The Heartless Alpha’s Beloved Luna (Avery and Gideon) novel Chapter 513

Avery’s POV

The cafe was small, with mismatched chairs and a chalkboard menu and a nice seating area that looked directly out onto the stretch of street where Bjorn and his new friends were still going at it. We got a table outside, right in a patch of sunlight that felt absolutely heavenly on my skin.

A couple minutes after we sat down, the waitress came and took our order. I ordered a cappuccino and a turkey club sandwich, and Gideon ordered a black coffee—I made sure to tell him exactly how diabolical I thought that choice was at a cafe, of all places—and a grilled cheese. We ordered a lemonade and a cookie for Bjorn just in case he got tired of playing and wanted to come eat.

“He’s going to sleep well tonight,” Gideon said as he watched Bjorn play.

“The kid has more energy than you’d expect,” I replied. “He won’t get tired until midnight. Trust me.”

Gideon lowered his hand away from his chin and leaned back in his chair. “I guess I haven’t gotten a good dose of him when he’s healthy just yet.”

My chest ached a little at the reminder, but I managed a small, “Well, you’ll have plenty of chances now.”

Gideon smiled and looked back out at the street. The morning had warmed up considerably since we had left the house, and it felt good to just sit somewhere with a cup of coffee and nowhere urgent to be. Although, my mind was still racing with thoughts of perfume and products.

He noticed my faraway look, of course, because he tilted his head. “What are you thinking about?”

“Oh, I was just…” I shrugged. “I had an idea earlier for my project. I was thinking that maybe I could look into producing some kind of perfume that’s acceptable for both humans and werewolves. Something custom for humans to wear that could almost mimic a werewolf’s scent.”

Gideon blinked. “I don’t follow.”

Sighing, I explained my entire idea to him. Gideon listened the entire time, although his brow was furrowed, which was a little concerning.

“You don’t like it,” I said once I was finished.

He shook his head. “It’s not that. Honestly, I think it’s a fantastic idea, and might facilitate deeper connections between humans and werewolves if it’s implemented properly. But I fear that werewolves might take offense.”

“How so?” I asked.

“Well,” Gideon said, “scent is personal for us in a way it just isn’t for humans. It’s identity. It’s recognition. It’s how we find our mates.” He gave me a meaningful look. “If humans start wearing manufactured pack scents, I could see some wolves taking issue with that. Feeling like something was borrowed that shouldn’t have been.”

I looked down at my plate and sighed.

Gideon had gone slightly still across from me.

“Sorry,” he said after a moment. “A lot of them assume. I haven’t corrected too many people because I didn’t think it was my place, but I can put out an announcement if you want.”

“It’s fine,” I said.

“Most of them won’t really understand if you tell them otherwise anyway,” he said. “You’re here, our son is my heir, and as far as the pack is concerned, that’s all it takes to be a Luna. And besides…” He paused. “They missed you.”

“I missed them, too,” I admitted quietly. I picked up my sandwich and took a bite.

We ate for a bit without talking, watching the street. Bjorn had apparently been recruited into some kind of elaborate game that now involved two teams and a chalk boundary line that one of the kids had drawn on the ground. He was taking it very seriously. They all were. A small girl with pigtails was shrilly blowing a whistle and pointing her little fingers all over the place, more like a drill sergeant than a referee.

As I watched him, I couldn’t help but think about what Gideon said on my first night here. About how he wanted to marry me again one day, properly, if I would have him. I’d been trying not to think too hard about it, but seeing Bjorn fit in so easily, so healthy and happy, made the thoughts resurface. If the pack accepted both of us with such simplicity, then who was I to deny it?