Chapter 81 We Need To Keep Our Distance

"Sebastian."

Serena reached for his hand as he crushed the cigarette in the ashtray.

"Why are you here?" he asked.

"Your parents called. Isabella is scared, and I’ve been worried sick."

She checked his fingers for burns, then brushed her thumb along his jaw.

"Please don’t start smoking again."

Her familiar scent filled the car. Once, it would have calmed his wolf without fail.

Serena closed her eyes and leaned closer.

Just before their lips met, Alpha Sebastian turned away.

A strange panic tightened his chest.

He loved Serena. He had waited years for her. He had never even slept with Eira because part of him had always belonged to Serena.

So why had he pulled back?

The video Alpha Killian had shown him flashed through his mind. If it got out, Serena would be branded as the woman who broke up an Alpha’s marriage. Her career and her chance of becoming a respected Luna would take a serious hit.

That had to be the reason.

He was protecting her.

Serena opened her eyes. Her scent turned sharp with hurt.

"We need to keep our distance," Alpha Sebastian said.

She went still. "You don’t want me anymore."

A tear rolled down her cheek.

"That’s not it." Alpha Sebastian wiped it away. "Someone recorded us kissing at the gala. If that video gets out, the press will tear you apart."

"Then you should..."

Divorce her.

The words almost slipped out.

Serena swallowed them.

If she pushed too hard, Alpha Sebastian might finally ask himself why he could not let Eira go. Serena had already seen the way his wolf reacted to his wife. He called it duty and possessiveness, but she knew better.

She could not afford to make him see it too.

Alpha Sebastian was no longer the ambitious young executive she had left behind. He now ran Hale Group and stood next in line to lead the Hale Pack. He had money, influence, and a future most women in their circle would fight for.

Serena had not come back to lose him to the wife she once considered temporary.

She lowered her eyes and made her voice shake.

"So that’s it? You’re cutting me loose because I left?"

"Serena, no."

"My grandfather sent me overseas. I didn’t have a choice."

"I know."

Alpha Sebastian remembered the night he had planned to tell Serena how he felt.

She disappeared before he got the chance. No warning. No goodbye. Hours later, a mutual friend told him she had left California.

He had thought he would never see her again.

When Serena finally reached out, he forgave her. After that, he flew overseas for her birthday every year. He paid for her apartment, supported her career, and waited for her to come home.

Serena saw his expression soften and pressed her advantage.

"Don’t walk away from me now," she whispered. "You promised you never would."

Her flower-sweet scent filled the car, familiar enough to stir his wolf.

"You’re the only man I’ve ever loved. The only man I’ve ever been with."

Alpha Sebastian’s hands tightened around the steering wheel.

He remembered the night they had crossed that line. They had both been drinking, but he had never regretted it.

"If you’re worried being with me will ruin both our reputations," Serena continued, "I don’t care."

The truth was, she cared more about her own reputation than she would ever admit. But she could not let him pull away now.

If she could no longer push him toward divorce, she would have to deal with Eira herself.

"Serena," he said, his voice softening.

"I’m here. I’m not leaving you again."

Another tear slipped down her cheek.

Alpha Sebastian wiped it away.

"Just give me time."

The same promise he had made for years.

Serena leaned into his palm. "Okay."

She tried to kiss him again.

Alpha Sebastian turned his face away, but this time he pulled her into his arms.

It was not what Serena wanted, but she let it go. She had something more important to find out.

"What happened with Isabella?" she asked. "Was the hotel incident really a misunderstanding?"

Alpha Sebastian released her.

"No. Isabella planned the whole thing."

Serena went cold.

"How do you know?"

"I heard her admit it." He rubbed a hand over his face. "She drugged Eira and arranged for that man to enter the room."

Serena watched him carefully. "Did she say anything else?"

"Like what?"

"Nothing. I mean, what did you do?"

"I told her I was done covering for her."

His gaze returned to the Thorne estate gates.

"Before I knew the truth, I tried to force Eira to change her statement. I even told her to apologize to Isabella."

His wolf shifted with shame. "I failed her."

Serena’s stomach tightened. The plan had not only failed. It had made Alpha Sebastian feel guilty about Eira.

"Don’t beat yourself up," she said gently. "You believed your sister. Anyone would."

"I should’ve believed my wife."

The answer caught Serena off guard.

She hid her anger behind a soft smile.

"Eira will come around. Family forgives family."

Alpha Sebastian said nothing.

"And Isabella was wrong," Serena added quickly. "There’s no excuse for what she did. Still, Eira is safe. Thanks to Alpha Killian."

She let his name hang between them.

"He found her right away, carried her out, and stayed through her treatment." Serena paused. "That’s a lot for an Alpha to do for an employee."

Alpha Sebastian’s jaw tightened.

Serena lowered her voice.

"Do you think Alpha Killian has feelings for YOUR Luna?"

"Impossible." Alpha Sebastian frowned. "Killian is the Alpha to one of the oldest packs in the country. Why would he be interested in someone like Eira? Besides, he knows she’s married to me."

He folded his arms.

"He’s using her to get under my skin. That’s all."

Serena gave him a doubtful look. "Why would he bother?"

"Because we’re fighting for the same ground in the tech industry."

Sterling Group was a corporate giant, but Sterling Tech was still a new branch.

Hale Group had spent more than a decade building its name in the industry, with money and political support from the Carter Pack.

The Carter Group was a first-tier pack with deep ties to several regional councils. Their alliance with the Hales gave Alpha Sebastian access to investors, government contracts, and talented young wolves from across the country.

In the human world, it looked like corporate backing.

Among wolves, everyone knew what it really was. Two packs protecting the same territory.

"It’s an Alpha power play," Alpha Sebastian said. "He wants me off balance."