Once Upon A Rejection

Talen Bancroft’s POV

Molly seemed reluctant to go on our date at first but I was quickly able to alleviate her concerns. I could tell that there was more to her hesitance than she was letting on but I didn’t want to push her. I was sure that she would tell me when she was ready, but for now I just wanted to enjoy our day together.

I had been wanting to do something like this for a while so we could get to know each other better but it felt wrong somehow to exclude Grayson. Him being so busy was a rare opportunity that I wasn’t going to pass up. I dressed as quickly as possible then led Molly downstairs to the garage. There were a lot of things I wanted us to do together today, so I didn’t want to waste any time.

Molly looked out of the car window anxiously as I drove past the edge of the pack’s territory. I could tell that she was desperate to ask me again where we would be going. Her heart rate had risen again and her legs were bouncing up and down. I didn’t like seeing her like this, she was perfect and I wanted her to always be as content as she made me feel.

“I thought we could start the day with a hike in the forest.” I told her.

One of my favourite things to do when I had some free time (which wasn’t very often) was exploring nature. I loved to go somewhere completely new and just walk around for a few hours, enjoying the scenery. It was one of the few things that made me feel relaxed before I met Molly. A way of getting away from all of the expectations placed on me by my family.

I hadn’t had much time to explore the forest around the pack but I was sure that Molly would know her pack’s territory intimately. That was why I decided to take her a few miles away from her territory. I wanted her to experience this hike for the first time, just like I was.

“So this is what you like to do in your spare time?” She asked, smiling for the first time since we left our room.

“Not the only thing, but yes. Why? Where did you think I was going to take you?” I asked, suddenly curious. Her reaction implied that she thought we were going to be doing something quite different. It made me wonder what kind of impression she had about me, I hoped that it was nothing bad.

“I had no idea, for all I knew you were an adrenaline junkie who was going to take me skydiving or something.” She visibly shuddered. No wonder she seemed so anxious earlier, maybe I should have given her a few little hints on what we might be doing.

“Oh, I can see how that would be a bit intimidating. How about I promise you that we won’t do anything today that will make your heart beat faster than it would on a short jog?” I suggested, trying to set her mind at ease.

“I can think of one or two things which would get my heart rate higher, that I wouldn’t mind doing.” She replied, winking at me. Her words took me by surprise, I glanced at her for a few moments longer than I should have. When I looked back at the road I had to swerve so that I didn’t end up driving straight into a tree. Molly pretended not to notice my mistake but my lycan wasn’t quite so subtle.

‘You bloody i***t,’ he scolded me, as though he wasn’t as affected by our mate’s words as I was.

‘Yes, but I didn’t nearly run us off the road.’ Jax replied.

We drove for around half an hour longer before I parked the car at the side of the road and led Molly into the forest. The forest was thick here, it looked as though people didn’t often come out this way. It was perfect.

Molly seemed unsure at first but after a few minutes of walking, she seemed to relax and start enjoying herself. It wasn’t long before we lost ourselves in the forest and in each other. We spoke about our lives before we met each other, I told her about my family while she told me about hers.

I had always thought that my family was defective but it sounded as though hers wasn’t much better. Maybe that was why we had been paired together because we had so much in common. Maybe we would even be able to help each other get over some of our past trauma.

“What about your mom?” Molly asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.

“What about her?” I replied, maybe a little too sharply.

“You spoke about your dad but you didn’t mention your mom at all.” She elaborated. Well I guess I couldn’t keep it a secret from her forever, even if I wanted to. I just had to hope that it wouldn’t make her think any less of me when she found out the truth.

“I never really got the chance to meet my mother,” I started. Molly gave me a sympathetic look and wrapped her arm around me tighter. I am sure that she was expecting me to tell her that my mother had passed away before I was old enough to remember her. That was what most people thought before they learned the truth, then afterwards they never looked at me in the same way.

“My mother was a breeder.” I continued.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Molly replied, I could tell that she was feeling a little uncomfortable. Breeders weren’t used commonly anymore, the whole concept was pretty outdated. Most lycans and werewolves found the whole idea of using a breeder repulsive now and that was part of the reason I didn’t like sharing my heritage with anyone.

“My father was having trouble finding his mate so a friend of his offered their youngest daughter to him as a breeder. It was a service that she had already performed successfully for a few other high ranking lycans.” I continued.

“That is so sad, do you know what happened to her?” Molly asked.

“I don’t know the full story because I was too young but I do know that she ended up falling in love and starting her own family.” I replied.

That was all my father would ever tell me when I asked about my mother. He would never tell me her name or any details about her, he wouldn’t even tell me what she looked like. I could have passed her on the street hundreds of times but I would never know it.

“Do you know who she is, or what she was like?” Molly asked.

“I know nothing about her. That was part of the agreement my father made with her father. Nobody was allowed to know anything about their agreement, not even me.” I replied. Tears were forming in my eyes. I had buried this part of myself for so long that it was easy for me to forget how much my life had been altered by this.

My father had always been distant, so I was mostly raised by omega servants. I never really experienced much love growing up, that was why I tried so hard with Vincent even when I should have given up on him. I had my mate now and I was going to give her so much love and affection that she would never doubt how I felt about her.

‘If that is the case then why are you keeping things from her?’ Jax asked, I could tell from the sound of his voice just how annoyed he was with me over it. As though I needed the reminder, he had already spent hours complaining at me about my decision to keep certain things from her.

‘Of course I am annoyed. How would you feel if she was lying to you?’ Jax growled.

I was about to argue with my lycan when I glanced over at Molly. We had come to the top of a large hill and she was looking out over the scenery beyond. She was holding onto my arm tightly and her face was filled with wonder.

“This is so beautiful, thank-you for bringing me out here,” she said.

“You’re welcome.” I replied. Just then, while I stood looking into her eyes I knew I would do anything for her. Even if that meant telling her everything that was happening and trusting her to make the right decision. It was terrifying but Jax was right, she deserved the truth.