Chapter 43 Stand By His Side

[Stephanie]

My home was not far from the hospital house, less than half a mile. After leaving the park, a straight road led directly to the backyard of the packhouse.

I ran wildly in the pouring rain. It was summer, and the rain was not cold on me. However, I accidentally stepped into a puddle. The splash jumped into my shoes and soaked my socks, increasing my irritation.

I opened the mind link with Rose. "Rose, say something. Or I'll go crazy."

"While you're listening to your mate talk to that human woman, I swear our mind link is off, and my mood and thoughts will never affect you." Rose giggled.

"Oh, Rose, I can't thank you enough," I said, then stepped in another puddle.

Shouting and screaming all my grievances may help me relieve, but it was inappropriate to do it in the pouring rain. I was not the heartbroken actress in the drama. My heart wasn't broken; it was just weighed down by a huge monster made of jealousy.

"Steph, admit it! You're jealous of that human girl and the women he's dated. You want to date Arthur, and you want him." Rose chattered inside my head.

"So what? He probably still likes that human woman to this day. He could have let Emily go back in time."

I stopped in front of the metal fence gate in the backyard of the packhouse. My wet hair stuck to my cheeks, and I gasped for air, but I was still very uncomfortable with the lump in my throat.

"Steph."

Arthur's voice was getting closer to me. Why was he coming after me? I just wanted to be left alone.

I wiped the rain off my face and saw his figure getting closer to me. I pulled the back door open, went home, and locked the door from the inside.

The packhouse was empty. I glanced at the clock on the wall. At this time, Mrs. Grete usually took a few other maids out to pick up the necessities, and they were probably trapped in the store by the downpour, waiting for it to stop. No one would be foolish enough to run wildly down the road, in the lightning and thunder of the rain, except me.

With the muddy water in my shoes, I quickly headed to the second floor. I looked back at the water stains on the floor and stairs and felt sorry for the omega in charge of cleaning.

I went back to my bedroom, grabbed my white robe on the velvet reading chair, and slid into the room at the end of the hallway-my own bathroom. I needed a shower. I needed hot water to wash away my childishness, my jealousy, and even my desire for Arthur if that was possible.

I unscrewed both faucets and waited for the warm water to fill the tub.

The mirror faithfully reflected how wretched I was now. Raindrops slid down my cheekbones to my chin. Soaked hair plastered down to my chest. My golden-brown eyes had lost their sparkle. Under my eyes were faint dark circles. My lips had lost their original color.

"Steph, look, there's a zombie girl in the mirror!" Rose laughed loudly inside my head.

I forced my lips to curve upward as the girl did the same thing. This zombie girl was me.

"You look terrible, Steph. This doesn't look like you at all," I muttered to the me in the mirror.

"It does look awful," Rose said.

I took off my clothes and turned on the shower next to the tub.

The water was a little cold. I looked up and wrapped my arms around myself.

"Rose, I'm acting like a childish loser. I turned away while he was on the phone. I thought I could act like I didn't care so much because whatever had happened between him and Emily or the other woman, those were his past doings." I said to Rose after my head had gradually calmed down.

I turned off the shower and stepped into the tub. The hot water wrapped around my body up to my breasts position, warming my heart and relaxing my spirit. I cupped a handful of hot water and flung it onto my face.

"Then you don't feel anything for him anymore? You don't want him to be your mate anymore?" Rose asked me.

These were two good questions. Sometimes finding your way out of the chaotic thoughts may only require some words or a simple question or two from an outsider.

Would I change my feelings about Arthur because of his past? Of course not. As he told me this morning, he would not deny his feelings for me because of my past. Then I wouldn't deny my feelings after knowing his past.

And, not only did I not become less fascinated with him, I even became possessive of Arthur.

"Just on the contrary. I want to try being his Luna. I want to... stand by his side." I answered Rose's questions.

After spitting those words out, the lump in my throat, rocks in my stomach, and jealousy monster in my heart were all gone. I leaned back against the tub, straightened my legs, and stretched out with my arms wide open.

"Well! It's totally up to you. It's your body and your mate. even though I don't agree with you being infatuated with this alpha king so fast that you want to be his Luna." Rose said and sighed.

"Why? Do you still suspect Arthur will kill us? Or do you just not like him?" I was surprised. Rose had overheard my conversation with Arthur. I had thought she had let down her guard.

"We haven't figured out his back story yet. How did he know we were his mate and just happened to show up when we were dying? And his trustworthy friend, I mean, what kind of friend would take part of her friend's life before agreeing to help him use the Phoenix Blood to save us? I don't understand." Rose said.

"I understand your concern. But until then, we can probably be less wary. He's not our enemy, at least." I said.

I didn't want my wolf to dislike my mate. After all, I couldn't always close the mind link with Rose when I was with Arthur.

"You'll see, I'll find a way to ask for some valuable information from my mate. He's not very talkative, but he likes me a lot. I knew that when we met last night." Rose's voice revealed her smugness.

"Well! At least you're willing to trust Arthur's wolf. That's some progress." I nodded and moved my body forward, so my shoulders were surrounded by hot water as well.

Half an hour later, I was wrapped in my robe and, blowing my hair with the hairdryer, with a relaxed look.

Bright eyes, rosy cheeks, sandy pink lips. Compared to the mess I was in, I looked much better after the shower. Maybe I could try taking a shower right away when I was really irritated in the future.

I opened the bathroom door and immediately smelled the strong scent of fir in the air, along with the fragrance of men's shampoo. I turned to my lower right and found the source of the smell that was captivating me. He was sitting in front of the door to my bedroom.

The light in the hallway was turned on, and the light illuminated the man's still slightly damp, dark brown hair. He had changed into a tight black T-shirt and a pair of dark green shorts and was reading intently with a book he had found somewhere in his hand.

Before I went home, I locked the back door to prevent Arthur from chasing me. It seemed impossible that he had a key to the front door. So, how did he get in?

Arthur noticed me coming out of the bathroom, and he looked up at me and generously gave me a grin, "Looks like my grumpy girl got her good mood back, eh?"

"Aren't you furious? I was disgruntled because of some stupid reasons. And I locked you out of the house and let you get soaked in the rain." I asked him, raising my eyebrows. Although I was curious about how he got into the house, I was more interested in why he didn't get mad at me for my stupid behavior.

Arthur stood up from the floor and glanced at the watch on his wrist, his arms folded across his chest.

"I felt worried an hour and a half ago. I thought you were under the influence of your wolf again. But your wolf doesn't like me. There's no way she would react that way because of Emily. Besides, Paul and I said that your wolf is mentally stable. So, I choose not to bother you. Go back to my room, take a shower, read for a while. Wait patiently for you to come out. But I underestimated your shower time." His lips were spread in a sly smile.

I sighed and looked down at my toes. I'd rather him be mad at me and not tolerate my bad temper like this. If this continued, I might take advantage of him and become a woman I don't even like myself.

"Hey, Steph, look at me." He walked up to me and gently allowed my chin to rest in his right hand, causing me to shift my gaze to his eyes which were more profound and more beautiful than the night and the ocean.