Chapter 174
Ellie POV
“Ellie.”
My mother’s voice softens.
“I’m really…”
She pauses.
“Really happy for you.”
Her smile is gentle.
“For this.”
A pause.
“You’re not an ordinary wolf.”
My stomach tightens.
“This is…”
She squeezes my hand.
“What you deserve.”
I stare at her.
“Okay.”
I let out a small breath.
“That’s dramatic.”
But she doesn’t laugh.
She looks serious.
Almost certain.
“It’s not, my love.”
Her voice lowers.
“Being beside Dominic will protect you.”
The words catch.
“Protect me?”
I tilt my head.
“From what?”
For a moment, she looks almost apologetic.
Like she knows something she can’t explain.
“I just…”
She shakes her head.
“I feel it.”
My chest tightens.
“This marriage isn’t only about love.”
A pause.
“Or timing.”
Her fingers tighten around mine.
“It’s for you.”
Oh, Mom.
You couldn’t be more wrong.
She reaches across the table again.
Her hand covers mine.
Warm.
Steady.
Grounding.
“But, Ellie.”
Her voice turns gentle.
“I need you to promise me something.”
I look at her.
“Just in case.”
She takes a breath.
“Do what you want because you want it.”
A pause.
“Not for me.”
Her eyes soften.
“Not because you think you owe me something.”
I immediately pull my hand back.
“I’m not.”
“Good.”
She smiles faintly.
“Because you two really are made for each other.”
A strange sting moves through my chest.
“Everyone keeps saying that.”
I force a weak smile.
“Like some perfect destiny unfolding.”
“Maybe it is.”
My smile fades.
It isn’t.
She studies me carefully.
Too carefully.
Like she can see through every wall I’ve built.
“Do you love him?”
I look down.
At the scratches on the metal table.
At anything except her eyes.
“Yes.”
The answer comes quietly.
Finally.
What else could I say?
No?
And make her feel like she sacrificed everything for nothing?
No.
I couldn’t do that.
She doesn’t argue.
Doesn’t question me.
She only nods.
Like she understands more than I want her to.
When the guard announces the end of visiting hours, we both stand.
At the same time.
We hug again.
This time tighter.
Longer.
“I love you.”
Her voice cracks against my hair.
“You’re going to be beautiful.”
I close my eyes.
For one second…
I let myself believe her.
Outside, Dominic is waiting beside the car.
Exactly where I left him.
His sleeves are rolled up to his forearms.
His posture is straight.
The second he sees me, he changes.
Not dramatically.
Not enough for anyone else to notice.
But I do.
His eyes move over my face.
Checking.
Making sure.
Before he can ask anything, I speak.
“I’m fine.”
My voice comes out steadier than I feel.
“She’s…”
I swallow.
“Happy for us.”
A small curve forms at the corner of his mouth.
“For our fake marriage?”
His voice is quiet.
Only meant for me.
The words land strangely.
Not painful.
Just…
Complicated.
I walk past him.
Stop beside the passenger door.
My hand rests against the cool metal.
I stare at my reflection in the window.
A girl in a nice dress.
A girl who looks like she belongs to someone else’s life.
“Is it fake?”
My voice is barely above a whisper.
“If it’s still legally happening?”
For once, Dominic doesn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he steps closer.
Reaches past me.
Opens the door.
The movement is smooth.
Automatic.
His hand remains steady on the handle.
“Only we can decide that.”
A pause.
“But not now.”
I slide into the seat without looking at him.
I smooth my hands over my lap.
Trying to hide the slight tremble in my fingers.
The door closes.
Soft.
Final.
By the time Dominic gets in and starts the engine, the prison is already behind us.
Shrinking in the side mirror.
Nothing more than steel.
Concrete.
Ghosts.
I glance at him.
Protect me.
The words echo.
Unwanted.
Not an ordinary wolf.
I press my fingers lightly against my temple.
Trying to push the thought away.
She meant it as a mother.
A mother who wanted her daughter to feel loved.
Important.
Safe.
Not a prophecy.
Not a warning.
Not a sign that I’m different.
Not a sign that I was…
Reborn.
Right?
I swallow.
Look out the window.
The city passes by in familiar pieces.
Stores I’ve walked into.
Roads I’ve crossed.
Places where nothing ever happened to me.
Because I’m not special.
Sure.
I came back.
I got another chance.
But I can’t even shift properly.
Not like Dominic.
Not like true Alphas.
My bloodline barely matters on any chart anyone cares about.
My family was never powerful.
Never chosen.
Never important.
Just ordinary.
And yet…
My fingers curl in my lap.
If this marriage is meant to protect me…
Then something is coming.
Something that needs protection from.
And I don’t know which possibility scares me more.
That I’m finally being saved this time…
Or that I’m being guided straight back toward the place where everything ended.
Because right now…
It feels dangerously close to the second one.