Chapter 3

Sofia and I eventually made our way home. On the way back, she suddenly grabbed hold of my hand and asked quietly, "Mommy, can you ask Alpha Ryan to come to the parent-teacher meeting tonight at the preschool?"

I paused in my tracks. After all, little pups like her wouldn't understand the subtle hints and signs between adults—she simply wanted to hold onto the hope of receiving her father's love.

Throughout the seven years I'd been Ryan's mate, he had never once attended a single one of Sofia's preschool activities.

But when I saw the longing look in her eyes, I couldn't bring myself to say no. So I took out my phone and texted Ryan.

"Sofia has a parent-teacher meeting tonight at her preschool. Are you free to attend?"

As usual, Ryan never replied to my texts.

Sofia lowered her head in disappointment and tightened her hold on the rabbit toy. A long while later, she asked, "The Alpha doesn't want to come, does he?"

Then she smiled at me, acting sensible and pretending not to care.

"It's okay. I know the Alpha is very busy with work. I understand."

I felt a crushing weight on my chest when I heard Sofia speak so maturely to me. It hurt so much that I could barely even breathe.

I was just about to comfort her when my phone suddenly buzzed with a text message from Ryan.

"I'm free. I'll be there."

At that moment, a wave of surprise and delight washed over me. I showed Sofia the message and said, "Did you see that, Sofia? Daddy said that he'd be coming!"

Sofia was stunned momentarily. But a split second later, her eyes lit up with joy as well. She was so happy that she nearly jumped into the air.

This was the first time that Ryan had ever agreed to participate in her preschool activities.

As we continued making our way home, Sofia was even more excited than before. She wouldn't stop talking about her day, excitedly telling me about all the pack etiquette she'd learned and how often her teacher, Ms. Redclaw, had praised her during pup training.

She also told me that she'd won first place in the last pup competition, and most importantly, she had been successfully elected pup squad leader for this semester. She told me that Ms. Redclaw said the announcement would be officially made in front of the entire pack tonight at the meeting.

At this point, Sofia suddenly looked up at me and asked, "Mommy, do you think that Daddy will like me better after knowing how good I am now?"

I was taken aback at her question. A sharp pang then pierced into my chest at that moment.

I didn't answer her straightaway. I could only pray hard that Ryan wouldn't go back on his promise for tonight. At the very least, I hoped that Sofia would be able to experience her father's love just once before we finally left for good.

The sky began to darken, and we arrived at the preschool ahead of time.

The time for the meeting drew closer and closer, but Ryan still never appeared. I took out my phone, ready to text him, when I suddenly saw the Instagram story that Claire had uploaded just recently.

Her photo showed Ryan sitting next to Lily, his head bowed as he patiently held her hand and taught her how to assemble a house with wooden blocks.

The expression on his face held a tenderness that I'd never seen before.

The caption read, "He's playing with my pup for the first time—just like a good dad."

My fingers tightened. I turned to look at Sofia next to me, who was sitting quietly in her seat, also holding a set of wooden blocks in her hand.

They were the same Lego blocks, the same young pups, and they shared the same moment when a father's presence was needed—and yet Ryan was never there for Sofia.

Sofia seemed to notice my eyes on her and looked up at me. She asked cautiously, "Mommy, is Daddy busy at work again?"

I stared at her in a daze, not having the heart to tell her the truth—that her father wasn't busy working, but busy keeping another pup company.

I couldn't bring myself to say a word. Instead, I just gathered her into my arms like always and said, "It's okay. You still have me. I'll always be with you."

Sofia didn't ask any more questions and buried her face in the crook of my shoulder, staying quiet for a long time. Still, I could feel small droplets of tears falling onto my skin.

For the rest of the time, we never brought up Ryan's name again, as though he had never promised us anything tonight, and that he was never present in our family that only consisted of Sofia and me.

I lowered my head and looked at Sofia's reddened, teary eyes, finally feeling the last of my hope die out.

Ryan had let her down again. He only had one more chance left.

But just as Ms. Redclaw finished taking attendance, a sudden commotion broke out in the crowd. Both Sofia and I were completely stunned.

Ryan had actually come.

Sofia's eyes lit up at once. "Daddy?"