His Redemption (Complete His Series)

I was able to fly under the radar all day and avoid Gwen. I got my whole To-Do List taken care of, baked a decadent peanut butter cake with fudge icing, and even caught up on a little bit of paperwork the Old Man was behind on. It was just about 4 pm, and I was back in my apartment freshening up before dinner. I planned on going up to the front desk, so I could meet Liam when he arrived. I had butterflies filling my nervous stomach.

I heard a knock at my door, and I opened it to see John standing there with a huge grin on his face.

“Well, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes,” he chirped.

“Hi, John. How are you?” I greeted him.

“Much better now, Miss Lea. I was wondering if you could possibly join me for dinner this evening. I have missed seeing your face these past few days and would love to catch up.”

“Oh John, I am so sorry. I have a guest coming for dinner.”

“It’s not that large fellow is it?” he said in a serious tone. He stood a little taller as he said it, almost as if Liam angered him in some way.

“Uh, if you mean the man you have met a few times now, yes, actually….” I said nervously.

“Miss Lea, I got to be honest with you. I don’t like that guy much. I am pretty good at judging people, and I don’t like what I see with him.”

“Well, John, that is unfortunate. Liam is a wonderful man, and I do not think it’s fair for you to judge him without knowing him, to be honest. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to finish getting ready and head back up to the Inn,” I said to him, a little angry now. No, his first impression of Liam that day in the dining room wasn’t great, but he had no right to judge him.

“I am sorry, Miss Lea. Forgive me. I will see you later, okay?” he said.

“Sure,” I said shortly, closing my front door in his face.

I grabbed my things and checked the front window to make sure John was gone. After seeing the coast was clear, I made my way back over to the Inn.

Liam

It had been a long night and day, but luckily, Azalea stayed in the Inn all day. Damien had come and relieved me to watch over her for a few hours so I could sleep. I was now headed over to the Inn in my SUV. It was still a tad early, but I hoped she wouldn’t be upset. Gavin was restless, and I needed to see her.

I parked in the lot, noticing one of the pack cars parked there. Good, there were still wolves at the Inn. Hopefully, they would be discreet this evening if they came down for dinner.

I made my way inside and approached the front desk. The same black-haired girl that flirted with Damien and me when we stopped for lunch was behind the desk.

“Hello, welcome to the Blue Moon Inn. Are we checking in or here for dinner?” she asked in a sweet voice.

“I am actually meeting someone for dinner. I can just wait up here for her,” I told her.

“I can seat you in the dining room if you wish,” she said, batting her eyelashes at me. I fought the urge to roll my eyes at her.

“That is alright. I am a bit early. I am sure she will be here any minute,” I said, hoping she would drop it.

“Alright, then. My name is Lemon. If you need something, don’t hesitate to ask,” she said with a wink. I gave her a tight smile and walked towards the sitting area near the dining room. Hopefully, Azalea would pop in here soon, so this Lemon girl would stop ogling me.

“Liam?” I heard a voice come from behind. My eyes grew wide as I turned around and saw Gwen descending the staircase. What the hell? Why in the world would Damien send Gwen here? He knows how she is about me!

“Gwen, what are you doing here?” I hissed, coming closer to her.

“Lily needed wolves to come watch over the humans, so she sent me. Brandon is here too. What are you doing here?” she asked, running her hand up my chest. I grabbed her hand, stopping her advance.

“Stop now, Gwen. I am not here for that. I am, uh, here on business,” I lied.

“Liam, I know when you’re lying. We grew up together. Why are you really here?” she said, yanking her hand from my grip.

I sighed, running my hand through my hair. Goddess, why did Lily have to send Gwen last night. She really couldn’t find anyone else?

Before I could answer, I heard a small “Ahem,” and looked over to see Azalea standing by the dining room. “s**t,” I breathed as I looked from Gwen to Azalea. She looked scared, standing there staring at Gwen and me. Her eyes almost looked hurt at the same time. I had planned on telling her about everything on our next date. I didn’t think she would recognize anyone sent out here, and the patrols were told to be extremely discreet.

“Liam is that-” Gwen started, but I cut her off with a growl.

“Go now. Do not speak to either of us and keep your questions to yourself.” I linked her. She crossed her arms and scowled at me before turning around and walking back up the stairs. I looked over to Azalea, who was shaking slightly. I walked over to her and reached out my hand to hold her face.

“Azalea, I can explain….” I said quietly. She swallowed and stayed silent. “Look, some things have gotten complicated with the pack. I was going to explain everything to you, just not tonight. I had no idea she was going to be here. I would have never sent Gwen of all people here….” I said, looking into her large green eyes.

She looked down and shook her head like she was composing herself. She took a deep breath before quietly saying, “It’s okay. It isn’t my business. She is a guest here.”

I put my finger under her chin and lifted her gaze to mine; I could see tears brimming in her eyes. “Azalea, she won’t do anything to you, I promise. I won’t let her near you. I won’t let her tell anyone who or where you are. I promise, baby. I am so sorry.” She nodded her head then stepped forward, closing the distance between us. She buried her head in my chest and wrapped her arms around my stomach. I immediately wrapped her in my arms and held her close.

“How about we go somewhere else for dinner? We don’t have to stay here with Gwen,” I suggested quietly to her.

She pulled away and said, “Are you sure that’s okay?”

“Of course. If it scares you to be here with her, then we won’t stay.”

“Thank you,” she said with a small smile on her lips.

“Do you need anything before we go?” I asked.

Her eyes grew wide. “Wait right here!” She exclaimed as she darted back to the kitchen. I stood there waiting for her return; I would need to link Damien later about Gwen. I looked over to the front desk and caught Lemon giving me a sour look. I chuckled to myself. I guess she didn’t think Azalea would be her competition.

Azalea reemerged a few minutes later. “Ready to go?” I asked. She nodded her head with a big smile. I held my hand out, and she grabbed it with her small, soft one immediately. I momentarily basked in the pleasurable sparks that erupted from her touch. I turned to lead us out, ignoring the death glare Gwen was giving me from the staircase.

“Where the f**k are you going with her?” Gwen linked me. I blocked her out and focused my attention on Azalea.

“So, is there anywhere in town you would like to go?” I asked her. There were not too many options as this was a very small town.

“There is an Italian restaurant a couple of blocks that way,” she said, pointing.

“Italian sounds great,” I said with a smile. She seemed to relax more the further we got away from the Inn.

We made our way to the little Italian restaurant. We got ourselves a table and ordered dinner. We fell into easy and comfortable conversation after the waitress left that continued throughout the meal. She talked animatedly about the Inn and books she had read recently. I was completely enraptured with everything she said.

We were in our own world, and everything was perfect until we had finished dinner. The waitress brought a couple of coffees as we showed no signs of leaving yet. I planned on leaving a large tip for taking up a table all evening. Just then, John Henry walked up to the table.

“Well, fancy this, Miss Lea. We meet again,” he said to Azalea, doing his best not to acknowledge me. I growled low enough that he would not be able to hear with human hearing. As I did, I saw his ear twitch ever so slightly.

“Hi, John,” she said coolly.

“Oh, I don’t mean to interrupt or anything. Just grabbing some take-out tonight,” he said. Turning to me, he continued, “I don’t believe we have had the formal pleasure yet. My name is John Henry. I am a friend of Miss Lea’s here in town.” He held his hand out to me.

I looked at his hand. If he was a friend of hers, I should play it nice. But something was off about him. Grabbing his hand, I said, “Nice to formally meet you. Liam Blackfur.”

“Pleasure is all mine. How do you know our sweet little flower?” he asked. She gave him a curious look before looking at me.

“We were childhood acquaintances. Now, if you do not mind, we were just about to pay our bill and leave,” I said, standing up. I pulled my wallet out and dropped money on the table, more than enough to cover our meal and a large tip. I held out my hand to Azalea, saying, “Shall we, beautiful?”

She smiled and grabbed my hand. As she stood, I wrapped my arm around her waist. I nodded at John and began to steer her toward the door. As we left the restaurant, Gavin was in my head yelling at me to go back and rip him to shreds for laying eyes on our mate.

Azalea

“I am so sorry about that,” I said quietly to Liam, embarrassed about John interrupting us.

“It’s not your fault. I just don’t like the way he looks at you,” he told me. I don’t really blame him. John has been acting odd ever since Liam showed up. He removed his hand from my waist and entangled his fingers in mine. I happily held his hand and moved closer to his body. Now that the sun had set, it was getting a little colder out. I gripped his arm with my other hand as we walked. He looked down at me with a sweet smile on his lips.

“So, what now?” he asked.

“Well, I set aside some dessert for us back at the Inn. All the guests should be clear of the dining room now,” I said, hoping he would want to come back with me. I really wanted him to try some of the cake.

His face broke out into a giant grin. “You made dessert especially for me?” he asked excitedly.

I nodded my head, blushing a bit. “Do I get to know what it is?” he asked, still excited.

I thought for a moment and shook my head. “No, I think it should be a surprise,” I said with a smile.

“Let’s get a move on then!” he said happily. He picked up our pace so that I was almost jogging, my short legs struggling to keep up with him. On the other hand, he looked like he was just casually strolling down the street. After a few minutes, I had to slow him down.

“Uh, Liam, can we stop running?” I asked, out of breath.

“Oh goddess, I am sorry, Azalea. I forgot about you being smaller than me,” he said, slowing down his pace.

“Thank you,” I said, trying to catch my breath. He just chuckled at me. Before I knew it, we were back at the Inn. When we got to the front door, he opened it for me and bowed like a gentleman. I giggled and led the way inside. As we walked through the front, we heard a voice speak up.

“Liam, why in the f**k are you flaunting around with a traitor?”