Chapter13
1035 Words
The morning sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains, casting soft golden lines across the bed where Stephanie lay. For a moment, peace held her body still. She listened to the birds chirping faintly outside the windows, the distant chatter of pack members starting their day, and the comforting thud of her own heartbeat. But then her thoughts drifted back to the kiss, back to Ryder, and everything she tried so hard to deny came rushing in like a flood.
She rolled over and stared at the empty side of the bed. It hadn't even been his bed… but she had dreamt of him all night, as if her soul refused to let him go even when her mind screamed otherwise.
She clutched her pillow and groaned into it. "What am I doing?"
There was a knock at the door.
Stephanie sat up instantly, tugging the bedsheet around her chest. “Come in.”
It was Isla, beaming with too much energy for how early it was. “Rise and shine, sleepyhead. Alpha Ryder wants to see you.”
Stephanie blinked. “Now?”
Isla nodded. “Yep. And guess what? He asked for you specifically. And not like a ‘formal pack duty’ request. He told me to use the word… ‘personally.’”
Stephanie’s stomach did a strange flip.
“I’ll give you a minute to freshen up.” Isla winked and closed the door behind her, humming some tune that made Stephanie want to throw her pillow at the door.
Ryder.
What did he want now?
Every part of her knew she should keep her walls up. But every time she saw him, those walls cracked a little more, letting in old feelings she hadn’t invited back.
She dressed quickly in a light blue blouse and black jeans and brushed out her curls. She didn’t wear makeup she didn’t need to for Ryder. He’d already seen her at her worst and her most vulnerable.
As she stepped out into the hallway, her breath caught.
Ryder was waiting there.
Tall. Composed. Dressed in a dark grey button-up with the sleeves rolled to his elbows, revealing the veins in his forearms and the tattoo she’d traced with her fingers once upon a time. His glacier blue eyes landed on her like she was the only person in the entire world.
“Good morning,” he said, voice low.
“Morning,” she replied softly.
“Come with me.”
She followed him, her heart drumming with every step. They passed the packhouse kitchens, then the war room, and took a side path she hadn’t seen before one lined with wildflowers and woven vines. The trail curved gently until it opened into a small, secluded garden.
It was stunning.
Flowers bloomed in every corner roses, lilies, night jasmine. In the center, a wooden table was set with two plates and a tray of fresh pastries, tea, and honey.
Stephanie’s brows lifted. “What is this?”
Ryder looked almost… shy. “Breakfast.”
She stared at him.
“What? I can’t prepare a nice breakfast for someone I care about?”
Her breath hitched.
“You” she began, then stopped herself. “You care?”
His eyes never left hers. “I always have. Even when I didn’t act like it.”
The truth hung heavy in the air between them.
Stephanie slowly walked to the table and sat down. He followed, pouring her tea first.
For a moment, they ate in silence, the tension softening like butter on warm toast. It was… nice. Too nice. Which made it dangerous.
After a while, Ryder leaned back and looked at her. “There’s something I need to tell you.”
Here it comes, she thought. The twist. The hidden truth.
Stephanie tensed. “Okay.”
“I never stopped looking for you,” he said. “Even when the bond snapped. Even when I thought I’d lost you forever. I was always searching. I couldn’t feel you, but I knew you were alive.”
She swallowed hard. “Then why didn’t you find me?”
“Because someone didn’t want me to.”
Stephanie’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”
“I think someone in the Blood Moon Pack betrayed you. Betrayed us.”
Her heart stopped.
“What?” she whispered.
“I don’t have all the answers yet,” Ryder said, his jaw tightening. “But things don’t add up. The night you disappeared… the patrol shifts were changed. The cameras facing the border were mysteriously deactivated. And a sealed report was sent to me saying you’d left willingly.”
“I didn’t,” Stephanie said, her voice shaking. “I was ambushed. Drugged. Left in rogue territory. I thought… I thought you didn’t care. That you wanted me gone.”
Ryder’s eyes darkened. “I was told you ran away. I was told you’d rejected me.”
Tears welled in her eyes, not from sadness, but from pure, burning frustration.
“All these years…” she said. “We suffered because someone lied.”
He reached across the table and gently held her hand. His touch was warm, familiar.
“I won’t let them hurt you again,” he said. “I swear it.”
Stephanie felt her body tremble not from fear, but from the flood of emotions she had buried too deep.
There was so much she wanted to say. So much she couldn’t.
“I need time,” she whispered.
“I’ll give you all the time you need,” Ryder said. “But I’m not letting go this time.”
Later that day, back in her room, Stephanie opened the small drawer beside her bed.
Inside was the locket she hadn’t touched in years.
She opened it and stared at the photo tucked inside.
Ryder and her back when everything was innocent, before betrayal, before pain.
Her fingers brushed over the image. Something stirred inside her. Hope? Or was it fear?
She didn’t know.
But one thing was certain.
Someone in the pack had betrayed her.
And they were still out there.
Watching. Waiting.
But this time, she wouldn’t be caught off guard.
Not again.
- Writer
