Chapter 239 239

Chapter 239 239
Nova's POV

"When Oliver died, something in Caden died too." Lydia sighed, her shoulders sagging from the weight of her thoughts.
I sat back down slowly. I knew Caden blamed himself and me for his Oliver's death, but try as I might, I had never been able to fully grasp why and Caden had never bothered to elaborate.
"Oliver's death. How did it happen?"
Lydia hesitated, giving me a look like she was considering whether to tell me or not.
"Lydia, please." I reached over again and covered her hand. "I need to understand what happened to help me move on from the past. I need to understand why Caden…why he hated me so much."
"Oh no, Caden never hated you," Lydia actually looked horrified at the thought. "I've known that man since he was a wolf cub and believe me, if he hated you, he would have never married you in the first place. No, I believe he liked you, even then. His wolf recognised yours as his mate, but…" she let out a heavy sigh. "Grief and loss sometimes cloud a person's judgement and make them do unreasonable things."
My throat tightened. "Unreasonable things."
Lydia winced at my tone. "I'm not trying to make excuses for him or minimize what you went through. Caden's behaviour towards you was wrong, regardless of his reasons. But, when you left, it shook him hard. He wasn't eating or sleeping, he'd prowl around the house at all hours, his wolf was giving him a hard time. I think that's when he slowly began to realize how much you actually meant to him and what his feelings were about you."
Her words made my heart ache painfully. "I'm sorry, but I find that hard to believe. He had Lila to comfort him, after all, so I don't think…"
"Caden didn't have a romantic relationship with Lila. Not after you left."
I actually laughed, the sound bitter. "You expect me to believe that? I saw them together with my own eyes."
"Saw them where?" Lydia's voice stayed gentle but firm. "At public functions? Those were for appearances only. But he never brought her into his home, and as far as I know, he didn't share her bed either.”
My fingers curled against the armrest. "You can't possibly know that."
"I can, actually." Lydia set down her mug with a guilty look. "I don't mean to gossip, but my daughter-in-law Heidi was Josh's nanny the entire time Lila lived here.”
"Heidi told you about Caden's personal business?" I kept my voice level, but my pulse hammered in my ears.
"It wasn't gossip." Lydia repeated, her expression stressed. "She just mentioned how Lila wasn't exactly subtle about her intentions to seduce the Alpha but he would turn her down every single time.”
I stared at the dark liquid in my mug, watching it tremble. My hands were shaking.
"I've watched him these past days." Her voice went softer. "Since you've been back, he's been…happier, calmer.”
I stared at my tea, not sure what to say at this point. Everything felt so surreal, like I was awake and yet living through a dream.
I set my cup down carefully. "I should go. Let you rest."
"Nova." She reached across the table and squeezed my hand. "The moon goddess doesn't make mistakes with mates. Maybe there's a reason you two found your way back to each other."
I pulled my hand back gently. "Thank you for the tea, Lydia. And for everything you shared with me."
She nodded.
Outside, I drew a deep breath to clear my head, then started back toward the main house, my thoughts tangled and messy.
Did knowing the nature of Caden and Lila's relationship change anything?
I wasn't sure, still confused as all hell.
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out and saw Harper's name.
\[Harper: Why the hell did Noah Windsor just show up at my office asking if you were alright? What happened?\]
My stomach dropped.
Shit.
I stared at the message, my mind racing. If I told Harper about the road attack, he'd raise hell and I wouldn't put it past him and dad to storm back to Shadowcrest and try to bundle Hudson and I out of here.
I typed quickly.
\[Me: He's probably just worried I haven't returned his calls. I've been busy with Hudson's treatment.\]
The reply came almost instantly.
\[Harper: Great. I'm about to kick this idiot out of my office.\]
Next, I pulled up Noah's contact and typed before I could overthink it.
\[Me: I'm sorry I haven't called. Can we meet for lunch today?\]
The response came within seconds.
\[Noah: Of course. Where and when?\]
\[Me: I'll text you in an hour with details.\]
I slipped my phone back in my pocket and turned toward the main house. I needed to find Caden, needed to tell him I was leaving the estate for a few hours. It was the responsible thing to do, given everything that had happened.
That's what I told myself, anyway.
One of the house staff told me he was at the training grounds. I changed direction, following the path that led east. I rounded the corner and my feet stopped moving.
Caden was in the center of the ring, shirtless and slick with sweat, circling Garrett.
My mouth went dry as he spun and his abs contracted with the movement, sweat trailing down the defined lines of his torso. He was all controlled power, brutal efficiency, and I couldn't look away.
Heat pooled low in my stomach and between my legs.
I should leave. I should turn around and walk away. But my body wouldn’t obey. The way his shoulders moved, the flex of muscle in his arms and the low-slung training pants that showed the V of muscle disappearing beneath the waistband was just too tempting to look away.
I pressed my thighs together, trying to ignore the ache building there.
Then he looked up and saw me.
Our eyes locked and his went dark, that shift from blue to stormy gray I'd seen a hundred times.
He moved through the crowd like they weren't even there, his gaze never leaving mine. I should run. Every rational part of my brain screamed at me to leave before I did something stupid. But I couldn't move, couldn't look away as he closed the distance between us.
My pulse hammered in my throat.
When he was close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off his skin, smell the salt and musk of his sweat mixed with something purely him, I forced myself to speak.
"I need to go meet someone." I said softly.
A fleeting expression of distaste crossed his face but he just nodded.
"Be careful," he said finally.
I nodded, and told myself to leave.
Instead, I stepped closer.
His whole body went rigid. I could see his hands curl into fists at his sides, see the restraint in every line of his frame. His scent wrapped around me, making my wolf stir with interest, making my skin feel too tight.
I lifted my hand. His eyes tracked the movement, locked on my finger as I reached toward his face. When I touched his chin, just a quick flick to indicate the smear of blood there, I felt him stop breathing.
"You've got a bit of blood there."
The air between us felt charged, dangerous and in that moment, I knew for certain that if Caden moved to kiss me, I wouldn't pull away. I would gladly cancel my plans and spend the rest of the day with him in bed, his knot buried deep inside me, my legs locked around his hips.
I made myself take a step back, breaking whatever spell had taken hold, and turned away.
I made myself walk. I made myself put one foot in front of the other even though my body screamed at me to stay.