Chapter 61
Samantha’s POV
“They are going to hate me,” I muttered under my breath, my fingers clenching the hem of my sweater as we walked on the uneven dirt path toward the pack house, and as we passed by several pack members, their eyes were trained on me with questioning gaze.
Dominic’s stride did not falter as he gripped my hand tighter. “They will respect my choice,” he remarked, with a faint hint of frustration that he did not bother to hide.
Respect his choice? The concept felt foreign to me now, like something out of reach.
“You don’t understand. I did not just leave, Dominic. I disappeared. I abandoned my role, my place, my duties. Do you have any idea how much damage that must have caused?” My voice cracked despite my efforts to keep it controlled.
He stopped so abruptly that I nearly stumbled. Turning to face me, he cupped my cheek with his free hand, his dark eyes boring into mine as he spoke. “They will understand, and they will accept you because you are their Luna. You always have been. And because I said so.”
He spoke like everything was certain and that no one would question him, but I knew that even though they would not do it in front of me, they would start talking behind my back.
I let out a shaky breath, trying to muster the same confidence he exuded so effortlessly, but I still could not calm myself, still feeling the eyes that bore behind me. “Do you honestly think it is that simple?” I whispered over the sound of rustling leaves. “You think they will forget how I ran away in the middle of everything, how I left them... left you, without so much as a goodbye? I am not just some stranger stepping into their lives, Dominic. I am the one who betrayed their trust. How do you expect them to forgive that?”
His jaw tightened, his fingers brushing lightly against my cheek before he dropped his hand. “Because they will see what I see. A woman strong enough to come back, to face the people she thinks she failed. That is what makes you their Luna, Samantha. Not perfection. Not the past.”
I swallowed hard, the lump in my throat making it difficult to speak. His words were convincing, almost too persuasive, and for a brief moment, I wanted to believe him. But the doubts remained, clawing at the edges of my mind.
“You are putting too much faith in them,” I said, looking away. “And in me.”
His grip on my hand tightened slightly, pulling me closer. “You don’t need their forgiveness to prove your worth,” he said, his voice dropping low enough that it felt like a secret meant only for me. “You just need to stand tall and remind them who you are.”