Diego: “You are avoiding me,” mom said from behind me. I didn’t say a word to respond, I didn’t need to, she knew the pain that I felt and she knew how much it broke me inside to know that she was hiding something as big and as deep as what she did. She knew the pain that it cost me and the guilt that I felt throughout all this time, and yet, not once did she bother implying that I was innocent. “I have a lot of work to do, mama…” “You are my son, Diego de’ Medici.” She said, wrapping her hand around my bicep when she noticed that I intended to walk away. “If I know the way that you act or…” “Then you would know to avoid me as I think. You know that I am going to need time for myself. Time to process what I learned, and time to mourn again as I forgive myself for not avenging my brother’s blood.” I said, stopping her. “Do not think that it is something that I am going to be able to get past in a day or two.” “I never did say that…” “Your eyes speak louder than your words ever wi

Diego: I walked toward the room, knowing that Lea didn’t like what happened between Renata and I. I didn’t like hurting women, nor did I appreciate threatening them, but the woman has forced my hands, and now, I had no option but to put her in place. Flashback: “She stole you from me, she came into our lives…” “I didn’t bother looking twice at her for months,” I said, stopping the woman. Her eyes widened in surprise, and I was forced to avoid Lea’s eyes as I admitted that I was ignoring her and the mating bond for months. But I knew that at the time, it was the best and only option that I had to do. “I don’t even know who you had impregnating you, and I do not intend to know. But you are going to have two options from now on.” “Diego, enough,” mom said, noticing that the conversation was growing more heated than it was supposed to. My heart raced, and I clenched and unclenched my fist, letting out a low growl, not wanting her to interfere in a decision that I was going to make a

Diego: The next morning was the hardest for me. I knew that even when Renata and I broke up, a part of me didn’t feel like it was going to fall apart. My heart raced, and I couldn’t help but find myself worried about seeing her. I didn’t know how she was going to react, nor did I know how my mate was going to be looking at me any longer. I walked out of the room, knowing that there was no hiding in mine for the whole day. It was late enough as it was, and the little sleep that I got until now was having its tow on me. But I didn’t bother. I had other things to tend to and take care of right now, and neither one of them cared whether or not I got any sleep at all. “You seem to be sleep deprived,” Arena, one of the pack members, said, looking at me. I took a deep breath, and she raised an eyebrow at me. Her smile was one that I didn’t like, but I knew that she wasn’t enjoying everything that was going on. She was one of Renata’s friends, and the idea of her losing her friend to Lea

Diego:“Do you believe that I am going to be standing here if I didn’t want to be with you?” Lea asked, making me smirk. I knew that she wanted to be with me, but I wanted her to say it out loud. And not just to me, to herself too.“Maybe, maybe not. The two of us can never really know as neither one of us trusts the other.” I said, and she scoffed.“For known reasons. I do not go around, saying that I didn’t want to be with the woman that not only am I sharing the bed with, but I am also fucking on an almost every night basis.” She said, and I chuckled, shaking my head at my mate who raised an eyebrow.“First of all, I wasn’t ‘fucking’ you. I was making love to you, cherishing you, your body, your eyes, and your beauty. I didn’t just want the night to end with my needs satisfied. I wanted you to be happy with me, and I wanted you to also crave, want, and need me as much as I did to you. While I understand that you might not trust that, it is the reality of how things are.” I said, lo

Diego:I heard Renata’s footsteps as she approached the office. Her scent hit me stronger than ever, and though I didn’t like it, I knew that Lea’s plan had worked for her staying in the pack to ensure that our pack secrets do not find themselves in the ears of the last man that we would want them to be in.She knocked on the door twice, and I got up, opening it for her. She looked down at her feet, avoiding my eyes, and I took a step back, motioning for her to come in.“I take it that your mate has already told you…”“Lea hasn’t spoken to me since morning. The woman has more important things to do than just roam under my feet, and I respect her because of that.” I said, stopping her. “Did you come to say something or have you made up your mind about leaving?”“Do you want me to leave?” She asked, and though I wanted to say ‘yes’, a part of me knew that it was unwise of me to do so. The woman knew too much, and that was something that I was forced to remind myself before responding. I