23. Are You Ready For This?

A month later. One rainy evening. Clarice had just finished donning her pajamas. She sat on the bed, preparing to sleep for the night, when Alpha Callum materialized inside her room. She smiled brightly. "Babe, you came. I thought you wouldn't come today," she said. Alpha Callum has been busy with Alpha duties so he wasn't able to visit Clarice for the last five days and his wife is making sure he can't leave the room. He was only able to leave the house tonight because his wife was attending a bachelorette party for her friend. She will sleep at her friend's house. It was an all-girls' party, so he was not invited. "I will spend the whole night with you today," he said huskily. "Why did your jealous, obsessed wife allow you to leave tonight?" she asked curiously. "She attended a bachelorette party, and she will sleep at her friend's house tonight," he explained. "That's good," Clarice giggled. "Have you had dinner already?" "Yes, awhile ago in the house," he answered. "OK," she said and stood up. "I have good news for you. Watch me!" she said and walked towards the door without the aid of crutches. "Wow. Can you walk now? Fantastic!" Alpha Callum exclaimed in glee. "Yes. We can finally travel together and get our son," Clarice said happily. "Awesome! I'm so happy right now," Alpha Callum exclaimed as happiness surged through him. The thought of seeing his son in the flesh is finally going to happen soon. "When will your wife fly to Australia?" she asked, going back to bed. "Her flight is this coming Saturday at 2:00 in the afternoon," he replied casually, his tone brimming with excitement. Clarice was pleased with the good news. "Wow, nice to hear that. We can start our journey the next day. We will arrive at the place in two days. What do you think?" He nodded his head. "I'm fine if we begin our journey on Sunday morning. The faster we arrive at the place, the better for us. I can't wait to see my son and hold him in my arms," he said excitedly. "Should we bring him lots of toys, clothes or food? What is the best gift for him?" "Truck toys and groceries are enough. When Caden finally arrives here, we have plenty of time to buy him clothes. Then we also give money and groceries to my distant relatives who take care of our son," she elaborated further. "No problem. We will give them groceries and money as well, our token of appreciation for their hard work in raising our son," he said. Clarice smiled, pleased with his pledge to reward her relative with money. "We will travel on the long road for two days and nights. Don't worry, the road is concrete and great for traveling. When I visited there in the past, I rode on the bus and I would arrive there in three days. But since we will travel by car, we can arrive there faster." "Are there hotels or motels on the roadside?" he asked, wanting to plan the journey well to avoid encountering any trouble or delay down the road. Clarice nodded her head. "Yes. There are plenty of inns, hotels and restaurants along the road. They offer comfortable, clean and safe accommodations for travelers. We can stop over and spend the night in one of those inns." "Great! One of these days you and Lorey can go to the city to shop for toys, clothes and groceries. Let me know when you want to go. I'll give you my debit card. Buy anything you want. Don't worry about money. The expenses are on me," he said, fishing his card from his wallet and putting it in Clarice's hands. Clarice stared at the card in disbelief. Then she looked at him wide-eyed. "Are you sure you will let me use your debit card?" she asked. "Yeah, why not?" he said. You can also buy personal stuff for you and Lorey. I don't mind," he offered. Clarice nodded her head. "Okay. Lorey and I will go to the mall tomorrow to buy groceries, clothes and toys," she said in a thrilled voice. "You must be careful and vigilant when you are in the mall. You might see your despicable best friend or your husband there, or worse, you might bump into the evil shaman Kaspar as well," he reminded her. "Don't worry, I have several wigs and sunglasses in my possession. I used it as my disguise every time I traveled to see our son. If we wear those disguises, they won't be able to identify me and Lorey," Clarice assured him. "Good. If you happen to see them, just ignore them and proceed the other way. You know already what will happen to you. They will take you into custody and kill you for good if they know you are still alive," Alpha Callum reminded her. Clarice shuddered. "I hope not," she said grimly. "I can't hide forever." "I know," Alpha Callum responded with a sigh. After much pondering about the situation, Alpha Callum was feeling uneasy that the inevitable might happen. Clarice might accidentally meet her enemies in the mall. Sometimes destiny loves throwing cruel jokes at people. "Um, I changed my mind..." he said. "What do you mean?" Clarice asked. Her brows drew together. "To avoid putting your life in danger, I'll just have Beta Amir do the shopping. Just give me a list of all the things you want to buy," he finally said. Clarice pouted. "No, I have to go shopping in the mall. It's been a long time since I've been to one. I want to visit the mall. I miss that place. I want to go shopping!" she insisted firmly. Alpha Callum sighed. "And what will you do if you see your enemies there? Are you going to confront them and make a scene?" Clarice took a deep breath. Her eyes flashed with pain and anger. "Don't worry, I will avoid them. Although they want to kill me and I want to retaliate, I will not do it alone because I have no power to use against them. I'm already dead in their eyes. I will remain that way to avoid trouble. I will move on from the horrors of my past starting today," she said convincingly. "Are you sure that the sight of your enemies won't make you lose control?" Alpha Callum asked, doubting if she could truly resist the temptation by avoiding confronting the people who tried to kill her. Clarice smiled. "Let's stop talking about these things. There are many shopping malls in the city. I'm sure we won't be visiting the same place together. Our paths will not cross tomorrow," she assured him. "I still want to go to the mall, so please allow me to go," she begged. "Alright, I'll send a rental car here tomorrow and one of my trusted men will be the one to drive the vehicle for you. His name is George," he said. "Wow. Finally! Thank you for giving me permission to go to the mall. Thank you for entrusting your debit card to me," she said gratefully, kissing his lips. "How can I pay for your kindness? What kind of payment do you want from me?" she whispered seductively in his ears. Alpha Callum smiled and said, "Giving me a son is enough payment already." Clarice grinned. "Ah, I see... you don't want more payment from me?" she asked alluringly, kissing his lips deeper. He reciprocated her kiss, and they engaged in a pleasurable lip duel. As their kiss deepened, the fire of desire ignited their bodies, their loins aching, throbbing for a delicious release. They stared at each other's faces intensely. Their eyes shimmered with desire, burning them, consuming them within. They could no longer stop the passion raging inside them, so they began to undress each other. His body was on fire, ready to pounce on her. But he still cares deeply about her well-being. "Are you sure you are ready for this?" he asked huskily, in the process of removing her underwear.