Chapter 60

(**Irina’s POV**) 

Sebastion knows my lineage. I was planning on telling him at some point. Honestly, I am surprised he never sensed it from me or my father. I remember growing up wondering why our family wasn’t living in the Alpha’s residence. Blood related us to the pack Alpha. 

It was only later in life that my father told me why.  

“I think noticed a difference in you from what I originally thought. With everything else going on in our lives, I just didn’t give it much thought. Does Treadstone know that you have Alpha blood?” 

“No, he is too stupid to figure it out. Eric knew because he sensed it from me, but he said nothing.” 

“It seems like we owe Eric more than we thought.” 

“Are you mad I kept it from you?” All I can think about is his rejection of me now that the full truth is out. 

He must have noticed my anxiety after I asked the question. Getting up from his chair, he walks to me, then pulls me into his arms. Relief floods through me as he buries his nose in my neck, breathing in my scent to soothe my worries.  

“Tell me more about your family. Your father is Alpha born, why was he only a Beta by title?” 

Sebastion takes my hand as he leads me to the sofa. He sits, then brings his legs up like he is laying down. His back is to the armrest, so he is sitting upright. He pulls me down to sit between his now slightly open knees. My back is to his chest.  

When his arms come around my waist, I melt against him at this intimate moment. His hand rubs circles over my flat stomach where our baby is. I place my hand over his and he interlaces our fingers together. Closing my eyes, I open the link between us fully so he can feel what I am feeling.  

I can feel his emotions too, and I can’t help but smile. He was a little angry that I held information about my heritage. In the end he was more concerned about what that meant for Treadstone. The love I feel from him is drowning out all the other emotions he feels. 

“My father was the rightful Alpha of our pack. However, his younger brother, Leonid, wanted to be the Alpha more than he did. They were only a year apart, so my father gave up his birthright for his brother.” 

“That is a noble thing to do. Did he get approval from the council and their father?”  

Sebastion’s voice is close to my ear, sending shivers down my spine. “Their father died shortly before my father turned eighteen. Their mother was still acting Luna, so she wanted to give them both time to decide. She wanted my father to take over as Alpha like they taught him. Leonid never went through the training like my father did.” 

“The council denied their request?” 

“Yes, which surprised them both. My uncle got angry. He said it was just as much his birthright as it was my father’s. He became a different person, according to my father. Then when my parents met, Leonid became violent towards my mother. That was when my father called the council personally and told them he was stepping aside as the pack Alpha.” 

“He took your mother away from the threat to her life.” 

“Only out of the Alpha’s residence. The council agreed to his request but told him they wanted him as second in command. They didn’t trust Leonid could lead the pack.” 

“Were they correct?” Sebastion nibbled on my ear after he spoke. His fiery breath fanning my ear and neck, making me shiver more. 

“If you want the story, you better behave.” I leaned my head back so I can look up at him.  

There is mischief in his eyes that tells me he is contemplating what to do. With a playful tug on my hips, he grinds my ass against his erection. Damn, this mate of mine is insatiable. A moan escapes my lips when his hand slides down to cup my mound through my pants. 

Then he stops all his teasing. “Continue your story.” 

“Oh, now that is just wrong. You can’t just tease me, then stop. Sexual frustration is bad for expecting mothers.” I am not at all sure if that is true, but I am going to see if he falls for it. 

“Finish your story then later tonight I will finish what I started.” 

I pout for a moment, then sit up so I can face him. I move to the opposite side of the sofa with my legs up on his. The grin on his face makes me throw one of the small pillows at him. Seeing that I will not get what I want, I go on with the story I was told. 

“Leonid proved the council wrong. Once he got the title, he realized that there was so much more to being an Alpha than just a title. He begged my father to forgive him. To train him in all there was to know about being a pack Alpha. Our pack flourish under their leadership.” 

I pause as I remember what it was like growing up. Our pack was always trading with other packs in Russia. We also traded furs, pottery, handmade jewelry, and other trade goods to humans. We did all of that through a traveling werewolf merchant.  

“My uncle may have started his leadership as a selfish man, but he became the Alpha we all needed him to be.” 

“Will your family stay here in Redwood and join the pack officially?”  

I nod my head at him. “My father has already agreed to stay. Natalia has agreed too, but she wants to keep her shop in town. Pavel is still undecided, but I think now that Oleg is here, he may change his mind. I am not sure about Oleg yet, he is so broken, nothing like the optimistic man he used to be.” 

“They are all welcome here even if Pavel or Oleg decide to leave. They are always welcome to visit or stay until they decide to move on to somewhere else.” 

Knowing this makes me happy that he is not forcing them to make a choice. Sebastion is proving to be a very smart man. He thinks with his emotions first but then finds logical solutions to his problems. I have seen some of the growth of the pack since I have been here. 

He told me about the survivors of Rayne’s old pack that he brought here to have a new life. At first, I was jealous of his initial reasons. He wanted to give them a home so she would have familiar faces here when he brought her home with him.  

However, after getting to know them, he knew it was for a different reason. They all needed a fresh start after what they lived through. He needed to be the one to give it to them after what he found out about his personal life. Knowing he did what he did to redeem his past selfishness, I am proud of him.  

Sebastion is trying to find redemption by doing acts of kindness. 

So far, I have to say he is doing well, but I don’t feel he needs redemption. He made choices in the past for a woman who wasn’t worth to be with him. She was the selfish one, not him. I will do everything I can to show him that. I just hope that his sister has come to the same conclusion. 

He needs her now more than ever. They need to repair what they broke in their relationship. I want them to heal and move on from the ugliness of the past. One day, I would love to become friends with Arianna. I am just not sure that will be possible until the two of them work together to bridge the gap between them. 

Thinking of siblings reminds me that my oldest brother is here. I stand up off the sofa so fast that I almost fall over. Sebastion’s arms go around my waist to steady me. Then, with his hand in mine, he leads me downstairs. When we reach the front door, he gives me a toe-curling kiss. We are both breathless when he breaks the kiss and steps back. 

“Go to your family. They need you too. I will go talk to my sister more. I think a family therapy session will help when my parents get back. There are so many unresolved issues with all of us. From my brother’s death, to Gia, and now the issues with Treadstone.” 

“That part is still my fault.” 

“That is Arianna speaking, not you. You and I both know better than that. Now, go before I am tempted to keep you here for myself.” 

When I open the door, he gently swats my ass to send me on my way. I leave him with a smile on my face. We are getting better at communicating. He has always been an open book with me. I have been the one to hold back. After today I feel that all our barriers have vanished.  

(**Sebastion’s POV**) 

After Irina closes the door behind her, I go to my sister’s wing of the third floor. I know she is packing to move out of the mansion, but that can wait. Do I even want her to move out? Honestly, I would love for her to stay here. This has always been her home. Yet, if she can’t get along with Irina and me, then I will be forced to have her leave. 

It will be quieter in this house without Flynn and Callie bustling around. Plus, with two new babies on the way, do I really want to put her through the stress of moving? I have kept our link closed tight since she left and haven’t wanted to open it to talk to her.  

Speaking in person is better than through our minds. I can see her face with every emotion that plays across her features. The eye rolls I know she will do when I annoy her. Even the rude gestures I have seen her do when she doesn’t think I am watching. Face-to-face confrontation is best. 

I just hope it doesn’t get ugly again. 

When I reach Arianna’s study, I can hear raised voices through the door. Flynn is yelling at her about her unwillingness to compromise. What that means I don’t know, but I am not given time to ponder further because the door opens. Flynn stares at me angrily, then brushes past me in a huff. I can feel that his anger isn’t meant solely for me, but I am part of the problem. 

“He is angry that I pushed him to come back sooner than planned,” Arianna says. 

I walk into her study, closing the door behind me as I do. We set this room up to look almost identical to our father’s library, except there is no fireplace. Arianna crammed the floor to ceiling bookshelves with first editions of hundreds of original works. Authors from all over the world. She gets her love of reading from our father.  

Where I got the love to paint from our mother. Which reminds me of the painting I have for her in the attic. “Come with me, there is something I want to give you.” 

“If it is another lecture, then I think I will pass,” she says. Her voice is dripping with sarcasm as she faces me.

“It is something I have been working on since Callie was born.” 

Her eyes get bright as she understands my meaning. “You haven’t let me in your studio for years.” 

“Well, I didn’t want you to see what I was working on. Also, I just didn’t want you to be in my private space with the way things were with us for so long.” 

Arianna looks down at the floor as her cheeks turn pink. I can tell she is embarrassed by what I said. Without thinking it through, I walk to her, then pull her into a hug. She stiffens at first, then relaxes with a shuddering breath. The tension between us disappears for this moment. 

“I am sorry I have been such an immature bitch to you and Irina. Neither of you deserved that.” Her voice quivers with unshed tears as she holds me tight. 

“Let’s wait to talk about that for now. Come, I want to give you your present. You even have the perfect place for it right above that sofa.”  

I point out the blank space on the wall that is just wide enough for the painting. She lifts her head to look where I point, then nods in agreement. I step back, grab her hand, then lead her across the mansion to my wing of the house.

When we reach the door to the attic, she pulls her hand from mine and shifts from one foot to the other nervously. I raise my brow and look at her. She is looking at the floor rather than at me. This makes me frown. My sister has never been one to shy away from her feelings. Why is she starting now?

“What are you nervous about?” 

“I haven’t been up there in years, but I can smell that Irina has. My first instinct was to be angry that you allowed her up there, but not me. I then realized that she is your mate. Of course, you would let her up there.” 

“I didn’t actually let her up there. We had a fight, and I was up there painting when she found the door. Her curiosity got the better of her and she explored not knowing where the door led to.” 

I can tell she wants to say something, but she clamps her lips closed tight, then motions for me to open the door. This is a surprise to me but instead of commenting on it I do as she wishes. The door opens after I press on it, then I reach in to turn on the light for the stairwell.  

I have all my works in progress covered as well as the one I am giving to her. So, I motion for her to go up first. With a nod, she walks up the stairs with me a few paces behind her. I don’t want to crowd her when she is already feeling nervous.  

What does she think I am going to do? I want peace between us, not war. This is my good faith gesture to open the door for us to become friends again. I finished the painting the day before my life imploded. The plan was to give it to her the day after I finished it, but shit happened and now here we are. 

“Face the window,” I tell her when we get to the top of the stairs. 

Arianna does as I tell her while I walk to the wall where have some finished paintings covered with cloth. I grab the one that is for her and set it up on an empty easel behind her so the sun shines on it. I remove the sheet, then tell her to turn around. 

The gasp of surprise, then the strangled sob that comes from my sister lets me know I hit my target. I open the link between us and feel her happiness at what she sees on the canvas. I painted her in the garden on a lounge chair with a sleeping baby in her arms. Arianna’s face was full of wonder as she looked down at her daughter.  

“I sketched that out after she was born and have been working on it since.” My sister flings herself into my arms and cries happy tears.