Bonus Chapter 9

I can’t believe I fell asleep yesterday and slept through the night without any nightmares. This morning when I woke up, I am alone. Cedar is nowhere to be seen. 
I make my way to the kitchen, glancing quickly at the clock in the living room wall, and widening my eyes. It’s past lunchtime! Did I really sleep that long?
What day is it today, by the way? 
Wednesday? 
Shit. 
After last night, I almost forgot my own name. Violet King, who? 
My face flushes as I remember the sequence of orgasms, one after the other, as Cedar dominated my body without even burying his cock inside me. And Goddess knows how much I wanted it. Crave it!
I was used to having an orgasm with Jordan, but none had ever been so intense. And my fake fated mate for sure didn’t like eating my pussy. But, Cedar?
Oh. My. Goddess.
The male is wild. He never said I was too needy, if anything, it’s the other way around. It was as if this wasn’t a flaw but a feast.
“It smells good here,” I say as I walk into the kitchen.
Allie immediately gives me a smile as she sets a batch of cookies to cool. “You look better,” she tells me. Yesterday, I apologized to her for kicking her brother out of her own house. Allie told me to forget about it and focus on now. How can she be so nice and kind?
“But not good enough.” Ian grunts, arms crossed next to Allie, looking at me.
I sit on the stool facing the counter they’re at and grab one of the muffins that’s there. “Stop being so annoying,” I say, rolling my eyes at him.
Ian eyes me. “Cedar needs to take better care of you.” 
“Cedar takes care of me just fine,” I protest right away, defending him as I remember everything he’s done for me. 
Wait. 
That isn’t what I’ve intended to say. 
“I mean, *I* can look after myself.” I shrug and take a big bite of the muffin.
“Clearly not,” Ian says to me as I see him studying my frame. He must have noticed I lost some weight, but it isn’t Cedar’s fault. Then, my brother shifts his piercing gaze to my best friend. “Okay. You’ve already pushed yourself too hard for today.”
“Ethan!” She turns to him with a frown. “That’s enough! I have to finish another batch, and you’re infuriating!”
“Totally agree!” I mutter.
Turning to me, she vents in despair, “He told me that he wanted me to stay in bed for a month before and after Ava was born! Can you believe that?” 
I open my mouth, but before I can say anything, Ian barks, “And you just managed two days, Little Dove.” He shakes his head.
Two months resting in bed? 
Poor Allie, she was fated to be the mate of an Alpha. They are ten times more possessive and out of control when it comes to their fated mate. Wait, my mate is also an Alpha... I wonder if Cedar will be like that?
Shifting to me, Ian says like he needs me to side with him, “I also told her not to go up and down the stairs on her own while pregnant since we found out. But did she listen to me? No!” 
“Ugh! You’re the most infuriating man I’ve ever seen! I’m pregnant, not sick! I can do everything!”
“Yeah, that reminds me, my Little Dove,” Ian says, shifting his dark eyes down to her. “I haven’t forgotten that you got showered, dressed, and walked down the stairs without me.” 
I burst out laughing, almost spilling muffins on them. But they keep arguing, totally ignoring me.
“Dear Lord! I can do all those things on my own, Ethan!” 
“Not when you were just out of the hospital yesterday because you fainted. What if you’d gotten dizzy in the bathroom or coming down the stairs, huh?” He tsks. “No, I can’t allow you that. That’s a new rule until you’re feeling better.” 
“Baby, I swear, I am feeling better,” Allie says softly to him. 
“No, you’re not.” Ian takes her in his arms. “And now you need to take your nap.”
“I can walk, Ethan! Put me down!”
“Why use your legs when you have me?”
Allie tries to protest. But my brother simply doesn’t care. “You’re lucky I love you, you Alpha Bossy Bastard!”
Ian carries her out of the kitchen in his arms, but I still hear him say to Allie. “Alpha Bossy Husband now. You said *yes*, remember?”
Even though Ian refuses to let her walk because she’s ‘pregnant’, I know for a fact that this won’t change after Ava is born; I think that to myself as I shake my head.

🐺 🐺 🐺
“Where are we going?” I ask in the middle of the woods. The Full Moon is about to rise, as sunrise is less than an hour away.
“That’s a surprise.” 
“Wait, Cedar, you really don’t have to carry—” I sigh and stop protesting. “I’m not sure why I’m wasting my breath,” I say, but I can’t hide my smile, remembering what I’ve been pondering about him earlier. 
“Neither am I, sugar,” he replies. “Now, close your eyes!” 
I do as Cedar says. 
“No peeking!”
“I’m not peeking!” I say, peeking.
“Violet,” he warns.
“Okay, okay. No peeking!” I giggle.
Although my eyes are closed now, I know he’s almost running. And minutes later, he finally puts me down. 
“Now you can open your eyes, sugar.”
My eyes flutter open—and I nearly stumble backward.  
*What in the—?*  
Spread before me is a perfect big white picnic blanket, its edges fluttering slightly in the evening breeze. A red woven basket sits proudly in the center, its contents teases my nose because I can smell the buttery scent of fresh croissants and something savory, maybe prosciutto and brie sandwiches. 
Goddessdamn it, Allie must have told him my weaknesses!
But the best thing? The whole setup is angled just so, facing the bright sunset as it bleeds gold and pink over the waterfall. The view is stupidly gorgeous—I already knew it was beautiful here, but I had never stopped to do anything similar here like this before. 
A lone swan glides across the river below, its feathers catching the light like it’s showing off. The waterfall hums in the background, its steady rush wrapping the whole scene in this dreamy calm.  
I blink as I smell the air, the scent of warm bread and fresh air mingling together.
I turn to Cedar. The sun’s hanging low and it’s painting everything in that soft, golden-hour glow, including him. 
I just stare at him without knowing what to say.
My chin trembles. My eyes sting. 
“Come here, Vivi,” Cedar says softly, opening his arms. 
*Vivi*. He calls me that when he isn’t teasing me. He calls me Vivi in a tender way that just makes me want to lose myself in him.
I immediately hug him tight. “This is obnoxiously perfect.”
The sound of his laughter is the most delightful thing to hear.
I tighten my grip.
“Are you okay?” he asks me.
“No,” I say quietly. “I guess... I’m not. This is just weird for me. I can’t remember the last time someone made me a surprise.” 
Jordan could never. Maybe he believed his hand would fall off if he did something romantic like this for me.
“Well, let me remind you of what to say then, sugar.” I can hear his teasing smirk. He kisses the top of my head. “The proper thing to say is ‘thank you, Cedar—’” 
“Thank you, Cedar.” 
“I hadn’t finished,” he tells me. I draw back a little to look up at his meadow green eyes, so damn bright with the sunset light. He blinks slowly with a smirk, looking at my lips before shifting his gaze to mine. “You say, ‘thank you, Cedar. You’re the most handsome, sexy, smart, hot fated mate in the whole entire world’.” 
I giggle. My heart lightens. “Your ego is bigger than the whole Blackmoon!”
“And your stubbornness is even bigger,” Cedar says. 
“It is not!” I fire back, frowning.
It suddenly occurs to me that I’m basically arguing with him without a single concern that my fated mate may get upset with me. That he may hurt me with his words or stop speaking to me if I say something.  
He grabs my hand in his and we walk to the blanket.
And just like that, I’m torn between diving straight into the basket or sitting there to watch the sunset. 
A second later, I decide. I’m absolutely eating first. Priorities.
While Cedar devours two big sandwiches like it’s nothing, I slowly eat my croissant, we sit in a comfortable silence, both watching the beautiful sunset in front of us.
In my mind, Roxy is howling at him, dying to shift and run into the forest with Cedar’s wolf.
When I finish eating and clean my hand, Cedar immediately grabs it. But he doesn’t just take it for the sake of taking it. 
He really holds it. 
My heart skips a beat. He holds my hand like I always wanted it to be held. Like I’ve always seen Dad holding Mom’s hand or Ian holding Allie’s. Or Az holding Lily’s hand. 
Jordan’s grip was always too loose. His fingers barely clasped mine. But Cedar holds me tight, lacing his fingers through mine like if he could, he would never let it go. 
It’s so... perfect. 
Without conscious thought, I point with our intertwined hands at a adorable bird nearby. "Look!"
My smile fades, and I lower our arms as Cedar looks at where I am pointing. The last time I saw a cute little brown bird that I was enchanted by, wondering what species it might be, I pointed at it so Jordan could see it. He said he couldn’t care less, maybe he was too exhausted to try caring.
I reminded myself that day, just because I find it interesting and care doesn’t mean others do too. Few things feel worse than being eager to share something you find exciting, only to be greeted by uninterested or annoyed looks. So that’s why I had stopped calling him over to see such a thing.
“It’s a Wren,” Cedar says, looking at the bird. “It was Mom’s favorite bird. Did you know wrens in Wales have regional accents? Like, actual bird dialects! They don’t just sing. They customize their songs based on where they live. The ones separated by water or distance develop totally distinct tunes, almost like how humans end up with different slang or pronunciations. How cool is that?” He shakes his head slightly, smiling. 
I’m in awe that he didn’t think it was silly. 
“Do you think these tiny little birds ever get confused then when they migrate—like, ‘Wait, why is this guy’s song so weird? Did I take a wrong turn at the seagull?’” Cedar chuckles and then brings our joined hands to his mouth and kisses the back of my hand. Looking at the swan swimming, then to the little bird, he confesses, “Mom used to say that wrens symbolize luck and happiness.” His eyes meet mine. The sun hangs low now—just a sliver of gold clinging to the horizon. “I couldn’t be more happy than now.”
My heart races so fast I have to look away from his gaze. “Wren... It’s a beautiful name,” I whisper as we listen to the bird sing.
“Quick! Make a wish,” Cedar points out minutes later after the sun sets and the stars shine in the sky. “It’s a shooting star!”
I wish to have his children. I look at the huge Full Moon in the sky and pray at the same time to Goddess Selena.
*Please, Moon Goddess, may I be worthy of being the mother of his children.*
“What did you wish for?”
“Oh, if I say it, it won’t come true,” I answer, smiling at the starry sky. Even though the sun has just set, it isn’t dark. The Full Moon shines brightly in the sky.
“Look, sugar. Another one!” he points. “Make another wish!”
Cedar smiles as he follows the shooting star.
“What did you wish for?” he asks again.
“I wished for you to stop asking me about what I wished for!” I tease.
Cedar growls before immediately starts tickling me. “You’ll pay for this, sugar.”
I regret nothing. 
“Mercy,” I say, laughing. When he stops, I look up at him with the starry sky behind his head. I’m lying on the blanket, feeling my skin sparkle with the touch of his hand. “Thank you for all of this.” Feeling suddenly shy, my eyes shift to the Full Moon behind him. “The Moon is so perfect tonight! So beautiful!”
“Yes. Very beautiful.”
“The Moon is on the other side, Cedar.” I giggle.
“But you’re my own Moon, Vivi.”
I roll my eyes. But then I realize. “*Wait*!”
I sit up abruptly. 
“What did you just say?”