Chapter 87 - An Important Conversation

Chapter 87 - An Important Conversation
Cassie carefully dried Hendrick's hair, even making side braids that gave him an ancient warrior style. She liked the result; it was sexy and wild.

The brunette left kisses on the alpha's face and neck; he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her onto his lap. They were in a bubble of affection and love, just as they liked, the world outside was silenced, and they could only hear each other.

Hendrick couldn't remember the last time he felt so happy, so grateful for his life. Things were good; peace was with them in the form of a beautiful woman.

Cassie might not know it, but she gave all of them the best sleep of their lives. There was no more war, fear of destruction, or pain.

She filled their days with laughter, smiles, her melodious voice, and sweet scent; her beauty attracted them and distanced them from the chaos of the past.

The alpha had been one of the resistant ones to relax; after all, he was responsible for his people. He lived in constant tension that humans would discover and hunt them again.

However, they were safe. the Moon Goddess would take care of them until the end; Cassie was proof of that.

"Let's eat," she said, pulling him out of his own thoughts.

Hendrick buried his face in her neck, kissing the soft skin. "Let's."

Cassie chuckled, understanding the double meaning. The brunette playfully slapped the alpha's arm and got off his lap, extending her hand.

"Later, okay?" She winked.

They walked together to the kitchen after Hendrick ensured the belt of the plush bathrobe she was wearing was tight enough so her bare skin wouldn't show.

Cassie rolled her eyes, though sweetly, but didn't question him. She sat next to Matt, who offered her a plate with sliced fruit, a sandwich, and cake.

"I feel spoiled," she joked, starting to eat.

"We will always spoil you, beautiful." Nick kissed the top of her head as he passed the counter stools. "I'd like to stay and keep you company, but I have to work. See you at lunch, beautiful."

The brunette blushed at the nickname; perhaps she would never get used to that attention. She waved to the White and realized the twins had also left.

Uriel was washing some dishes, which indicated the others had eaten earlier. This made her frown; yes, Mason and Hendrick had a fight during breakfast, so they couldn't sit and eat together as usual.

She loved collective meals and hoped lunch would go well.

"Matt, there's something I'd like to check with you later."

The doctor looked at her confused but nodded.

"Where is Bart?" she questioned, looking around. She was sure he was there when she arrived.

"He went after his brother; it seems Kallias called him and Amos to talk."

The brunette just nodded, reflecting. It seemed this was a day for important conversations. She sighed and turned to Hendrick, signaling to go to the bedroom.

The alpha finished his sandwich in a few bites and followed her. Cassie locked the door as they entered and was silent for a few moments, thinking about where to start.

"Um... I..."

St. John was not new to relationships; he had been married before, and although he had spent nearly three centuries without contact with a woman, he knew when a tense conversation was coming.

"Are you breaking up with me?" he asked softly.
Cassie's eyes quickly went to his, and she shook her head negatively.

"No, no. Sorry, did I scare you? It's just that..." She sighed and went to the brunette, sitting beside him on the mattress. "We're moving fast, things are happening, and we haven't had time for an honest conversation. I'm trying to get pregnant, Hendrick, that could happen at any moment, and I want us to be okay, aligned, without burdens or regrets."

The sincerity in her brown irises almost dismantled him; he never would have imagined that was what she wanted to talk about.
Cassie was trying to have his child; it was his desire. And he... was busy freaking out with jealousy.

"Sorry about today; I didn't... I didn't handle it as well as I thought I would. We, um, we have a hierarchy, and my wolf sees you as my woman. Mason touching you, biting you, and saying those things... I lost control."

She smiled softly and took his hand.

"It's okay, I understand. None of you will be like any human guy I could date. I think I realized that; you're not just men, you're like tamed beasts, but still wild. I can't expect you to nullify that because of me," she said calmly.

Cassandra took a deep breath and looked at her own feet, gathering the courage to express what she had been thinking.

"I chose you, Hendrick. It's strange, but it wasn't just this force that pulls me to you. From the first moment we met, you were kind, you listened to me, I could open up, and you told me about your life. That connection grew naturally, and... it helps that you're very, very handsome." She smiled wryly.

Hendrick chuckled. He also saw Cassie as more than the woman sent by the Moon Goddess. He remembered how they sat by the stream, when he told her about his late wife, about his father, the life he led as the pack's heir.

Cassie saw him not as the alpha with a duty to fulfill, not a warrior, but just him, Hendrick.

He loved her for that, because he saw her just as she saw him.

"I love you, and I want you to trust that. I want to have this baby with you. But I need to be sure that I won't be the cause of your suffering, that I'm not hurting you. I know you said the right to choose is mine, but... I don't want you to keep hiding this from me."

The alpha blinked a few times. She had said in the bathroom that she noticed the weight he was trying to disguise.

Hendrick swallowed hard, unsure how to respond immediately; he felt exposed somehow.

"I... I was afraid of not being enough, of you regretting it, of it being impulse or just this force that pulls us to each other. Because I love you, I love you like crazy, and I don't want to lose you. You might not see it, Cassie, but I am a broken man, a survivor, I am not young, I have no dreams, I don't know how to laugh like the others. I've been carrying heavy burdens since my father's death when I took over the pack, I've watched men fall under my command, I've been responsible for keeping everyone together and alive, trying to ignore that death would reach us, extinction, or a new threat. I still don't know how to deal with this well; you are like a precious treasure to me, not for being a savior or anything like that, but for reminding me who I am, who I forgot to be, and I don't want to lose you."

Cassie was already crying; she hugged him, wanting to take away all her beloved's pain.

Hendrick was one of the best people she had ever met; he deserved all the happiness and affection. She couldn't understand how he could bear so much; he had no one to confide in, as everyone expected something from him.

"I won't leave you, I won't trade you for anyone, you won't lose me, understood? That is not a risk. I am with you because I chose to be; I chose you, and I will continue to choose you. Yes, I have something special with the others, a feeling growing rapidly, but that changes nothing between us. I can no longer imagine myself without you, understand?"

Her fragile smile caused shivers on his skin, a warmth rising, climbing his chest to his heart that beat strongly for her.

"I don't want you to feel insecure, ever. I want to see you lighthearted; I want you to laugh as much as you want, to be happy with me. I will always be yours, Hendrick, so I need you to tell me the truth, if you're not okay with this, if it's hurting. Because soon we will be parents, soon I will be too deeply involved, and I wouldn't be able to turn back."

The alpha squeezed her hands, pulling her to his chest, letting her hear his heartbeats.

"I am also yours, Cassie. And you don't hurt me; it was just fear, I couldn't understand what you felt, and that made me insecure."

The brunette had been thinking about this since her conversation with Uriel. They were going to the temple quite frequently; Cassie asked thousands of questions about the shifters and their traditions, wanting to learn.

When the blacksmith explained the marks to her, she understood how important they were. The disturbance in the alpha's gray irises, the madness in Kallias's eyes.

They had a single urgency; they wanted to connect with her on a deeper level. Lamart himself said his gums itched near her; the same must be true for Hendrick.

So, after that conversation, she was certain. She moved her face away just enough to look at the alpha with affection, held his hand, and smiled.

"I want you to feel it. Mark me, Hendrick."

Cassie turned her head, just enough to expose her neck.