Novel Wave 17

17 

REBECCA 

It had taken every ounce of self–control I had to keep me from bursting into tears when Reiner had smiled upon seeing the photo of the kids: seeing all that love mixed with pain and grief… for the Goddess, had not been easy at all. 

In truth, nothing about that meeting had been easy. 

The man I had met in New York was not the same man I had had to leave behind four years 

earlier: sure, maybe in appearance, he hadn’t changed that much, but… my goodness, he was 

hiding so much pain in his eyes. So much pain. 

– 

He had lost everything – Sheila had taken everything from him: first me and the pups, and then 

the pack, the thing he loved most after his family. His father, the previous Alpha, had chosen 

him as his successor instead of Garrett, his older brother, because he thought him the most 

suitable and wisest choice – he had gone against tradition and against the elders of the pack 

for Reiner to become Alpha: and every day he had held that title, Reiner had worked to the best of his ability to prove himself worthy of it, both to his father and to the Elders. 

I could not bear to see him so sad, so defeated: I had hoped and prayed to spare him more 

pain by leaving and pleasing Sheila: so it had not been. 

Now I realized that even my leaving must have been part of that plan of hers: coincidentally, 

she had framed and kicked me out just as soon as I found out I was pregnant, something that 

would forever solidify Reiner’s position as Alpha. 

Who knows if Isabelle had anything to do with that whole scheme: after all, Sheila herself had told me it was her who’d told her about my pregnancy. Had she done it on purpose, to set that plan into motion, or just because she was happy to be an aunt? That monster had said it was 

out of naiveté, however… 

I doubted I would ever get an answer. 

What was clear was that these people could not be trusted. 

“What a brat” Reiner laughed heartily, devouring his ice cream as he looked with love in his eyes at one of the last pictures I had taken of Vi – her crouching down behind her brother’s 

back to prank him. 

“Yeah, I agreed, “She’s terrible – you can never truly relax when she’s around.” 

1/4 

+2 Points 

17 

All the way from home to the restaurant – and for a good number of minutes inside the restaurant – I had been … absolutely terrified. Although Reiner had made it crystal clear to me in our meeting outside my place that he had no intention of taking the kids away from me, I couldn’t shake that fear: he could always change his mind, he could want revenge on me by using them or the Goddess only knew what … but all fear had vanished when I had seen the love in his eyes blossom as he had looked at that picture. 

In that moment, I had seen for the first time the dad I had always known was hiding in him: loving, kind, sympathetic, protective. The best of all. 

Years had passed, but eventually fate had brought us back to the same place … and he just wanted to be a part of their lives. He just wanted to be the dad he knew he could be. 

And I knew, in my gut, that the kids could only benefit from having him in their lives. 

“Becks,” he asked after a while. The tone of his voice had changed – going from cheerful and 

curious to a more serious… and mournful one. Inevitably, I knew which question was about to 

follow. “What do they know about me?” 

I swallowed. “They know what your name is, what you look like, and that … well, that you work 

abroad, and that you haven’t been able to come back for the last few years because of work, 

but that you still love them very much.” 

I had preferred to talk to the children about him, more so that they would not feel excluded or 

different from the other kids. It had not been easy to find a suitable story: I needed one that 

would reassure them that they had a father, but that could also explain his absence… and 

that wouldn’t make them feel abandoned, or unloved. I needed a story that could fit three 

possible situations, namely Reiner’s total absence from their lives, his return, or, Goddess 

forbid, if he took them from me. That was the best I had been able to come up with. 

Reiner nodded – and although he did not speak, his thoughts were clear. 

Better than I had expected. 

Considering what his mother had made him believe, he probably thought I had made the kids believe that my unexisting lover was their dad – or who knows what else. 

For a moment, it was again hard to hold back the tears. 

You didn’t deserve all this pain. None of us deserved it. 

Reiner had a good and kind soul – he did not deserve to see his life destroyed multiple times 

just for someone else’s ambitions and envy. 

2/4 

17 

Instead, life had seen fit to hand him an awful set of cards. 

“Do you 

… 

+8 Point 

I mean, do you have something to … you know, eat or …?” I found myself asking him – even though it might have been an awkward and embarrassing question. I knew well what it felt like to be alone and exiled, not knowing what the future would look like: luckily, I’d had Wayne and Ravi, and Reiner had told me that he was staying at Mark’s … but I didn’t know what kind of prospects he had. 

83. 83. 

Luckily, he smiled and nodded. “I have the inheritance my father left me five years ago, I haven’t touched it yet … and it’s quite substantial. Besides, Mommy and Garrett were kind enough to give me a severance pay,” he said, grimacing with bitter disgust as I felt venom running through my vein like acid: it was clear that those two had done it merely to annoy him, to remind him of what they had taken from him. “Don’t worry, I won’t risk having to skip meals 

or child support” he added, in a slightly lower voice. 

… 

I immediately shook my head. “Absolutely not,” I insisted. “If anything, we will share the kids‘ expenses equally.” 

Child support sounded like a bad word to me – I knew it wasn’t necessarily so, but the only image it conjured up for me was that of one parent paying the other to do the work for them: and I didn’t want that. 

I didn’t know what kind of co–parenting arrangement Reiner and I would reach – if we would reach it, but… I didn’t want that kind of money. 

Reiner nodded, “Fair enough,” he confirmed. “So?” he then asked. “What do we do with these 

two?” 

Luckily, he was smiling. He would have had every right to hate me, to despise me, but instead, he was smiling. 

Sometimes I struggled to understand him. 

I shrugged. His was a good question, considering that, two hours earlier, I had come literally a 

millimeter away from killing him and now we were chatting and discussing a co–parenting 

plan. 

“What would you like?” I found myself asking him. 

“Well, first of all, to get to know them,” Reiner said. “Then… well, considering the current state of my life, I guess I’ll move here. Mark put me in touch with a real estate friend of his, I’m meeting up with him to see some places in a couple of days. Of course we’ll have to consider their habits too, try not to disrupt their lives too much, but … I’d like to be their father, that’s it. 

3/4 

17 

48 Points 

Whatever that requires. Taking them to kindergarten, to the park, to the doctor, feeding them… 

whatever.” 

He was sincere – I could feel it, whether through the bond or just by looking at his face. He sincerely meant every word he had spoken: he wanted to be in their lives. 

And it was clear that his family was no longer part of his. 

We were safe. 

They may have destroyed our marriage… but there was still a chance for him and the kids. 

“Very well,” I, therefore, said, getting up from the bench. “Then we’d better get a move on.” 

Reiner stared at me, his jaw on the ground. “W–what?” 

“The kids are expecting a walk to Central Park this afternoon. I’d say it’s a beautiful day for you to get to know each other.”