Chapter 554

Nina

I stared vacantly at the gently rippling surface of the pool, watching as the underwater lights cast an eerie blue glow across the water. My feet were dipped into the water, creating more ripples as I slowly swirled them around beneath the surface.

It was incredibly warm out—maybe one of the hottest days we had had so far this summer. But instead of enjoying the refreshing pool water and laughing with my friends, I was crying.

Tears slipped silently down my cheeks, carving glistening paths that caught the light before plopping soundlessly into the pool. I knew that this was pointless and pathetic, that sitting out here wallowing wouldn’t change anything.

But I felt trapped, paralyzed by the weight of my spiraling thoughts and the physical limitations of my pregnancy.

My father was still missing—quite possibly dead—and with each passing day, the chances of his return grew more and more slim. The possibility of having to step into his role, of taking on the mantle of leadership that I knew I wasn’t ready for, felt like an iron vise slowly clenching around my chest.

I was no ruler. I didn’t have the poise, the political savvy, the sheer force of will required to guide an entire kingdom through these turbulent times. I was just a kid, really. A medical school student. Barely in the first half of her twenties.

I wanted, in some ways, to return to the way things had been before. Before… all of this happened. Before Mila, before the Schreibers, before the Alpha King, before the shadow entity, the twin bond, the Crescents…

All of it.

But that was selfish of me.

I knew Enzo was there for me, as steadfast and supportive as he had always been. But the undeniable truth was that we hadn’t fully repaired our bond since he rejected me as his mate. Was it even possible to repair it? Had it been heard of before in werewolf history, to fully restore a bond between mates that had pulled themselves apart at the seams?

Ever since that fateful afternoon when he had rejected our mate bond, there had been an invisible rift between us, an aching emptiness that I didn’t know how to fill. We smiled with each other, kissed and hugged and laughed.

But we had never truly addressed it, never given voice to the hurt and confusion that I knew both of us still harbored deep down. It felt like there was a gaping hole in my chest.

I was terrified of losing him, of that divide splintering into an irreparable chasm. He was my rock, my sanctuary in the storm; and with a baby on the way, there was no telling what might happen between us if we didn’t find some way to come together as one again.

A soft footfall on the patio startled me from my reverie, and I looked up to see Enzo approaching. His brow was furrowed with concern, eyes scanning my face as he saw my tears.

“Nina?” he murmured, stopping a few paces away from me. “What are you doing out here all by yourself? Are you okay?”

I opened my mouth to respond, but the words caught in my throat as a fresh wave of tears blurred my vision. Wordlessly, I shook my head, returning my gaze down to the rippling pool.

In an instant, Enzo was beside me, his strong arms enveloping me in a warm embrace. I melted into him, burying my face in the reassuring curve of his neck as the floodgates finally opened.

“I’m s-sorry,” I managed between ragged sobs. “I j-just... I can’t…”

“Hey, it’s okay,” he murmured, cradling me close. His fingers raked soothingly through my hair, his voice as steady and soothing as ever. “Just breathe, Nina. I’m here.”

We stayed like that for what felt like an eternity, my harsh sobs gradually subsiding into quiet hiccups. God, I felt like even more of a useless burden; after all we had been through, after all he had been through, I was sobbing over what-ifs.

When I was finally able to breathe properly, Enzo met my gaze. “What’s going through that head of yours?” he whispered.

I shrugged. “It’s just… I don’t know if I can do this, Enzo,” I murmured. “Taking over my dad’s throne when I really want to go after him, handling people who want to kidnap my baby… not to mention having the baby itself…” I pulled back just enough to meet his gaze, my lips trembling. “And us... I’m so glad to have you back, but I still feel so empty after…”

I trailed off, but the unspoken words hung heavy between us. He knew what I was referring to; I could see the recognition in his gaze.

Enzo’s expression softened then, and he sighed, rubbing his thumb along my cheek to catch one last stray tear.

“I know, Nina,” he murmured. “I’ve felt the same way, too.”

My breath hitched in my throat. “Why did you do it?” I whispered. “Did Mila make you? How much of ‘Enzo’ was in there when… you rejected our bond?”

Enzo’s jaw tightened, and he looked away quickly. “I, um…” He swallowed before continuing. “I was still in there, somewhat,” he finally said. “But it wasn’t that I wanted to do it. Not only had she poisoned my mind with her presence, but she also threatened to kill you if I didn’t. And no matter how angry I was, no matter how I thought you had cheated on me, I didn’t want any harm to come to you.”

“So you were still in there,” I whispered.

He nodded. “A part of me, yes. And that part of me hated what I was doing.”

There was a long silence as Enzo continued to hold me, his arms tightly wrapped around my shoulders. I bit my lip for a moment, thinking, before I tilted my head back to look up at him.

“Can we ever repair it?” I asked. “Can we ever renew our bond?”

For a few moments, Enzo just looked at me, blinking slowly in the blue glow of the pool lights. And during those moments, I felt my heart sink just a bit; I thought that he might say that it was impossible, that we would always have to live with this pain and emptiness.

But he didn’t say that at all.

“It’s possible,” he said softly. Then, standing, he began to undress; he slipped his shirt off over his head, revealing his glistening muscles in the dim light. I watched, enthralled, as he removed his pants next—and a blush colored my cheeks as he removed his boxers, too.

He looked at me expectantly, and I knew what to do. I stood, pulling my dress off over my head. When I was finished, we stood nude in front of each other for the briefest of moments before he silently took my hand and led me over to the steps.

Hand in hand, we walked into the pool water.

“What are we doing?” I asked softly.

Enzo turned, casting me that signature smirk of his over his broad shoulder. “Would I be Enzo Rivers if I didn’t live for a little bit of theatrics?” he asked.

I couldn’t help but laugh and shake my head. “No, you wouldn’t.” I followed him into the water, and once we were waist-deep, he turned and took both of my hands.

“Nina,” he whispered, his voice so soft that it was almost lost below the sound of the ocean in the distance. “Will you be my mate… again?”

He didn’t need to ask twice. “Yes,” I breathed, throwing my arms around him. My lips crashed onto his in a searing kiss. Together, we fell backwards in a tangle of laughter and splashing water.

We sank beneath the surface, and the rest of the world fell away.