Forgive me

“But Mom, I saw Mia preparing the basket, I know we’re going on a picnic, Uncle Arden promised me!” Hope looked pleadingly at Emma, despite her determined little voice.

“Hope honey, you know how busy Uncle Arden is and we hardly ever see him.

"Besides, Mia didn’t mention anything, did she?“ She stroked her daughter’s hair gently, while her gaze was directed at Mia, who just turned away head, smiling enigmatically, continuing to work in the kitchen.

A rough cough was heard from the door, to which Emma jerked suddenly, seeing a tall man with blond hair and eyes, whom she recognized as Beta, standing still.

“Devek!“, Hope suddenly broke out of her hand, running into his arms, which surprised Emma.

“Hey, pumpkin” he laughed happily, lifting Hope into his arms.

“Ready?“, he whispered to her, looking at Emma who raised an eyebrow, questioningly which made him serious and cleared his voice, gently letting Hope go, while she was holding him still for blond hair.

“I’m sorry Luna, Alpha ordered me to take you to him. I’m Beta Derek, by the way.” He smiled a bit, giving her a hand.

Ema smiled, seeing his reaction, then readily gave him a hand.

“I’m sorry about Hope, she recently lost a tooth, so the letter R is difficult for her. I’m glad Derek and please call me Emma, ” She demanded, with a determined look.

“Oh, I don’t mind that about the little pumpkin, my Mate laughs at it, and I like to see her happy, ” he laughed while he led them to the SUV.

“I see that my daughter has settled in quite well, she knows more people than I do”, she stated while she was looking suspiciously at Hope, who now bowed her head Emma knew that Hope was spending a lot of time with Mia, ​​who takes her everywhere with her, while she goes to the library to investigate, but also to avoid Arden.

Honestly, she wanted her daughter to know that she could tell her everything, even though she had no threats here.

Emma wasn’t afraid for her, not here, but she could never relax, wherever she was, she felt restless, not knowing why.

“I’m sorry mom,” she said while she hugged Emma tightly, “but I know you know where I am at every moment”, her little girl, rather mature for her age, declared.

It was probably because both of her parents were strong Alpha, although Emma assumed that Hope’s biological father was also an Alpha, she wasn’t sure.

We’re here, Luna”, Derek cut her out of her thoughts when she looked at him questioningly.

“What did I tell you about that a moment ago?“

“Mom,” Hope took her arm and whispered in her ear.

“Derek has to call you Luna, Uncle Arden demands it, only he can call you by your name, but when he’s not around, so can Dev too.”

She laughed, raising her eyebrows, looking at both of them, while they tried not to burst out laughing, but Ema pulled herself together and confirmed her words, more serious.

The sight in front of her left her breathless, while in the distance she could hear a car driving away, as well as Derek, leaving them alone with Alpha, whom she didn’t see right away.

It was because of a huge waterfall, which was falling into a clear pond, in front of her, taking her breath away, instilling peace in her soul, while she was holding her daughter, no less excited with the sight.

“Oh my God”, she whispered and then jumped, frightened by the silhouette emerging from the water.

“Oh, God!” She clutched her chest as she saw Arden coming out of the lake in just his swimming trunks as Hope ran happily towards him.

“Uncle Arden, I knew you’ll remember”, she yelled and jumped into his arms.

With a confused smile on his face, he quickly lifted her into his arms, when her small arms found themselves around his neck, waking up his unknown feeling towards the child who was not his, but he felt it more than if it was.

His gaze was directed towards Emma, who was looking at him now, confused by the reaction he caused in her, and she was not sure whether his bright gaze scared her or lured her completely, because those very same eyes were, after all, totally different.

Arden’s eyes however regardless of his behavior so far, were honest and bright, like Hope’s, not cold, like...her father’s.

She swallowed, shuddering, which he noticed, sending Hope to the log cabin next to, him to prepare for a swim, approaching her slowly while the water was dripping from his wet, dark hair.

She panicked because of his appearance, which broke down all her walls, and when he touched her, sending strong sparks through her body, she was no longer aware of anything except his proximity.

“Are you okay?“ His husky voice echoed, through her body, sending blood to her cheeks and while he gently moved her hair from her face, she was feeling it all burn.

She only managed to nod her head to confirm, avoiding his gaze that burned her.

He pulled away abruptly, putting his hands behind his back.

“You can change in the log cabin,” his voice sounded serious, with his gaze remaining the entire time on her, while she was moving fast towards the log cabin.

She closed the door, leaning on them, trying to catch her breath, when her daughter’s happy laugh brought her back to reality.

She was already dressed in an adorable bathing suit, rolling around happily in front of the big fireplace where the fire was burning, and Emma could see how cozy and beautifully decorated the log cabin, with lots of space, simple and tasteful.

She sent Hope to Arden, while she also changed into a black bikini, which she found on the bed, quickly finished the bathroom, checking if everything was okay.

She was surprised that he knew exactly what her size was, and he also had good taste, she had to admit.

She shook her head when she caught herself thinking about him. When she appeared at the door, Hope waved at her, from the shallow water, while Arden’s gaze measured her slowly, from head to toe until their eyes met for a moment.

That made her feel excitement and fear, but of a completely different kind, and when she saw an imperceptible smile in the corner of his lips, in his eyes, she saw and felt trust.

Looking at him with Hope, she knew that he would never hurt her, not in the way she had always feared.

Khan watched them from a distance, knowing their every move, by his sources.

He was furious at life.

That was his child there but he felt nothing, he just wanted revenge for the life his brother and his parents gave him...pain and bitterness.

He knew from the start, when he captured the witch, that Ema was Arden’smate, and he looked at her like every female in his life, like a whores, because no one couldn’t compare to his dead Mate.

He never found out her name.

He saw her lying there, pregnant with another man, rogue, for she was ready to kill, but his father was faster.

He didn’t leave him no choice or a chance to change her, to try to bond her to himself, to feel the love that all Mates felt.

He couldn’t accept that, he went crazy and heartless, with only one mission...

Destroy everyone that had anything to do with his past life, but first, they needed to suffer as he did.

The only thing he wanted now was death because his heart died that day with his Mate.