Page 272 of Alpha Mates

Aiden’s lips part as if to argue, but he drops his already-slumped shoulders and nods. He squeezes my hand encouragingly before he turns and continues his trek home without a word.

My heart spasms as I watch him go, but I hold my ground. Staying with Aiden right now would mean tossing him to the wolves, and he’s too fragile for that.

I … no part of me had been ready to hear Aiden’s story.

I thought I was. I thought I could be there for anything and make it better. But no one could make something like that better.

It all made sense now. His hatred of rogues. His quick temper. The night terrors. His aversion to the dark. Even the fracture between him and his parents. I remembered a time when Aiden loved them, and they loved him. But that had all changed after what happened. He blamed them for it—I could hear it in his voice every time he mentioned them.

Goddess, he’d cried. He’d sobbed in my arms for hours, like it was the first time he’d ever let himself. Even after I’d taken him to bed and tried to comfort him, to alleviate his mind of all those horrific things he’d had to relive, he’d cried. I’d held him through the night, whispering all the ways I loved him, until finally, he fell asleep. But even then, the tears fell silently.

Over the next few days, I catered to his every need, just as he’d done for me, not that he liked that very much. Aiden said he didn’t want to be pitied or treated differently, but how could I possibly treat him the same after what I’d learnt? How could I not hold on tighter when he looked so beaten down?

Still, he just wanted to carry on with life. To get back to his normal and work his way through the memories. He should’ve been resting, and I’d said as much, but he’d insisted on coming with me today to meet with our pack’s elders and highest-ranking wolves to get things back on track.

I agreed that the two of us were better than one after how publicly distant we’d been. But I regret that now as I watch him walk down the vacant path, aimlessly kicking a lone pebble along.

“Julian.”

Tearing my gaze away from my mate, I turn it on my father. He’s wearing a deep frown. It’s an expression I know well. What I’m not used to, however, is the weird way he tries to soften it into a smile.

It’s strange, seeing as the last time we spoke, my parents had dropped the act and reminded me exactly who they were. Watching him try to slip back into costume feels awkward at best.

“How can I help you?” I ask as neutrally as I can.

I don’t want to fight with him, but these days, it feels impossible to speak to my parents without some form of contention.

“You look well,” he says as his eyes rove over me briefly. “Far, far better.”

“Yes, I am,” I reply smoothly. “Aiden took care of me.”

The feigned smile wavers. His amber eyes flick briefly over my shoulder before he grits out, “I am glad.”

I have to bite back my own smile as I watch him try to wrestle his expression into something pleasant.

“I wanted to tell you that it was a good decision to speak to the elders today,” he continues, clasping his hands. “The pack needs to hear from you—see for themselves that you are every bit the alpha you vowed to be.”

I stare at him blankly, blinking slowly in the silence he leaves for a response. His brow twitches.

“It’s been a tumultuous few months, and if you recall the conversation with your mother and me”—his gaze shifts to the right as he drops his volume—“it is very important foryouto establish your position as alpha.”

Inarrow my eyes. I hear what he doesn’t say … and there’s something else. I only wish he’d get to it.

“And how might one do that?” I ask, and to my credit, I do try to sound amiable.

“You know how,” he starts almost conversationally. “You mate, you set your pack on course, and…”

“And?” I encourage.

“I did not want to bring this up so soon.”Lie. “I wanted to give you more time to settle before doing so.” Another lie. “But some of the pack are already asking questions regarding the issue.” More lies.

I feel his frown transferring to my own lips as I listen to him prattle on.

Clearly, they heeded my warning to stay out of my business, but now it seems like he’s trying another route. Commentary. But I don’t like his commentary any more than his instruction, and now he’s wasting my time—time I could be spending with my mate whoactuallyneeds me.

“What is it?” I snap, dropping my own pretence of calm.

His expression shifts, morphing into something I can’t quite decipher before he finally spits it out. “They want to know your plan for kids.”