Chapter 141

Theodore’s POV

I’m not leaving until I know you’re safe.

Violet’s voice in my head kept me calm as I hid the sound of her door closing with the opening of the one in my hand.

Keep your eyes peeled back there. There could be more of them out back.

The door swung open before me, and my Beta came into view. But I didn’t let relief flood my system yet.

“Eva was looking for you.” I searched Dahlia’s eyes as she spoke, looking for clues as to whether or not she had come alone. “I promised to find you to avoid her snooping out in the woods and finding your cabin.”

I glanced over her shoulder into the trees.

“No one followed me,” she assured me. “I’m alone.”

Dahlia glanced over my shoulder into the cabin, and I fought the urge to shut the door an inch to narrow her scope. Then she looked at me again, and even without a bond between us, I could see the question in her eyes, wondering if I was alone, too.

But she didn’t ask me outright. And I didn’t volunteer any information.

After going through a mental checklist in my mind of anything possibly left in the cabin that would give away Violet’s presence, I stepped aside to let Dahlia in.

It’s just Dahlia, I sent down the bond. She’s alone. You’re clear and safe to move out.

There was no response from Violet, and I didn’t know how, but I could feel her hesitation. I could feel her lingering nearby.

Dahlia surveyed the cabin, looking in every direction, and noting the piece of paper on the table as she slowly turned in a circle. I closed the door behind me as her observant gaze fell back on me. “Eva was looking for you so you two could plan your honeymoon.”

Territorial rage immediately bristled down the bond. Violet must have stayed close enough to hear inside the cabin then.

“We’re not even married,” was the only response I could think of.

Dahlia shoved her hands in her pants pockets as she meandered toward the kitchen table. “I said the same thing. Apparently, she’d like to remedy that as well.”

She took a seat at the kitchen table, picking up the piece of paper with the spell on it. She frowned at the words I was betting she couldn’t read. “This is not our language.”

“No, it is not.” I leaned against the door, wondering how I should play this. Dahlia was the one person I had never kept anything from, and it was a challenge to keep so much from her now – even if it was for her own safety.

Dahlia looked up at me, setting the paper down, and waited. Waited for me to explain why I had asked her to cover for me so I could come here, waited for me to tell her about the foreign language on my kitchen table, waited for me to confirm that I was hiding something from her, because the suspicion was certainly there in her eyes.

When I offered none of that, remaining silent, the patience in her eyes morphed into confusion and pain. I could only imagine that she was wondering what she had done to deserve being shut out.

This was crushing me.

Plausible deniability protects them, Violet’s voice filled my mind. I realized it wasn’t a request or a command. It was a commiseration.

She hated hiding all this from Kincaid, too.

Dahlia leaned back in her chair. “We’re engaged,” she almost whispered.

I furrowed my brows, unsure what she meant, but then the fealty stone on her ring finger caught my eyes, and I wondered how I had missed it. “Kincaid?”

An involuntary smile crested her lips at his name, and she nodded.

Kincaid and Dahlia… I started to share the good news with my mate as I pushed off the door and approached my Beta, but Violet cut me off.

I know. Those two words in my mind were filled with such joy and excitement that it only fueled my own.

Thankfully, Dahlia understood my intent and stood to meet me as I hugged her. “Congratulations, my friend.” She clutched me tighter as I referred to her as something more meaningful than my Beta.

When we pulled away, the look on Dahlia’s face was filled with such love. I was ashamed to feel anything other than joy in my heart for my friend, but a pang of jealousy twinged there, too. We stood there smiling at each other, and I noticed her persisting silence.

As if she were expecting me to share something.

And I realized what this was.

She was not only updating her Alpha and friend on an exciting development in her life. She was also opening up in hopes that I would do the same in return.

It gnawed at me that I could not.

I cleared my throat awkwardly as I walked around the kitchen table aimlessly. “Please keep me updated on the wedding plans. I’ll of course want to give you all the time off you’d like to celebrate properly.”

Dahlia crossed her arms over her chest. “Thank you. You’ll be invited to the ceremony of course.”

I knew she wasn’t telling me this to guilt me into revealing what I was hiding from her. But I felt guilty all the same. I glanced out the window toward the front when all I wanted was to look out back for a glimpse of my beautiful wife.

“How long do you estimate we have until Eva sends her hired help to find me?”

“About an hour. She’s getting impatient to tie the knot.” Dahlia gave me a look like she was wondering why we hadn’t already.

I have to give her something. I wasn’t asking Violet’s permission. I was hoping for her forgiveness.

“Thank you for all your help these past few weeks diverting Riley and them from snooping around.”

“You’re my Alpha,” Dahlia responded succinctly.

When I paused, Dahlia caught on that I was trying to lead her somewhere. “Though it is strange,” she ventured, “that Owen would trust your new mate’s friends to report back to him.” I raised my eyebrows, encouraging her to follow that line of thought.

“Unless their loyalty is to Owen instead of Eva. But she seems to think they’re her friends…” I cocked my head as if to question that idea.

“Unless…” she dipped her head, eyes locked on me for clues as she worked through the puzzle, “they’re all loyal to Owen, including Eva. But why would Eva be loyal to someone who is working against her mate?”

At that, I straightened my spine, schooling my face to a neutral expression, and folded my hands in front of me, indicating with my picture of impassivity that I couldn’t provide her with any more clues.

“Unless…” Dahlia swung her head around, sniffing the air, and I wondered if she could smell Violet’s scent. The tether between me and my mate strained with her anxiety, and I tried to comfort her through the bond.

Dahlia’s voice became a near whisper as she pinned me with a bewildered look. “Unless Eva’s not your mate.”