Chapter 25

Luke

We need to talk, I told the boys, who were running as wolves through the forest that afternoon. I was careful not to give away the news so quickly, I wanted them to be around while I broke the news. Let's meet somewhere.

Why do you feel so chipper? Peter asked as he and the rest of the pack ran to meet Luke.

I suppose we'll find out, Kevin pointed out.

We met in a clearing in the forest where all the wolves could stand in a circle comfortably. The boys stood waiting, curious wolf eyes all on me.

This is something important to me, and frankly, I'm past caring whether or not you agree with it. I've tried too hard to get you to understand. Might as well be honest. But as I looked around at the wolves, I sensed in some of their thoughts that they didn't have harsh feelings for Kate when I mentioned her name. I've asked Kate to marry me. And she said yes.

Gerard stared evenly at me across the clearing. It was hard to decipher what his thoughts were. But Howard looked from Gerard to me, unable to keep from saying what he wanted.

That's great, Luke, he said. I really think so.

A year ago, you would have killed yourself for saying 'I'm marrying a vampire,' Kevin laughed.

I was glad they were taking it lightly. Robert, standing beside Gerard, was feeling something similar to unhappiness, but he had not known Kate before, so it was hard to understand his discontent.

Is there any objections to this? I asked, just wondering what Peter and Gerard had to say—the alpha and his second in command. Gerard? Peter?

I will be happy with anything you decide, Peter chimed artificially.

There's no stopping you, Gerard added. I didn't know if that was acceptance or giving up on his part, but I took it nonetheless. It didn't matter to me.

Why don't you care? Robert asked, the first direct thought he had the entire time this afternoon. I thought packs were supposed to care about what each other thought, hence the mind-reading.

He does care, kid, Kevin interjected. But he just gets a little tired of people telling him his soulmate is a bloodsucking demon.

I shot him a look but he shrugged it off. I sighed to Robert. I do care about you guys, but Kevin is right. Kate is who she is, and I loved her before she was a vampire and it doesn't make sense not to love her now. She's the same, and she still cares about all of you the same. Nothing has changed but her appetite.

Well said, Kevin commented.

Kate

"Todd?" I asked, craning my neck around the hallway. I knew he was here, I smelt him, but he still didn't answer. I found him sitting in a recliner, staring at the television. He only glanced back at me.

"Can we talk?" I asked.

He sighed and shut the television off. I made a wide berth around him as I moved to the couch adjacent to his recliner. I sat farthest away from him.

"What's up, Kate?" he asked.

I looked up at him, surprised that he addressed me by name. I gave him a little smile.

"I just wanted to say thanks. Luke told me that the ring belonged to your wife's, and I know it means a lot to you. So thank you," I said quietly.

Todd glanced down at my hand resting in my lap; the ring was sitting on my finger. His mouth twitched.

"You're welcome," he said.

I nodded slowly and looked down at my hands. I could feel Todd's eyes on me.

"Do you really love him?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

I looked up at him. "Yes, sir."

He continued to stare at me. "Okay."

"Nothing has changed, sir. I know this is weird for you."

Todd stood up and took the beer on the table beside his chair. He sighed. "I understand more than you think."

"You do?" I asked, looking up at him.

He nodded. I left to go into the kitchen, and I did not follow. I sat on the couch staring at the mat in front of the television, wondering what he meant by his statement. A moment later he came back out and sat on the edge of his recliner. His hands in front of him.

"Luke thinks his mother died when he was young," he started, staring straight into my eyes.

"She wasn't?" I asked.

I had never learned anything about Luke's mother the entire time I had known him. He never mentioned it, and I never asked. He didn't seem to think about it much, or at all.

"What happened to her?" I asked.

"The same thing that happened to you."

My mouth dropped as I stared at Todd, watching as he picked at a loose thread on his jeans.

"Are you sure? How do you know?" I asked.

"I saw her. She came to me once and left her ring." He gestured to my hand. My ring suddenly felt ten pounds heavier. "I wasn't supposed to see her, but I awoke while she put it on my beside table. She never came back."

"I'm sorry to hear that," I said sincerely. I could only imagine what he went through.

"But I had not imprinted on her. We only fell in love. It wasn't strong enough to keep us together the way the love between you and Luke did. She knew I loathed vampires. She knew it would never work again." Todd looked sadly down at the floor.

"Did you—?" I began, unsure of how to ask this. "Did you hate her after that?"

Todd, resembling Luke so much in that moment I almost went over to him to comfort him, answered, "no."

"Why didn't you go to her? I'm sure she loved you as well," I said, leaning forward.

Todd laughed. "Honey, I'm not as strong as you and Luke are. I would have been considered an outcast, a traitor. My pack wouldn't have approved, and my brother would have hated me forever."

"But she was your wife. I'm only Luke's girlfriend," I said. "Luke is in the same boat. He fights everyday to get everyone to understand."

"It's not the same," he said definitively, and I dropped it. I didn't want to push him just when he was beginning to let me in again.

"Would like me to keep this from Luke?" I asked.

"No. You shouldn't keep secrets from him. That's what is important in a marriage. Never keep secrets," he told me.

I nodded in agreement.

"Only tell him when you're ready. When it's the right time. He may not act so kindly to me afterwards," he said, smiling a little.

"Okay."

We sat there in silence, Todd thinking to himself. Right now, Todd was the closest thing I had to a father. I never thought about letting my own go, but that was what I had done. It made me feel sorry, for he would miss my wedding, and miss the rest of my life. He would never see his two children again, and he would never know what truly happened to them.

"Todd?"

"Hmm?"

"I was wondering… since my father thinks I'm dead, and we should stick with that story, would you walk me down the isle at the wedding?"

He looked at me for a moment, studying me. I stood up, holding my hands as I walked a wide berth around him again.

"You don't have to decide now, but just think about it." I stopped before went into the kitchen towards the back door. "I'm glad we had this talk."

He sighed, looking at the blank television screen. "Me too."