Chapter 0455

Noah forced himself to breathe, keeping his temper in check. “She’s my mate, and she suffered at Zoe’s hands. We’re making things right. Both of us.”

A beat of silence, and Noah could almost feel his father recalculating. This conversation wasn’t going as expected, and that was the point.

“I assume you think this is a good idea,” Marcus said slowly. “After everything that happened, you’re just going to—”

“Yes,” Noah interrupted, his voice firm. “I do think this is a good idea. And I’m not interested in rehashing the past. What matters now is that Hannah and I are together. We’ve been through more than you realize, and she’s part of my life. That’s not going to change.”

His father was quiet again, but Noah knew Marcus was weighing his options, trying to find a foothold.

“I see,” Marcus finally said. “And as for that child—”

“Her name is Melody,” Noah cut him off.

“A girl,” Marcus said. “Hm. I wasn’t aware of that. I kept hearing whispers of an heir, so I assumed it was a boy.”

“She is our heir,” Noah said. “The heir to Silvercrest. She possesses the Alpha gene.”

The silence that followed was longer this time, heavier. Noah knew that Marcus was practically vibrating with fury on the other end of the phone—not just at the idea of a female heir, but also at that name: Silvercrest.

“We are combining the packs,” Noah continued, sensing his father’s distaste. “It’s already been approved by the Alpha Council. Hannah and I are running the combined pack together as dual Alphas.”

Another scoff came through the phone.

“Dual Alphas. Now, that is a new one.”

Noah sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He wasn’t about to try to explain himself to his father, to justify his reasons for doing this.

“Well…” His father snorted, as if amused by the entire conversation. “I’ll be back in the country for a few weeks. Perhaps we can chat in person. Will you be free for dinner this weekend?”

“Dinner?” Now, Noah was the one who scoffed. “Look, Dad, if you’re just looking to berate—”

“Believe it or not, I would like to meet my grandchild,” Marcus interrupted. “I’ll be there Friday night at six. With a bottle of wine, of course.”

And with that, his father hung up without so much as a goodbye.

Noah slammed the phone down on his desk, exhaling slowly to calm himself. Well, that had gone just about as well as he’d expected. Dinner with his father.

Chapter 0455

Noah bit his cheek, considering. He could ignore his father, turn him away, pretend not to be home on Friday night. But he knew he wouldn’t do any of that.

Maybe he wanted to look his father in the eye, show him how far he’d come since being a teenager who had to sneak into his mother’s hospital room just to say goodbye. Or maybe…

Something wasn’t adding up. Noah wasn’t sure how or why—it was just a gut feeling. At that moment, Noah thought back on a long-buried memory: the last time he said goodbye to his mother, and the warning she had given him about Marcus.

Whatever it was, he wanted to see his father in person. He just hoped that Hannah would be willing to join him in that effort.

“Hannah,” he typed, sending a quick text, “sorry for the late notice, but it looks like my father is coming for dinner this weekend. I hope you’ll join me… and bring Melody.”

A pause, three bubbles, and then: “Oh, great…”

Chapter 0456