sounded on the stairs. Luna came down first, a small backpack slung over one shoulder and her notebook clutched tightly in her arms. Emery followed right behind her, dragging his worn stuffed bear, Gerald, by one paw. Luna stopped at the bottom step and looked at all of us without hesitation.

Caden caught my gaze across the room, a silent question in his eyes, more like an offer. “You don’t have to do this, Sera. You and the kids can stay here. Safe.”

I held his stare for a beat, then gave a small nod. “We’re coming.” I turned and picked up the bag I’d already packed.

Before we could load into the vehicles, Marcus’s call came through. Caden put it on speaker.

“There’s more,” Marcus said, his voice tight. “The title challenge has a second conspirator. A senior member of Ironmoor co-signed Greymoor’s petition.”

Caden went completely still. The betrayal hit him hard—I could see the shadow cross his face—but he didn’t ask for the name. He simply ended the call and said, “Let's go.”

The three-hour journey along the dark mountain roads began in heavy silence. Within twenty minutes, all four children had fallen asleep in the back—Luna curled against the window, Emery hugging Gerald, and Evan resting between them. Their soft breathing filled the cab.

Forty minutes in, I couldn’t hold it back any longer. “Why did you file the paternity papers without telling me? And those Thursday meetings with the lawyer… what were they really about?”

Caden kept his eyes fixed on the winding road, his hands tight on the wheel. “Fear,” he admitted quietly. “I was terrified of losing all of you before I had the chance to prove I deserved any part of this family. Those meetings were me trying to build some kind of legal protection for the twins… in case you decided I wasn’t worth the risk.”

I let his words hang between us for a moment. “You didn’t deserve that chance, Caden. Not after everything.”

His right hand left the wheel and settled over mine on the center console. I didn’t pull away. His fingers curled around mine, warm and steady, and we drove like that into the deepening night.

An hour later, the mate bond grew heavier, thickening the air inside the truck as we climbed higher into familiar territory. Caden’s voice dropped low when he spoke again. “The bond has been… overwhelming since the harbor. I felt you dive into that freezing water from miles away. Nearly put us off the road. Don’t ever risk yourself like that again.”

I glanced over at him. “You know that’s not how this works. I’m not going to stand by when one of our children needs me.”

He let out a short breath, almost a laugh. “I know. That’s part of who you are.”

From the backseat, Luna’s quiet voice suddenly drifted forward. “Your hands are together.” She sounded half-asleep, eyes still closed. A second later, her breathing evened out again.

Caden let out a rare, warm laugh. The sound stirred something soft and dangerous in my chest, unsettling me in a way I couldn’t quite name.

As we crossed the invisible line into Ironmoor territory, my wolf stirred strongly inside me, recognizing the land like an old ache finally acknowledged. The forest thickened around the road, ancient trees standing like silent sentinels.

“The land remembers you,” Caden said quietly. “Even after everything.”

Emery stirred not long after, rubbing his eyes and pressing his face to the window. “Whoa… it’s really big out here.” Then, without thinking, he added, “Dad, are we almost there?”

Caden went completely still. His hands locked on the steering wheel, his breath catching in his throat.

I myself was surprised, I couldn't begin to imagine the emotions going through him in that moment.

Before he could respond, Marcus called once more. His voice was grim. “The co-signer… it’s not just any senior wolf. It’s Elder Kofi Voss.”

At first I thought I'd heard it wrong, there was no way he'd said Kofi Voss.

My father.

I sat frozen for several long seconds, the forest blurring past the windows as cold settled deep in my bones. “Pull over,” I told Caden, my voice flat and hard. “Now.”

The truck slowed to a stop on the side of the dark mountain road. The children slept on, unaware, while everything my mind raced for every possible reason why my dad would do that.