Chapter 248: Chapter 248 The Truth 1
Author
Quinn took a breath.
"Yeah. Depression."
She said it like the word still felt heavy in her mouth. "Back then, Alpha Dominic needed meds every single day just to keep the dark thoughts from swallowing him whole. His room had blackout curtains so thick you couldn’t tell if it was noon or midnight."
Elara’s stomach twisted. She had never heard any of this.
"He barely talked to anyone," Quinn continued. "His whole life was just going to physical therapy, pushing his body until it gave out, then going back to that empty house where nobody was waiting for him."
"That sounds..." Elara started, but her voice cracked. She didn’t know how to finish the sentence.
"It was bad," Quinn said quietly. "Really bad."
"How do you know all this?"
Quinn leaned forward. "One time, he left his phone at the rehab center. I drove to his place to drop it off. That’s when I saw what his life really looked like."
She paused. Her eyes got distant.
"I’ll never forget the look on his face when he opened that door. Empty. Like someone had reached inside him and turned off the lights."
Elara’s chest ached. She wanted to say something, but the words wouldn’t come.
"That day, I told him something." Quinn’s voice softened. "I said if he kept going like that, his body would never catch up. Your brain and your body aren’t separate. You need some light in your head to get your body to heal."
"And he listened?" Elara asked.
"Not at first." Quinn almost smiled. "But I told him if he couldn’t find a reason to keep going for himself, maybe he could put someone at the center of his chest. Say their name every morning. Picture them next to him. See if that helped."
Elara’s throat closed up.
She already knew what was coming next.
"So the name he said every day..."
"It was yours," Quinn said softly. "Yes."
Elara’s eyes started to burn. She pressed her lips together, trying to hold it together.
"Sometimes I’d see him standing by the window, talking to himself," Quinn said. "But he wouldn’t let anyone get close, so I could never hear what he was saying."
She paused.
"But one time, he pushed himself too hard in rehab and passed out. And while he was out, he called your name."
A tear slipped down Elara’s cheek. She didn’t wipe it away.
"After that day, he opened up a little," Quinn said. "Not much. Just small things. He said you were beautiful. That when you got scared, you looked like a deer caught in headlights. He said your name was pretty. That’s how I remembered it."
Elara let out a shaky breath. "He never told me any of this."
"I know." Quinn’s voice was gentle. "That’s why I’m here."
She paused. "I’ll be honest. The first time I saw you, I was jealous. I had some resentment toward you."
Elara looked up.
"But that went away fast." Quinn smiled a little. "Because you’re genuinely good people. You and Alpha Dominic fit. And last time I saw him, I realized he still hadn’t told you any of this."
"So before I leave the country, I wanted to give him one last gift." She met Elara’s eyes. "I hope you like it."
Elara couldn’t speak. Tears were running down her face now.
"Thank you," she managed. Her voice was barely a whisper.
She felt sick with herself. Ashamed for doubting him. Ashamed for listening to Zack. Ashamed for standing in front of that safe like some paranoid detective in a bad crime show.
"I’m sorry," Elara said, standing up fast. "I have to go. I need to see him."
Quinn understood. She stood up and smiled.
"Go. I said what I came to say."
Elara wiped her face with the back of her hand.
"Be happy, Elara."
Elara nodded, her voice thick. "You too."
--
Alpha Dominic’s left eye wouldn’t stop twitching.
He was sitting in a glass conference room on the 32nd floor of a high-rise in downtown Seattle. Some guy in a suit was droning on about Q3 projections. Market penetration. Revenue streams. Alpha Dominic had stopped listening about twenty minutes ago.
His phone lit up on the table.
A text from Elara.
His heart did that thing it always did when he saw her name. That stupid little jump that made him feel like a teenager.
"Babe, you thinking about me?"
He smirked. Typed back.
"Where are you?"
Three words. He didn’t need to say more. He knew.
She was here.
His thumb moved fast over the screen. "You came all the way to find me?"
"Yeah. Just got to your hotel."
Alpha Dominic sent her his location every single time he traveled. Never thought twice about it. That was just how he was with her. Open. No walls. All in.
"I’m on my way."
His heart was hammering. He didn’t know why she was here, but he could feel it in his gut. This wasn’t just a "missed you" visit. Something had happened.
He stood up mid-sentence.
Chairs scraped the floor. Everyone turned to look at him.
His assistant closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.
He knew exactly what was going on. There was only one person on the planet who could make Alpha Dominic walk out of a board meeting like this.
The drive back to the hotel was a blur.
--
Alpha Dominic pushed through the hotel lobby doors. His eyes scanned the couches, the chairs, the bar area.
Then he saw her.
Sitting on a low leather couch near the windows. She looked up the second he walked in. Their eyes met.
"Hey," he said. His voice came out rough.
Elara stood up. She didn’t run to him. She walked. Fast. But not running. Like she was trying to hold herself together.
When she got to him, she didn’t say anything. She just wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her face into his chest.
He felt her shake.
"Hey," he said again, softer this time. His arms closed around her. "What’s going on?"
She pulled back just enough to look at him. Her eyes were red. But she was smiling.
"I know," she said. "About everything. The depression. The rehab. What you went through."
Alpha Dominic’s chest went tight.
Then she took his hand and placed it on her stomach.
"And I have something else to tell you," she said. Her voice broke into a laugh. "I’m pregnant. Like, actually pregnant. You’re going to be a dad."
