CEO's Runaway Mate and Her Cubs

Once at the company, Lara disappeared into an empty office. She didn't look up for a moment and chose a room she knew no one used. She closed the door and didn't come out for a long time.

Nate let her some time alone, knowing she needed space. He was learning, little by little, when he could be a clingy and possessive Alpha and when to avoid it...

A human mate required a lot of balance a wolf didn't have, but he was learning. He was willing to suppress his nature for her.

And she had been working so hard to make it work too! His heart couldn't help but beat happily at that thought. Even though worried to the core, even if he was fearing she would run away from trouble - and him... He was happy she was trying.

When the time came, he picked up the twins from kindergarten. He brought them to his office and let them play in their corner while he continued working.

«Where is mommy?» Jaden asked, nibbling on a giant cookie. He was holding it with both hands - of how large it was.

Scarlet, next to him, had one in each hand. She would alternate biting one or the other. And, while she had food in her reach, she wouldn't ask questions.

Too bad that Jaden wasn't as easy to distract.

«She's not feeling well,» Nate said.

He had no reason to hide anything from the pups. They deserved to know, especially because they could refrain from assaulting their mommy while she wasn't in a good mood.

«We need to be careful when she comes here,» he continued, instructing his kids about how to behave. It was a first, and his serious tone made them focus on his words. «You two shouldn't jump on her just yet. And you should be good kids. Even more than usual, okay?»

«W-what do good kids do?» asked Scarlet, leaving one cookie on the table by some miracle.

«They don't assault their mommy. They don't whine and complain as a first thing when they see her... Hmm, they tell her how much they love her. This kind of thing, I guess,» Nate replied.

The pups nodded, doing their best to understand his words. He knew they would probably implement the plan in their own way, maybe even messing it up. However, he was so proud they would try their best. It gave him so much to be happy about!

«We haven't gone out in a long time, have we?» he continued. «Once things settle down, we can have ice cream.»

«Oh, yes!» The first to accept - ready at the words ice cream - was Scarlet, just like usual.

«All four of us?» was Jaden's question.

«I'm not sure your mommy will come. She's having a hard time, and she might want to avoid public places. If that is what she wants, we can let her stay here.»

«So, the three of us?» the little boy continued. He didn't seem very excited by that perspective. He was used to going out with his dad alone, without Scarlet stealing all the attention.

Still, it was better than nothing.

«Yes, the three of us. It's been so long since the last time, right? We should hang out together more often.»

«Not much time,» Jaden pointed out, spreading his arms.

He had spent time with Nate when they were in the base, after all. The boys would talk alone, and Nate would take a walk with Scarlet almost as often as before. Just, they didn't get out of there. They would stay in that place instead of visiting the city. But it was fun, all in all.

«Well, it will be fun,» Nate repeated. «We can go to that shop you two love.»

«Yes, daddy!» Scarlet exclaimed. She loved a lot of shops, though. She wasn't sure which one Nate was referring to. However, it didn't matter. What mattered was the ice cream.

Nate saved the work on the computer and turned it off. He would spend the rest of the afternoon with his kids and with Lara - when she would be ready to join them.

«Why is mommy unhappy?» Scarlet asked.

Coming from her, that question surprised him. He sat on the sofa, in between the pups, and reached out for a cookie for himself. Why? He wasn't sure what was the problem, but he would have helped Lara with anything she might have needed.

«There are some people who're causing trouble. I'm not sure how to solve it, and your mommy is suffering because of them. But I'll find a way, I promise,» he said.

«Can't we just send them away like that tall, dark man?»

«You're talking about the wolf who kidnapped you? That one won't hurt you again, I promise.»

«Can't you do the same with these new people, daddy? I don't want my mommy to be sad because of them.»

«She won't be,» Nate said. «But she needs some time to get over it. It's difficult at first, but she will learn to ignore what the press says. She's stronger than that.»

«But now?»

«Now she is worried; it will pass. Your mommy is very strong, isn't she?»

«Strong?» Scarlet muttered, surprised.

Jaden touched Nate's knee, attracting his attention.

«But you are stronger than mommy, dad!»

«Am I, now?»

«Yes. You can protect her, right?»

«I will do my best to protect you in every situation.»

«Then why aren't you with mommy now?»

«She wants to be alone. We can talk later... Let's say, at dinner.»

«Really? I don't want to be alone when I am sad. Why does my mommy?»

«It's complicated,» he started, but he then realised that Jaden was right. Lara didn't need to be alone when sad. Even though she was having a difficult day, he shouldn't have left her alone.

He didn't need to go look for her, though, because they heard a couple of light steps in the hallways. Lara was walking towards them.

The pups moved their eyes on the door, excited but not running to her. They were listening to Nate's instructions.