Page 71 of Plus-Size Sold Mate
The doubt is loud and clear, just like the others.
As he predicted before, he thinks I’m losing control. I chose her when he warned me not to, I refused to bend, and I put my mate above appeasing everyone else, and now, I’m facing the consequences.
But consequences be damned, this isn’t over.
***
When I find Sera at the house, sitting in the living room with an untouched cup of tea in front of her, the bond feels bruised in a way, but I force myself to ignore it for now.
“We need to talk,” I start, pulling her attention to me.
The exhaustion in her eyes mirrors mine, but it hurts so much more to see it on her.
She takes a moment before she murmurs, “You look like you didn’t sleep.”
“I didn’t,” I answer, not seeing any point in lying about it. “And neither did you.”
She doesn’t deny it, since we both know it’s true.
Silence settles for a beat too long before I start, feeling far too raw and open, but I can’t hide it now. “I don’t know what, but something has to give.”
Her brows furrow, quietly watching me while she mulls over the words. “And by that you mean…?”
“Even if they don’t say it outright, the pack won’t put their complete faith in me, and my dad is one more slip-up away from pointing out everything I’ve gotten wrong.”
While Sera’s gaze doesn’t exactly soften, I catch how she falters slightly. “I never wanted to be the wedge.”
“You’re not,” I admit, running a hand through my hair with a tired, bitter exhale. “That wedge has been there since before I was old enough to become the Alpha.”
“But I haven’t exactly made it any better,” she insists, voice steady despite her exhaustion. “And with you trying to fight everyone at once, it isn’t helping.”
My jaw clenches as the tension that has been simmering all morning starts to rise again, quicker and more demanding. “Because they’re wrong.”
“You aren’t getting anywhere because you’re treating this like war,” Sera throws back at me, matching my frustration. “You’re pushing against them, your dad, and tradition. You’re trying so hard to prove something, and rather than your partner, you’re treating me like your cause.”
Every claim catches me off guard, caught in temporary silence while emotion shines in her eyes.
“I don’t want to be the thing you defend at the expense of everything else just because you feel guilty for dragging me into this,” she continues, hitting that sensitive place far harder thanI expect from her. “I want to help build this with you, not be the reason you lose it.”
“I don’t care about losing it,” I say before I can stop the pressure from giving way. When her expression shifts, as if I’ve startled her, I take a step forward, feeling raw now. “I don’t care about the title more than I care about you or the baby. If someone challenges me because I chose you, then I’ll fight like hell, but if I lose, I lose.”
Her brows pinch in disbelief. “Luke—”
“I need you,” I spill out, voice wavering in a way I never allow it to in front of anyone else. “More than I need the pack’s approval, and more than I need my father’s respect.”
Even when she doesn’t say anything as the stunned silence consumes her, I move closer until I’m kneeling and reaching for her hand.
“I can’t keep feeling this distance between us,” I continue, well aware that this can’t stay locked up a moment longer. “I know I’m to blame for your pain, and I know I’ve already pushed everyone beyond their limits. I have no right to ask this of you, but I want you to choose this with me. To work with me on this.”
Sera’s eyes search mine, surely searching for potential dishonesty or a trap, but I don’t have either.
“I want you by my side regardless of what happens. I want to raise our child in a way that feels right to both of us, not just to follow tradition, or how I’ve decided without your input,” I tell her, gently stroking my thumb against the back of her hand. “I’ve made a lot of this worse in some ways, and I’ve mishandled myself, but I can’t stand the thought of you hating me for it, or feeling trapped with me.”
“I don’t hate you,” she says, tone softer now as she swallows hard. “I’m overwhelmed.”
“So am I, even if I don’t say it,” I murmur, hating how weak that admission makes me feel despite knowing it needs to be said. It hangs between us before I exhale. “I’m asking you to choose me, and to fight for this with me, not against me. Even when it’s hard and overwhelming, and even if you’re so mad at me you don’t even want to look at me…I need to know you’re with me.”
Sera blinks some of the emotion back, taking the time to gather her words. A light, humorless sound escapes her. “You’re asking a lot from someone who doesn’t know the first thing about this.”
