Three

Cora

We spent half an hour quietly sitting and cuddling Elijah until Tess clapped her hands, announcing it was time to start the day. She got up and went into the kitchen to start the coffee, as I breathed a heavy sigh before I sent Elijah off to get cleaned up and dressed for school before breakfast.

He gave me a quick hug and kiss before disappearing down the hall. I then turn my attention to Angela and gently nudge her to wake up.

“Oh, hi. Good morning." She says with a soft smile before her yawn comes in. She moves into a sitting position, stretching her arms and rotating her neck, the blanket still covering her legs.

“Good morning,” I say, sitting back down opposite her.

“Are you alright?” She asked.

I nod, not really in the mood to talk.

“That wasn’t the most comfortable way to sleep, but oh well.” She says with a soft chuckle, cracking her neck again.

She then takes the blanket off her legs and quickly folds it, placing it behind her.

“Why didn’t you go home?” I ask.

“Because I asked her to, in case we needed someone to stay with your pup while someone dealt with you in the event of another ‘episode’,” Tess answered, entering the room with a tray and placing it on the table between us. We each took a cup, with Tess sitting next to me.

“Oh yeees…Coffee is so needed right now.” Angie drawled in delight, taking a big gulp.

“I appreciate it, but I didn’t, so if you don’t mind, I’m going to get dressed and start breakfast before school,” I say politely but dismissively, moving to sit up.

“Sit your butt back down, I’m not done with your skinny behind!” Tess says authoritatively, clicking her fingers and motioning her forefinger down.

I sit back down with a scowl and grumble. “And take that look off your face while you’re at it, too.” She scolds into her cup, making Angie giggle behind her cup.

“Also, Amber is taking Elijah to school unless you want your mate, who is staking us out just in case you’re wondering, to start asking questions, like why is a presumed human living with wolves, or how come her child has a wolf. The possibilities are endless.” She mockingly says with a shrug, drinking her coffee calmly.

Damn her, she knows I have no way out of this now.

“Why is he here?” Angie asks.

“My guess is that he followed her scent here and is hoping to find out what the human form looks like, but am I correct in assuming that Cora doesn’t want him to know?" She says with a knowing smirk, turning to me.

“Damn him, and yes, you are,” I grumble, rolling my eyes and slumping back into the couch.

“Which is why we are going to stay here, and you could use that time to explain some stuff before I go to the diner. I’m pretty sure he’s going to show up there too.” Tess says, pointing to me, and yet again, I grumble into my cup.

“Stop that and go make breakfast for your pup,” Tess says.

That’s when we hear little feet running into the living room. “So, how do I look?” Elijah asks, turning to show us the outfit he chose.

“Eh, baby, did they say it was dress-up day?” I ask, tilting my head, biting my lip, trying not to laugh. The other two are also trying to stifle their giggles.

It’s a good thing that he’s so darn cute because his fashion sense is…Well, let’s just say he has time to learn. He’s wearing a red mask, a purple cape with his new bright orange shirt, and mustard-colored pants that are far too big, finishing his look off with his favorite green shoes and, finally, his hair uncombed, pointing out in every direction.

Eli looks down at himself and then back to us, tilting his head to the side, confused. “No, mama, why? Don’t I look okay?”

I shake my head with a soft smile, looking at him. Oh, Goddess, I love this boy.

I walk over to him and go down to his level. “No, baby, you do, but the mask and cape are for dress-up days, not on a normal day. Plus, those pants and shirt are a smidge too big, and you haven’t combed your messy hair.” I give him a soft smile, ruffling his hair.

“Come on, let’s go find clothes that fit you and comb that head of yours.” He smiles, nodding his head.

“You go sort him out, and I’ll do breakfast,” Tess says, amused, and then turns to Angie.

“Can you please go and wake Amber up? Tell her I have coffee ready if she gives you trouble.” She says with a knowing chuckle.

“Thank you, aunty.” Eli says, taking my hand, and we head back to his bedroom, where I change him into black pants and a green and white striped shirt. We then go into my room, where I quickly change into my cut-off black jeans and simple off-the-shoulder black crop top, finishing my look with a short hoodie. I then sit at my little makeshift vanity, brush my hair, and comb Eli’s hair.

“There! You look so handsome!” I say, cupping his face and blowing kisses.

He blushes, giggling. “Okay, mama. Thanks.”

Eli moves back from me and looks me up and down cocking his head to the side, his eye narrowing. “Mom, are you okay? You seem a little different.” He asks.

‘Huh, the pup is smart.’ She says, full of pride, looking at him through my eyes.

‘Do we tell him?’ She asks, her tail wagging, all excited.

Even though Elijah and his wolf Jarek know Luna, they have never seen her in wolf form because it was too painful to shift back and forth. Now that we know it’s no longer an issue, Luna’s desire to finally be able to run and play with our son in our wolf forms has grown even stronger.

Luna pushes forward, and Eli’s wolf pushes as well, making the rings of his eye shine a bright sliver, blending nicely with his light blue eyes.

“Hello, mama, how are you? Are you well?” Jarek says.

“Hi, my sweet puppy. I’m very well, my love. I have something exciting to share, but you have to be a good boy today, promise? Otherwise, we won’t do what I’m planning.”

“Of course, mama. Whenever we leave this building, I always keep myself hidden in Eli’s mind and my aura down so I appear human as much as possible.” He nods his head. I find it so amusing that his wolf seems more mature than his human.

“Good. Now, I won’t say how it’s possible, but how would you like to run and play with me? I was thinking we could go out to the woods after school.” She says, her eyes going big, brimming with excitement.

Eli takes over and has a great, big smile. “Really, mama? We can finally see Luna?”

“Yes, baby.” We both say to him, and he runs into our arms, laughing.

“Come on, breakfast, you two! Eli, you must eat quickly. Otherwise, you'll be late for school!” Tess shouts from the kitchen.

“And aunty Amber needs to get a few more hours of sleep!” Amber joins in, making us chuckle.

We both head out to the kitchen, where Eli excitedly tells the ladies the news. They fuss over him as he devours his breakfast. Before long, I was waving him off to school with a grumble because Tess had Amber scent him to cover mine and his scent.

When the door closed, I quickly rushed to the window and immediately saw the unknown car across the street. As Tess said, I could see Wyatt and someone else in his car, parked opposite the street. He’s just sitting there, sunglasses on and coffee in hand, like he has all the time in the world. I quickly scanned the street but saw nothing suspicious and turned my gaze back to him.

Soon enough, I see Eli and Amber coming out of the building. They walk past the car, not paying attention even though I'm sure Amber is on high alert. I release the breath I didn’t know I was holding when I see no interaction between them. I focus on Eli and Amber until they disappear; without helping it, my gaze immediately turns to Wyatt.

I hate to admit it, but the man is hot as hell, and who can forget what he’s packing? Oooh!

I bite my lip, thinking about what it would be like to climb him before shaking the thought away. Nope, I need to bury that because it can never happen for multiple reasons, one being that I know I would be going back for more.

‘Well, I wouldn't say no to that. We just have to make sure we don't lose it in the heat of the moment and mark him, or worse, he marks us.’ Luna chimes in, purring at the thought.

Yup, and that is why it can never happen. I can't guarantee I won't lose it if we find ourselves in that situation.

“What you looking at over here?” Angie says, coming over my shoulder and looking out the window.

“Just making sure the arrogant ass didn’t walk up to Eli and Amber.”

“And possibly thinking about jumping him?” She teases, bumping my shoulder.

My eyes widen slightly, but I clear my throat, quickly collecting myself.

“Nope.” I mumble, walking away from the window.

“Sure..” She drawls out, clearly disbelieving me.

“Can I jump him then?” She asks, batting her eyelashes.

I let out a loud, possessive growl. “He’s mine!” Luna snarls.

Angie puts her hands up in surrender, smirking. “I knew it.” She says in a teasing sing-song.

“Angela, cut it out! You’re going to blow our cover.” Tess scolds her from the couch.

“Sorry.”

“Right, now that pup is not here, we can have a quick chat before I go to the diner. So you.” She points to Angela. “Refill, please, and you.” She points to me. “Start talking, beginning with the nightmare you were having.” Tess orders, turning her body towards me and giving me her undivided attention.

“Only if you explain what the fuck you did last night and how we can mind link now cause I'm sure I imagined it when you called me Alpha.” I cross my arms with narrowed eyes.

“Wait, what?” Angela says, poking her head out of the kitchen, confused.

“Okay, sure, although that’s pretty simple.” Tess says with a casual shrug.

So I begin telling her about my nightmare, excluding the identity of my ex and the pack. They both listened intently to me speak, Angela coming in with the coffees during my recounting of that night, my confusion about the pain since I didn't know it was caused by infidelity at the time, as well as the first time I took a physical beating. At some point, they each took a hand and sat right next to me when I revealed that it was the night and the first time I was made to lose a child.

“How many did he make you…” Tess asks, trying to control her emotions.

“Three girls before he raped Elijah into me.” I snarl.

“Oh, Goddess. I can't even imagine..." Angie says, her lower lip trembling. "That’s so horrible! I’m so sorry, Cora.” She says, choked up and sniffled.

I take my hands out of theirs, scrub my face, and rub my eyes with my palms, taking a few deep breaths. After a few moments, I pull my hair back and get my cup, taking a long sip.

I clear my throat. “Thank you. Anyway, there you go, that’s what I dreamed about last night. Now, your turn.” I say quickly and dismissively, wiping my nose and blinking rapidly to keep the tears at bay.

I don’t want to cry about this again. There's no point anyway; it’s not like it will bring my babies back, and I will be getting my revenge soon enough once I’m back to full strength again. Not that they need to know about that.

Tess nods, catching my drift of not wanting to dwell on it. She got me talking about it, and that’s enough. I don’t want to get into how I feel about this or that bullshit. It’s obvious, so what’s the fucking point of constantly going on about it.

“Right, the simple answer is that I wanted a way to be connected to you since you refuse to come into the Sanctuary, and with your mate sniffing around you, I want to be able to make sure you are safe. Plus, you are a powerful wolf, Cora. Very similar, if not more, like an Alpha, so it just made sense to take a little of your blood and accept you as my Alpha so we could mind link and sense each other.” Tess says matter-of-factly.

“What is it with people saying I’m powerful?! I’m not! I can’t even shift without crying about it, that’s not strong, that’s me being fucking weak!” I exclaim in frustration.

Tess perks up. “Who else said you were powerful?”

“Alpha Wyatt. Last night, while asking stupid questions, trying to fish information out of me. Stupid fucker.” I rolled my eyes.

“Ah, well, yes, that makes some sense. Maybe that's why you two are mates.” She says, contemplating.

“Do we think that maybe that’s why he wants her?” Angie asks, concerned.

“No, I don’t think so. If that were the case, Cora wouldn’t be sitting here unmarked, and judging by her scent last night, he didn’t do anything to her. Right?” She asks, turning to me.

“No, he didn’t do anything like that. All things considered, and despite him being a nosy shit, he was okay. Even Luna was somewhat impressed by him, but everyone can talk a good game, and later, the true colors come out.” I shrug.

I refuse to believe or trust anything regarding men, especially Alphas. If such a time comes, the only Alpha I will trust is my son, mainly because I raised him.

“Okay, I need to go and get ready for work,” Angie says, standing up and walking over to where I’m sitting to hug me before leaving.

Once Angie is out of earshot, Tess turns to me and grabs my hand. “Make no mistake, my girl. You are powerful, so please be careful when you are out there and keep your wits about you, as in no more reckless behavior," She says with a pointed look.

"And I already have Anne looking into this Alpha of yours.”

“Oh, come off it.” I scoff, pulling my hand back.

"Don't believe me? Look at this." She turned around and lifted her shirt, showing me her back.

She points to her back. “Yesterday morning, my back was covered with scars, and today, they were all gone.”

My eyes bulged out, staring at her back.

“I think drinking your blood healed me. You most certainly are powerful. Not even Alphas can heal scars. So, like I said, it just made sense to submit to you as my Alpha.” She explains, pulling her shirt down.

I’m just staring at her in stunned silence.

Me an Alpha...?

What the fuck?!