Chapter 13 - Violet

After the events of yesterday between Diana and myself, I thought it would be best to make myself more visible to the other members of the pack. I had been spending too much time alone, and they needed to see that their luna was one of them.

I put together a few gift baskets—candles and self-care products, coloring activities and books, and fresh baked goods—and made my way to visit a handful of families who lived near Nile's house.

The first few stops went smoothly, with polite exchanges between us. The families seemed surprised by my sudden appearance but were welcoming and kind. The children, especially, seemed excited that the luna of their pack had come to visit them and bring them gifts.

It wasn't until my last stop of the day that I had an uncomfortable situation. I knocked on the door and it was opened by the woman—whose name I remembered now was Jane—from the diner yesterday.

"Luna! You aren't coming to check up on us, are you?" she asked, seeming both frightened and alarmed to see me standing at her front door. "I swear, we didn't say anything after last night."

"Last night?" I asked, perplexed.

She continued staring at me with wide eyes, and I realized I was going to have to dig deeper to figure out what she was talking about.

"I'm just here to drop off this basket and visit. Would it be okay if I came inside?" I asked.

Jane nodded and showed me into her living room. I placed the basket on the coffee table and sat down on a chair while my hostess sat across from me.

"I'm a little confused by your reaction to my visit. Did something happen last night?" I asked.

"Just the pack meeting. I assumed that was why you were here—to make sure we weren't talking about you anymore," Jane said.

"I didn't know there was a meeting last night," I admitted.

"Nile called one at the last minute because of how we were acting toward you at the diner yesterday," she said. "He told everyone that if anyone spoke badly about you again, we'd be kicked out of Pinedale. I promise that I didn't mean you any harm. Can you forgive me?"

I assured her that all was forgiven and cut my visit short. Aside from her sideways glances and mention of Diana yesterday, I couldn't think of what harm she possibly could have done to me. I knew I didn't have the full story, but I didn't want to hear it from Jane.

Nile and I needed to talk.

"How was your morning?" he asked when I walked through the front door.

"Before I answer that, is there anything you'd like to tell me about what happened yesterday?" I asked.

After everything we had been through, I wanted to give Nile the chance to explain himself. We had enough miscommunication between us. The last thing we needed was more. And I wanted to see if he would tell me the truth.

Nile sighed.

"I had been wanting to talk to you about the pack meeting last night, but I didn't know how to bring it up," he admitted.

"It probably would have been better if you had told me about the meeting before it happened so that I could attend as well. But it's been brought up now, so go ahead," I said, signaling him to continue.

"After you left the diner yesterday, I asked the wolves if something was the matter. I got the impression that Diana had said something to them aside from the fact that she saw you and Penny out," he began.

"And what did they have to say?" I asked.

"That Diana has been spreading lies about you in the pack," Nile said. "Apparently, the rumor is that you are spending all of the pack's money, hurting the community, and causing me to go bankrupt, all while you rack up debt in my name."

"People can't honestly believe that, though," I said, waving my hand dismissively. "It's not like I'm walking around wearing diamonds and designer clothes. I'm sure there is plenty for people to question about me, but never my loyalty."

"On the contrary, Diana has a lot of influence because she was the pack's old luna, and her daughter was luna as well," Nile explained. "But you don't need to worry. She won't be bothering you again."

"Nile, what did you do?" I asked.

"Only what needed to be done," he said simply.

I crossed my arms. "I'm gonna need more information than that."

"I told her that she needs to learn her place, and that if she can't, then she won't be a member of the pack anymore," Nile said.

He couldn't be serious. Being kicked out of a pack was the worst thing that could happen to a wolf. Becoming a rogue was a serious matter, and only happened in the most extreme of cases. That's why rogues were such a hard crowd—they had lived hard lives.

"I understand that you confronted the pack to protect me, but you've made a mistake," I said. "If Diana has as much influence as you say, then I doubt this is the end of it. The threat of excommunication is too much. You've turned her—and anyone who agrees with her—into an enemy! That's going to cause division in your own pack and impact the alliance as well."

Nile stepped toward me, placing his hands on my shoulders comfortingly. "It is important to me that you feel safe around me, and that includes being safe around my pack."

I shook my head. "Not at the risk of the alliance or your pack."

"Your safety and security are worth it to me," he said simply.

His words shocked me. I hadn't realized that he sincerely cared about me up until this moment.

"You're being serious," I said, surprised.

Nile nodded. "Every choice I have made has been to keep you safe."

I sensed we were moving too close to a conversation about our past for my liking. I needed to bring us back to the topic at hand.

Being my mate was advantageous to him because of the alliance, but he had confronted Diana for my sake alone. He really did want what was best for me, which meant I needed to trust him.

"If I'm going to trust your judgment, then you need to trust mine as well," I said.

"Of course I do," he said.

"You've done your part to protect me, and now it's my turn to protect you and your leadership— our leadership," I corrected myself.

"Just tell me what you need," Nile said.

"I need you to set up a gathering. A casual reason for the Pinedale and Dark Moon packs to gather together," I explained.

"What do you plan on doing?"

"Win everyone over with my charming personality, of course," I said, flashing him a dazzling smile.

He chuckled. "Your wish is my command, luna," he said with a bow.

For the first time since I had been in Pinedale, I felt like I had a plan, and a teammate who would help me with it. From the first moment we had become mates, we had both been working toward the same goal, but we had been doing it on our own without considering the other person's actions or feelings.

Now, I felt like we were in it together.

I wanted to win over the pack so that I would be accepted, and so that the alliance would succeed, of course. It was as much for Sparkle Hollow as it was for Pinedale and Dark Moon. But I couldn't deny that I had ulterior motives as well.

I wanted to do this for Nile, too.