Unmatched Wife: Not His To Claim Anymore novel Chapter 84

Chapter 84

Chapter 84

RIVERA

I stood in my home office at eleven PM, staring at surveillance reports that told me nothing new about Thorne Lockwood, when my phone buzzed with a text from Klaus.

*Drinks. Tomorrow night. 8 PM. The usual place. No excuses.*

I typed back: *Can’t. Louis has school the next morning.*

The response came immediately: *Bianca can handle bedtime. You need a night out before you turn into a hermit permanently. Don’t make me use my Alpha King authority on you.*

I stared at that last line, then laughed despite myself. Klaus had been handling most of my Alpha King responsibilities for the past five years while I’d retreated into grief and single parenthood. The irony of him threatening to use authority that was technically mine wasn’t lost on me.

*Fine. 8 PM. But I’m not staying late.*

*We’ll see about that.*

I set down my phone and returned to the reports, but my concentration was broken. Klaus was right–I’d become a hermit since my wife died, focusing entirely on Louis and letting my best friend shoulder the burden of running BloodMoon City.

But now Bianca was here, settling into our lives with an ease that still surprised me. Maybe I could afford one night out with friends who’d been patient with my isolation for far too long.

The next evening, I found Bianca in the kitchen helping Louis with homework–math problems that apparently required elaborate dinosaur–themed explanations.

“So if the T–Rex has twelve cookies and gives four to the Stegosaurus,” Louis was saying very seriously, “how many cookies does the T–Rex have left?”

“Eight,” Bianca said, then caught herself. “Wait, no–let Louis figure it out.”

“Eight!” Louis announced triumphantly. “Because twelve minus four is eight, and that means the T–Rex still has more cookies than the Stegosaurus, which is good because T–Rexes need more food.”

“That’s excellent logic,” Bianca said, making a check mark on his worksheet.

I cleared my throat from the doorway, and they both looked up.

“Hey,” Bianca said, her smile warm. “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to learn that dinosaur math is very serious business.” I moved into the kitchen, dropping a kiss on Louis’s head and then–because it was becoming natural, because I couldn’t help myself–on Bianca’s forehead. “I have a question. Would you be okay handling bedtime tonight? Klaus wants to meet for drinks, and I haven’t seen him in weeks.”

“Of course,” Bianca said immediately, “Go. Have fun with your friends. Louis and I will be fine.”

“Are you sure? I know you just worked a twelve–hour shift-

“Lucian.” She put her hand on my arm, her touch grounding, “I’m sure. You’ve been cooped up in that office every night for weeks. You need adult time that doesn’t involve medical emergencies or curse research.”

“I can do bedtime with Mummy,” Louis added. “We’re very good at bedtimes now. I only argue about teeth–brushing

Chapter 84

sometimes.”

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“Only sometimes?” I raised an eyebrow.

“Well, most times. But I’m working on it.”

Bianca laughed, and the sound made something warm settle in my chest. This was what I’d been missing for five years–easy domesticity, shared parenting responsibilities, someone who could handle an evening without me and make it feel natural

rather than like an imposition.

“Okay,” I said. “But Louis, you listen to Bianca. No arguing about bedtime, no demanding seventeen stories instead of one—”

“I never demand seventeen,” Louis protested. “Maybe ten. Eleven tops.”

“One story,” Bianca said firmly. “And you have to brush your teeth properly, not just the front ones you can see in the mirror.”

Louis considered this. “Two stories if I brush all my teeth AND floss?”

“You’re negotiating bedtime routines now?” I asked Bianca.

“He gets it from you,” she said with a smile. “Fine. Two stories if you do complete dental hygiene without complaining.”

“Deal!” Louis was already returning to his homework, satisfied with his negotiation skills.

I pulled Bianca aside, lowering my voice. “Thank you. For this, for being so good with him, for making this feel easy when it shouldn’t be.”

“It is easy,” she said simply. “I love him. I love you. This is what families do.”

The casual way she said it–like loving us was the most natural thing in the world–made my throat tight.

“I love you too,” I said quietly. “Both of you. More than I thought I could love anything after my wife died.”

Bianca’s eyes went soft. “Go. Have your drinks. We’ll be here when you get back.”

The “usual place” was a private club in the business district that catered to high–ranking pack members and city officials. Klaus had secured a private room in the back, away from curious eyes and listening ears.

I arrived at 8:15, fashionably late, and pushed open the door to find not just Klaus but the entire inner circle I’d been avoiding for

months.

Klaus, my best friend since childhood, who’d been running the city in my stead with patient competence. Elijah, head of city security, whose intelligence network rivaled most government agencies. Mikael, the financial advisor who kept BloodMoon City’s economy stable. And Roy, the pack historian who documented everything with meticulous detail.

“This isn’t drinks,” I said, stopping in the doorway. “This is an ambush.”

“It’s a gathering,” Klaus corrected, his easy smile not quite hiding the concern in his eyes. “Of friends who’ve barely seen you in five years and wanted to make sure you’re still alive.”

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