Page 7 of Bonded Beyond Regret

“We’re here, Mommy,” her voice is sweet and filled with excitement.

Nyx smiles down at her daughter as she closes up the car and starts to lead her family toward where I’m waiting with her soon to be former Alpha and Luna. Aisley is the spitting image of her mom, and my wolf makes a purring sound in my mind that has me furrowing my eyebrows.

My wolf stands a little taller in my mind and puffs up, a reaction he’s never had before.“We will protect pup,”he vows gruffly.“Must protect little female and beautiful mama wolf.”

I ignore my wolf because I can’t deal with him right now. That doesn’t stop him from standing up in my mind and watching both females intently.

“Nyx and Aisley,” Whitaker smiles at them and then turns toward me, “this is Alpha Samuel and Beta Dalton.” He nods toward the older couple, “This is Maggie and Austin, Nyx’s parents.”

I give them all a smile. “Good morning and welcome to Waning Moon. It’s wonderful to have you here.” Nyx bites herlip and my gaze zeros in on the action. I take a moment to address Maggie and Austin. “I want you to know that you are both welcome here, at any time. Dalton will ensure you’re on the approved list. You do not need to go through your Alpha and me to get permission; consider it granted.”

The relief coming off the older couple is palatable. I’m glad I can do that for them. The small smile Nyx gives me has my heart beating harder in my chest.

“That’s great,” Aisley chirps. She turns toward her Grandparents, “That means you can visit me anytime!” When she looks up at me, her brown eyes, the ones that match her mom’s, are shining with acceptance and affection. “Thank you, Alpha Sammy. That’s really nice of you.”

Nyx, Maggie, and Austin freeze while Whitaker and Tilly try to hide their chuckles and smiles. Nyx starts to rush out, “I’m so sorry, Alpha-.”

I cut her off with a wave of my hand, “Don’t worry about it.” When I crouch down, Aisley walks right up to me without a hint of fear or worry; it wrecks part of my heart I didn’t even realize was walled off. “How about you don’t have to worry about calling me Alpha. Most of the pups don’t anymore. As long as you show me the respect I earn, when needed. Can you do that?”

Aisley sticks her hand out between us. When my much larger hand engulfs hers, she gives me a firm shake. “Deal, Sammy.” She gets a curious look on her face. “Are there a lot of pups here?”

“How about I give you and everyone else a tour of the packhouse and out back? You never know who you’ll meet along the way,” I entice her as I stand back up.

“Yes, please,” she charms me with her sweetness. She steals a little piece of my heart, more than I give to my pack members willingly, but keeps a firm hold of my hand.

As I lead her up the stairs into the packhouse, I can feel Nyx’s curious stare. As much as I want to look at her again, I force myself not to.

Something is going on, but there’s no way I can explore it. Not only is Nyx still in pain and missing her mate, but I don’t deserve to have anything more than what I have right now. Not when I killed my mate.

I don’t regret it, I never will. My one chance at happiness died along with Kathy and I have to live with the regret from what I did to Serenity for years. Penance is owed and it’ll take my entire life to pay it.

I’m completely aware of Nyx as I give the group a tour of the packhouse. I’m shocked that Aisley holds my hand the entire time. Do I soak up the sweetness she’s giving me? You better believe it.

I try to spend time with the pups, to make sure they don’t see me as some big, bad Alpha who is unapproachable. Some do better with it than others, but the way Aisley has opened up to me is different. I don’t know why, but I’m more than willing to not question it.

The moment we step out of the back of the packhouse, Aisley sees the playground that’s off to the side. How do I know? The giant gasp and squeal she lets out. Suddenly, I no longer have a miniature hand clasped in mine.

She rushes over to Nyx with her big brown eyes pleading with her mom, “Can I go and play? Please mom?”

Nyx looks over and sees the pups who are already there and playing. “I don’t know, Aisley,” her voice is gentle.

There are a few parents there already, but Dalton steps forward and clears his throat. “If you’re worried about someone watching her, I’ll go with her and keep an eye on her.”

Nyx’s shoulders relax as she gives my Beta a grateful look. “Before you run off, give your Grandparents a hug. I know they need to get going back to Silver Howler since we’re here, safe, and getting settled,” her voice is a gentle but prodding.

Fuck me, the way her strength shines through, even in the littlest of ways, is breathtaking. She probably has no idea, the pain of the last three years clouding her judgement and making it so she can’t see herself properly. But I can and I’m not sure whether that’s a good thing or not.

“Maybe you should take your own advice,”my wolf points out.“It has only been a year for us, but how much time do you need to spend second guessing yourself?”

Yeah, I ignore my wolf completely on that one. He might have a point, but there is no way I have the capacity to deal with that right now.

I watch as Aisley gives hugs and kisses to her grandparents along with Whitaker and Tilly. The way her sweetness washes over everyone around her is a damn beautiful thing. Nyx watches with a soft smile on her face until Maggie wraps her daughter up in a hug. There are whispered words, but I don’t listen in.

Austin has been quiet as he’s taken everything in, and I’m a little surprised when he steps closer to me. His voice is pitched low, “My girls are very special.”

“They are,” I agree easily.

“When I was told about the plan for them to come here, I was torn,” he admits. “My wolf and I didn’t want our pup and grandpup to be so far away where we can’t protect them.” I open my mouth to promise him that I’ll make sure they’re safe, but he doesn’t give me the chance. “But the moment we drove off the pack lands, I felt some of Nyx’s tension fall away. It happened again when we stepped out of the car here.” He looks me straight in the eye, but it doesn’t feel like a challenge, it feels like a plea. “I think this is the right place for her and I’m going to trust my girls to you.”

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