Vera Cooked

*****Vivian's POV*****

The argument with Caleb out by the garden fountains eventually ended in a tense compromise. After finally agreeing that he would discreetly escort me only to the Moon Grove pack's borders in two days, he made it clear he refused to set foot anywhere near their packhouse. I accepted his terms.

Now, I stood alone in the center of my luxurious childhood bedroom. The sheer scale of the room was staggering. My bare feet sank into the plush, thick carpet, and my eyes traced the high, vaulted ceilings and the expensive, dark wood furniture. I was unable to stop myself from comparing its vast, opulent size to the small, cramped space I had hopelessly shared with Dari back at Moon Grove. That room had always smelled of damp earth and neglect, a constant reminder of my place in his life. Here, everything smelled of fresh linen and expensive jasmine.

"Why do you keep bringing that lowly someone into everything to compare?" Tessa snarled in my mind, her voice laced with deep frustration. She paced relentlessly in our mental space. "Why let him taint our home?"

I walked toward the floor-to-ceiling windows and rested my forehead against the cool glass. "He is still my husband," I sighed heavily.

I stared out at the beautifully illuminated night sky. The glowing streetlamps cast long shadows across the manicured estate grounds, revealing the shapes of the patrol guards making their silent, disciplined rounds.

"You left him!" Tessa barked, her irritation spiking. "You are not his wife anymore!"

"At least until the mate bond is officially dissolved and I sign the divorce papers," I murmured, tracing a path through the condensation on the windowpane. "Legally, the tie remains. I am still tethered to him until the ink is dry."

"Come on, Vivian," Tessa pleaded, her tone dropping its harsh edge. "Let go. Embrace our bright future. Look at what awaits us."

I turned my back to the window, leaning against the cold glass. I stared at the massive bed in the center of the room. "But Tessa," I called out softly, my voice barely audible in the stillness of the night. "How do I just erase the love I thought we had? How do I forget the dreams we shared?"

Tessa stopped pacing. She glared at me through our link, angrily asking, "What profound dreams did Dari ever bother to share with you besides simply being a complete dickhead?"

A soft chuckle escaped my lips, cutting through the heavy tension in my chest. Her bluntness was always a sharp remedy for my melancholy. "I was only joking, Tessa. Dari will very soon be nothing but a bitter memory of my past. Once the bond is severed, I won't look back."

"Good!" Tessa purred with fierce, prideful approval. "That is the Vivian I know!"

I stayed standing by the window for a few long minutes, letting the quiet hum of the estate settle my racing heart. With slightly trembling fingers and a desperate, burning need for closure, I pulled my phone from my pocket. The bright screen cast a harsh light across my face in the dim room. The weight of the decision pressed heavily on my shoulders, making it hard to breathe.

"What is troubling you now?" Tessa asked, padding closer in my mind. "You are overthinking again."

"I am going to reach out to Dari," I confessed, my voice tight. "I need to ask him to prepare the divorce papers."

Tessa snorted, a low growl rumbling from her chest. "After everything that bastard put you through? You deserve better. Tell him."

"I know," I replied. "But I need this closure."

"You already have closure!" Tessa reminded me eagerly. "In just a few days, you will ascend as the Alpha of the strongest pack in the entire country. You will be the most powerful woman here."

I smiled at her fierce loyalty. Gathering a newfound resolve, I unlocked the screen and opened the messaging app. My thumbs moved with a mix of trepidation and hard determination. I composed a text to Dari, coldly asking him to prepare the divorce papers for my arrival. I kept the message brief, devoid of any emotion or hesitation.

A strange, suffocating mix of relief and anxiety washed over me as I hit send. The deed was done. The mechanism was in motion.

I tossed the phone onto the nightstand and walked into the en-suite bathroom. I forced myself into a hot shower, letting the scalding water cascade over my tense shoulders, physically and emotionally scrubbing away the lingering dirt of my past. I changed into fresh, soft clothes and crawled into the massive bed. Sleep evaded me for hours. My mind swirled with fragmented memories and future anxieties, leading to a very restless, tossing sleep.

Morning arrived far too swiftly. The first rays of dawn barely breached the horizon when my eyes snapped open, banishing the shadows of the night. Three grueling years of enduring daily mistreatment as a mere maid in the Moon Grove Packhouse had deeply ingrained in me the unshakeable habit of rising at the crack of dawn. My body was wired to start working before the rest of the world woke up.

I abandoned the warmth of my bed and headed downstairs. The sprawling mansion was cloaked in the quiet stillness of early morning. I walked straight into the massive estate kitchen. The gleaming marble countertops and state-of-the-art appliances stood in stark contrast to the grease-stained kitchens of Moon Grove. Yet, finding a strange, familiar comfort in the space, I tied an apron around my waist and began to work.

I busied myself with preparing a grand, sprawling breakfast. I pulled out flour, eggs, thick cuts of bacon, and fresh vegetables. The clatter of heavy cast-iron pans and the rhythmic chopping of my knife broke the silence. I genuinely enjoyed the loud sizzle of bacon hitting the hot metal and the rich, waking aroma of fresh coffee brewing in the corner. The scent of butter and pancakes enveloped the room.

My mind drifted to the past. I remembered the harsh sting of a wooden spoon against my knuckles. Dari's mother had punished me severely because I had made a mess of her kitchen while trying to cook for the very first time. Now, my hands moved with practiced, effortless precision.

The estate maids began arriving for their shifts. As they entered the kitchen, they stopped dead in their tracks. They stood frozen in sheer panic. Their eyes darted back and forth between the grand breakfast spread and me, wielding a spatula. Seeing their future Alpha cooking like a servant had their rigidly established world and hierarchy shaken to the core. They scrambled backward, unsure if they should apologize or take over, but a sharp look from me kept them rooted to the spot.

I carried the heavy silver trays into the grand dining room, setting out the feast across the long mahogany table. Just as I poured the last glass of orange juice, footsteps echoed from the grand sweeping stairs.

When Father and Caleb descended and stepped into the dining room, their expressions instantly shifted from groggy morning indifference to utter, comical shock at the bizarre role reversal. They stared at the towering stack of pancakes and the perfectly crisped bacon, and then at me, standing at the head of the table in an apron.

"You cooked?" Caleb asked, breaking the silence. He snorted sarcastically as he stepped closer to inspect the spread.

"I did," I answered, untying the apron and tossing it over a nearby chair.

Caleb leaned over a plate of eggs. "I hope it's eatable and not some deadly poison."

"I added a few Wolfbanes to yours," I shot back smoothly, confidently taking a seat right next to Father at the head of the table. "Though it probably wouldn't be effective on you anyway."

The surrounding estate maids hovering by the doors looked like they were ready to faint from the irregularity of the situation.

I quietly watched Father take his seat. His scarred face remained an unreadable mask. He picked up his fork and knife, methodically cutting into a stack of pancakes. He lifted the bite to his mouth. I leaned forward, resting my elbows on the table, waiting expectantly for his reaction. I wanted to see the surprise in his eyes.

He chewed methodically, swallowed, and picked up his coffee mug. When nothing comes, I felt a spark of playful defiance.

"You shouldn't wait for a compliment from him," Tessa murmured nervously in my mind. "It is a total waste of time."

I ignored my wolf and tilted my head, feigning perfect innocence as I stared at the fearsome Alpha of the pack. "How is it?" I press.

He lowered his mug and looked at me stoically. "When have I ever given anyone a compliment?" he replied, his tone flat.

I rolled my eyes and leaned in closer. "You changed the pack rules specifically because I was going to rule," I state as a matter of fact, keeping my gaze locked on his. "If you don't give me a compliment right now, then I might just change my mind about becoming Alpha."

He paused, the fork hovering halfway to his mouth. He turned his head, looking directly into my grey orbs. A calm, deeply amused smirk began forming on his battle-scarred face.

"Is that a threat?" he asked quietly, the dangerous edge of his Alpha aura bleeding into the room.

"It is," I affirm without blinking, holding my ground.

He chuckled deeply, the rough sound vibrating in his chest. He shook his head, shifting his focus away from me, and returned to eating his food in complete silence.

I leaned back in my chair, picking up a piece of bacon. I knew I was only joking. Knowing his true, unyielding nature, I knew I could never actually force a verbal compliment out of him. He was a man forged in battle, not in domestic pleasantries. I settled into the comfortable silence, ready to eat my own meal.

But the very next minute, the silence breaks.

"You've become a great cook," he said softly, his voice devoid of sarcasm.

I freeze in my seat.