SEVEN

Sèbastien’s Pov

I had barely stepped out of the car when Olivia came out of nowhere and crashed into my chest, hugging me tightly to herself. My face hardened in annoyance, not because her arms around my neck were too hard to take off, but because I had just been fooled.

I glanced toward Brendon, who quickly stared away, fully aware of the way I was feeling. The way I feel like getting my hands on Jason, my Beta, and knocking him out before he would be able to breathe a word out.

I seriously can’t believe I have been tricked. The same Olivia who had been said to be finding me over was here, in the pack, gone nowhere.

“Welcome home, baby. Guess what? I prepared your favorite meal and…” Olivia swooped to my side, attempting to lead me inside but I stood still, for a second or two.

“Was this your plan with Jason?” I asked her and she immediately stopped to look at me. The smile didn’t drop from her face, instead, it widened. She knew what she had done.

“You weren’t home and your departure was slowly causing me a fever and I knew just one call, you’ll come running back to me. I was unsure though, but here you are.”

Subconsciously, I disentangled my hand from hers, and for a while, I was rendered speechless. I wondered how I was still able to stand when suddenly, my whole body felt as though it was set on fire.

Something about what she said, the way she’d spoken it, spiked an uncontrollable anger inside me. If only she knew how much her slyness has me contemplating a crime I shouldn’t commit but I so much want to. Badly.

Does she have the slightest idea I almost went crazy on the way here?

The fear that she knew about Rowena being alive and was coming to ruin everything over again made me went nut. It might be too late now, too late to set things right, but I didn’t drive for many hours to reach Rowena just to be called over with a silly prank.

The more I think about how I could have almost met her has me almost losing my cool. Just a little, a little more time and I could have seen her face, seen how she’s fairing but Olivia just wouldn’t stop being a thorn in my flesh.

My face bore regret as I stepped back from her, my fingers untying the knot of my tie. “Maybe that’s for the better. We need to talk. Right now.” I emphasized the last two words before turning to walk inside the house.

I heard the sound of her heels behind me as she followed. I took long strides into my study, slamming the door shut behind me, and dropped into my chair.

The door opened and when she entered, she locked the door, her eyes narrowing on me as she approached me, confused.

“I’ve thought about it and no, we don’t need a breeder.” I started and her face scrunched up.

“What?!” She exclaimed, frozen to the spot. She didn’t say a word after that, she just looked at me, waiting for me to retract my statement but I didn’t.

Instead, I added, “I’ve come to realize that hiring a breeder would be a mistake. As the pack’s leader, I hold a position of power and respect. If we bring in a breeder, it would be seen as an attempt to hide the truth. And when the pack finds out— which they inevitably will— I don’t want to imagine how shameful that would be.”

Numbly, she shook her head and laughed.

"It's quite funny seeing you pull a prank like this, Séb." She stepped closer, her hand brushing against mine on the table as she leaned in, smiling as she accessed my face.

"I'm not smiling, am I? Why then is this a joke to you?" I asked, and as badly as I wished I could keep myself under check, my nostrils flared.

"We've been over this. I'm infertile. Unless we bring in a breeder, the pack will start to wonder what's wrong. Did you really forget?" Slowly, ever so slowly, she held my hands and said in a way only I could hear.

My expression darkened, and she pulled back, her frown deepening. As if she couldn’t understand why I was behaving strangely.

For some reason, I couldn't wrap my head around why Rowena's survival was affecting me this much. It was making me reevaluate everything: past regrets, and the choices I had made that led to breaking her in the first place.

“We’ve discussed this before, but I never agreed to it in the first place. And now that I’ve had time to think, I’m convinced it’s not worth the trouble. We are not getting a breeder, and that’s final.” I leaned in, my face inches from hers as I drove the point home.

I didn’t wait to see the expression on her face when I stood, peeling off my jacket as the temperature became suddenly hot and suffocating. I blew hot a relieving breath afterward and glanced at my wristwatch, preparing to leave, but almost collided with her. Olivia was blocking the door, her arms crossed, and gaze knowing.

"It's Rowena, isn't it?" She asked, an annoyed look on her face.

Stressed and wishing there was another way to force my way out without having to shove her out of the way, all I could do was curl my other hand into fist by my side.

"Now, what are you talking about?" I responded through gritted teeth, feigning ignorance. I knew my Beta couldn’t have told her anything, neither would Fred, so it was possible she had overhead everything. Eavesdropping was a habit I despite, and the fact that she might have done exactly that only added to my growing irritation.

"Don't play dumb, Sèbastien. It's obvious there's a Rowena somewhere, and you've recently met with her. I've tried to brush it off, but it's clear she's the reason you're treating me like this so suddenly." She stated, and I rubbed my face.

This was a terrible mistake, one that began when Olivia returned to the pack. My parents' words had gotten into my head, ‘Olivia would make a better wife than Rowena, who can't even get pregnant despite years together.’

I had let their discouraging words about Rowena get to me, and before I knew it, I had cheated on her, on our matrimonial bed.

To make matters worse, Olivia had lied to Rowena about being pregnant, and I supported it then. I rejected Rowena and casted her out when I knew she had no one but me.

It's clear now that listening to others can lead one astray.

Then again, I can no longer continue this way. From now on, I’m going to set things straight. Henceforth, I’ll be making my own decisions. No one will dictate my choices, especially when it comes to my relationships— I won’t be told to stick with Olivia or be pressured into what’s nothing but a loveless commitment. I’ve had it up to my neck with her.

“If that’s what you want to hear, then yes, I went searching for her. Rowena is the mother of my children, and whether I visit them or not is none of anyone’s business.” I growled out and her face turned bright red.

She gasped, clearly caught off guard by my bluntness, not expecting me to come out clean. Her eyes remained as wide as a saucer and for a moment, she seemed to be struggling to find the right words to say.

I pushed past her, leaving her standing in both shock and anger.

I walked away and when I reached my room, I slammed the door shut behind me and made my way to the bar section where I poured myself a shot of whiskey, and sat down at my desk.

With a pen in hand and a neat sheet of paper in front of me, I began to write a letter to Rowena. As I poured my heart out onto the page, I winced internally, each swig of whiskey I took burning my throat.

The likelihood of her responding was slim to none. Rowena might not even bother to read it, and it would probably end up in the trash. Still, I had to try.