It was Monday morning. Everyone wanted to go back home, yet they were all stuck at work.
After the event, Samantha avoided talking with anyone. She spent her time lost in her thoughts, analysing why she had acted like a teenager prey to her hormones.
Lara did work harder to finish her job since she had half an hour to recuperate from the week before.
She had been paid for it already, so she didn't want anyone to think she wanted to slack off.
Nate didn't get out of his office because of the mountain of documents to sign or throw away.
It was a heavy day for everyone.
The Black Moon was close, and everyone started feeling the effects.
In a day or two, the whole company would have turned into a gloomy place. In that weird mood, no one noticed how Scarlet sneaked out of the kindergarten and reached another floor. She walked to a lady who smelt familiar and looked up at her.
«Hello,» she said, widening her blue eyes to show the cutest expression she could have.
«Hello. Where do you come from?» Roxy inquired.
«I'm looking for my daddy,» Scarlet said. She reached the woman and sniffed around her. «You met him, didn't you?»
«Might be,» Roxy chuckled. «Who is your daddy?»
«His name... He's CEO.»
«That's not a name, little one.»
«Uhm... Nithanil.»
«Wasn't it Nathaniel?»
«Oh, yes!» Scarlet exclaimed. «But no one calls him that. They all say Nate or CEO.»
«Except for you. You say daddy.»
Scarlet smiled, hiding her annoyance. She hated acting cute just to reach Nate, but she needed him for solving her problem. She couldn't do it alone.
And calling him by name might have made people doubt she was telling the truth.
«You are Scarlet, aren't you?» Roxy asked, even though it was quite obvious.
She was so similar to Alpha Nate, except for her hair colour.
«Yes, I am. Can you bring me to my daddy?»
«Sure,» Roxy chuckled.
She showed the way to the pup, and Scarlet strolled behind her. Once in front of the door, Roxy knocked.
«I'm busy!» Nate shouted from the other side. «Come back later if it's not urgent.»
Roxy sighed, opening the door. The CEO was in a bad mood.
«I don't know if it's urgent, CEO Woods.»
«What is it, Roxy?»
«There's Scarlet here.»
Seeing her father in a bad mood, and remembering all the tales she told the woman, she stood on tiptoe to better see him behind the desk.
«Hello, daddy!» she exclaimed.
At her words, Nate's heart skipped a beat. He didn't know why, but he felt the need to listen to her. To find out what she needed and fulfil her wishes.
Scarlet ran to the desk and held the edge, blinking innocently and giggling quietly.
«Do I have to go back, daddy?»
Nate snorted, knowing there must have been a reason for Scarlet to act like that.
«No, stay here.»
«I will come back later,» Roxy said. «Have a nice chat!»
As soon as the door was closed, Scarlet dropped the act. She crossed her arms and observed Nate in silence.
«What is it?» he asked.
«It's your fault,» the little girl commented. «Everything is your fault. The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced.»
«What happened?»
«If you didn't appear out of nowhere, mommy wouldn't have cried.»
«Lara cried?» he murmured, reaching out to the pup. «When?»
He picked Scarlet up, sitting her on his lap.
«Tell me everything.»
«A boy in school said my mommy is a bad person.»
«That is not true,» Nate pointed out. «Your mother is a wonderful person.»
«Then why did you leave her? If you didn't leave, no one would think she's bad. Was it because of Jaden and me?»
Scarlet's lips curled downwards, and her expression showed traces of rage.
«It's your fault if we are wolves! Mommy wouldn't be unhappy if we were like her!»
Nate sighed, looking for a way to explain.
«I didn't leave your mother, but she left me,» he revealed as the first thing. «I would have taken care of her if she stayed. But she didn't.»
«Why?»
«I don't know, Scarlet.»
«So, mommy left you once already...» she considered.
Nate's heart broke apart for the umpteenth time, but he clenched his teeth and continued with the discussion.
«So, you didn't leave mommy because she's bad.»
«No. It's the other way around,» he sighed.
«So you are bad.»
«I try not to be, though.»
At that moment, an old instinct of his returned raging. He smiled, realising the opportunity in front of him.
He would regret it later, for certain. Still...
«You know what, Scarlet? If your mommy and I get married, no one will say she's a bad person. Also, you and Jaden will have both a mother and a father. It will be like every other family.»
«I don't need that,» Scarlet replied.
«But your mother? What does she want?»
«She never said she wanted a husband. You don't need to marry her. Just give her what she needs not to cry anymore!»
«She wants a family, Scarlet. She doesn't need anything else. She cried because she was afraid I would bring you away from her.»
«You won't,» Scarlet pointed out. «You don't even like us.»
«That... I do like you. It's just difficult for me to express it.»
«Can we be family without mommy getting married?»
«We can,» he admitted. They didn't need to get married. Yet.
«How?»
«Let's try spending time together. Your mommy will have free time for herself. Do you want to come home with me tomorrow?»
«And Jaden?»
«Jaden can come the day after. Next weekend, we can go somewhere all four together. It won't make your mommy unhappy.»
«Why are you doing this?» she asked, suspicious.
«Because I'm your daddy,» Nate said.
Scarlet sighed. At that moment, she resembled Nate more than ever.
«If that's the price to make my mommy happy...» she commented.
The agents were all in the department that morning. And every single one had a thought that kept him busy.
Lara didn't even feel awkward at walking past them because no one paid any attention to her.
Even Samantha was unhappy when she walked into the room.
«What is going on?» Lara inquired. Was the company going into bankruptcy?
What else could make every wolf in there whine at the same time? Were they as empathic as to feel the same emotions if one or a few of them had a problem?
«It's the Black Moon,» Samantha sighed. «We all become gloomy. It'll be over in a day or two.»
«But... wait... Isn't it tomorrow night?» Lara inquired.
Her pups would be very emotional during that time, as well as over-excited during the full moon.
«You know about that?» Samantha chuckled, regaining a little colour.
«Yes. I've noticed how my kids act these days, and I figured it had something to do with the moon.»
«Tomorrow is the day of the new moon: that's true. But we usually start feeling the effects a day in advance. It might be because we're all together in the same place... Solitary wolves are tougher in this sense.»
«I don't know if it's by chance or not, but I've also noticed my period aligns with the moon,» Lara said. «After giving birth to the kids, it was always early or late for a couple of years. It stabilised when they started turning, and now I'm emotional when they are.»
Her talk was vital as if her emotionality wasn't such a big issue.
«Oh, you're so strong,» Samantha sighed. «How can you have so much energy while on your period?»
«I can't let it stop me,» Lara chuckled. «I've had it even before giving birth to two pups...»
«That's fortunate, though.»
«Fortunate?»
«If your period is synchronised to the moon, then you'll find it easier to live with a pack of wolves.»
«We just work in the same place,» she pointed out.
«It's half of the day, though. I mean, you're working part-time for now, but they might ask you to stay longer in the future.»
Samantha closed her mouth before saying too much. She had no clue about what Nate told Lara about the pack, the company, and their link as mates.
She just knew two things: Lara was Nate's mate, and the pups were too cute to let them leave.
«Also, they will transfer you to another department,» Samantha said. «I don't know where yet.»
Her eyes betrayed a little tear, and Lara smiled. They didn't know each other for long, so there wasn't any attachment between the two women.
Yet, the way Samantha showed her grief reminded her of the cubs. She would have patted her head if they weren't of the same age.
«We will see each other in other places,» Lara commented. «After all, it's still the same building.»
«Yes,» Samantha sighed, greeting the chance to play with the blond pup again.
Was it worth asking Nate to keep the pups while he was away, dating Lara? She considered the thought and stored it somewhere in the back of her head.
It was worth it. She could do that! Also, there weren't many other wolves able to keep an Alpha's pups.
«Boss, you're in the newspaper,» someone said, throwing a magazine on the nearest desk.
At the word boss, Samantha was startled. It reminded her of someone she wished to forget.
She puffed, wondering if that dark man was having the same issues. She could stop thinking about him only by focusing on the pup.
She curled her lips and didn't even look at the magazine. She knew her pictures were flawless; there was no need to check.
Rather, the one curious was Lara.
Before Samantha could think twice about the consequences, she observed the other woman as she turned the pages. She found the one about the celebration of the Blue Moon Enterprises, and she observed the pictures with a straight face.
«What a beautiful dress,» she commented.
However, Lara's heart wasn't untouched. She saw, in the photo, Samantha holding Nate's arm.
They were standing next to another man with an expensive look, talking about something. Nate's face was straight and serious while Samantha was smiling.
They did look good together, Lara had to admit it.
Yet, her heart, her stomach, her legs... They all felt pain.
Lara knew she had no right to feel like that. There was nothing between her and Nate. They met just once, six years before, and their encounter produced two kids.
They weren't together in the first place. Just one night. There were no emotions keeping them together.
Lara bit her lips, trying to keep her expression neutral.
It was expectable that someone like Nate already had a woman next to him. And it was natural that someone like Samantha would attract his attention.
She was beautiful, competent at work. And a wolf.
«Was it fun?» Lara inquired. From the picture, Samantha did look amused.
«Most people were boring,» the other woman replied.
As Lara noticed her red face, she realised that things should have happened. Someone like Samantha wouldn't blush just at anything.
«Not everyone, though,» Lara said.
«No, not everyone...»
As Samantha lost focus once again, thinking about the man she assaulted that night, Lara's heart was pierced by a feeling that resembled jealousy. It dug a hole in her chest, reaching her stomach down to the guts.
She had no right to feel like that, but she couldn't help it. That pain helped her stay focused and not say anything weird.
In the end, she was working. Thinking about anything else would have been distracting.
She observed the papers in front of her, struggling to make a sense of the letters.
The whole department fell back into depression, each person in their own thoughts.
Both Samantha and Lara became silent, and the rest of the morning passed without further words.
This is the bonus chapter for the 100 power stones of last week! Remeber to continue voting if you want more chapters! :D
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