Chapter 151

Chapter 151
  "Your wish is my command my queen," he said with a devilish smile.
  He moved between her legs. Laura wrapped her arms around his neck. Held him close as he entered her slowly.
  "Oh god," she said.
  "You feel so good as always," he said.
  They moved together. Water splashing with their hearts racing. Laura lost herself in the feeling. In the way he made her feel loved and wanted and cherished.
  "Dante," she moaned as he kept thrusting inside her splashing water everywhere."Fuck I'm close."
  "Gahhh," he groaned as he thrusted deeper inside her. "Let go."
  Laura did. She cried out as waves of pleasure washed over her. Dante followed, holding her closely and tightly as they both shook.
  "That was amazing," Laura said after she could speak again.
  "It was," he agreed. "I've missed this. Missed you."
  "I'm right here," she said.
  "I know. But it's different now. We're different."
  "Is that bad?" Laura asked.
  "No," Dante said. "Just different."
  They just stayed in the water, holding each other and still joined. Laura felt more relaxed than she had in weeks.
  "The water is getting cold," she said.
  "I can warm it up," Dante said with a sl grin.
  "How?" Laura asked.
  "I have my ways," he said.
  He was reaching for her again when the bathroom door opened. Lucian walked in.
  "Laura, I was wondering if you..." he stopped. Stared at them.
  Laura felt her face go red. "Lucian."
  "I'm sorry," he said. "I didn't know."
  "It's okay," Dante said. The bastard didn't look embarrassed at all. "Join us." instead leaving Laura mortified.
  "What?" Lucian said.
  "The water is nice," Dante said. "And there's room."
  "Dante," Laura said.
  "What? We're all mates, besides this is not our first time so why should we be shy?" Dante said.
  Lucian looked at Laura. She was blushing so hard she felt like she might faint as she remembered the last time, she had been blind then.
  "I should go," Lucian said.
  "Stay," Laura finally said quietly. "Please."
  Lucian looked at her for a long moment. Then he started taking off his clothes.
  "This is crazy," he muttered to himself.
  "The best kind of crazy," Dante said.
  Laura watched as Lucian got in the tub with them. The water was getting slightly crowded, but she didn't care.
  "Better?" Dante asked.
  "Much," Laura said.
  They spent the next hour in the tub. Talking and laughing. Laura felt like herself again for the first time in weeks.
  "We should do this more often," she said.
  "What? All get in the tub together?" Lucian asked.
  "Spend time together," Laura said. "Like this. Just us."
  "I agree," Lucian said. "Work can wait."
  "Work can definitely wait," Dante said. He was kissing Laura's neck as his hands went down her stomach. "This is more important."
  "Much more important," Laura agreed brushing his hand of with a laugh.
  They stayed up late that night. Talking and reconnecting. Remembering what they were fighting for.
  It was the first good night Laura had had since becoming Queen.
  But it wouldn't be the last.
  Three Weeks Later
  Laura was getting better at the whole Queen thing. She'd learned to delegate. To trust her mates and to make hard decisions.
  But she was still learning how to balance it all.
  "You're getting better at this," Zephyr said. He was sitting across from her at the meeting table. They'd been working on trade agreements all morning.
  "I'm trying," Laura said.
  "It shows," he said. "You're more confident and more sure of yourself."
  Laura looked at him. Zephyr was the one who understood her best. Who could read her moods and thoughts.
  "I still feel like I'm making it up as I go," she said.
  "We all are," Zephyr said. "That's what makes it interesting."
  "Interesting is one word for it," Laura said.
  Zephyr smiled. "You're doing great. Really."
  "Thank you," Laura said. "I needed to hear that."
  "You need to hear it more often," Zephyr said. "You're too hard on yourself."
  "Someone has to be," Laura said.
  "No," Zephyr said. "Someone has to believe in you. And we all do."
  Laura felt tears prick her eyes. "I love you."
  "I love you too," Zephyr said. "More than you know."
  They were interrupted by a knock on the door. A young wolf came in. He looked nervous.
  "My Queen," he said. "I found something. In the old files."
  He handed her a piece of paper. Laura read it. Her face went white.
  "What is it?" Zephyr asked.
  Laura handed him the paper. It was a letter. Addressed to Zephyr.
  "From Selena," Laura said quietly.
  Zephyr took the letter and started reading. His face went from confused to angry to heartbroken.
  "What does it say?" Laura asked.
  "She..." Zephyr started. Then stopped. "She was the spy."
  "What?" Laura said.
  "She was the one telling Kieran where you were. Where we were. Everything," Zephyr said. His voice was flat and cold.
  Laura felt sick. "All of it?"
  "All of it," Zephyr said. He kept reading. "She says she was jealous. Of you. Of what you meant to us. She thought if she helped Kieran, maybe..."
  "Maybe what?" Laura asked.
  "Maybe I'd choose her instead," Zephyr said. "She was in love with me. Had been for years. But I never saw this. Never saw what she was doing because she was a smart one."
  Laura reached for his hand. "Zephyr."
  "She's gone," he said. "Left sometime after the battle. Says she can't face us and can't face what she did."
  "Do you know where she went?" Laura asked.
  "No," Zephyr said. "She says she's found her way into the world. Whatever the fuck that means."
  Laura read the letter again. It was full of pain and regret and something that felt like madness.
  "She was in love with you," Laura said gently.
  "And she tried to get you killed because of it," Zephyr said. "Love doesn't excuse that."
  "No," Laura said. "It doesn't."
  They sat in silence for a long moment. Both thinking about betrayal and love and the line between them.
  "I should have seen it," Zephyr said finally. "Should have known."
  "You couldn't have known," Laura said. "None of us could."
  "I failed," Zephyr said. "Again."
  "You didn't fail," Laura said. "You're not responsible for her choices."
  "Aren't I?" Zephyr asked. "If I'd seen how deep her feelings really was, I'd have handled it differently."
  "You can't save everyone," Laura said. "I learned that the hard way."
  Zephyr looked at her. "How do you do it? How do you live with the weight of it all?"
  "I don't know," Laura said honestly. "I just try to do better tomorrow than I did today."
  "And if tomorrow is worse?" Zephyr asked.
  "Then I try again the next day," Laura said. "And the next. Until I get it right."
  Zephyr nodded. "I love you for that. For your strength and for your hope."
  "I love you too," Laura said. "For your mind. Your heart and willingness to try."
  They sat together in the quiet. Both thinking about Selena. About choices and consequences and the price of love.
  "What do we do now?" Zephyr asked.
  "We move forward," Laura said. "Together. Like we always have."
  "Together," Zephyr agreed.
  "Always," Laura said.
  They went to find the others. To share the news. To deal with another crisis. Another betrayal. Another piece of their past that wouldn't stay buried.
  But they would face it together. Like they always did.
  Because that's what family did. What mates did. What love did.
  It endured. It survived. It found a way.
  Even when the way was hard. Even when the choices were impossible. Even when the cost was more than they wanted to pay.
  They would find a way.
  They always did.