Page 39 of The Wolf's Bullied Mate
“I sure hope so,” I sighed.
***
In the evening, I had dinner all prepared—red wine, mashed potatoes, and steak cooked medium rare, just the way Pauline had told me she liked it back when we had been talking via text messages. I held a bouquet of red roses in my hand, waiting for the sound of the door unlocking as she arrived home. I had picked up Ray on my own earlier, and he was now playing with toy cars in his room.
When I heard the door open, I came out of the dining room with the bouquet of roses.
Pauline’s eyes widened. “What’s the occasion?”
I took a deep breath and then gave her a serious look. “I wanted to talk to you, but let’s eat first. These are for you,” I gave her the flowers.
She put them to her nose and inhaled. A pleased smile appeared on her lips.
“They’re beautiful,” she said.
My heart soared.
Pauline looked at the dining table with surprise but said nothing as she sat down to eat. I put some of the meat on her plate, then the potatoes, and poured her wine. I did the same for myself, and our meal together began.
We chatted about her day at work. She was adjusting quickly and enjoyed learning her new role.
Finally, after we had eaten, she said, “That was delicious, Oliver. Thank you for making us dinner.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed it,” I smiled, hiding my hands under the table. I played with my thumbs to let go of some of my nervous energy.
“What did you want to talk about?” she said, giving me a serious look.
I took a deep breath then released it. “I wanted to apologize for what I did to you…” I trailed off. The apology had to come from the bottom of my heart, but that task was easier saidthan done. However, Pauline’s life so far hadn’t been easy either—all because of me. I would suffer if it meant I could help her feel better.
“You’ve already apologized,” she said in an emotionless tone.
I let out a sigh. “I know. But I don’t even know how to convey how sorry I am,” I said the truth. “I never intended to hurt you. I never wanted the whole school to go after you, to bully you. But it’s all my fault anyway, I’m not denying that. I just… I want to make it up to you, and I will, every day for the rest of my life, if you’ll let me.”
“The rest of your life…” Pauline’s eyes widened.
Just as I thought I was getting through to her, the cautious look returned to her gaze.
“I’ll think about your apology,” she said in the same monotone as earlier.
My heart fell, but some hope remained—at least she hadn’t outright refused to consider my words.
“Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to retire to bed early—I’m still adjusting to shift work, and want to get some good rest,” she said.
I nodded. She got up from her seat and went to her room.
As I cleaned up after the dinner, I wondered if I had really made any progress tonight or if—like my friends had said—I would have to repeat the apology a thousand times before she finally forgave me.
I would wait for her forever if necessary.
***
The next Sunday, I told Pauline and Ray I had a surprise prepared for them. Ray immediately got excited, and Pauline looked interested, too. We dressed up and got in the car. I drovethem all the way to the outskirts of Fairlake, where our small but fun amusement park was located.
Ray looked overjoyed at the prospect of trying out the rides.
The Sunday went by in peaceful camaraderie filled with Ray’s laughter and exclamations of wonder. He was the one that decided what we did for the day. Watching the child’s pure joy made happiness bloom in my heart too. Pauline looked much more relaxed as well. That part of her was easy to figure out—when her kid was happy, she felt joy, too. She was a good mother, caring so much for her son’s well-being.
I took this opportunity to bond with Ray. I let him ride on my shoulders when he was too tired to walk. I bought him cotton candy. I watched his every smile.
