~ NYSSA

I waited patiently at the edge of the bed, listening to the rushing of water inside the bathroom.

On another day, I probably would have snuck in after him, running my hands down his naked back while telling him that this was a waste of time and that we needed to forget about this whole thing but something told me that wouldn’t slide today.

When he stepped out, water dripped down his hair and his bare chest, disappearing down the v-line that peeked out from the towel wrapped around his waist.

My throat dried at the mere sight of him. Despite the tension between us, I could not deny the fact that he was a fucking gorgeous man and the sight of him was enough to bring me to my knees.

He pulled on a pair of grey sweats, and deciding to forgo a shirt, he gestured for me to follow him and disappeared through the bedroom door, his footsteps echoing in the distance.

It took me a moment to pull myself to my feet and follow him towards the kitchen, unable to say a word as he pulled out a kettle and a mug.

The guards must have left as he returned because the house was quiet and empty.

Each sound seemed louder, and the tension seemed to grow thicker. Rowan didn’t seem keen on breaking it, he just busied himself round the kitchen.

"Are you going to say anything?" I asked, taking a seat on the counter.

"You’re the one who said you want to speak," he said with a shrug. "I’m listening."

I sighed deeply.

I couldn’t tell if he was intentionally being difficult or if he truly wanted me to face the discomfort of speaking first. After all, I was the one who caused this whole thing.

"I don’t like being caged in," I said finally. "I don’t like being kept out of the loop especially with things that concern me. I deserved to be there, Rowan, arguably more than anyone else."

He poured hot water into his mug and stirred slowly. He didn’t look up at me, but I knew I had his full attention. Rowan was many things, but a terrible listener was not one of them.

"You kept me caged with guards—"

"I kept you protected," he corrected. "You know more than anyone why those guards were necessary, don’t you?"

I sighed. "I do, but—"

"Not once have I kept you out of the loop in this, and not once have I deemed it too much for you to get involved. You know every single step we have taken in this, do you not?"

I nodded slowly. "Yes, but—"

"So tell me, Nyssa," he finally lifted his head, his eyes holding me in place. "If I have kept you involved all through, why couldn’t you just fucking trust me the one time I asked you to stay fucking put? Did you think I wouldn’t tell you what was discussed?"

I opened my mouth but promptly shut it because I knew that wasn’t the case. He would have told me, and if he didn’t, I would have hounded him until he did. 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that I truly had no reason for why I did that. All I knew was that Aria was there and the thought seemed so exciting and right in the moment that I just took her hand.

I wasn’t blaming her; leaving was my choice, albeit a poor one.

When I didn’t respond, Rowan stood straighter, lifting the steaming mug to his lips. "We’re fucking mates, Nyssa, and this isn’t going to work if you don’t trust me. We’re not going to get past this shit if I can’t trust you either."

My chest burned. "You can trust me."

"Can I?" he asked, cocking his head to the side. "You met up with Allister without telling me the first time, you took some fucking drink without telling me, and now this. You may say you trust me, but your actions clearly don’t say the same."

I opened my mouth to speak before promptly slamming my lips shut.

Something ugly reared its head inside of my chest, something old and bitter that had my skin crawling with unease.

"I’m sorry," I murmured finally. "I didn’t mean—"

"Yes, you did," he cut me off. "But it’s fine that you did. There are more important things we need to handle right now. Did you know Allister was his son?"

I shook my head. "I was just as surprised as you were."

He hummed, taking a sip from his drink. "He lied to us."

As if on cue, the table buzzed. My eyes found the source of it and found my phone lying in the middle of the table. I must have left it here before I left for the border earlier.

I peered at the private number on the screen, my lips thinning.

"Do you think?" I began and he shrugged.

"I don’t know. Only one way to find out."

He reached for it and swiped right, and for a moment, there was only the sound of soft breathing. No one dared to move or even speak.

"We need to talk," Allister’s voice filled the air.

Rowan chuckled darkly. "Bold of you to call after everything. Is this on behalf of your father?"

"I know you have no reason to trust me."

"No shit," Rowan snorted. "Stay the fuck away from my mate."

He reached over to hang up but Allister spoke again. "Just wait... this isn’t over, I know it, and you know it too, but I have a plan."

"I don’t trust you."

"I know," Allister said softly. "You have no reason to believe me but I didn’t know my father was going to show up at your pack today. If I did, I would have warned you."

Rowans arms crossed over his chest. "Talk is cheap. I have no reason to trust you or to listen to what you have to say."

"I know that, but there is much we need to discuss. I’ll come to you this time."

"Come to us how?" I asked, but he’d already hung up.