Chapter 341
Third Person POVPlease check at N/ôvel(D)rama.Org.
"Where is she? I need to speak with her."
Everything around Rachel stopped moving, including her heart. She stared at the man in the doorway of her dorm, and she couldn't breathe. Ella stood in front of him with wide eyes unsure of what to say as well.
His eyes finally found her, and they held eye contact for what felt like an eternity.
"Rodrick..." Ella said slowly. "Maybe you should-"
Rod didn't let her finish her sentence before he spoke over her.
"Mate."
Rachel stared at him with a pounding heart. She wasn't sure what to say. The last time she saw Rod, he was stabbing her and then he was arrested. She knew it wasn't his fault though; it was hers. She was the one who convinced him to do it.
No.
It was the darkness.
This wasn't her fault either and she had to remember that. But did he know that it wasn't her fault?
Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, and she finally broke her gaze from his and she stared at the ground. Heat surfaced around her face, and she knew she was probably bright red as she struggled to keep the tears from spilling out of her eyes.
She felt Rod's nearness as he stepped around Ella; his dark gaze fixed on Rachel's face. How could it be possible that a hybrid could mate with a weak bear? Rod was both a vampire and a werewolf and Rachel was nothing more than a bear that let darkness take her over.
She wasn't worthy enough to be mated with such a strong beast.
The moon goddess certainly had a sense of humor.
She thought Rod was going to yell at her for all she had done; she wouldn't have blamed him. She would have taken it and then curled up in bed later to cry. Her heart was heavy in her chest as she waited for the words that would forever seal her fate.
She waited for the rejection that was bound to come.
But as Rod stood in front of her, assessing her features, those words never came.
Instead, he did something that Rachel wasn't expecting and was definitely not prepared for.
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into his chest. She went with ease, allowing him to pull her toward him, and for a moment, she wasn't sure what to do with her arms. They stayed by her side as he kept his hold on her.
She didn't realize she was trembling until his hold tightened as if he was afraid that she would run away from him.
"I've been looking for you for so long," he whispered to her, sending a wave of warmth throughout her body.
Tears broke free from her eyes and started to soak through his shirt. She finally lifted her arms and wrapped them around his waist. She was so small in comparison to him, and she felt so incredibly safe in his arms.
"I'm so sorry...” she whispered, sniffling as she peered up at his face.
"Sorry for what? I'm the one who hurt you," he said, furrowing his brows together. "You have nothing to be sorry for..."
"It was the darkness..." she said, more tears filling her eyes. “It manipulated you and—”
"I know," he said, stopping her words. "I would never hurt you on purpose and I know you wouldn't hurt anyone on purpose. You are my mate and I'm never letting you go again."
With those words left in the air, he bent and pressed his lips against hers, marking their new beginning.
Ella's POV
I was sobbing.
The scene displayed in front of me was so heartwarming and beautiful. It made me miss Colton so much. I looked at Kayla and she was also crying as Rachel and Rod embraced one another. Rachel's face was red by the time they pulled apart and her smile was radiant.
My heart was swelling from all of this.
I'm not sure if it was because of my pregnancy or because it was genuinely a sweet moment, but I couldn't seem to stop crying. Becca chuckled and wrapped her arms around me.
Rachel glanced at me and narrowed her eyes in confusion.
"Why are you crying?" She asked.
"It's just so beautiful," I sobbed, making everybody laugh.
"She's pregnant," Rachel explained to her mate whose eyes were large as he glanced at me.
I hadn't had many interactions with Rod, but we greeted one another in passing and he was always very kind despite his dark and mysterious nature. "Congratulations," Rod said, giving me a fond smile. "I had no idea you were seeing someone. I never see you with anyone around campus."
My face reddened; I wasn't sure how much I could tell him. I wanted to trust him because he's Rachel's mate, but until I spoke to Headmaster Prescott, I thought I still needed to keep my relationship with Colton a secret.
"My mate," I told him, returning his smile.
I moved my dark curls away from my neck to show him my mark.
Rod's smile grew.
"That's incredible," he said in return. "I'm happy for you."
"And I'm happy that you finally have your mate. No more stabbing her," I teased.
His smile fell and his face grew red.
"Oh, goddess. Was that too soon? I'm sorry," I breathed, feeling incredibly stupid.
"I'm never going to let something like that happen again," Rod said, turning to face Rachel. "I'm so sorry..."
She smiled lovingly at him.
"I'm healed. It's okay," she breathed. "But I suppose we have a lot to talk about with everything that had happened."
He nodded.
"Are you hungry? We can talk over dinner," he suggested.
She beamed at that idea.
"I'd like that. Let me just change and I'll be right back," she breathed as she turned and ran into her room.
After a little while she returned wearing a cute purple dress and black leggings. Her hair was curled and cascading over her shoulders and she wore her usual winged eyeliner and deep red lipstick.
She was looking like her old self again and I was more than okay with that. Of course, I knew it was going to take her a little time to come back full circle, but this was a start, and my heart was full seeing how happy she was in that moment.
Rod's eyes lit up when he saw her, and it made me think more about Colton and how his eyes always light up when he sees me. I smiled at the very thought as I placed my hand on my belly where our pups were stored.
With a final goodbye, Rachel and Rod left the dorm.
Morning came quickly and I wasn't ready to get out of bed. I was feeling way more tired than I usually felt in the morning. But my nagging alarm wasn't going to let me oversleep especially because I had a meeting with Colton and Headmaster Prescott.
This meeting was very important, and I was terrified about what the outcome was going to be. She might say I need to transfer, or that Colton needs
to transfer. Maybe she would fire him for keeping this secret from her for so long.
I was feeling sick to my stomach.
I swallowed the wave of nausea that slammed into me.
I slid out of bed and grabbed a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. I didn't have enough energy to get dressed further than this. I threw my hair in a messy bun and went into the bathroom to do my business.
Once I was finished, I left the dorm and headed toward Colton's faculty house. Thankfully, he answered the door quickly and pulled me into his house so we could embrace. When his lips found mine, my entire world around me stopped moving and all that was left was me and him.
His kiss was soft and tasted delicious from the coffee he had just drank. Since finding out that I was pregnant, cut caffeine out of my diet, and I was missing it terribly.
"I missed you last night," he whispered against my lips.
I smiled, peering up at him.
"I thought about coming to see you," I admitted. "But I figured it probably wasn't a good idea."
He kissed me again, but it ended way too soon.
ex
He took my hand and together we left his house and walked toward the Board House. There weren't many lurking around the campus, so nobody saw us holding hands. That is until we walked into the Board House and a couple of members of
the board spotted us.
They narrowed their eyes at us and then their eyes drifted to our entwined hands. They looked as if they wanted to say something, but before they could, Tiffany Prescott's voice sounded from a nearby office.
"Please come to my office."
My heart was racing rapidly against my ribcage as I peered worriedly at Colton. He didn't look as worried though, which calmed me slightly.
We went into the office, and I froze when I saw Alpha Jonathan sitting in one of the chairs near the desk.
"Alpha?" I said, staring at him with shock all over my face.
He didn't smile or make any acknowledgment that I was there; he was looking at his phone and appeared to be typing vigorously.
Headmaster Prescott walked around her desk and turned to face us, motioning for the chairs in front of the desk.
"Please, take a seat so we can begin."