Chapter 15 Divorce The Mother Or Reject The Daughter
Calhoun's POV
"You ought to be enjoying the honeymoon phase with your wife, not stick around like an unwanted guest. You should pass for a boil in the armpit." Nana Joyce casts me a suspicious look through her glasses.
"Ouch," I put my hand on my chest and feign sadness, "you hurt my feelings."
"Cut me that crap and tell me why you've spent two nights here, Calhoun." The look on her face shows that she's not ready to listen to any excuses.
"I miss the good old days," putting my glass of wine on the table, I release a low breath and jam my fingers through my hair. It's not as if my response is a lie but it's far from the truth.
Nana Joyce chuckles to herself before shaking her head at me.
"You know, that's not a very honest response. I am eighty-six and my wolf isn't agile like she was twenty years ago. We don't go out for runs anymore because I'm weak and you find me boring," she pauses to catch her breath before continuing.
"You built this mansion for me and put omegas at my beck and call because you rarely visit me. Only for you to show up at my gate two nights ago, like a kid who was trying to escape his demons," she grabs my chin and holds it to face her, "Something is wrong."
Aside from the fact that Nana Joyce is my paternal grandmother, she still treats me like I'm the seven-year-old who lost his parents to an attack from my family's rival. Nana Joyce trained me until I became an adult, she partly molded me into the man I am today. And it's one of the many reasons she acts this way even though I am a renowned Alpha.
"Nothing is wrong, Grandmother,"
"Nonsense," Nana Joyce let go of my chin, "you took a minute to reply."
"I came here to clear my head," I almost roll my eyes in their sockets.
"Running away from pack responsibilities for a couple of days? Your father did that but you're different from him. You love the n might you uphold over all the Eastern packs that are under you.
"You're not wrong, Grandmother. I'm not running away from pack responsibilities. I love being a leader. Even the companies run fine in my absence."
"Is Natalie giving you any a hard time?"
"What? No."
"Then what kind of husband runs away a day after his wedding when he should be trying for a baby during his honeymoon phase."
Clearing my throat, I curl my fists on top of my thighs.
"Not everyone wants babies in the first year of marriage."
"I am already nearing my grave, I need to see my great-grandchildren.."
Nana Joyce is so witty and stubborn. She doesn't back down until she gets whatever she wants.
"Just calm down, things will fall right into place. And you still have a long way to go, so death is out of the picture now, hm?" A small smile rests on my face.
For a moment she mirrors my expression before returning her face to the giant scowl.
"Tomorrow, you're out." Her voice is stern and villainous but it only amuses me.
"Yes, grandmother. As you wish," I do a little bow and sip my wine.
Silence relapses as Nana Joyce flips through a fashion magazine. It's quiet here, just how she likes it. I miss the days she would take me out for a run. We would shift and compete, she always whacked me at the back of my head when I lost to her. I thought she was cruel but later figured she was raising me with an iron fist because my father's death automatically made me an Alpha. But I was still that fragile and naive lanky kid.
Nana Joyce had men train me because she feared I would slack. I took my run and training seriously even though I failed a couple of times, and then the results changed. I became way too powerful for my own good and she was proud of me.
She taught me how to be selfless and considerate, that's why she's one of the most important people in my life. My mind drifts over to Kristen instead of Natalie, and my throat tightens with emotions that I cannot decipher. "There's something I'd like to know from your perspective, grandmother."
Upon hearing this, Nana Joyce lifts her head from her magazine to meet my gaze.
"Yes?" She arches a brow.
"There's this friend of my friend who got married last year and now he's found his mate. He's confused at this point and clueless on the right action to take."
"Does he love his wife?"
"Of course he does. He wouldn't have married her if their feelings weren't mutual."
"Then he should reject his mate."
Nana Joyce's response hardens my heart in my chest.
So I gulp and continue.
"Here's the full details. He met his mate a day before his wedding and he was drawn to her, so they had sex. Because she approached him. She was drunk and was yet to know she was mated to him."
"Hm," Nana Jones find the story interesting enough to put her magazine aside.
"He feels guilty about everything because he loves his wife, yet he cannot touch her. It's his mate all the time. Worse, his mate recently just found out that he's indeed her mate. They're against the relationship because it's forbidden, but they keep getting intimate." I explain, leaving out the rest of the details of how his mate is his wife's daughter, or Nana Joyce might find out it's me. Because we took family photos on my wedding day, she knows Natalie has a grown-up daughter.
Nana Joyce is currently squinting at me in suspicion.
"What do you have to say about this?" I ask.
"There are two things here, Calhoun. One, your friend is a fool. Cheating on his bride-to-be a day before their wedding day? That means he isn't so faithful after all," my grandmother pushes her glasses up.
Okay, I'll admit that it stings.
"Second, I understand his situation. Everyone who has had a mate knows the bond it comes with. This friend of your friend couldn't control himself because his wolf wanted her too. It takes hardheadedness and a high level of maturity to gain self- control, when there's a deep connection between two people who are destined for each other." Nana Joyce stops only to drink from her wine glass.
While I wait for her with keen interest because she's making so much sense right now.
"So, I think he doesn't love his wife as he thinks he does. Because he would never cheat on her with his mate. From what I discerned, he was torn between choosing his mate or his wife. He cannot divorce his wife nor reject his mate, which boils down to him being a fool again. You cannot eat your cake and still have it." Grandmother drums her fingers on the table.
"What do you mean by that?" I can tell my face is full of curiosity.
"This friend of your friend should let his wife go, she's the one holding him back even though he married her." She gruffly adds. Hearing this from my grandmother leaves me with a string of uncertainties. She's right but I still love Natalie even if I cannot bring myself to touch her anymore. I can't just throw away all we had in eight months all for Kristen. She's now my Luna.
But Kristen...
"Grandmother, what if the mate of my friend's friend is related to his wife?"
"What do you mean by that?"
"Like they know each other, live in the same house."
"You mean like sisters?"
"No."
"Mother and daughter?"
"Uhm.." I am contemplating agreeing to this when Nana Joyce suddenly gasps with her eyes wide in their sockets.
"You've been fucking Kristen, Natalie's daughter?" She yelps.
My heart thuds in my chest at this outburst. How was she able to find out? Did I make it so obvious?
"What do you mean, Nana Joyce?" I fake confusion for a second with a straight face.
"Oh, cut me that crap," she waves her hand away, "I knew it was you all along. Unlike everyone who worships the ground you walk on, I read you like an open book. You don't know how to tell lies because I didn't bring you up that way. But I'm shocked that your mate is Natalie's daughter."
Shit. Cursing inwardly, I grind my teeth until my jaw begins to hurt. She's found out. No more hiding.
"It's true, Kristen is my mate," I admit to this at last.
"What in the world is happening!" Nana Joyce finds this serious enough to rise to her feet.
"You're married to Natalie, how in the Moon goddess's name can this happen? You're mated to your wife's daughter! This is the first time in my eighty-six years to hear such a thing."
"I'm still baffled, grandmother," I puff out a big breath this time.
Nana Joyce slams her aid stick on the table.
"The choice is yours, Calhoun. Reject Kristen, stay married to her mother, or divorce Natalie and remain mated to her daughter. "The way she puts it just has reality smacking me back in the face for all my actions.
"I'll leave you to your thoughts, do what's best for you and resolve any impending conflict between the two women," Nana Joyce pats my shoulder and helps herself out with her aid stick.
Putting my hand on my face, I heave deeply.
Two days ago, I gave everyone something to gossip about; the way I left my position and ran to help Kristen told off every guy, and carried her in my arms. I didn't care about Natalie's feelings then, it was until we took Kristen home and she was tended to by one of our pack doctors.
I found Natalie looking so sad and hurt. Her eyes were red with tears. It affected me to see her hurt that way and when I approached her, she just wordlessly walked away from me.
Fast-forward to the hour of the rejection, I was having difficulties from going to the council hall. Rejecting Kristen wasn't easy as I had expected, so I just left everything behind. The emotions radiating from Natalie and my uncertainty in rejecting Kristen.