Chapter 18

Mira

New of the successful surgery spread like wildfire through the hospital and beyond, and I was met with enthusiasm when I returned to work the next day. Cinda sought me out early in the day, and asked if I could show her again my reform ideas.

It seems after taking initiative and exhibiting my skills, she trusted me and would help promote my ideas to the board and council. I was beginning to feel like I belonged.

Luckily today was far less eventful than the day before, and I was able to get more acquainted with the staff and the building itself. It was so much larger than my previous assignment, and I knew it would take a few more days until I stopped getting lost.

When the end of the day came, I was surprised to see Wyatt waiting for me in the lobby, not Dominic.

“He asked me to give you a ride home,” Wyatt told me when I asked after the Alpha. “He had a emergency to deal with, and will be home quite late.”

“Nothing too serious, i hope?” I asked with concern.

“I don’t think so, ma’am,” he answered, “just something that could not wait.”

“Alright,” I said, “I guess that means I’ll be eating dinner alone.”

“If I may,” Wyatt said, a bit awkwardly, “I suggest you save him a plate— he often forgets to eat when he’s wrapped up in Pack business.”

I smiled at the Beta, and nodded. One thing was for sure, Dominic had earned the loyalty of everyone around him.

When I arrived home, I decided it would be nice to cook a full meal, instead of reaching for a takeout menu like I thought I would. Dominic had given me such thoughtful gifts, and I felt I should return the favor.

I put on music, allowing myself to let loose and dance around the kitchen. I was too hungry to wait to eat, but I kept things warm for a while and laid out a nice display on the table. I decided to do some paperwork I’d brought home, so I sat across from his empty chair and got into the files.

Almost two hours late, I woke up from what an uncomfortable nap with my head on the table, and a still empty chair across from me.

Dominic had still not come home.

The food was cold, so I started to package it up to save for later.

I was clanging things around in when I heard him come in, and I went out to meet him, trying to not to seem annoyed at him.

But when I got out into the hall, I was met by a very angry Alpha.

“I spoke with Lila this evening,” Dominic said slowly. “She is very upset.”

“Okay…”

“Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about!” he came closer to me. “I heard what you said to hear, what you shouted at her in the hospital!”

“What do you mean you heard it?” I was confused, and offended.

“A recording, of you, yelling at her,” he explained. “She said you have purposefully been targeting her, because you’re jealous of our friendship.”

“She said what?!” This was too much. “Did she tell you what she did? How her carelessness in the OR could’ve killed our patient?”

“Regardless,” he held his hand up in front of my face, “you handled the situation like a petulant child. You are to be Luna, you must be tactful when handling situations like this.”

“I should never be in a situation like this!” I codlin’t believe what he was saying. “She made a terrible mistake!”

“And so did you!” he shouted, then took a breath to calm himself. “I don’t know if you are insecure about your position, or jealous, or what it is. But I am disappointed in you, Mira.”

For some reason those words hurt more than being shouted at.

“Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to have you start so soon at the hospital, it’s clearly stressing you out,” he went on. “You’ve had a lot to adjust to here, and really you should be focusing more on your training to be Luna. That will have to be your priority someday.”

“What are you saying?” I hated being talked down to like this. “I’m an excellent doctor, clearly that was demonstrated yesterday.”

“No one is doubting that,” he spoke to me like I was a temperamental animal. “But maybe your hands on approach isn’t what’s best for you, for us, right now.”

“For us? What happened to trusting each other?”

“This has nothing to do with trust, Mira,” he was angry now. “This has to do with your behavior towards an esteemed member of the hospital and the Pack.”

“I didn’t do anything wrong!” I yelled back at him. “It was her mistake! I’m not going to give up my career because your little childhood girlfriend can’t do her job!”

“My..what?” Dominic’s face was a storm. “Lila is not—“

“I don’t even care!” I was moving, repacking my bag. “If you want a Luna who will obey anything you say, you clearly picked the wrong girl!”

I grabbed a few items from the bedroom. Dominic stood frozen in the middle of the room, breathing heavily. He didn’t seem to believe what I was doing until I was at the door.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he bellowed at me.

“I’ll be at the hospital,” I said firmly. “Somewhere I know my worth is appreciated.”

I didn’t look back or wait for him to respond.

I was out the door, down the stairs, and gone.

Dominic

You went too far.

My wolf was raging inside me, furious that I had pushed Mira away like that. But I would not apologize. I was right to worry about her commitments, her behavior. A Luna cannot act out like a child when she does’t get her way.

She will realize her mistake soon, and then she will come back.

She has to come back.

The thought of her not returning brought me back down from the edge of going ballistic, and I closed my eyes to calm myself all the way down.

She will come back.

I walked through our apartment, restless.

I made it into the kitchen when I noticed what she had left behind.

Several dishes were laid out, now cold and forgotten. The table had been set as if for a state dinner. Taper candles were burnt down to stubs in their holders.

She had done all this for me, had waited hours for me.

And the first thing I did was yell at her.

I sat down and stared at all the food, picked up a fork, and began eating straight from the serving dishes.

It was cold, but it was delicious.

She did this for you.

Yesterday she saved a man’s life, today she cooked me a surprise dinner, and tonight I let my pride cause her pain.

I should never have tried to take her job away from her. It is more important to her than anything, even more than her own safety.

She will come back, and we will talk this through. It will make us stronger. She will see her mistakes, and I will explain mine.

She has to come back to me.