C3 An old face

"Cat?" a voice said, and I turned around to see her. It was Carla, my old friend from four years ago.

"Carla?" I said, my voice barely above a whisper.

“Cat? Is that really you?"

I nodded, feeling a sense of guilt and regret wash over me. I had left my old pack behind four years ago, without so much as a goodbye. I had thought that I would never see them again, that I could start over with a clean slate. But now, as I looked at Carla, I realized that I had been wrong. Everything that Lochlan had done to me hurt me so much, I didn’t want to remember him and feel all that all over again. Carla had been there for me so much and I never even said goodbye to her. I had hated to leave everyone behind but I couldn’t face my mate after all that betrayal. He betrayed me. How could I stick around after all that?

"I'm sorry," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "I didn't mean to leave like that. I just needed to get away, to start over."

Carla nodded, her eyes filled with understanding. "I know," she said. "We were all worried about you. But we didn't want to hold you back, to keep you from being happy."

I felt a sense of relief wash over me, knowing that Carla still cared about me after all these years. Maybe, just maybe, I could start over and still keep my old friends.

"Thanks," I said, my voice filled with gratitude. "It means a lot to me that you still care."

Carla smiled, her eyes shining with warmth. "Of course I do," she said. "We're still friends, no matter what you did to Lochlan. Leaving was the best thing for you and he was devastated that you and him parted ways.”

As Carla spoke, I suddenly froze. My mind raced as I tried to make sense of what she was saying. What had he told her? My heart pounded in my chest as I struggled to keep my emotions in check.

"What are you saying?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Carla frowned, her eyes filled with confusion. "Well, we were told you had left because you found someone else," she said. "Lochlan said that he forgave you and the agreement was you would never return to the pack. What's going on?"

I felt a surge of anger wash over me as I heard her words. The dirty liar! How could he? I had left the pack because I needed to start over, not because I had found someone else. And the idea that Lochlan had forgiven me was laughable. He had never been one to forgive easily, especially when it came to matters of the heart.

"I didn't find someone else," I said, my voice filled with frustration. "I left because I needed to start over, to find myself again. And as for Lochlan forgiving me, that's a joke. He never forgives anyone, especially not me. Plus he was the one cheating. Not me.”

Carla nodded, her eyes filled with understanding. "I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't know. But why did you leave without saying goodbye? We were all worried about you."

I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself down. "I didn't mean to hurt anyone," I said. "I just needed to get away, to start over. I thought it was the best thing for me."

Carla nodded, her eyes filled with compassion. "I understand," she said. "But you should know that we still care about you, no matter what. And if you ever need anything, you can always come to us."

“Thanks Carla but I won’t be returning there. It’s been far to long and Lochlan made it clear.” I said avoiding eye contact but it did hurt me to think he could not only betray me but lie about me like that. None of it was my fault.

“Cat, I don’t live there and haven’t for a while. I only visit every now and again to see my family.”

"I'm just here to do my job and make a living for me and my..." I stopped myself before the words tumbled out. I couldn't let her know about my children. What if she put two and two together? Lochlan would never let me live peacefully if he knew about the twins' existence. Carla watched me curiously.

"Your what?" she asked. Then her eyes widened in excitement. "Oh my, cat. Do you have children now?" she exclaimed, and I swallowed hard, wishing the ground would swallow me up. I couldn't hide the fact that I was a mother, but I also didn't know if I could trust her after so long.

"Yes," I said softly, my voice barely above a whisper. "But I must get on with my work now. I don't want to upset my boss." I whispered nervously, glancing over my shoulder.

Carla laughed and waved it off. "Oh, don't worry about him. He's my husband. It seems we both have a lot of catching up to do," she said, and I felt my mouth fall open. So Carla was married to my boss. That was unexpected.

I took a deep breath, trying to collect my thoughts. "I didn't know you were married and not in the pack anymore," I said, my voice filled with surprise.

Carla nodded, her eyes filled with understanding. "We got married a few years ago when I was visiting town we realised we were mates and fell in love so I moved out here and gave the pack up and everything," she said. "But enough about me. I want to hear about your kids. How old are they? What are their names?"

I hesitated for a moment, unsure if I should tell her. But something in her eyes made me trust her.

"They're three years old," I said, my voice filled with pride. "Their names are Nathan and Nadia." I didn’t want to say their exact age in case she put two and two together.

Carla smiled, her eyes filled with warmth. "They are twins? Oh wow, they sound wonderful," she said. "You must be so proud of them. I would love to meet them.” She gushed and rubbed her own belly. My eyes fell and I was surprised to notice her belly was swollen. She was expecting!

“I’m a few months along.” She laughed seeing my surprise.

“Congratulations.” I said, feeling a sense of relief wash over me. Maybe I could trust her after all. Maybe things weren't as bad as I thought.