Chapter 347

Enzo

The engine of my truck hummed softly in the background as Luke and I sat in silence, our eyes peeled for any sign of Edward’s pickup. The dashboard clock read 11:37 PM, and we had been at this for hours. Fast food wrappers sat on the dashboard, the scent of greasy french fries and burgers filling the car.

I was hell-bent on finding Edward. But he hadn’t shown his face again so far, at least not here, near the gas station where I saw him before, and I was beginning to lose hope.

“You know,” Luke finally broke the silence, “Nina would skin both of us if she knew we were out here, stalking this deranged lunatic without her.”

I chuckled, never taking my eyes off the rearview mirror. “I know. But you also know Nina. She’d do the same if she were in my shoes.”

“She would. But maybe not now that she’s pregnant. Maybe common sense will finally take over that girl’s brain,” Luke replied with a chuckle, leaning back into his seat.

His words pulled my thoughts away from Edward and toward the equally pressing matter. Nina wanted to keep the baby. A swirl of emotions engulfed me: elation, dread, love, and a deep-rooted fear that gnawed at the edges of my happiness.

“Thinking of quitting the new job?” Luke asked, reading my contemplative expression as easily as if I’d spoken my thoughts aloud.

“I’ll admit it’s crossed my mind,” I said. “I can’t bear the thought of leaving Nina alone, especially when she’s pregnant.”

“We’ve all been through hell and back, Enzo. A baby is another chapter, not the end of the book,” Luke reminded me. “Besides, Nina really cares about your dreams. She wouldn’t want you to quit just for her.”

“Yeah, she made that abundantly clear,” I said, recalling how passionately Nina had argued for us to maintain our own paths. “But what if something happens while I’m away? What if Edward comes back, or James or Lewis? Hell, what if one of the Crescents make a move?”

“Enzo, Nina is the daughter of the Alpha King. You really think she’ll be unprotected?”

“Her being the Alpha King’s daughter doesn’t mean she's invincible, Luke. Nina has this... this stubbornness when it comes to asking for help. She’s too worried about being a burden, even to her own father. What if she hides things just to avoid troubling others? What if—”

Before I could go any further down that rabbit hole, Luke cut me off. “If it comes down to it, I’ll go back to being her bodyguard. If she won’t let me move into the house, I’ll keep watch 24/7. I don’t care.”

My eyes met Luke’s, searching for any trace of reluctance. There was none. “You don’t have to do that, Luke. Your contract ended months ago. You’re free to live your life. Well… second life, that is.”

Luke looked at me as though I’d just spoken to him in an alien language. “Contract or not, it changes nothing. My family died centuries ago, and you two are like a second chance at that. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do to keep you safe.”

The sincerity in Luke’s words weighed heavily in the air, cementing a bond that no contract could ever forge. It was more than loyalty; it was a brotherhood sculpted from the trials we had faced, a camaraderie born from shared secrets and unimaginable challenges.

“You’re a good man, Luke,” I said, feeling a mixture of relief and gratitude wash over me.

“And you’re an overthinker,” he shot back, grinning.

I laughed, the tension dissipating. “Guilty as charged.”

Just then, headlights flickered in the distance, pulling both of our attention back to the reason we were out there in the first place. As the vehicle approached, I felt the grip of uncertainty tighten around my heart again.

But the closer it came, the more obvious it became that it wasn’t the red pickup at all; it was a black sedan, with a young woman driving. I let out an audible sigh, taking a glance in the rearview mirror.

“Another day, maybe,” Luke said, matching my gaze. “We’ll find him. I promise.”

I nodded as I put the truck into drive. “I hope so,” I murmured, veering out onto the road. “And when we do… I’m gonna kill him.”

…

After dropping Luke off, I parked my truck in the driveway, its headlights casting long shadows that danced across the front lawn.

I sat there for a moment, staring at the house that had become my sanctuary. My thoughts lingered on Nina, on the baby, on all the what-ifs that churned in my mind like the stormy sea. Despite everything Luke had said—truths I knew in my gut were right—I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling that gripped me.

Leaving Nina alone, especially now, felt like an insurmountable task. My hand hovered over the ignition, hesitating to turn it off. If I stepped out, if I walked through that door, I’d be one step closer to leaving her for a dream job that had been, up until this evening, exactly what I’d wanted.

Driven by instinct, I pulled out my phone and dialed Tim’s number. The call went through, and I heard the familiar ringtone echo in the confines of the truck.

“Enzo! How’s it going?” Tim’s voice crackled through the speaker.

“Hey Tim, not too bad. How are you guys?” I tried to keep my voice steady.

“Good, good. Just wrapping up practice. Hold on, let me put you on FaceTime; the team would love to see you.”

Before I could object, the call switched to video mode. Suddenly, I was looking at a sea of faces—my would-be apprentices, all sweaty and out of breath, but smiling nonetheless.

“Hey, it's Enzo!” someone shouted.

“When are you coming back, man? We miss you!” another voice chimed in.

Tim laughed, holding the phone up so that everyone was in view. “As you can see, you’ve made quite the impression. They’re practically counting the days until you’re here.”

A pang of regret hit me square in the chest. I had wanted this so badly. The camaraderie, the competition, the sheer joy of watching a team grow and evolve under my supervision—it was a dream I’d had for as long as I could remember.

“Did you need something, Enzo?” Tim asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I opened my mouth to say it, to tell him that my wife was pregnant, that I couldn’t take the job. But the words caught in my throat.

The faces on the screen were so full of hope, of expectation. I couldn’t bring myself to let them down, not when they’d given me something to look forward to as well.

“No… I was just checking in,” I finally managed to say. “I wanted to let everyone know that I’m looking forward to visiting again soon.”

“Good. We can’t wait,” Tim said, and the screen filled with a chorus of cheers and thumbs-up.

“Yeah, me neither,” I echoed, my voice barely above a whisper as I ended the call.

I sighed, placing the phone on the passenger seat. My eyes drifted to the front windshield, where I saw Nina’s silhouette move gracefully behind the kitchen window. I knew I’d miss her every moment I was away. I knew I’d worry, that I’d wonder if I’d made the right choice.

But as I sat there, watching her as she scurried around the kitchen, I realized that our dreams were not obstacles, but markers on the roadmap of our life together. It was going to be a tough journey, but I knew that it would be worth it in the end.

With a sigh, I finally pulled the keys out of the ignition and stepped out of the truck, my gaze still fixed on my wife.

It was time to talk.