As Hope and Promise Fade

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Ariana was relieved to be back at school where no one knew the troubles waiting back home, where no one knew about werewolves and alphas. As she woke that first morning back she made no effort to move, instead she gave into the damning tears never far away.

She loved Jax, oh how she loved him, it was almost obsessive the way she could feel about him. But Marc...there was something there with Marc and for years now she had been ignoring it, making excuses every moment she felt something electric from him. Everything that happened in the cave was haunting her, the feel of his kiss, his hands on her body, that fiery explosive feeling across her skin as he moved inside of her.

She muffled a sob using her pillow. She couldn't keep on like this; she was going to have to tell Jax the truth no matter what came after it. They had vowed too many times to be honest with each other.

Jax had lied about her father and while she didn't like it she understood it. Her lying about having sex with his uncle wasn't the same thing and she couldn't keep lying.

She tried to figure out the proper way to tell him something like this. It had to be face to face, she couldn't tell him something this important over the phone.

She imagined all the ways he would react and every one had the same thing in common; he hated her at the end of it. She couldn't imagine a way their relationship could survive her betrayal, whether she had been in control of herself or not. She could make a hundred excuses but the bottom line was she had sex with Marc and it couldn't be overlooked.

Andrew and Jax met with Marc upstairs in the office to discuss what they'd be doing next concerning their biggest threat at the moment; Hal Ellis.

"Is it too foolish to hope he's gone into hiding for good?" Andrew said around a sigh.

"He's planning something." Marc was bitter to share that obvious part of news. "Could he know about the cabin?" he directed the question at Jax.

"If Ariana told him something she would've warned us before she left. She was avoiding telling him about our relationship so I really doubt she told him anything about us." Jax was worried for his girlfriend, there was something on her mind since she got out of the cave and she hadn't been able to tell him what.

Andrew spoke again. "We can't just focus on Hal and the what ifs of what he may be doing. We can't keep the pack locked away or deny help to the others." He explained, always the first to be the voice of reason.

"We won't." Marc said, he was distant as well with something he hadn't revealed to the others. "We'll be prepared if he makes a move but we'll continue with our daily activities the same."

Satisfied with what they decided Andrew stood from his chair. "I'm going to make sure Shelby didn't eat every cookie she found in the kitchen."

Jax listened while the office door opened and shut before turning to his uncle. "There's something heavy on your mind."

"What makes you say that?"

"You're usually very good at hiding your thoughts and appearing to be causal even when you aren't. You're somewhere else and we all see it." Jax didn't hide the fact he was worried for the other man.

Marc shrugged. "You can't fake it all the time. I don't like when I'm not in control and I've been feeling that way a lot lately."

"Even alphas need a break. No one would think less for you for wanting to get some breathing room. You've been focused on everyone else but yourself for too long."

"Are you telling me I need to get laid?" Marc chuckled.

"Well it couldn't hurt." Jax fought the grin playing across his mouth, he was trying to be serious here but Marc managed to quickly change the tone in the air. "You've been a zombie with every personal aspect of your life for the last few years. You have to move on." He knew it was a sour subject to mention the mate Marc couldn't have but they had always been honest with each other and no one else was going to say this to him so the job fell on Jax.

"I'm trying."

"Not very hard you're not. You have to get out there." Jax tried to remember the last time he had seen Marc out of the cabin without it pertaining to pack business. Even at Julie's party he had been the picture of unpleasant. "It's weird when I'm the one telling you this." Jax was usually the antisocial one of the family.

"Since you're full of suggestions, what should I do?"

"I don't know, anything that gets you out of this house for a few hours and lets you be that guy you were before full of fun and bad jokes." Jax really missed that guy.

"My jokes are good enough to win prizes."

"Sure, whatever you say." They shared a laugh.

Jax wanted him to live a little and now that someone had voiced his declining social life Marc decided he was going to give it a try. It helped no one to be stuck in his office thinking about someone who would always remain forbidden to him.

He changed from his jeans and shirt into some black pants and a matching buttoned down shirt. It was causal but much more appealing than his other outfit that made look like a construction worked.

He ran a hand over his short light brown hair and called it quits before he start to obsess and ended up going to bed without ever leaving the house.

Nathan mock whistled as Marc came down the stairs. "Looking spiffy, hot date?" he asked.

"Whoa." Andrew joined in on the fun as he came out the kitchen with Shelby in his arms.

Apparently everyone did know about his dry social life and it was good material for jokes. "You all are so funny I don't know what to do with myself."

"It's not funny, it's a serious epidemic to go without sex this long. If you've forgotten and need some tips..." Nathan said with a stone cold serious expression except for the light of humor behind his eyes.

"I wouldn't ask an eighteen year old still wet behind the ears." It felt good to getting a parting shot in as he left the cabin. He was smiling as he walked to his car. The last ten minutes gave him hope of living his life again without the shadows of an existence that could never be.

At his favorite bar he met a woman who managed to grab his interest for the simple fact she was beautiful and looked nothing like Ariana. This woman was blonde and blue eyed, she wore her sexuality for the whole world to see with a tight skirt and barely there top.

They spoke for some time, flirting the whole way with drinks in their hands.

"Do you want to get out of here?" she whispered along his ear some time later.

It wasn't the start of something deep and meaningful but it was certainly a start in the right direction to reclaiming his life. "As long as its your place."