38 Chapter 38 One Month Promise
One month. The proposition hung heavy in the air between us, full of desperate hope and lingering doubt. It was a gamble that could change everything.
He shook his head slowly, staring at something over my shoulder. “No, I don’t want to apologize or make empty promises,” he said. “I don’t think I deserve that right now.”
My chest tightened painfully.
Seraphina’s POV
“Please,” he said, and his voice was so quiet I almost missed it. “Can we just talk?”
The tears kept falling, but anger sparked inside me, cutting through the grief. He was forgetting something crucial. “You’re having a baby,” I reminded him, my voice suddenly sharp, “with Roxanne.”
My breath caught in my throat. Never in danger?
“You hurt me, Julian,” I choked out, the words thick with pain. It was the truth I couldn’t run from anymore.
His words cut deep, each one a precise blade finding its target. He’d hated me. He’d judged me from the very beginning. My throat burned with unshed tears.
Then we stopped.
“Let’s go,” he said, reaching for my hand before I could react. The familiar electricity sparked between our skin. I didn’t pull away. I just let him lead me, wondering where he could possibly be taking me.
“You can call him and see for yourself,” Julian continued softly. “I sent him on a vacation he needed. He loves you and understands you better than anyone. I couldn’t hurt a father like that.” He finally looked up, meeting my tear-filled gaze. “I’m sorry I used him against you. I truly am. But I’m not sorry for trying everything I could to bring you back. The days without you were the hardest of my life. But the days when you were here were some of the best I’ve ever had.”
“I judged you,” he continued, regret heavy in his voice. “And it wasn’t hard to believe the worst about you when people kept whispering lies in my ears.”
He stepped closer, finally meeting my eyes. Something raw and unguarded flickered in
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his gaze. “Can you just listen to me?” he asked. “Don’t respond, don’t say anything. I just need to tell you some things. After that, whatever happens is your choice.”
I stayed silent, but my thoughts raced. I hadn’t known this about him. Why was he bringing me here, to somewhere so obviously personal? It felt intimate in a way I hadn’t expected, especially not from him.
He turned to look at me then, his eyes searching mine. “I believed it was forced. Something you had no choice but to accept because the ancestors decided it for you. And the mate bond is something you can’t control, something you don’t choose. But it’s more than that, isn’t it?”
He cleared his throat, drawing my attention back to him. His gaze focused on the colorful flowers swaying in the breeze. “I didn’t believe in love,” he began, his voice barely audible. “I know that sounds impossible. My parents would die for each other. They look at each other like the other person is their entire world. But I always thought that was just the mate bond talking.”
The truth hurt worse than I’d imagined it could. A sharp pain bloomed in my chest, cold and aching. I squeezed my eyes shut, fighting back tears. I’d promised to listen without speaking, but I couldn’t stop the hot tears from spilling down my cheeks.
I expected him to head toward the pack house, maybe to his office where we’d had so many tense conversations before. So I was completely caught off guard when he turned in the opposite direction, away from all the familiar buildings and sounds of pack life.
“I’m obsessed with control,” he admitted, his voice rough with honesty. “Probably because I never chose to be who I am. From the time I could walk, I knew I’d be Alpha of this pack. So I thought I should at least get to choose who I’d spend my life with. Who I’d love. But then you showed up.”
He nodded slowly, accepting my words. “I know,” he said heavily. “And I’ll probably hurt you again in the future. But it will never be intentional. Never again.”
He closed his eyes briefly, then opened them with a pleading look. “I just need you to give me one month,” he said quietly but firmly. “Stay with me willingly for one month, and I promise I’ll make you happy. If after that month you still want to leave, I won’t stop you.”
He flinched like I’d struck him. The mention of my sister and their child brought reality crashing back down between us. He’d acknowledged so much, but this seemed
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38 Chapter 38 One Month Promise
like an impossible wall to climb over.
But then something unexpected happened. His shoulders sagged. The rage seemed to pour out of him like water from a broken dam, leaving behind something raw and desperate.
“This is my favorite place,” Julian said quietly, settling beside me. His eyes were distant as he looked around, as if he was seeing memories I couldn’t share. “When I need to think or just get away from everything, this is where I come.”
Then he dropped a bombshell. “I don’t want you to give me a chance because you think you have to save your father’s life,” he said firmly. “Because his life was never in danger.”
We walked in silence for several minutes. The air was cool against my heated skin. The tension between us felt like a living thing, humming with unspoken words and unresolved pain.
I’d never seen this place before. A small clearing hidden behind a cluster of massive oak trees, their branches creating a natural canopy overhead. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, creating dancing patterns on the ground. Wildflowers bloomed everywhere in brilliant blues, soft yellows, and fiery reds, swaying in a gentle breeze that seemed to exist just for them.
A simple wooden bench sat beneath a weeping willow tree. I sat down, taking in the peaceful beauty of this secret place. Despite everything, a small smile touched my lips. I’d always loved being in nature, and this felt like stepping into another world after the emotional storm we’d been trapped in.
“Why are you doing this?” I whispered. “Nothing’s going to change.” I wanted things to go back to how they were before. When he ignored me and I could pretend I didn’t care. When the distance between us felt safe instead of suffocating.
Exhaustion washed over me. “I’m tired of talking, Julian,” I said, my voice coming out flat and emotionless. Because that’s all we ever seemed to do. We talked in circles, we fought, we hurt each other, and nothing ever changed. We never got anywhere except right back to the same painful place.
“I watched you for years,” he confessed, his voice getting rougher. “I kept hoping you’d fail at something. Anything. So I could justify hating you or find more reasons to hate you. But you never did. You excelled at everything. You worked harder than anyone else. You made friends easily. You were genuinely good.”
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He let out a bitter laugh that held no humor. “I think I resented you the moment we met. You were like sunshine walking around in human form. You had this smile that made it look like nothing in the world could touch you. And I thought, ‘Must be nice to have life so easy. Especially when you were about to become an Alpha’s mate without earning it.”
Julian’s face transformed into something terrifying. Fury blazed in his dark eyes, his jaw clenched so tight I could see the muscles twitching beneath his skin. A dangerous flush crept up his neck, and for a moment, I thought he might actually lose control completely. I steeled myself for his explosion, for whatever harsh words were about to
come.
I searched his face for signs of manipulation or lies. But all I found was this strange vulnerability I’d never seen from him before. Part of me wanted to run, to refuse and walk away. But a smaller part of me knew I’d never truly be free until I heard what he had to say. I gave him a reluctant nod.
The tears were coming faster now, but I kept my promise to stay quiet.
My head jerked up so fast it nearly gave me whiplash. This wasn’t the Julian I knew. One second he was the commanding Alpha, and the next he was this broken, humble version of himself. My mind couldn’t keep up with the shift.
He paused, taking a shaky breath. “I don’t want you to forgive me,” he said, his voice surprisingly gentle. “Because that would be forcing you to do something you don’t want to do. But I’m asking if you’d give me a chance to make up for everything I’ve done. And I’m not forcing you this time. I’m not perfect, but I know I can be everything you deserve.”
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