CHAPTER SIX
1129 Words
KATHRINE
The moment Tyler stepped outside, he stumbled.
His hand clutched his chest and he fell to his knees on the pavement right in front of the hotel.
At first, I thought he was pretending or maybe just overwhelmed by emotions, but then he began gasping for air.
“Tyler?” I whispered in shock, rushing from behind the counter toward the glass doors.
Julian caught my arm just before I could run outside. “Kat, wait. You don’t owe him anything.”
But I shook off his hand. “Julian, something is wrong. He looks like he’s in pain.”
I pushed open the doors and ran to Tyler not liking the fact that Julian didn’t even show concern when he saw that something was wrong with Tyler.
“Tyler!” I shouted, kneeling beside him.
His eyes met mine. They looked glassy, full of pain and confusion.
“I can’t… breathe,” he gasped. “It… burns… my chest…”
Oh, Moon Goddess.
Then it hit me.
He was in pain because I didn’t accept his rejection.
The bond was still there.
But now that he had seen me again and felt everything he thought he lost, the pain was probably hitting him in full force.
His wolf must have connected back to mine, and the unfinished rejection was now fighting against the bond we never fully severed.
Julian came running out after me, already dialing a number on his phone. “I’m calling the pack doctor.”
“No,” Tyler growled weakly. “Don’t call anyone.”
He pushed Julian’s hand away and tried to stand, but stumbled again.
I grabbed his arm to steady him, ignoring the way my heart clenched at his touch.
Of course, I still had feelings for him. I never stopped loving him. My feelings for him were genuine and I was sure that even though I accepted his rejection, I was still going to keep him.
I just didn't accept his rejection because I was so in love with him. I wanted to keep feeling a part of him even though we were far away from each other.
Seeing him made everything complicated because even though I knew this was my chance to accept his rejection after four years, part of me didn't want to.
“Let me help you inside,” I said softly.
He looked at me, shocked as if he didn’t expect kindness from me after everything that happened.
But I wasn’t doing it for him—I was doing it because I couldn’t bear to see him in pain. I was doing it because he was the father of my child.
No matter how much he hurt me, he was still the father of my child. My mate.
And I hated myself for still loving him.
Julian helped me get Tyler back inside the hotel.
We brought him to one of the small private resting rooms we usually used for VIP guests who got sick or needed to rest.
He sat down heavily on the bed, breathing hard.
I poured him a glass of water and handed it to him.
His hands trembled as he took it, and after a few sips, he finally spoke.
“Why does it still hurt this much?” he asked, his voice low and broken. “I thought I was slowly getting over you. I told myself to move on. Even though it was very difficult, I wanted to try. But seeing you just now…”
I looked away.
“I never accepted your rejection, remember?” I said quietly.
His head jerked toward me. “What?”
“I didn’t accept it. You said the words, but I didn’t.”
Tyler looked like someone had punched him all over again.
“That’s why it still hurts?” he asked, mostly to himself. “Kat… why didn’t you?”
“Because I loved you,” I whispered. “Because I was carrying your child.”
There was Silence for a while after that.
It felt like everything in the room stopped breathing.
He sighed. “Yeah, I know. Kelly told me?”
“W-Where is… Is our child alive?” Tyler asked.
I debated about telling him the truth or lying to him. I decided to tell him the truth because if I lied and he found out later, he might want to take Rex away.
“Your son is four now. His name is Rex,” I said, looking into his eyes. “And he thinks his dad is with the Moon Goddess.”
Tyler covered his face with his hands. His chest heaved like he was going to cry, but no sound came out.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “I searched for you, Kat. I searched everywhere.”
“Not hard enough,” I snapped before I could stop myself.
He looked at me with pain in his eyes. “I deserved that.”
Julian stood in the corner silently, arms crossed, but I could feel the tension rolling off him.
I knew he wasn’t interfering in Tyler and I’s conversation because he was giving me some respect and time to finally reject Zandee since I was going to be getting married to him.
“I’m sorry I hurt you. I made the biggest mistake of my life,” Tyler said, reaching for my hand. “Please. Let me be part of Rex’s life.”
I stepped back.
“You had your chance,” I said. “You judged me without hearing me out. You chose to believe lies from people who hated me.”
“I know. I was wrong for doing that,” he said, standing up slowly. “But I want to fix it. I want to fix everything.”
“You can’t just walk back into our lives like nothing happened, Tyler.”
“Let me try,” he pleaded. “I’ll do anything.”
Before I could respond, Julian’s phone rang. He picked it up and stepped outside.
Tyler looked at me, then down at the floor.
“Are you truly engaged to him and going to marry him?” he asked quietly.
“Yes,” I answered, not making eye contact with him.
“Do you love him?” He asked me.
I didn’t answer because the truth was only going to complicate things and make it difficult for me to let go of Tyler.
Just then, Julian walked back into the room, the phone still in hand.
“Kat, you need to come with me,” he said seriously. “Now.”
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
He looked at me with worry evident on his face. “It’s about Rex. Something happened at school.”
- Writer
