Chapter 124 CONFESSION NIGHT
Raphael's Pov
I was working late in my office when someone knocked on the door around midnight. I looked up from the papers on my desk and called out for whoever it was to come in.
Celestia entered and closed the door behind her. She looked serious and a bit nervous which immediately caught my attention.
"Celestia is everything alright? It is very late," I said.
"I need to speak with you privately. It cannot wait," Celestia said as she sat down across from me.
"Of course. What is on your mind?" I asked.
She took a deep breath before speaking and I could tell whatever she was about to say was difficult.
"I am pregnant. With Lucian's child," Celestia said.
My stomach dropped at her words. She was carrying the Lycan King’s baby. I should have congratulated her, offered a smile, something gracious and expected. Instead, my chest tightened and the room seemed to tilt.
Jealousy flared—sharp, unwanted, and immediately followed by guilt. It wasn’t her fault. None of this was. Yet the ache settled deep, heavy with everything I had lost and everything I had once imagined for myself. The future she spoke of so easily was one I had quietly buried.
I forced my expression into something neutral, something passable. “That’s… wonderful,” I said, though the words tasted hollow.
She smiled, radiant and unaware, and I looked away before my sadness could betray me.
Some losses didn’t fade with time, they simply learned how to wait.
"That is wonderful news. Lucian must be very happy," I managed to say.
"I have not told him yet. I am not planning to stay with him," Celestia said quietly.
I stared at her in shock. Did she really just say she was leaving the Lycan King?
"What do you mean you are not staying with him? He is your mate," I said confused.
"I want to reject him and come back to you. I have always loved you Raphael. Even after everything that happened I never stopped loving you. Being back here made me realize I want a second chance with you," Celestia said.
My heart started pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears. She loved me. She wanted to come back to me. This was everything I had dreamed about since learning she was innocent.
For years, I had replayed the past in my head, imagining a hundred different reunions—angry, broken, impossible. I had never allowed myself to picture this. Not hope. Not forgiveness. Not her choosing me again after everything I had failed to protect.
My hands trembled as I reached for her, half afraid she might vanish if I touched her. “Are you sure?” I asked, the question tearing out of me before I could stop it. “After everything I did… everything I didn’t do…”
She didn’t hesitate. She stepped closer, resting her forehead against my chest, right where my heart was trying to escape. “I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t.”
Something inside me finally broke—not in pain, but in relief so sharp it almost hurt. I closed my eyes, breathing her in, and made myself a silent vow. “This time, I would choose her… Every time.”
"You still love me? After everything I did to you?" I asked in disbelief.
"Yes. I know you made mistakes but I believe you can change. I believe we can have the life we were supposed to have before Eclipse and Medea ruined everything," Celestia said.
"I want that more than anything. God Celestia I have regretted losing you every single day for the past five years. I would give anything for another chance with you," I said desperately.
"Then we can make it happen. I will reject Lucian and return to you. We can raise Asher together as a real family," Celestia said.
Joy flooded through my entire body. This was really happening. Celestia was coming back to me.
For a moment, everything else faded—the tension, the fear, the years of distance and silence. All that mattered was the certainty of her return, the fragile promise of something mended. My hands trembled as I let the truth of it sink in, breath catching in my chest.
I had imagined this moment so many times, always afraid to hope too hard. Afraid that wanting it would somehow make it vanish. But now it was real... Tangible.
She had chosen to come back and with that choice came the possibility of forgiveness, of healing, of a future I had thought was lost forever.
"When? When will you reject him? When can we be together?" I asked standing up.
"Soon. But first I need you to do something for me. I need you to prove that you trust me completely. That you have learned from your mistakes and you will always put me first from now on," Celestia said.
"Anything. Tell me what you need and I will do it," I said immediately.
"I need you to strip Medea of all parental rights to Asher. I know I already have legal custody but I want it officially documented that she has absolutely zero claim to him. No rights whatsoever," Celestia said.
"Alright. I can do that. What else?" I asked.
"I need you to reject Medea publicly. In front of the entire pack at tomorrow's gathering. I need everyone to see that you are choosing me over her," Celestia said.
The request hit me like a punch to the gut. Public rejection was one of the cruelest things an Alpha could do. It would humiliate Medea completely in front of everyone.
No matter what she had done, no matter how false her claims or calculated her lies, the image of her standing there—stripped of title, status, and protection—twisted something deep in my chest. The pack would never forget it. Neither would she.
“This will destroy her,” I said quietly.
Celestia didn’t deny it. “She destroyed me first.”
The truth of that settled heavy between us. Mercy toward Medea would mean cruelty toward Celestia. There was no path that spared everyone. Only one that ended the lie.
I exhaled slowly, the weight of command pressing down on my shoulders. Being Alpha meant choosing which pain was necessary.
And tomorrow, I would choose the truth—even if it cut.
"Public rejection? Celestia that is very extreme. It will destroy her," I said hesitating.
"She helped destroy me. She pretended to be Asher's mother for five years. She helped Eclipse frame me and have me exiled. Why should I care if she gets destroyed? This is what I need from you to prove you have given me one hundred percent of your trust. If you cannot do this then I cannot come back to you," Celestia said firmly.
I looked at her and saw she was completely serious. This was not negotiable. If I wanted her back I had to do exactly what she asked.
And she was right about Medea deserving it. Medea had lied and schemed and hurt Celestia terribly. She did not deserve my protection or loyalty.
"You are right. She deserves whatever she gets. When do you want me to do it?" I asked.
"Tomorrow at the pack gathering. I need you to do it immediately so I know you are serious about choosing me," Celestia said.
Tomorrow. That was so soon. But maybe that was better. If I had too much time to think about it I might lose my nerve.
“Alright. Tomorrow at the gathering I will publicly reject Medea as my mate and strip her of all parental rights to Asher. I will make it clear to everyone that I am choosing you,” I said.
The words hung between us, heavy with consequence.
Celestia went very still. Hope flickered across her face, quickly chased by fear—not of losing me, but of what this choice would unleash. Public rejection wasn’t just personal. It was political. It would shatter alliances, ignite outrage, and expose wounds the pack had pretended were healed.
“You don’t have to do this for me,” she said quietly. “I won’t be the reason your pack tears itself apart.”
I cupped her face gently, forcing her to meet my eyes. “I’m doing this because it’s the truth,” I said. “Because I’ve lived a lie for five years and I won’t keep sacrificing my son—or you—for peace built on injustice.” Her breath hitched.
“Medea made her choices,” I continued. “Tomorrow, everyone will hear mine.”
She searched my face, as if looking for doubt. Finding none, her hand curled around my wrist, grounding herself in the reality of it.
“Then tomorrow,” she said softly, “everything changes.”
“Yes,” I agreed.
And for the first time, I wasn’t afraid of that. Because choosing her wasn’t just reclaiming my mate.
It was reclaiming myself.
Celestia smiled and stood up. She walked around my desk and took my hands in hers.
"Thank you. You have no idea how much this means to me. This proves that you really have changed. That you will put me first no matter what," Celestia said.
"I will always put you first. I should have done that five years ago. I will not make that mistake again," I said.
"What about the baby I am carrying? Does that bother you?" Celestia asked.
"We will figure it out together. You can end the pregnancy if you want or we can raise the child as ours. I do not care whose baby it is biologically. If it is part of you then I will love it," I said.
"You would really raise Lucian's child?" Celestia asked.
"If it means having you back in my life then yes. I would do anything for you Celestia. Anything at all," I said desperately.
She leaned up and kissed me. It was soft and brief, but it made my entire body feel alive again. I had been empty for five years, and suddenly I was whole.
I didn’t move at first, afraid that if I did, the moment would break—like it wasn’t real, like I’d wake up and find myself alone again. But when she stayed there, close enough that I could feel her warmth, something inside me finally unclenched.
I rested my forehead against hers, eyes closed, breathing her in… Familiar, safe and real.
“This doesn’t fix everything,” she whispered, almost as if she were afraid to hope too much.
“I know,” I said softly. “But it’s a start.”
And for the first time in years, that was enough.
"Tomorrow everything changes. After you reject Medea and strip her of all rights to Asher I will reject Lucian. Then we can finally be together the way we were meant to be," Celestia said.
"I cannot wait. I will do exactly what you asked. Medea will be publicly humiliated and everyone will know I choose you as my true mate," I said.
"Good. Make sure you are clear about why you are doing it. I want everyone to understand that you are correcting your mistakes and claiming your rightful mate," Celestia said.
"I will make it very clear. No one will have any doubt about my choice," I promised.