Chapter 25 PAINFUL MEMORIES
Dane’s POV
I knew it was time to stop drinking, to retreat to my chambers and rest my aching head. But I couldn’t. I tried, I really did, yet my brain refused to follow, refused to shut down. Instead, it dragged me to the one place I didn’t want to go.
Dahlia.
I hadn’t spoken her name in years, not out loud.
And even in my thoughts, I tried my best to stop it, to pretend it never happened, but alcohol had a cruel way of digging up graves you’d spent years burying.
I slumped back against the cold wall, staring into the endless wilderness, my fingers tightening around the bottle.
“A mate,” I muttered bitterly.
“Do I really think I can do that? Again.”
Do I really believe I could stand beside another woman, wear another bond like a crown, and pretend I wouldn’t destroy her too?
What kind of fool would bind their life to a man like me?
Only someone who didn’t truly know what they were choosing.
The memories came anyway, like they always did—uninvited and unmerciful.
My thoughts drifted back to years ago…
I came out of the washroom still adjusting the sleeve of my shirt, water clinging lightly to my hands.
The room smelt of her; it always did. Dahlia always smelt like early morning sun and wildflowers.
She lay across the bed on her stomach, her dark hair falling loosely over her shoulders, fingers tracing lazy patterns across the sheet.
“Are you done finally?” she teased.
I smirked.
“You’d miss me if I took any longer.”
She turned to her side and propped her head on her hand. “I already do.”
I laughed under my breath and moved closer, sitting on the edge of the bed.
“How was your day?” I asked.
“Boring,” she sighed dramatically. “Being Luna is exhausting, but being your Luna is my favourite thing in the universe.”
“I waited for you all day like a prisoner in love.”
I leaned closer.
“You act like I enjoy leaving you alone.”
“Maybe you do,” she said, arching an eyebrow.
I brushed a loose strand of hair from her face.
“Never.”
Her expression softened instantly. “Say that again.”
I smiled faintly.
“I never enjoy leaving you.”
She reached up and took my hand, pressing it to her cheek.
“Good. Because I don’t enjoy you leaving either.”
I leaned down and pressed my forehead to hers.
“Someday, I won’t have to go anywhere.”
Her lips curved.
“You’d go crazy in one week.”
“I’d go crazy without you in one day.”
She laughed softly, then grew quiet, too quiet. I felt it immediately. Something was wrong. There was a strangeness in her silence that didn’t belong.
“What is it?” I asked.
She looked away; I sat straighter.
“Dahlia?”
Her fingers trembled slightly. “I… I have something to tell you.”
My heart skipped once. “Are you dying?” I joked lightly.
She didn’t smile. That’s when I knew something was different; I turned fully toward her.
“Hey. Look at me.” She did, and her eyes were shining—not with fear, but with something else entirely.
“I went to the healer today,” she whispered.
My chest tightened.
“Why?”
She swallowed, then smiled. For real this time.
“I’m pregnant.”
The world stopped. Completely. Everything froze. My breath caught.
“You’re what?” I whispered.
Her smile widened. “I’m with child, Dane.”
I stared at her like she had just split the heavens open. Then I laughed—a breathless, stunned sound tearing out of me. “You… we… are you serious?”
She nodded eagerly. “Very serious.”
I stood up so fast the room spun. “Say it again.”
She laughed. “I’m pregnant.”
I dragged my hands down my face in disbelief, then crossed the room in two strides and pulled her into my arms. I had no idea I could feel that much at once—fear, joy, shock, and a wild, unreasonable happiness I didn’t even know existed.
“We’re having a child,” I said hoarsely.
“Yes,” she laughed through tears. “You’re going to be a father, Dane.”
I pulled back to look at her.
“A father,” I repeated. The word didn’t feel real. But it felt… right.
I pressed my forehead to hers. “I swear to you,” I whispered, “I’ll protect you both with everything I am.”
She reached for my hand and placed it over her stomach. “There’s a heartbeat in there,” she whispered.
I froze. My eyes burnt.
“Mine?” I asked softly.
“Our child”, she corrected gently.
I closed my eyes.
In that moment…
I believed in tomorrow.
The bottle slipped from my fingers and rolled across the stone floor with a hollow clink. I didn’t notice. I was drowning in memory. My breathing broke.
“Dahlia…” I whispered.
My vision blurred. I scrubbed a hand across my face furiously, but it did nothing to stop the tears.
“I’m sorry.” The words fell apart in my chest. “I didn’t mean to…” My voice caught. “I didn’t mean to.”
My hands shook violently as I gripped the ledge.
“It wasn’t me,” I whispered desperately to the darkness. “It wasn’t my heart… It was the beast inside me.”
My blood burnt. My chest ached.
“You know I loved you,” I begged her ghost. “You know I would have burnt the world for you.”
My eyes stung with pain.
“I wanted that life,” I whispered. “I wanted you. I wanted us. I wanted that pup.”
My shoulders slumped as if something inside me finally collapsed.
“I lost everything that day,” I murmured. “My wolf. My future. My soul.”
The wind whispered across my skin, but it carried no answers.
“I can’t do this again,” I said aloud. “I can’t love again. I can’t wear another bond like it means something.”
A bitter laugh escaped me. “They think choosing a mate is simple.” I dragged a hand through my hair. “As if love is a fabric you can replace.”
I stared into the forest with empty eyes.
“No woman deserves to share my curse.”
The night stretched endlessly—cold, silent, unforgiving. And somewhere deep inside my chest, the boy I once was, the man who almost had a family, finally went quiet.