Chapter 77


    Chapter 77: A Compromise


    Edrick


    In her fit of anger, Moana threw a pillow, of all things, on the floor. She stood there silently after she did


    it, breathing heavily through ring nostrils with her fists clenched at her sides. At that moment, she


    looked adorably small and helpless, like an angry child. But she wasn’t a child; she was a woman, and


    my actions had upset her.


    For some reason, seeing Moana act so passionately made me want to hold her. Without a word, I


    walked past the discarded pillow and pulled her tightly into my arms.


    She stiffened at first, shocked by my sudden disy of affection, before she finally rxed into me. Her


    petite body pressing against me made me feel warm all over, and for a long time, I just held her there in


    the middle of the living room. I didn’t want to get too close, but I couldn’t deny the feeling of her slightly


    protruding belly against mebined with her fluttering heartbeat. For a brief moment, I thought about


    our fated one night stand that resulted in her unexpected pregnancy. It started to make me a little


    aroused, admittedly, but I quickly pushed those thoughts back down and just focused instead of making


    the mother of my baby rx.


    As I hugged her, however, I was suddenly alerted to an oddly familiar smell. I couldn’t quite ce my


    finger on it at first, but it grew just a little stronger, and I suddenly came to the realization that it was the


    same scent that I picked up at the maze all of those weeks ago. Just as quickly as it came, however, it


    suddenly faded.


    I stopped hugging her and pulled away, looking down at her with narrow eyes. That scent was so


    distinct, and it was sweet. That day at the maze, I thought that it might have even been my mate’s


    scent, but that was impossible; Moana was a human. Was she hiding something from me?


    “What’s wrong?” Moana asked, looking up at me with innocent confusion written across her face.


    She looked genuine. I didn’t think that she had anything to hide; maybe it was just some perfume that


    she used on asion and it was nothing more than that.


    “Nothing,” I said, shaking my head and taking a step back.


    Neither of us spoke for a few moments until Moana finally said, “I’m sorry I got so worked up.” She


    solemnly walked over to the pillow that she had thrown on the floor and picked it up, setting it back


    down in its rightful ce on the couch with a sheepish expression on her face.


    I shrugged. “It’s alright.”


    Moana stared at the floor for a little bit. My own mind felt as though it was whirling around with a million


    different thoughts. I knew that I was being a jerk for not telling my mother about the baby, and for


    making Moana feel so badly. But at the same time, I was a werewolf from a highly esteemed family.


    Even though I did like Moana and enjoyed herpany, I could never be so forting publicly with a


    human nanny.


    “Well… Goodnight,” Moana said quietly before turning and walking toward her bedroom.


    I stared after her for a moment, biting my lip as I watched her go.


    “Wait.”


    She froze when I called out to her, then slowly turned to face me.


    “You know I’ll love our baby just as much as I love E,” I said, swallowing my pride. “I’m sorry that I


    made you think that I wouldn’t. My mother only put me on the spot yesterday, but… I know I should


    have just told her. If it’s important to you, we can tell her together tomorrow. But we can’t tell my father


    yet.”


    Moana’s demeanor seemed to soften a bit at my words. She nodded slightly to herself, staring at the


    floor, before lifting her gaze to meet mine. “Thank you,” she said. “I’d like that.”


    I managed a weak smile. Moana smiled a little in response, but quickly turned on her heel and


    retreated to her bedroom just as something indiscernible began to show in her eyes. I sighed as I heard


    her bedroom door click shut before I finally decided to try to get some sleep myself.


    Sleep didn’te easily, however. Even with my sleeping pills, Iid awake that night thinking about


    what I would say to my mother, and how she would react — especially when I would tell her not to say


    a word to my father. My mother was a kind andpassionate woman, but she also had her limits as a


    wealthy werewolf, and I wasn’t entirely certain that she would be particrly thrilled by the news. At the


    very least, there was somefort in knowing that she would still support my decision. Not only that,


    but it was afort to know that it would make Moana happy. I didn’t want to cause her too much


    stress for the baby’s sake.


    That night, as Iid awake, there was one other thing that kept floating through my mind.


    What was that scent, and why was it so sweet to me?


    …


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    The following afternoon, I kept through with my promise about telling my mother about the baby. We


    invited my mother out for lunch to tell her the news at a nearby restaurant, but told her specifically to


    come alone. I knew that she already had an idea about what we were going to tell her, but if she did,


    she didn’t say anything about it. I always appreciated that about my mother.


    When we arrived, my mother was already sitting at a table outside. It was a well-to-do establishment


    that was heavily frequented by other celebrities, so I feltfortable taking my mask off when Moana


    and I sat down.


    “Hello, dear,” my mother said to Moana, squeezing her hand. Her eyes momentarily flickered down to


    Moana’s belly, but she quickly looked away and smiled. “I hope you don’t mind, but I already ordered


    tea.”


    “Thank you, Verona,” Moana replied with a somewhat stiff smile. I could tell that she felt a bit


    ufortable in a wealthy establishment like this, but I’d made sure to have her get dressed


    appropriately, so she didn’t look terribly out of ce. Of course, there were a few strange looks as it


    was rare for a human to dine here, but no one was going to make a fuss about it with my mother and I


    here.


    The waiter quickly returned with our tea, then took our lunch orders. We made small talk while we


    waited for our food and ate pleasantly when our food came, but I could feel that the tension in the air


    was thick. The tension was only growing thicker by the minute as my mother no doubt began toe


    to her own conclusions in her head about why we were here, and Moana seemed to be getting


    impatient beside me, so I decided that it was time to get it over with.


    “Mom, Moana and I have something to tell you,” I said, staring down at my te as my heart quickened


    a bit. My mother raised an eyebrow when I looked up at her.


    “You were right the other day. Moana is pregnant with my child.”