Filed To Story: Goddess's Design His Fated Mate (Willow & Reuben)
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“Willow, is he calling your name?”
Beta Ken’s voice snapped me back to the present from my memories of the past that had been triggered by Reuben being wounded. The wolves attacking him were being left half-dead. Panic surged within me. They were clearly no match for Reuben. “Who is that monster?! If this continues, our wolves are going to be left crippled!”
Beta Ken’s anger was evident.
It dawned on me then that Beta Ken didn’t recognize Reuben as the Alpha of the Emerald Bright Pack. Beta Ken suffered from prosopagnosia or facial recognition blindness. He typically identified others using their aura and scent. Being the second most powerful pack, Wade Moon had never encountered an Alpha as powerful as Reuben, so Beta Ken failed to recognize him.
“Stop it!”
I growled, stepping into the courtyard. The wolves attacking Reuben immediately backed off, but what unfolded next sent chills down my spine.
“Uncle!”
Wyatt and Lori dashed out of the packhouse, racing toward Reuben. They reached him and Reuben crouched down with his arms outstretched, pulling them into a hug. My heart sank at the sight.
“Uncle?”
Beta Ken frowned completely perplexed. Since I hadn’t acknowledged Reuben as their father, Wyatt and Lori referred to Reuben as uncle. “Wyatt and Lori know that man?”
Beta Ken turned to me for an explanation.
The situation was dire and my thoughts were a jumble. Revealingmy mate bond with Reuben or the true relationship between him, Wyatt, Lori, and I would terribly complicate things. “Mommy, uncle is injured,”
Lori and Wyatt held Reuben’s hands drawing him closer to me.
As Reuben stood before me, his gaze locked with mine. His intense gaze triggered Beta Ken. “Wait a minute, Willow, do you know this man?”
he questioned, then turned to Reuben impatiently, demanding, “Who are you?”
“Me?”
Reuben glanced at him before locking eyes with me again. Fear struck my heart at the thought of Beta Ken, Alpha Benjamin, and the other pack members finding out the truth.
Suddenly, Reuben leaned closer to me and horror swept over me. “I am just someone she promised to take home,”
he whispered, sending my heart racing. He he still remembered? “It’s just that I’m still waiting ”
Willow
Beta Ken’s office
“You don’t really have to do this, Willow,”
Beta Ken reluctantly signed and sealed the document before him that I had requested.
“It’s okay, Beta Ken,”
I neatly picked up the paper from his desk. “My friend showed up out of the blue and caused a lot of trouble for the pack. He always had a few screws loose. There wouldn’t have been so much chaos if I had informed you in advance of his arrival. So, I’ll take responsibility,”
I smiled.
Since Reuben hadn’t disclosed our mate bond, Beta Ken assumed that he was my friend given my disinterest in love and relationships. Since he formed his own conclusions, I just refrained from clarifying the situation for him. That way my secret remained hidden from the pack members.
Beta Ken chuckled, “As always, once you make up your mind, it’s impossible to change it, huh?”
“The pack and its pack members are a priority, Beta Ken,”
I replied with a sheepish smile. After a brief exchange, I left Beta Ken’s office and made my way toward my bedroom. It was situated in a quieter part of the packhouse, seldom frequented by others. But as I approached the room, I heard a lot of noise.
“Daddy, you’re too tall!”
Lori complained, stretching up on her tiptoes to reach Reuben’s face. I paused by the door, observing everything that was unfolding in the room. She had a first aid box in her hand as she tried to apply medicine to Reuben’s wounds.
Reuben chuckled and scooped Lori up into his arms. “If daddy’s too tall, then he can have his princess sit on his lap,”
he said, settling Lori gently onto his lap and planting a kiss on her soft cheek.
“Daddy, you were so cool when you fought those wolves!”
Wyatt’s eyes shone as he watched Reuben. “Please teach me to fight like that. I’ll join you in beating the bad guys next time!”
“Of course,”
Reuben chuckled, ruffling Wyatt’s hair. “Grow tall quickly, and I’ll teach you.”
“Really?”
Wyatt’s excitement soared as he climbed on Reuben’s arm. “I will beat all the bad guys with daddy!”
I was taken aback by their conversation. It was unusual to see Wyatt and Lori so at ease with Reuben. They were usually quite protective and reserved around men who showed interest in me. Yet, with Reuben they seemed entirely comfortable, as though they had grown up around him.
“But mommy says fighting is bad,”
Lori puckered her lips, turning to Reuben. “Daddy, why did you fight if you knew you’d get hurt?”
Wyatt rolled his eyes. “Isn’t it obvious? Daddy’s chasing mommy.”
Lori thought for a while then nodded with all seriousness, “Yeah, women fall for bad boys, after all.”
My eyes widened listening to my children talk. How did their innocent minds think up such things? More importantly, did they already know Reuben’s true identity? Were they calling him “uncle”
just to deceive the pack, but were secretly aware that he was their father? Had Reuben disclosed the truth to them at the shifter hotel? The realization hit me hard, Reuben seemed to have intentions toward Wyatt and Lori, a desire to claim them as his own. He was attempting to steal my children!
I entered the room, quieting everything in an instant. Reuben lifted his gaze, meeting mine along with the children.
“If I recall correctly, I asked you to remain in the living room,”
I stated firmly.
Reuben held Wyatt and Lori close, defending himself, “I’m injured and weak. The kids brought me here to rest.”
I couldn’t help but feel a bitter twist in my expression. His claim of being injured didn’t match the truth of the situation, he’d put fifty wolves in the hospital! Some had suffered broken bones from his assault. While Reuben had slyly taken advantage of my innocent children to gain entry into my bedroom.
“Here,”
I extended the paper toward him
“What’s this?”
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.