Chapter 17 - Eddie

“Christ!” Eddie cursed almost the moment he awakened. Running his fingers through his hair, his mind was blown once more by the memory of all that had happened the night before.

With fresh morning light filtering through the crack in the curtains where moonlight had been when he had fallen asleep, Eddie felt the most content he had been in age.

That was, until he rolled over to find the other side of the bed cold and empty.

Does she regret last night? he thought bitterly.

“Winter?” he whispered, barely daring to say her name.

Surely, he couldn't have dreamt all that up. She had been here in bed with him, hadn't she?

He glanced around, half expecting the dream would fade and he’d find himself once more in his bed at the manor.

Even when he blinked several times and sat up to rub his eyes, nothing changed. The room was still Winter's, and she still wasn't here.

It was the sound of voices that drew him from the bed. He recognized them, he was sure of that. But they were coming all the way from the other end of the apartment, and with the bedroom door closed, it was difficult to hear properly.

Grabbing his jeans, Eddie pulled them on quickly and picked up his T-shirt, already headed out the door.

He recognized those voices. One was Winter’s, that much he could tell, and the other was that of a friend. She was in no danger, and yet a protective urge to hurry to her side made Eddie walk quicker than he ever had in his life. In fact, he barely managed to stop himself from running.

And when he made it to the kitchen doorway, he stopped dead in his tracks.

“Jack!” he exclaimed, finding his alpha sitting at the breakfast bar. “What are you doing here?”

Jack turned on the stool, smiling at Eddie with a knowing look in his eye. For a werewolf with the nose of a hundred dogs, it didn't take much to guess what they had been doing last night.

“I'd like to say I just popped by to congratulate the happy couple, but unfortunately, I needed to talk to Winter,” Jack said, glancing at her as she leaned over the counter to shove a hot mug of coffee towards Eddie.

“You were sleeping so peacefully, I didn't have the heart to wake you,” she said, offering him a half-smile.

Damn…. Eddie's insides fluttered at the sight of her. That smile, the way her eyes beamed, how she looked bathed in the sunlight that filtered through the kitchen window. He wished he could burn this memory into his mind for the rest of eternity, looking at it like a picture every time he was away and missing her.

Fuck, what is wrong with me? Eddie thought. He had never been so damn sickly sweet as that.

“Might I be allowed to know what you came to talk to my mate about?” Eddie asked, crossing the room. He ignored the mug and went straight instead for the woman who had offered it.

Hooking his hand around the back of her neck, he drew her in for a kiss, hoping to gauge how she truly felt about the night before.

And he was more than a little relieved when she gave him a quick yet passionate kiss before pulling away.

“Jack has been questioning Christopher all night,” Winter explained, and when Eddie rested his hand on the counter, he was surprised that she laid hers on top of his knuckles.

When she did, he noticed how she was trembling.

“What's the matter?” Eddie asked, looking at her before he looked to Jack and asked, “What’s he said?”

Jack cleared his throat and looked at Winter as if somehow asking for permission before he finally answered, “Christopher has enlightened me as to Winter's parentage.”

He felt Winter's hand tightening on his.

“I, um…my mother is a witch and my father a werewolf,” she said, as if that were something to be afraid of.

“I know,” Eddie said, twisting his hand under hers to link their fingers.

He felt the shock run through Winter. And when he looked at her, he found her eyes were almost bulging out of her head.

“Last night,” Eddie pointed out, and Winter began to blush.

“I'd almost forgotten all about that,” she admitted, glancing down, and Eddie wished he could take the memory away from her for good. She had no need for it. They never should have been in her shop in the first place. His hackles started to rise just thinking about it.

“What does it matter if she's part werewolf?” Eddie asked, looking to Jack. “Surely that makes this union all the stronger.”

Jack nodded, but a part of his expression was doubtful. “I need to know, Winter, do you think your only being part witch will affect the protection spell?”

Winter's hand grew steady then, and somehow, Eddie had complete faith in the words that came out of her mouth next.

Straightening, Winter looked Jack dead in the eye and said, “If it were going to, then I'm pretty sure we would have had more trouble than we did last night.”

That was a good enough answer for Eddie. He squeezed Winter's hand and was relieved when she returned the gesture.

Jack glanced down at the coffee mug clasped between his hands before he looked to Winter again and said, “Then there's only one thing I have left to ask.”

Eddie felt a shiver run down his spine. Why did Jack sound so damn ominous?

Eddie's free hand tightened into a fist as he prepared himself for whatever was coming.

“In light of learning of your parentage, do you choose to remain here in Nightstar or join your father's pack?”

Eddie's mouth practically fell open. “How can you even ask her that?”

When he glanced at Winter, he saw she was just as shocked as he felt.

Jack looked at Eddie, his expression quite serious as he said, “As alpha, it's my job to ask the hard questions.”

He looked back to Winter then and added, “I know the bond between a wolf and their father. I have to ask the question. And nobody would blame you if you did choose to leave.”

Winter's face darkened then. She glowered at Jack so aggressively that Eddie believed for one second she might actually lunge at him.

Then, instead, she spoke, “There is no bond between me and that man or his pack. The blood that runs through my veins is witch. Who my father is bears no meaning to me.”

Eddie had to stop from breathing a deep sigh of relief. The last thing he wanted was for Winter to believe he had ever doubted her.

She continued, “I was born here in Nightstar, and one day I'll die here. Besides, how could I leave now, when my life is just beginning?”

The way she looked at Eddie made his chest swell with pride and affection.

Eddie's doubt faded quickly. An understanding passed between them in that moment, one that Eddie would treasure for the rest of his life.

This was as it was always meant to be. Even the bond and loyalty a wolf felt for its sire could not pull them apart.

“I'm relieved to hear you say that,” Jack admitted. “I don't think the spell would work if you were to leave.”

“It does raise one question, though,” Eddie said. “If this spell works off connections between the members of our pack, and knowing those who are allowed within the safe zone, wouldn't a werewolf who shares blood with the witch who cast the spell have a loophole?”

Winter cleared her throat, shaking her head. “This spell is complicated and precise. It works off loyalty more than anything. Anyone who seeks to do a member of Nightstar harm will be stripped of their wolf while in town. You saw him last night. My father was a cowardly piece of shit the second he realized he couldn't call on his wolf.”

“And the spell worked out even better than we could have hoped. Not only did it work, but it allowed us to capture Christopher before he learned of its existence. Things couldn't have worked out better if we'd planned it.”

“What will you do with him?” Winter asked, and Eddie cringed. There was really only one answer for a man like Christopher. He would never give up, not until he had drawn his last breath.

Jack sighed and shook his head. “For now, we'll keep him locked up, but every day we allow him to live, he poses a threat. If his pack takes it upon themselves to try and rescue him, we'll—”

Jack was cut off by the sound of his phone ringing in his jacket pocket.

Eddie stiffened. Was it too much of a coincidence that someone had called him while he was discussing what could go wrong with Christopher as their prisoner? Had he already found a way to escape?

Jack paused, taking the phone from his jacket. When he looked at the screen, he said, “it's Will. I should take this.”

Both Eddie and Winter nodded in silence.

Eddie's chest tightened as the alpha answered. The second he heard Will’s voice, he knew something was wrong.

“Sorry to bother you, Jack, but we have a bit of a situation on our hands.”

“What is it?” Jack demanded, and Eddie barely managed to stop himself from asking if it was something to do with Christopher.

Releasing Winter's hand, he balled both hands into fists, prepared to leave the second he heard the news. She, too, stiffened as if preparing for the worst.

“We have a visitor. Kane's sister.”

Jack's brow rose and Eddie felt the same sense of confusion he saw on his alpha’s face.

“So? We've had werewolves visit from other packs before,” Jack pointed out before quickly adding, “Is she hurt?”

Eddie heard the way that Will cleared his throat. More than that, he thought he heard him shuffling a little as if he was uncomfortable.

“That's just it, Jack, she's not a werewolf,” Will said, and Eddie's blood ran instantly cold as he finished, “She's human.”