Alpha's One Night Bride
Alpha’s One Night Bride – Chapter 103

Weeks had gone by since I spoke to Jessica about Spencer. From the sounds of the guest room not long afterward, it seems she took my advice and decided to give Spencer a try. I hadn’t mentioned to Jessica about being able to hear them because I didn’t want to embarrass either of them. But I was glad Jessica finally listened to her howling wolf and gave in to her desires.

Since then, they’ve been closer than ever. Wherever Spencer goes, Jessica goes, and vice versa. It was nice to see her finally loosening up since Greggory and actually trusting another male wolf. They both had it rough in their lives; Jessica a little bit later in life, but what she went through was terrible and it nearly killed her.

I couldn’t blame her for having these trust issues.

When she had amnesia, she didn’t remember all the things she’s been through with Greggory. Sure, she had the evidence of the abuse and knew what happened, but she didn’t have those painful memories that came attached with them.

Maybe with the guidance of Spencer, Jessica will finally want to return home to Moon-Valley. I couldn’t help but wonder what they were going to do without an Alpha. They were going to need to appoint a new one soon. Who was going to be in charge of that? Greggory didn’t have any other family who could appoint them the new Alpha.

Jonathan was the Overseer, so maybe he would be able to.

While everything was starting to go back to normal, I wanted to start getting back to normal as well. I decided to ask Jonathan a question that’s been weighing on me these last few weeks.

“What?” Jonathan said, looking surprised after I asked him my question.

“I want to go back to work,” I repeated; I was nervous about what he would think about that.

But I knew he wasn’t going to deny me that wish; however, I also didn’t want him to be upset by that choice. I’ve been missing my job at the art studio; I’ve been missing the girls there and I couldn’t stop thinking about Marian. I haven’t really seen her since Anderson’s death, and I was curious as to how she was doing. For the first few weeks, after his funeral, I was trying to reach out to her, but she had her wolf’s link disconnected.

After that, I kind of just gave up on attempting communication with her.

Plus, after seeing my mom, I realized how much I missed art and wanted to continue to follow in my mother’s footsteps. It made me feel free and connected with her. I know she’s the moon goddess and she’s always going to be around regardless of if I can see her or not, but it was still nice to have that connection with her.

“Really?” Jonathan asked, after a pause.

“Yes,” I told him; there wasn’t an ounce of humor in my voice or on my face and I think he quickly realized I meant business.

“I’ll get a hold of Marian and see what I can do,” he said, kissing my forehead gently.

“Really?” I asked, beaming up at him. “Thank you!” After a pause, I asked, “Have you spoken to Marian lately?”

“A couple of months ago,” he admitted. “I was just checking on her because we haven’t heard from her in a while. I heard she was still working strong at the studio and wanted to check in with her.”

“How is she doing?” I asked.

“I mean, of course, it’s still fresh for her. She lost her mate; that’s not easy for anybody…” he said sadly.

I knew he was thinking about his mother too. When Jess lost Regan, it wasn’t easy for her. It wasn’t easy for anybody, but Jess in particular. The wound was still fresh for her as well. I couldn’t even imagine. Anytime I come close to losing Jonathan or think I’m going to lose him; I lose my mind.

…

It was weird being back in the art studio after being away from it for over a year. My desk had random papers I didn’t recognize scattered across it. I could tell others were attempting to do some work at my desk, but most of their projects didn’t stick.

I quickly organized my area as Marian popped her head out of the office. She appeared to be a bit thinner than she was when I last saw her. I could tell it was due to depression, at least maybe at first, she was probably eating much less and not hunting as much. But the look was starting to work for her because she was gaining some muscles as well. So, maybe she was beginning to hunt again and working out to keep up her health.

Her hair was also no longer in her typical pixie style; it was long and bypassed her shoulder blades. It fell around her shoulders in auburn waves. She also didn’t look half as broken as I thought she would have.

“Arina, can I see you in my office?” She asked; her voice was soft and less intimidating than I remembered.

I nodded and followed her into her office.

She sat at her desk and peered up at me as I stood there awkwardly; I wasn’t sure why this felt awkward for me, but I was having trouble looking her in the eyes.

“I hope you aren’t expecting any special treatment just because of everything that went on,” Marian began, still peering up at me.

I felt the heat rising to my cheeks and I shot her a confused look.

Special treatment? What was she talking about?

“I’m sorry?” I asked, trying to keep my voice even.

“I’m not going to give you special treatment just because you were a friend of my husband’s and with everything, I hear happened this past year,” Marian said, adjusting her glasses so she could see me better.

What had Jonathan said to her to make her think that I was expecting special treatment? What did he tell her happened this past year? Did he tell her the entire story?

“Mallory and Lucille have been working extremely hard to help keep this place afloat. I was even able to hire a few more artists and workers. At this point, you are basically starting at the bottom.”

I wasn’t going to argue with her. I just nodded and told her that I understood. I wasn’t coming back because I thought she was going to do me any favors or provide special treatment. I was here because I wanted to continue my work to follow in my mother’s footsteps and make her even prouder one day.

“Good,” Marian said, eyeing me carefully. “As long as we have an understanding.” She motioned for a piece of paper at the end of her desk for me to grab; next to the paper was a manila folder. “In that folder are some art pieces. I need them to be wrapped properly and sent to the correct customers. That paper is a list of the customers and what pieces they purchased, along with their shipping details.”

I nodded and grabbed the paper and folder off her desk.

“Any questions?” She asked.

I shook my head.

“No,” I answered.

“Good,” she said, motioning for me to leave.

I frowned; turning around I pushed open her door and made my way back to my desk.

I began shuffling through some of the artwork in the folders when Mallory entered through the front door. Her mouth nearly dropped open when she saw me sitting at my desk.

“Well, look who finally came back to work,” she said, teasing.

I gave her a sheepish smile.

“What kind of gossip have I missed?” I asked, teasing back.

The two artists, Mallory and Lucille knew for their gossiping. They knew everything about everything. At first, it was annoying. Especially when you are the topic of it, but after a while, you realize they were harmless, and gossiping is what made them who they are. I appreciated them for everything they are.

I would be lying if I didn’t kind of miss them and miss hearing about the latest gossip around the town.

She chuckled as she approached my desk.

“You tell me. I hear you are kind of famous around here now,” she said.

I frowned.

“Famous?” I repeated. “I wouldn’t go that far.”

“You defeated an evil witch and saved several people. I would definitely go that far,” she said as she started walking towards the back of the gallery.

“Technically, my mom did,” I corrected her.

“Oh right, yes. Your mother the Moon Goddess,” she laughed. “And you’re telling me you aren’t famous,” she added as she rolled her eyes.

How did she know about all this stuff already? I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. It’s not like the pack was that big and they weren’t really hiding any of the battles or the stuff that’s happened this past year. So, it made sense that everyone was already talking about the events.

“I’m just saying,” Mallory said as she walked through the doors of the studio. “Everyone knows your name now.”

Everybody?