Alpha's One Night Bride
Alpha’s One Night Bride – Chapter 39

Ronnie wanted to talk right then and there, but both she and Arina knew it wouldn’t be a good idea with Rock and Melissa lurking somewhere around the house. So, Arina suggested that Ronnie came to Sabrebite when she could, and they could talk at her home.

Ronnie was nervous because she’s never been to Sabrebite; this would be the first time she visited Arina at her home. She wouldn’t be able to tell Rock she was going there because he would know something was up. Which meant, she also couldn’t tell Melissa knowing that she would probably bring it up to Rock. As much as Rock physically and emotionally hurts her, she still bends over backward for him in hopes of strengthening their obviously failed marriage.

Now that Rock had this beautiful doctor, Emily, staying with them until the baby was born, Melissa knew she was somehow in trouble and needed to keep on Rock’s good side. It was obvious to Ronnie that Rock was sleeping with Emily and if he wasn’t before, he was going to start soon enough. There was no way he was going to live this close to her and not try anything. Emily seemed like the kind of woman that would give herself into him without a second thought or any remorse for his current luna.

Ronnie figured while Melissa and Rock argued about that, she would be able to sneak out and head to Sabrebite. It’s not like Rock would even notice that Ronnie was missing. Melissa might, but Ronnie wasn’t too worried about it.

Sabrebite was a whole new territory for Ronnie; the busy streets were swarming with wolves she didn’t recognize. Some wolves stopped to stare at her as she walked past them. She couldn’t blame them; she knew outsiders from different packs were invading other territories and no one was safe. Considering they didn’t know her, they probably thought she was an outsider as well.

She kept her head down as she followed Arina’s instructions on how to get to their home.

Ronnie was relieved when the house came into view. Arina was already outside waiting for her. It was weird developing this relationship with Arina whereas Ronnie was able to go and see her. She lived her entire life without having that connection with Arina and now they were finally connecting.

She’s been contemplating whether she should tell Arina about how her mother died or not. But she also didn’t want to throw Melissa under the bus; Melissa was her mother after all and she knew it would only cause problems, possibly fatal, for Melissa.

But now that Ronnie and Arina are finally talking and developing not just a friendship, but a sistership, Ronnie wanted to gain Arina’s trust and let her know that she is on her side.

“So, what did you want to talk about?” Arina asked as she sat down on her porch.

It was early spring so the windchill felt good on their skin as the air was warming. It was mid-afternoon and Ronnie had left home around the time that Melissa and Rock began fighting.

“I wanted to warn you that dad has something planned. I’m not sure what it is though. But I overheard him talking to his mistress,” Ronnie told her.

Arina frowned.

“Her name is Piper, right?” Arina asked.

Ronnie was surprised that Arina already knew of Piper.

“How’d you know that?” She asked.

“I have friends who know everything gossipy,” Arina admitted.

“Well, yes. Piper,” Ronnie confirmed. “He tells her things he wouldn’t typically tell anyone else. For reasonings, I’m unsure of. I mean, she’s young and she also likes to gossip. Plus, she sleeps around with almost every guy in Ironclaw. I wouldn’t trust her but for some reason, dad does.”

“Do you think he has something on her that’s buying her silence?” Arina asked.

It hasn’t occurred to Ronnie, but that was a good point.

“Possibly,” Ronnie agreed. “But he was telling her that he needs to keep you close until the baby is born.”

Arina frowned again and held her stomach; she looked pale. Ronnie felt bad for worrying her, but this was stuff Arina needed to be aware of. Arina had a good amount of friends and a mate to protect her so Ronnie wasn’t so much as worried about Arina’s safety.

“With the amount of people, you have in your corner, I wouldn’t worry too much about Rock,” Ronnie tried to reassure her.

Arina gave her a weak smile and nodded. Ronnie noticed how tired she looked; she had dark circles under her eyes, and she looked as though she hasn’t been eating. She was thinning out, despite being pregnant, life was beginning to drain from her.

“There’s something else you should know,” Ronnie said hesitantly.

Arina glanced over at her, curiosity in her gaze.

“It’s about your mother,” Ronnie continued.

“What about my mother?” Arina asked.

Ronnie noticed there was a hardness in her tone; she knew that talking about Emlin was a sensitive subject for her.

“Before my mother and Rock married, I overheard them talking about Emlin,” she began slowly. “My mother confessed to him about how she put wolfsbane in her tea before she went to bed…” her voice trailed off as she watched Arina’s face turn ghost white.

She opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out, leaving Ronnie feeling a wave of instant regret.

“Arina?” Ronnie said softly. “Say something.”

Ronnie reached out to place a hand on Arina’s shoulder, but Arina jerked herself away almost violently.

“You’ve known this the entire time?” Arina asked, her voice was hardly audible.

Ronnie felt her cheeks growing red as she nodded slowly. She wasn’t sure what to say at that point.

“You knew Melissa killed my mother and you said nothing?” Arina’s tone sounded distant and almost broken.

“I didn’t know how to tell you,” Ronnie said as tears welled up in her eyes.

She had just gotten a fairly steady relationship with Arina and now she was about to screw everything up.

“You could have spoken up…” Arina said; she was speaking in a high whisper as tears fell from her eyes.

“I was just a kid, Arina. I was scared. She is my mother. I didn’t know what I was hearing and…” Ronnie started rambling but with one look at Arina’s face, Ronnie’s voice trailed off.

She knew that nothing she said would make things better at this moment. She hated herself for that.

Arina was right. It shouldn’t have taken her this long to say something. She was young, but she was also a coward. That was why she always envied Arina; because she was strong, confident, and brave. Something Ronnie could never relate to.

Arina gained those qualities from her mother Emlin; Melissa was nothing like that therefore Ronnie was nothing like that. But Ronnie didn’t want to be like her mother; she wasn’t her mother and the more she sat there staring at Arina’s face, the more anger was beginning to build up inside of her.

She wasn’t her mother. She wasn’t going to allow Arina to make her feel like she was her mother or that she did anything wrong for that matter. Ronnie was simply the messenger.

Yes, she delivered the message too late, but at least she got the message delivered. Regardless, it wasn’t going to bring Emlin back.

“I didn’t do anything wrong,” Ronnie finally said; she was speaking between gritted teeth because anger was beginning to fill her.

“What do you mean you didn’t do anything wrong?!” Arina practically hissed. “You didn’t tell…”

“I was a CHILD,” Ronnie yelled, rapidly standing to her feet, startling Arina. “I was scared, Arina. I didn’t know what I was overhearing; I heard my mother confessing something terrible and it scared me. Plus, it’s not like you made talking to you easy. I spent most of my life with you shunning me and not wanting anything to do with me. So, no. I didn’t tell you.”

Tears were falling down Ronnie’s face. She hated herself for allowing herself to cry and be weak in front of Arina. She angrily wiped the tears off her face before continuing.

“I spent my life thinking you hated me. It was clear that you blamed me for a lot of shit that happened, but I didn’t do any of it. I was guilty by association. You must think about the role models I had growing up. I didn’t have the luxury of having a strong, brave, and confident mom that guided me and protected me. My mom isn’t anything like the mom you had; my mom would literally kill somebody for someone she supposedly loves. But I am not my mother. I am not a killer. I refuse to be classified as one.”

Her voice broke as a round of sobs escaped her mouth.

Sniffling, she continued.

“My mother chose Rock over her own daughter. A man that beats, belittles, and cheats on her without a second thought. It makes the thought of falling in love terrifying…”

She thought of Erick, whom she hasn’t seen since they kissed. She wasn’t sure how to approach the whole Erick thing. Once Jonathan stitched him up, she spent a little time with him afterward, but he was mainly sleeping. She ended up leaving before he woke up and Jonathan brought him home to Onyxfang.

That was a couple of days ago and she hasn’t spoken to him since.

“Ronnie…” Arina tried to break in during Ronnie’s rampage.

“I’m not my mother,” Ronnie repeated. “I’m not her.”

“I know that Ronnie,” Arina said calmly.

Her voice was much softer than it had been. Ronnie noticed that Arina no longer appeared angry. Instead, she had a compassionate look in her eyes.

Ronnie sat down on the steps again and began sobbing into her hands. Arina wrapped her arms around Ronnie’s frail shoulders and pulled her in close for a hug.

“I’m sorry,” Arina whispered to her. “I had no idea.”

“I’m sorry too,” Ronnie whispered back. “I should have told you but…” her voice trailed off.

“I know. You don’t have to say it,” Arina answered her thoughts. “I should have never put this on you, and I should have never blamed you. Shutting you out for all these years was a huge mistake on my end. If I had known…” Arina’s voice trailed off.

“I feel like I grew up without knowing what a proper family was,” Ronnie said, lifting her head from her hands to gaze over at Arina. “I grew up not knowing what love was. Seeing you with Jonathan, almost gives me hope for the future.”

Arina frowned.

“Have you spoken to Erick?” She asked, eyeing Ronnie’s face carefully.

Ronnie’s cheeks flushed a pink color as she shook her head.

“No. I’m not sure what to say to him,” Ronnie admitted.

“Look, I know Rock doesn’t make Alpha males seem great. But I promise they aren’t all like that. Erick is a great guy and it’s because of him that I decided to give you a chance and open myself up to the possibility of pursuing a sisterly relationship. He saw something in you that I didn’t. He risked his life for you. I’m not saying you owe him… But you can trust him.”

Ronnie stared down at her hands. Arina was right. Erick has been nothing but amazing and Ronnie has been so afraid of allowing herself to feel, that she just runs away. It’s all she’s ever known how to do; she shuts her feelings off and looks in the other direction. She feels she doesn’t deserve to be loved the way Erick loves her. She doesn’t understand what he even sees in her, to begin with.

But she wanted to give him a chance and find out for herself what loving someone really means.

“As for the family thing,” Arina continued. “You have me now. I’m your family and Jonathan is your family. My unborn child is also your family, and we will need you around to help protect the baby.”

A small smile played on Ronnie’s lips.

“Of course,” she breathed.

“I promise not to blame you or shut you out anymore. But Ronnie, you must be open and honest with me about everything going forward. Okay?” Arina asked.

“Okay,” Ronnie answered.