Chapter 16

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

R ochelle stood in her office, surrounded by cardboard boxes, each one holding a piece of her time here. She carefully wrapped up framed photos, stacking files, and folding small keepsakes into neat little bundles. Her hands hovered over a small wooden box—a matchbox, its edges worn and faded. She flipped it open with a soft sigh, revealing the logo of the hotel where she and Caleb used to meet on full moon nights. She could almost hear the sound of the door creaking open, feel the warmth of his hands, the heat of his kisses as they burned away the distance she kept between them.

Next, she found a small pine cone tucked into the back of her drawer. She picked it up, turning it over in her hand, feeling the rough texture against her skin. Caleb had given it to her after one of their runs through the woods, a small, unspoken gesture that had meant more than she could admit to herself back then. Her thumb brushed over the sharp scales, and a bittersweet smile tugged at her lips.

There was so much of him in her life, even when she tried to keep him out of it. Despite all these little reminders, there was nothing here that would tell anyone else that he was hers, and she was his. That would change in the next place.

She imagined her new office, decorated with photos of the two of them—maybe even a portrait, something intimate and personal. Elijah’s mate, Celine, was a painter. Maybe she’d ask Celine to do a life portrait of them.

Before she could lose herself in those daydreams, the door to her office creaked open, reminding her of how the hotel room door would open on full moon nights. Her heart leapt in her chest when she saw him. His broad shoulders filled the doorway, his face shadowed with something dark and intense.

“Caleb?”

At first, he didn’t respond. He just stared at her with those intense amber eyes. She saw the storm brewing in them, the same way she had seen dark clouds rolling over the Moonridge Mountains so many times before a heavy rain. He stepped inside, the door clicking shut behind him, the sound unnaturally loud in the quiet of her office.

“Are you taking the job?” His voice was low, rough, as if he was barely holding back something fierce.

Rochelle blinked, the warmth she’d felt just moments ago cooling into something uneasy. “Yes, of course. I told you I was.”

He took another step closer, his boots heavy against the worn carpet. “And you’re going to move?”

Rochelle straightened, crossing her arms as if the stance could somehow protect her from the weight of his gaze. “Yes,” she said, forcing herself to hold his stare. “The job is in another territory. We have to move.”

“What about us?” he demanded, his voice roughening with frustration, with a pain that cut deeper than any words she’d ever heard from him. “What about everything we’ve built? Everything we’ve finally started?”

Rochelle faltered, the defiance slipping from her voice. “I said we . I assumed you would come with me,” she said, softer now, her words almost hesitant. “I thought?—”

“You thought I’d just leave the pack behind? Leave my responsibilities, my family, everything that’s been my life?” He shook his head, a bitter edge creeping into his voice. “Rochelle, I’ve spent my entire life watching over you. I’ve followed you, sacrificed things I wanted so you could be free. So you could have your independence. And now I’m asking you to do one thing for me.”

Her stomach twisted, a knot of emotion forming in her throat. This was exactly what she had feared, exactly what she had run from all these years. The idea that being with Caleb meant sacrificing her career, her dreams. She took a step back, shaking her head as if she could shake away the words he was saying.

“You know how much this job means to me, Caleb. How long I’ve worked for this. My career—it’s important.” Her voice was rising, an edge of desperation slipping into it, even though she tried to keep it steady. “I can’t just give that up.”

“What about your happiness?” Caleb’s voice was raw and open, his frustration and hurt laid bare. “What about our happiness? Everything I’ve done, Rochelle, it’s been for you. To keep you safe, to see you happy, even if it meant keeping my distance. But you’ve always been happiest here, with the pack, with your community—whether you wanted to admit it or not.”

His words struck her like a physical blow. The ground shifted beneath her. There was nothing left of her carefully built walls. Caleb wasn’t trying to control her—he never had been. He had just been trying to protect her, to give her the freedom she needed while still being there for her. And now he was asking for something in return.

But it felt like too much. It was a choice she couldn’t make.

“You don’t know what’s best for me, Caleb,” she said, but her voice was weaker, trembling. “You can’t—I can’t give up everything I’ve worked for just because—just because of us.”

Caleb’s eyes burned with a fire she had never seen before, the wolf in him flaring to the surface. He took a step closer, closing the distance between them. “I’m not asking you to give up your dreams. I’m asking you to stay. To stay with me. Here.”

He knew her in ways no one else ever had. He saw her, even the parts she tried to hide. But that same knowledge made it feel like he was stripping away the last of her defenses, leaving her raw and vulnerable, and she couldn’t stand it.

“I can’t, Caleb,” she choked out, the words hurting as they left her lips. “I can’t.”

Caleb’s face fell. The hope that had been burning in his eyes extinguished like a candle in the wind. He looked so lost, so heartbreakingly wounded, that she almost reached for him. But she held herself back, her hands clenching into fists at her sides.

The silence that followed was heavy with everything they hadn’t said, everything they were too afraid to admit. Caleb took a shaky breath, then nodded once, a resigned, defeated motion.

“You’ve made your choice.”

And then he turned, walking out of her office without looking back.

Rochelle stood there, frozen in place, her heart aching with a pain she hadn’t expected. She watched the door swing shut behind him, and the silence that followed was the loneliest sound she had ever heard.