MAEVE'S POV
For a moment, I allowed myself to feel—to yearn, to lose my breath to the space between us, to almost fall into the cocoon of his words, to forget everything.
"But how am I supposed to trust you when it's so obvious that your mother still hates me? What of your relationship with Serena? You already said it yourself—the pack has its expectations. No one truly wants me here. Today, Lydia was hellbent on hurting both my son and me. You might be willing to do all this now, Ivan, but Ash Creek doesn't share those same thoughts."
"Trust me when I say that my mother would never have the power to hurt you like this—I'm sending her far away from this mansion. You'd never have to cross paths, and anyone else who believes they can stand between us would die by my claws." This time, Ivan reached for my hands, tracing the lines of my fingers one by one. "Serena might take a while, because of the council, but I need you to trust me, baby."
