The Runaway Luna's Heartless Mate

9-A Nightmare!

Love Cameron:

"What's going on here?" I exclaimed with a sense of panic, briskly entering the lounge. I found Nena embracing Elijah, who was sobbing uncontrollably, while Imogen stood behind the couch, clutching her teddy bear.

"I was just about to give you a call," Nena placed her phone down, her expression full of concern. Elijah released himself from her grasp and rushed over to hug me. I swiftly wrapped my arms around him, holding him close.

It took me an hour to console him, but he remained tight-lipped. I wondered if he might have been frightened by Imogen, perhaps she had heard the unsettling howls again. However, I refrained from directly questioning her, as she seemed just as frightened.

After settling them back in bed, I stepped out of the bedroom to have a conversation with Nena, who was now sipping wine in the kitchen.

"Thanks for taking care of them," I expressed my gratitude, taking the glass she had poured for me.

"How was your date?" she asked, appearing relaxed now, but my concern lingered.

"It wasn't a date," I fibbed once again. "By the way, I refrained from asking them about what happened because they're so shaken up. Can you shed some light on it?" I queried, setting the glass aside.

"Don't worry, kids have nightmares from time to time," her reassuring smile failed to ease my mind. Why were my kids going through this?

"First, Imogen used to complain about hearing howls, and now Elijah is having nightmares that are shaking him to his core. Did he tell you what he saw? Can you give me a detailed account of what happened?" I snatched the glass from her hands, shooting her an annoyed look for seemingly prioritizing the drink over the pressing issue.

"I was watching a movie when I heard screams from the room. I rushed in and found Elijah wide awake in his bed, with Imogen cowering behind the curtains. Elijah claimed he saw a man in his dreams," she paused, noting my reaction.

"A man?" I furrowed my brows, surprised that he was frightened by a mere human. After all, it's not like they're confined to the apartment. We go to the park daily, and on weekends, we stroll, shop, and even have picnics.

"It wasn't just an ordinary man. Elijah described him having big ears and strange green eyes. As each minute passed in his dream, the man transformed into a wolf, all the while threatening to come for him," she nodded, recounting the details.

My heart did a quick flip inside my chest, but I concealed any concern on my face.

"Oh, what a nightmare," I tried to make light of it with a joke, but deep down, fear was settling in.

It wasn't a coincidence that first, my daughter heard howls, and now my son was seeing a werewolf in his dreams. After bidding farewell to Nena, I sat down on my bed and began searching for any recent animal incidents in our area. I had deliberately chosen to live in this area because the city had no history of wolves. I didn't want to be paranoid every time I saw a wolf, so residing in a city where they didn't exist seemed like a safer choice.

"Who was the man Elijah glimpsed in the nightmare? Could it be that arrogant alpha king... no! Why would he come for him? He doesn’t even know if I was ever pregnant, and I'm sure Mindy wouldn’t be foolish enough to tell him I was ever pregnant with his child," I reassured myself, but with each passing minute, impatience crept in.

Now, my concern for my kid's safety had escalated.

Having to head back to work in the morning, I found no time to talk to my children. Even at the breakfast table, Elijah refused to broach the topic. I observed that he had somehow adopted the notion that just because he was a boy, he couldn’t be scared or show vulnerability. It bothered me a lot because this mindset is what causes men to struggle in relationships. However, since he was still quite young, I planned to help reshape his perspective.

"Love!" I heard someone calling my name as I was about to enter the building. I turned around to see Hilla hastily making her way in my direction. She looked very displeased with me, and I kind of got the idea of what was wrong.

"What are you doing at the office?" I asked, considering she had left the job a long time ago. She batted her thick, long eyelashes and kept staring at my face with her grey eyes.

"You rejected Darren’s proposal?" she pouted, placing her hands on her waist and complaining.

"Before you question me, you answer my burning question. He told me about the time he convinced you to make me apply for the job, and that you knew about his feelings for me," Once I gave her the same look, she understood she couldn't just come rushing at me when she herself had some explaining to do.

"Oh, that. I just didn’t want to spill the beans when he should be the one expressing his feelings. Besides, I was really hoping you two would hit it off," she gave me a smile so bright that I forgot about all my complaints.

"But can you tell me why you said no? You two would look so good together, and imagine marrying a billionaire!" she clapped her hands overexcitedly, while I hushed her down upon seeing some colleagues passing by us.

I had to grab her hand and drag her to the waiting lobby so that she wouldn’t announce to the whole world that Darren Stein proposed to me and I rejected him.

I knew she didn’t have to worry about class, being the daughter of a billionaire herself, but the fact that she thought I would want the same made me laugh at her silliness.

"Hilla! I'm not a bachelor like him. I'm a single mom, and he doesn’t even know that," I had only started to explain when she shrugged as if it wasn’t a big deal.

"So what? Tell him," she nudged me, and I pinched her arm back.

"Ouch! What was that for?" she complained, rubbing her arm.

"I don’t want to tell him and then get rejected. It's better that I just told him it's not possible. I can't take another rejection," I sighed because I couldn’t openly express to her how much the rejection could hurt me given my true identity.

"Hey there!" Her initial reaction got interrupted as she glanced behind me and exchanged greetings with someone. I instantly recognized the person due to his distinctive cologne.

"Hilla! What brings you here?" Darren's voice held a captivating charm, prompting me to take a step back before turning to meet him.

"Hello," I greeted him in a slightly awkward manner. He averted his gaze from me but nodded in acknowledgment.

This is exactly why I didn't want anything beyond a professional relationship to develop between us. Now, everything felt awkward and tangled.

"I was just asking her why she turned down such a handsome man," Hilla surprised me with her candid comment. I anticipated Darren to either be offended or bruised in his ego, but he simply laughed it off.

"Ask your friend here. I'm still deeply wounded by the rejection," he turned to me, narrowing his eyes and causing my heart to skip a beat.

"I am--" I began to say when my phone rang, and seeing Nena's name on the screen this early in the morning hinted at unfavorable news.

"Excuse me," I'm certain they noticed the stress on my face because their conversation came to a halt too.

"Hello? Is everything alright?" I inquired of Nena, but there seemed to be some commotion happening behind her.

"Stop!" she grunted at them, "you need to come back; I can't control them anymore."

I was utterly flabbergasted by the exhaustion in her voice. How much mischief could a three-year-old possibly cause to wear out an adult?

"I'm on my way," I whispered, attempting to calm my racing breaths. After ending the call, I gazed at Darren with teary eyes. "Can I take a day off?"

Even Hilla seemed concerned for me.

"Of course, is everything okay?" Darren attempted to approach, but I instinctively stepped back from him. I couldn't afford to dwell on my personal matters. My focus needed to be on my kids.

"Um, how about I drive you home? It'll save you some time," Hilla gently grasped my arm, likely sensing the gravity of the situation.

I didn't catch Darren's expression after that since my mind was consumed with worry for my kids. Hilla and I hurried to her car, as calling an Uber would take too much time, and I wanted to be home as soon as possible.

Once inside the car, I shared with her that Nena had called, sounding utterly exhausted. I could even hear my kids screaming at each other in the background.