Chapter 73
Elodie’s POV
Then I heard his voice, that deep Alpha timbre that used to make my pulse quicken, but makes my chest tighten so much now.
“Have you eaten yet p>
“Not yet, but Mommy’s almost done cooking!” Liora’s voice carried from the living room, bright with excitement.
“Really? Is that so p>
I stood in the kitchen, gripping the edge of the counter so hard my knuckles went white.
The mate bond, so thin and frayed as it was, pulsed weakly in my chest. Even after everything, my wolf still recognized him. Still wanted to go to him.
I shoved that instinct down and forced myself to walk out with the serving platter. I would never do that again. I was never going anywhere near Dante.
When I entered the dining room, Dante was coming in from the foyer with Liora practically bouncing beside him. He’d loosened his tie, and even exhausted from travel, he carried himself with that effortless authority that came with being Alpha of one of the most powerful Packs in the country.
“Mommy! Look, Daddy came home early!” Liora beamed.
I let my gaze flick toward him for barely a second before looking away. “I can see that p>
My voice came out flat, and cold I felt my wolf whimper at the coldness. Good. Slowly, we were detaching. The earlier the better.
I pulled off my apron and handed it to Sabina, who took it with a concerned glance. We all took our usual seats. Dante at the head like the Alpha he was, Liora to his right, and me across from them.
The perfect Pack family.
Except we weren’t. Not anymore.
Liora dug into her food enthusiastically, then tilted her head at Dante. “I thought you weren’t supposed to be back until tomorrow? You told me Friday p>
“Finished the negotiations early.” He cut into his steak with precise movements. “No point staying in Milan when everything was settled p>
“Oh! That’s good then p>
The Bellini Pack didn’t enforce the old-fashioned dining rules some traditional Packs still held onto. Liora was free to talk, to ask questions, and Dante, despite being a man who commanded board rooms and Pack meetings with just his presence always made time to answer her.
He was a good father.
He just wasn’t a good husband.
My wolf curled up inside me, wounded and confused. She didn’t understand why our mate barely looked at us anymore. Why the bond felt like it was dying inch by inch.
“Mommy, how come you’re not saying anything?” Liora looked at me with those big curious eyes.
I managed a gentle smile. “I’m just happy listening to you talk, sweetheart. Tell Daddy about that project you’re working on at school p>
“Oh! Right p>
She launched into an animated story, and I went back to pushing food around my plate.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Sabina watching me. She’d been with the Bellini Pack for decades, she’d served Nonna before Dante was even born. She knew Pack dynamics better than anyone.
She could see what was happening. Could see the bond deteriorating, could see me fading.
But Dante? He seemed completely oblivious. Or maybe he just didn’t care.
He responded to Liora, ate his dinner, exuded that calm Alpha energy that made everyone around him feel secure.
Everyone except me.
His phone buzzed on the table, the custom ringtone he’d set for Pack family.
He glanced at it, then swiped to answer, putting it on speaker without interrupting his meal. “Nonna p>
“Another business trip? You’re going to work yourself into an early grave, boy.” Nonna’s voice came through, warm but chiding in that way only she could manage.
“Just got back actually.” There was a hint of amusement in his tone, she was one of the few people who could talk to him like that. “Miss me already p>
“Don’t be cheeky. I haven’t seen my granddaughter or Elodie in almost a month. The weather’s turning cold, and these old bones need warmth. Tomorrow, we’re all going to the hot springs estate. The whole family p>
My stomach dropped.
The Bellini Pack’s hot springs resort. A full day. With Dante. Pretending everything was fine.
“Understood,” Dante said simply, like it was already decided.
After Nonna hung up, Liora was practically jumping in her seat. “Hot springs! We get to go to the hot springs again! This is the best p>
Dante set his phone down and finally looked at me, really looked at me for the first time all evening. “I’ll have someone pick you up from work tomorrow evening p>
I kept my eyes on my plate. “I’ll just drive myself. It’s on the way from the office anyway p>
“No, Mommy, come with us!” Liora grabbed my arm. “Please? The resort is so far, and it’s really boring sitting in the car by myself all that time p>
I hesitated.
The last thing I wanted was to be trapped in a car with Dante for over an hour. The silence would be suffocating. Or worse, he’d spend the entire drive on the phone with work, treating me like I wasn’t even there.
But Liora was looking at me with those pleading eyes, and I felt my resolve crumble.
“Yay!” She hugged my arm happily.
I forced a small smile for her sake, even though my chest felt tight.
After dinner, my phone rang, it was Johnny’s custom ringtone.
“I need to take this,” I said, already standing.
Dante and Liora had settled into the living room, him with his tablet reviewing something, her curled up beside him with a book. I walked outside onto the terrace where I could have some privacy.
“Hey,” I answered. “What’s up p>
“Sorry to bother you so late,” Johnny said, “but I’m looking at the framework for the new app and I’m running into some issues with the integration. Can you walk me through your logic on the backend architecture p>
“Of course p>
We talked for over half an hour, going through code line by line, discussing potential solutions to the bottleneck he’d identified. It was technical, focused, and for those thirty minutes, I could forget about everything else.
When I finally hung up and came back inside, Liora looked up from where she was still sitting with Dante.
“Mommy, you’ve been getting so many phone calls lately,” she said, her tone curious. “And you talk for really long every night. You didn’t used to do that p>
I felt Dante’s eyes on me.
Even Sabina, who was clearing the last of the dishes, paused slightly.
Because Liora was right. I used to barely use my phone. Used to be available at all times for Dante, for Liora, for whatever the household needed.
Now I was taking long calls every evening, disappearing to deal with work they knew nothing about.
“It’s just work stuff,” I said, keeping my tone neutral. “Nothing important. I’m going to head upstairs and finish some things p>
“Oh… okay.” Liora looked a little disappointed, like she’d wanted me to stay.
But I couldn’t. Couldn’t sit in that living room with Dante pretending everything was normal while my wolf whimpered pathetically inside me.
I went upstairs to Liora’s room, the guest space I’d been using and opened my laptop.
Johnny had sent over the files he needed me to review, and I dove into them immediately, grateful for the distraction.
This was easier. Code made sense. It followed logic. It didn’t lie to you or choose someone else or make you feel like you were slowly disappearing.
I was deep into debugging a particularly tricky algorithm when I heard small footsteps.
Liora appeared in the doorway, fresh from her bath, her hair still damp.
“What are you working on, mommy?” she asked, padding over to look at my screen.
“Just some programming for work.” I tilted the laptop so she could see. “Remember when I showed you how if-then statements work p>
“Oh yeah!” Her eyes lit up. “The computer decides what to do based on the rules you give it p>
“Exactly p>
Over the years, even while I’d been playing the perfect Luna and devoted wife, I hadn’t completely abandoned my skills. Whenever I had spare time, late at night after everyone was asleep, or early mornings before anyone woke up, I’d work on programs. Design systems. Keep my mind sharp.
And sometimes, when Liora got curious, I’d teach her little things. Basic concepts. The building blocks of logic and code.
She climbed onto the bed next to me now, watching as I worked through the problem.
“That looks really complicated,” she said after a moment.
“It is. But that’s what makes it interesting p>
“Is this for your new job? The one you go to during the day p>
I paused, my fingers stilling on the keyboard.
She’d noticed. Of course she had.
“Yes,” I said carefully. “It’s for Cole Corporation p>
“Oh.” She was quiet for a moment. “Do you like it there p>