CEO's Runaway Mate and Her Cubs

«Hello,» Lara said after knocking on the door.

Samantha liked to keep the door of her office open. Still, when Lara worked there, it had been closed for most of the time. The moment Lara was moved to another department, Samantha had returned to her usual habits.

«Hey,» she said with a tired smile. «I'm glad you're doing all right. Are the kids okay?»

«They are. I'm here to talk about you, though. I've heard you were in a... ehm, difficult mood? I wanted to check if I can help you.»

«Come in, please. There's nothing you can do to help me. No one can help me because I'm an idiot. But it will pass, just like any other problem does.»

«Is it related to your mate? I've also heard you found a mate, but I'm not sure how to interpret these words. Is it like it is for Nate and me?»

Lara sat down on her chair, unconsciously choosing the same as when she worked there. She even glanced at the documents on the desk but averted her gaze when she realised she wasn't working there anymore. Were a few days enough to build a habit?

Oh, in two more days, she would feel at home in Nate's mother's villa, in that case!

«Not quite. But it's not completely different either. You and Nate are fated together, and you have a family already. Sooner or later, you two will accept it and continue with your life. My mate is another wolf, and he's not very compatible with me.»

«How so?»

«Mhm?» Samantha hummed, surprised.

«Compatible? Do you mean compatible in bed? Or he's a bad person?»

In bed, they were rather compatible. Out of it... Samantha sighed, remembering the night he spent at her place. They could become compatible even out of bed with little effort. The way Rider had taken care of her had changed her relationship goals. From that moment, any man would struggle to meet her expectations.

«We're just not meant to be.»

«Oh, is that so?» Lara said. «I don't understand the mate links you wolves always think about, but I'm always told I have no choice, that I'll surrender sooner or later, and that Nate suffers when I'm not with him. Well, he didn't say this, but I kind of felt it in his mother's words. Everyone in the pack seems more relieved that I'm here, safe and sound, than annoyed because I'm human. It must mean something, right? You wolves respect mate bonds more than you respect hierarchies.»

«That... Well, it's not that we respect it. We can't fight it.»

«So, why in the world are you saying you and your mate aren't compatible? If you are fated to be together, sooner or later, you will surrender.»

«Lara, it's not about us. That's the whole situation...»

«I bet he's from another pack!» she exclaimed.

«Yes.»

«Oh, everyone knows this already, right? Because of... Uhm, scents?»

«Yes, that's right.»

«But if you act like this, it's not just about the pack... Or, rather, which pack? Is it far from here? Are you unhappy because you can't meet often?»

Samantha blinked, surprised by the efforts Lara put into that conversation. If it had been anyone else, she would have complained about her privacy and sent the intruder away. Yet, with that woman, it was difficult.

«Is it a rival pack?» Lara then asked, tilting her head.

That gesture reminded Samantha of Scarlet, and her heart forgot about Rider for a single, feeble moment. Yet, for that moment, it returned to beat.

It was enough to remind her that - even if she felt horrible - she was still alive.

«It is,» she confirmed. «Not just a rival pack.»

A lump formed in her throat, and she pressed a hand on her heart. It was beating so fast! So, she could feel something else, apart from nostalgia, guilt, and sadness.

It was the first time she talked about it with anyone, and she had to make sure Lara wouldn't spread the gossip in the pack. Yet, her suddenly awoken need to talk was stronger.

«It's from the pack that kidnapped you and the twins.»

Those words made Lara's face turn pale, but she cleared her throat and calmed down.

«That's why I wasn't there to help,» Samantha added, her head bowed as if she was confessing a crime. «Because I was distracted.»

It took a whole minute for Lara to return thinking. The shock had made her speechless, and she didn't even know what she was supposed to feel. Other than fear, due to the memory.

«Well, it's not your fault,» she said.

First of all, she had to hearten Samantha. The woman was visibly drowning in guilt, even if nothing bad had happened in the end. Everyone healed, including Jaden. Also, even if it didn't go well, it wouldn't have been Samantha's fault all the same! How could she know what was going on?

«And if you weren't there, your mate wasn't either,» Lara added. «He didn't participate in the kidnapping.»

Unless he was sent to distract Samantha to make things easier... It was a possibility, but that man should have felt the same as Samantha: that longing, the need to be close...

Either way, Lara's priority was to hearten the woman first. All the considerations about the reasons for that meeting could wait. She was safe; her cubs were safe. She could afford to think about it later when Samantha's expression wasn't as desperate as to make Lara feel sad as well.

«Is he your fated mate as well?» she asked.

She wasn't sure if every wolf had one. She didn't know whether it was actually as powerful as everyone told her. In the end, they could all have the hidden purpose to convince her to stay.

«I don't know. It's the first time I feel like this, and listening to Nate's story, I see a lot of similarities...»

«So, he is.»

«Most likely.»

«And you will suffer as long as you're not with him.»

«Yeah...»

«That's a difficult situation.»