Everything Anew

Chapter Thirty-Two

Thirty-Two

Nathan

Days went by without so much as a glance in my direction. Lila kept her distance from me, but I could tell it wasn't anything personal. She wasn't sure how to handle the kiss we shared together beneath the rain and stars. To be honest, I couldn't either. It still bothered me that she didn't know the full story of what happened the day I killed Lysandra, but she also hadn't questioned me further. It was as though the knowledge of it didn't bother her, which only made it worse. I wanted her to be afraid of me, I wanted her to have a reason to keep her distance, but instead she stayed by my side regardless. 

Markus had taken Lila out earlier in the day and I had no idea why. When they returned, she was halfway up the steps by the time I reached the front door, leaving me no chance to ask her. Markus waited as if he expected me to inquire, and when I did, he answered nonchalantly.

"I took her to a doctor to get everything up to date, and also suggested she get a birth control implant to prepare for her cycle, just to be safe."

I stood planted on the spot for a while; my head only nodding when I realized Markus waited for a response. "Um, of course." I said while the man before me stood unfazed.

Since then it seemed Lila was avoiding me even more. I tapped my pen on my desk and kept my office door wide open. I kept glancing towards it when I heard footsteps, only to see another member of the pack walk by.

A few popped their heads in, asking a question or two and then leaving shortly thereafter. It wasn't until lunchtime hit that everyone made their way to the dining room. Lila took her seat diagonal to me, close enough that I could reach out and touch her, but not directly beside me.

It was difficult not to stare at her when I realized she was wearing one of the dresses she bought when we went shopping. It was a beautiful shade of lilac that complimented her skin, the bottom was pleated and the top framed her chest perfectly to show off her cleavage.  

Even with her sitting close to me, her head was down and eyes averted. No one knew about what Amarok had told us, and I assumed Markus took Lila to the doctor because she had asked him to bring her. A part of me was relieved to know she went; to know that she was up to date on her vaccinations and checked for anything the Rebels might have given her.

Once everyone joined us, we began to eat. Evan decided to try and pick up the habit of cooking, although Eric complained about it as we ate. Supposedly the beta was not only a horrible cook, but he also had a tendency to eat a large amount of food while it was being made.

"What? I thought I had to taste it to make sure it's seasoned and edible before we serve it." Evan complained.

"Yeah, but one bite is enough, let alone six." Eric protested.

I smiled at the two but kept silent until a question was brought my way. "Hey alpha." Evan called. "The Frosted Fangs reported sighting of the vampire again." My appetite began to slip with each word he spoke. "Supposedly they saw him along the threshold between our pack, and the rebels."

Doing my best to hide the stress building up within me, I took a drink of water and watched as I swirled it in my glass. "Is he causing issues otherwise?"

"Well no." Evan blanched. "But he's a vampire."

I knew all too well what the creature was capable of, but I still had no reason to do anything about it. If he stayed off our land I couldn't hunt him, although I wasn't keen on the idea of fighting him. I didn't doubt he would win.