Cronan is angry. Angry that after years of waiting, he's mated to the one wolf he never wanted.
Fen is stuck. Stuck in a state of purgatory that he doesn't know how to escape from.
After learning of his mate's crimes, Cronan never expected to see h...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I returned home to find Eli sitting on the couch with CJ in his arms. Cronan spotted me first. He approached, eyes raking over my body likely trying to see if I was injured or not.
"I'm okay," I assured him once he reached me. "I'm okay."
"Where did they go?" He questioned, referring to Nolan and Atlas.
"Back to their pack," I explained.
"Just like that?"
"Nolan has always been the more peaceful twin," Eli said to him. "Violence is rarely, if ever, his first choice. Of course, if you push him enough times or if the reason is dire enough then he will resort to it."
Cronan nodded slowly. "Will he come back?"
"Maybe, but I don't think it'll be anytime soon," I said and he visibly relaxed at that. Without thinking, I raised my hand and combed them through his dark hair. "I told you I wouldn't leave."
CJ's small meowing caught Cronan's attention and his eyes drifted to where Eli sat and he gently pushed my hand away.
I followed Cronan's gaze and took a deep breath. "Eli, can we talk?"
Eli looked up, his expression guarded which was a dramatic contrast to the excited expression that used to take over his face when we were younger. He gently set CJ down, and the little cat scurried off to explore.
"I guess we should finally talk. It's long overdue after all," he said.
"I'll give you both some space," Cronan announced.
I watched as he disappeared down the hall and waited until I heard the sound of his door shutting before returning my attention to the beta in front of me. There were so many things I wanted to say, but I decided to start with the simplest, and most important, one.
"I'm sorry," I apologized to him, running my hand over my face. "I really am so fucking sorry, Eli."
There was a pause and I could feel his eyes on me, but I couldn't bring myself to meet his. I didn't want to see the expression he was wearing.
"I'm just...confused," Eli murmured. "Confused on how it all came to this, on how our friendship became so twisted, and on what was going through your head at the time. I've thought a lot about us, everything before and after all that happened, and I just don't get it."
I risked a glance at him and I saw his glassy eyes staring at me.
My feet moved on their own, taking me toward him and I rested a hand on his shoulder. He tensed underneath my touch but didn't pull away.
"You did nothing wrong," I told him sternly. "Everything that happened was because of me. My insecurities, my fear of being alone, and my stupidity. You were a good friend, Eli. Better than I deserved."
