Chasing His Wolfless Luna Back Chapter 173: Fear of Losing You

Thea's POV

"Thea, wake up, dinner's ready." Sebastian's voice pulled me from my foggy dream back to reality.

It wasn't a particularly good dream, but it wasn't bad either. Just one of those that leaves you confused when you wake up, with only vague impressions lingering behind.

"Where's Phoenix?" I asked, suddenly aware my daughter wasn't with me.

"Don't worry. She woke up, I fed her, and then she fell back asleep." His eyes scanned my face, searching for something.

I nodded and pushed the covers away to get up. I stretched, feeling my bones realign in a satisfying way.

"Why are you sleeping here instead of in our bed?" Sebastian asked, his gaze intense as he studied me.

Everything I'd been avoiding suddenly rushed back, reminding me exactly why I was in the guest room instead of the master bedroom. Anger and irritation surged through me, my calm disappearing, replaced by a bitter aftertaste. Why was he lying to me? Why was he keeping things from me? Was this how he wanted us to start our new relationship? Built on lies and secrets?

"Don't give me that shit, Sebastian. I'm really not in the mood right now." I snapped, walking past him.

Though I was a grown-ass woman, part of me wanted nothing more than to slap him hard across the face. After everything he'd put me through, he still had the audacity to hide things from me. What the fuck was wrong with him? Wasn't he satisfied with dragging me through hell and back?

I didn't wait for him to catch up, heading straight to the dining table where Leo and Damien were already seated. I sat down and started filling my plate. A few minutes later, Sebastian joined us.

"So, Thea, how have you been lately?" Damien asked, breaking the tense atmosphere. I didn't know how to answer his question. First, because I was fucking furious right now; second, because this small talk felt weird. Like I said, Damien and I were never exactly friendly examples. We barely talked, so him asking how I was doing felt strange.

"Fine so far... the only downside is being stuck at home. I'm not used to it," I answered honestly.

I put a piece of steak in my mouth, almost moaning at the flavor. It melted like butter in my mouth. Mary was really a fantastic cook.

I sighed, feeling a bit jealous of her. I was a good cook too, or at least I used to be. A few days ago, I'd tried a new recipe, wanting to cook for my family. But because of my condition (not being able to read numbers correctly), I added two and a half tablespoons of sugar instead of half a tablespoon. I cried for a full twenty minutes before I could calm myself down. Mary made something else afterward, and we never mentioned the incident again.

"Will you be going back to work?" Damien asked again, distracting me from my internal mess.

"That's the plan, but obviously, due to certain circumstances, that won't happen anytime soon," I replied after swallowing the food in my mouth.

Sebastian remained silent. His eyes were mostly focused on me. I could see the turmoil in him, the battle going on inside. I mentally scoffed; he was probably wrestling with whatever the fuck he was hiding from me.

"Mom, Wyatt still hasn't come over," Leo chimed in. "You said he would come last weekend, but you never talked to Jaxon about it."

My eyes quickly darted to Sebastian. His expression was unreadable now, which made me curious. We'd never discussed Jaxon, so I didn't know if they'd put aside their animosity for the sake of their sons.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart, I forgot to mention it to your father." I paused. "Tell you what, since your birthday is next week, he can come to your celebration and then stay over."

Leo threw his hands up happily, making everyone smile.

"That would be awesome!"

"You can invite your other friends too, and your classmates. I think we can have it in the backyard since we have enough space," I suggested, and Leo's smile grew even brighter.

Seeing him happy made me temporarily forget all the wrongness in my life. I lived for him and Phoenix, and no matter what happened between Sebastian and me, these two kids would always come first. If they were happy, then I would be happy too.

"My friends will be so excited... I'll invite everyone," he paused, then frowned, "well, except Piper. I don't want her at my party. She'll just ruin everything."

The happiness I'd felt moments before completely evaporated, and a wave of irritation swept through my entire body.

"When I say everyone, I mean everyone, Leo. No exceptions." My voice sounded hard.

"But I don't want her there," he said, somewhat angrily to me.

"Who's Piper?" Sebastian interjected.

"That annoying girl in my class I don't like. She's such a pain, and seeing her on my special day would just ruin my mood."

I understood that Piper annoyed him, but refusing to invite her to his birthday party while inviting everyone else was just mean and unnecessary.

"Do you know how hurt she'll be when you invite everyone else but her? That would probably break her heart." I tried to reason with him calmly, but I knew it was useless, especially when he glared at me like that.

"I don't care at all," he answered, his tone both cold and stubborn.

I was starting to lose patience with Leo. It's not that I was taking that girl's side, but I'd been through it. I knew what it felt like when everyone was invited to some party and you were the only one excluded.

I knew how deep that pain cut when others treated you with contempt, especially when you hadn't done anything to deserve their hate.

"Leo..." I warned.

"I'm not inviting her; she can cry an entire ocean, but I will never invite her!"

I reached my limit, the strings holding me together snapping. I slammed my hand on the table and turned to Leo with fury written all over my face.

Everyone was shocked. I'd never lost my temper like this, but Leo had just pushed me to the fucking edge.

"I don't care if you like her or not! If you're inviting your entire class, you have to invite her too, or there won't be any party at all, do you understand? Either you invite her too, or I cancel the whole thing," I yelled.

"You wouldn't dare," Leo looked at me, shocked.

"Try me," I snarled. He gave me a cold look and then pushed his chair away from the table. I heard his footsteps stomping on the floor. Usually, I would follow, but not today. I was still angry, still fuming. Besides, this was necessary.

I ran my fingers through my hair and stood up. I needed to breathe, needed some space.

"Thea..." I avoided Sebastian's and his brother's surprised gazes.

"Don't... don't talk to me until you're ready to tell me what the fuck you're hiding," I growled as I walked away.

I stormed back to the bedroom I'd been in minutes ago. I wanted to scream, wanted to shout, wanted to hit something or someone. I was so tense, and the frustration made me want to cry.

"Thea, please talk to me." His gentle voice penetrated my thoughts. I hadn't even noticed him following me, or that he'd entered the room.

"Are you going to tell me what you're hiding from me?" I asked, feeling the tears I'd been holding back stream down my cheeks.

He just stared at me, turmoil hidden behind those green eyes. Finally, he shook his head. "I can't, Thea. I just can't."

"Why not?" I shouted at him, grabbing the nearest thing and throwing it in his direction.

He moved very gracefully, avoiding the hardcover book that could have caused damage.

"I just want to know the truth; why can't you just tell me, Sebastian?" I broke down, falling onto the bed, feeling all the fight leaving me.

He walked the short distance and knelt in front of me, gently taking my hands in his.

"Because if you find out the truth, you'll leave me. I can't handle that, Thea. I can't live without you."

Love and fear flickered in his eyes.

That's when I saw it. He was genuinely afraid I would leave him. He was genuinely afraid of losing me.

"But you know anything built on lies will eventually crumble, right?" I asked, wiping away my tears.

"I do... but I just need a chance, Thea."

"A chance? What kind of chance?"

"A chance to win you over. A chance to make up for my mistakes, to fix what I broke. After that, I promise, I'll personally tell you the truth," he answered, his eyes pleading with me sincerely.

Should I believe him? I seemed to have a choice now. Should I choose to give him a chance, to let the truth rest for now, or should I insist on knowing what he was hiding?