26: The Wrong Choices
TARA
Collin was fuming, but heaven knows that he was just looking for a fight where there was none. Aidan must have realized that because now, he looked like he was for sure not going to
engage.
So, thankfully, I didn’t have to be the only sensible one among us three.
Collin wasn’t having it though.
“I said party time’s over. You should leave, seeing as Attica pack is a long way from here,” Collin said with his fists still planted on the table and smoke rising from his nostrils.
Aidan spoke calmly. “Attica pack is at most a day’s drive from here, Collin, and trust me, I don’t want to fight with you, so I’m asking you to please give me some breathing space. You are making a scene out of nothing.”
That seemed to annoy Collin more.
“A scene?” Collin fumed. “I tolerated your presence when I had to, and now that it’s time for you and your beta to leave, you expect me to allow you to sit around and worm your way into my pack?”
“You twist my words and intentions, Collin,” Aidan warned.
Collin went on without a care in the world, even raising his voice.
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“You want me to sit and watch you deceive the people under my protection, and you dare say I’m making a scene out of nothing?”
At this point, l’had to say something because Collin was drawing unwanted attention to our table, and his last words pissed me right the heck off.
“Excuse you, Alpha,” I bit out, trying so hard to keep my tone down since there were now so many eyes on us. I couldn’t also forget that my daughter was just a few meters away from us.
I went on. “Nobody came crying to you that they were being deceived, so I’ll say tone it down on the dramatics a bit, okay? And again, I think I can root for myself if I were being deceived,” 1 said mockingly. “So if you don’t mind, please take this beef
elsewhere.”
Collin looked at me like I had grown two heads.
“Don’t worry, Tara. You may not see it now, but this guy here,” he said, pointing to Aidan, “is as green as a snake can be. He’ll take and take till he chokes you, and you wouldn’t even know.”
“Oh, but you would?” Aidan asked, still calm and refusing to be riled up by Collin.
“I would!” Collin barked, fisting his hands on the table again.
“Alright. That’s it,” I said getting up from my stool. “I’m taking my daughter out of here. If you want to bring a building down, you can do it in my absence,” I said..
“There’s no need for that,” Aidan argued.
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Collin spoke too. “Don’t worry, Tara, he’ll be out of this pack willingly or not before you know it. And I’ll make sure of it that he doesn’t step foot here again.”
Whatever their fight was about, I wasn’t interested in getting involved.
Finally, Collin took one last scornful look at Aidan before he retreated into the adjourning dark street.
“I’m so sorry about that, Tara,” Aidan apologized.
“You do have a thing for apologizing, don’t you,” I said with a weary smile. “It’s fine. I’ll just take Nadia home and get her to bed. We’ve all had a long day and an even longer one tomorrow.”
“If you insist then,” Aidan said with a sad smile. “I promised to drop you guys off, so give me a minute to get the car around and we can leave.”
“I don’t remember agreeing to that, Aidan. We had a nice chat, but that doesn’t mean that everything is good and fine again. We can get home by ourselves.”
Aidan’s shoulders fell. “Come on, Tara. It’s dark already, and I can’t allow you to find your way in the dark when I’m the one who kept you out this late.”
Weighing my options, I gave in with a sigh. “Fine. I’ll get our things.”
Aidan’s smile lit up his face, and I quickly tore my eyes away from him to go get Nadia.
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When I got to the playground area, only a handful of kids were left there. “Come on, honey, it’s time to go home.”
“Okay, Mom,” Nadia said with a wide smile, having had a really good time enjoying herself to her fill.
I retrieved our bags and sent a quick text to Jenna that we were heading home since she was on pack duty for the rest of the evening, and soon, we were settled in Aidan’s spacious car, heading home in silence.
A minute into the drive, Aidan broke the silence.
“Her breathing evened out,” he said.
My head snapped to him. “Sorry?”
Aidan tipped his head to the back of the car, and I followed the motion to see that Nadia was fast asleep in Aidan’s car.
“Oh.”
“She must have used up all of her energy in playing that she couldn’t wait to hit the bed,” Aidan added, and we both laughed.
“She sure did,” I responded.
With a little direction, Aidan’s car was now parked in front of our house only minutes later.
“I should get her inside now,” I said, breaking the silence.
Aidan nodded.
“I’m really sorry about my inconsiderate statement earlier, and also about how the evening ended horribly. I hope you let me
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- The Wrong Choices
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make it up to you, Tara,” Aidan said. “And also make up for every other thing.”
With what Collin said earlier, I didn’t think that much would be possible. Sooner or later, Aidan would have no choice but to return to his people, and the last thing I wanted for myself or my daughter was to get attached, and then be heartbroken when it was time for that.
“It’s late,” I said, deflecting. “Goodnight, Aidan.”
I pushed the door open and went around to the trunk to get our bag, and many thoughts ran through my head as I did that.
“Let me help you,” Aidan’s voice came through, and I jerked, surprised that he came out of the car to me.
“You don’t have to,” I argued, holding on to the latch of the bag, so Aidan covered my hands with his in an attempt to take the bag from me.
As wrong as it should have been, I didn’t see myself pulling away from his touch.
I just hoped I didn’t make the wrong choices in this.
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