My Convicted Wife is My Mate (Bella and Kane) novel Chapter 48

chapter 41
KANE’S POV

“Bella, will you go somewhere with me?”

She looked at me with a confused expression.

But instead of asking where, she simply nodded. “Okay.”

That simple word made something shift inside me. No hesitation. No fear. Just trust. I didn’t deserve that kind of trust, but I’d take it.

The woman, Jane, was still standing nearby, pretending not to stare—the same one who had mocked Bella at the country club. My wolf growled low in my chest, though I kept my expression neutral. I turned to her.

“Is there something you want?”

Her eyes widened. “N-no, sir.”

“Then leave.”

She scurried off without another word. Good. My patience for petty humans was running thin lately. I didn’t usually meddle with their kind, but Bella… she made me forget where the line was.

She looked up at me, smiling, completely unaware of how much darkness I held back when I was near her. “Where are we going?” she asked.

“It’s a surprise.”

Her smile widened. “You and your surprises.”

I liked the sound of that—her teasing me like we’d known each other forever.

I had bought the bus tickets on impulse. After the incident at the country club and the whispers that followed, I could tell she needed to breathe again. Hell, maybe I did too. Something quieter. Somewhere mine.

While she locked up the small supply shed near the sanitation office, I pulled out my cheap phone and texted Jayden.

Me: Clear the grounds. Prepare the caretaker’s cabin. Don’t ask questions.

He wouldn’t. My beta knew me too well.

I paused before putting the phone away. Derek would pay for laying his hand on Bella. That cowardly wolf wouldn’t forget the consequences of crossing me—or her.

Of course, the official story would say it was a noise complaint or a misunderstanding, but I had made sure the paperwork reached his father, the Senior Alpha.

I had worded it carefully: “an assault on a human, witnessed in a public setting.”

It was enough to make them nervous. I could have destroyed them entirely if I’d chosen to.

For now, cutting off every business tie was punishment enough. Let them feel what it was like to lose everything.

I turned to Bella, who was brushing a strand of hair from her cheek.

“Come on,” I said.

She wiped her hands and followed me without another question.

The bus ride was long. It was two hours of roads and mountain shadows. She sat beside me, looking out the window.

Often, she’d smile at something—a hawk circling above, a child waving from the roadside. She looked happy. She looked peaceful. For someone who’d been through hell, she still found beauty in everything.

“Where are we going?” she finally asked again, turning her head.

I glanced at her. “You’ll see.”

She sighed softly but didn’t press. “Good thing I’m off tomorrow. I think we’ll be back late.”

We’re not coming back tonight, I thought, but didn’t say it.

Her hands rubbed against her knees, and I noticed the small holes in her gloves. She didn’t complain, didn’t ask for more. She never did. I reached into the plastic bag beside me and pulled out a pair of new gloves and a wool hat.

“Here,” I said, handing them over.

She blinked, looking surprised. “For me?”

“Yeah.”

She smiled at me like I had just given her something priceless. “Thank you.”

“They’re not the surprise,” I added.

She grinned. “Then I can’t wait to see what is.”

At the next stop, I stood. “This way.”

We stepped off into the cold. Tall trees stretched on both sides of the road—the edge of my territory.

I took her hand without thinking, leading her into the woods. The path was narrow. It was a game trail used mostly by my pack during runs. She stumbled once on a root, and I caught her before she fell.

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify