Free Web NovelChapter 38: Chapter 38 Battle Begins Tonight
Hugo’s POV
The voice call between Bella and Derek had left me completely on edge.
I couldn’t shake the memory of his words, the way his voice had changed when he spoke to her. Even though I was supposed to be here watching the children while they slept, my mind kept circling back to that conversation.
What the hell was Derek thinking? Why now?
I watched Bella move quietly through the suite, feeding the kids their dinner, cleaning up afterward. Her movements were efficient, controlled. But I could see the tension in her shoulders, the way she avoided meeting my eyes for too long.
Was she replaying Derek’s words too? Was she considering what he had said?
The thought made my chest tighten with something I didn’t want to name.
I had known Derek for years. We had been through hell together. Never once had he mentioned having feelings for Bella. Sure, there had been moments where I caught him looking at her a certain way, but I had dismissed it as protective instincts.
Now I realized how wrong I had been.
I groaned and shifted on the oversized couch that still felt too cramped for my frame.
"You don’t need to torture yourself on that thing," Bella said, emerging from the bedroom with a thick comforter and pillow. "Take my bed. I can stay with the children tonight."
Her tone was matter-of-fact, like she was discussing the weather.
"I’m fine here. You need proper rest," I replied, studying her face for any hint of what she was thinking. "You haven’t been sleeping well."
"Neither have you," she said simply.
The lack of concern in her voice hit me harder than I expected. Before everything went wrong, she would have fussed over me, insisted on making me tea, asked a dozen questions about why I couldn’t sleep.
Now she just accepted it and moved on.
"Don’t worry about me. I can go days without sleep when I need to," I said, hoping to get some reaction from her.
"Alright then. Just wake me if you get tired. Don’t push yourself," she murmured, setting a glass of ice water on the side table. freewёbnoνel.com
That was it. No follow-up questions. No worry. Just practical acceptance.
I watched her walk toward her bedroom, my heart sinking with each step. She didn’t even close the door completely, leaving it slightly ajar so I could reach her if the children needed anything.
Always thinking of everyone else first.
"Why don’t you just go in there and tell her you need her?" my wolf’s voice cut through my brooding.
He had been quiet for most of the day, but now he was wide awake and full of opinions.
"That’s not how this works," I muttered back.
"Isn’t it? She’s our mate, Hugo. She belongs with us, not him." fгeewebnovёl.com
"Stop saying that. It’s not that simple."
My wolf had been insisting on this mate bond theory for weeks now, but I couldn’t let myself believe it. Not when everything was so complicated. Not when it might just be wishful thinking.
"You can deny it all you want, but deep down you know I’m right. She’s ours. And if you don’t act soon, Derek is going to take her away from us."
Before I could argue further, he retreated, leaving me alone with my spiraling thoughts.
I grabbed my phone and sent Derek a quick message, needing to know where his head was at after that call.
His response came as a voice note that made my blood run cold.
"I’m coming there tonight. We need to talk in person."
My hands were shaking as I called him back, stepping into the far corner of the living room to avoid waking anyone.
"Derek, what the hell are you doing? You can’t just show up here," I hissed into the phone.
"I have to, Hugo. I can’t wait anymore."
"Wait for what? What are you talking about?"
But the line went dead. He had hung up on me.
I called back repeatedly, but he never answered.
The rest of the night crawled by in agonizing slow motion. I paced the living room, checked on the sleeping children every hour, and wore a path in the carpet from my restless energy.
Derek had to have caught a red-eye flight. He was actually coming here.
When dawn finally broke, I was still wide awake on the couch, my nerves shot from hours of anxious waiting.
The sound of a key card at the door made my stomach drop.
Derek walked in looking like he had been hit by a truck. His hair was disheveled, his clothes wrinkled, and there were dark circles under his eyes that matched my own.
"Where is she?" were the first words out of his mouth.
I shot up from the couch, blocking his path deeper into the suite. "She’s sleeping. So are the kids. What the hell are you doing here?"
"Is Leah okay? You said she was in pain." The worry in his voice was genuine, but I wasn’t backing down.
"She’s resting now. You’re not waking her up. She’s been through enough."
The protective edge in my tone seemed to register with him. His eyes narrowed slightly as he studied my defensive posture.
"Why are you really here, Derek?" I demanded, cutting straight to the heart of it.
For a moment, I thought he might dodge the question like he always did when things got uncomfortable. But then his shoulders squared, and he looked me straight in the eye.
"I came to tell Bella that I’m in love with her."
The words hit me like a physical blow, even though I had been expecting them.
The battle for Bella’s heart was about to begin.
