The Unwanted Bride Of Atticus Fawn

I’d snapped, but not because I wasn’t proud of her, but because I was terrified of seeing her get hurt for

me. The entire time on the ground, I felt like a useless ass; I couldn’t even fight to protect her. She had

to protect me.

It should never have come to that. I should have been able to bring Carter and his team to the ground

for her.

I was so scared when her wolf lunged in front of me. I was terrified that they would hurt her. I’d never

been so scared over something in my entire life.

She terrified me. Autumn and her feelings and how she made me feel it all scared me. I wasn’t

prepared for her; I wasn’t prepared for her confession, either. She was correct; I was the one who’d

asked her to tell me the truth but not once did I think her response would have been that she loved me

or that she loved me from the very beginning.

Her words kept replaying in my head. The more she’d spoken, the worse I felt. There were so many

mistakes that I’ve made since we got married. So many mistakes could have been avoided if I’d just

taken the time to see what my actions were doing to her.

She even brought up what happened between us at the spring. She remembered everything. Every

single detail even though she had been drunk when it all happened.

How could she think I didn’t want to touch her in the spring? I was f*****g dying inside to feel her body

against mine. To savor every taste of her, to fill her with my seed. I wanted every part of her that night; I

wanted it all, even last night when she teased me in that tiny lingerie. It took all of my self-control not to

take her right there on the bed.

I didn’t do it not because I didn’t want her, but because I felt like I didn’t deserve that sacred part of her.

I felt like she needed to trust me enough before she gave that part of herself to me. I wanted to cherish

her the right way before I allowed myself to take any more of her.

Autumn had misunderstood everything. And it was understandable after the voice note Anya had sent

to her. And maybe that was Anya’s intention from the start. She wanted Autumn to think that I didn’t

care for her. I was stupid when I said those things to her; I was foolish when I made promises I knew I

could never keep.

Now it was up to me to show Autumn how much I truly desired her. To prove to her that all those things

I promised Anya in the voice note were a mistake and something I would never do to her.

She had to know how much I truly craved her. I hadn’t exactly hidden my desire for her. Every time I

was near her, I lost all control. I could see the vision I still had of Autumn spreading her legs for me on

the edge of the spring, teasing me, making me die inside for her. Did she not see the pain and torture

on my face? I wanted her so much that it f*****g hurt. I hadn’t been able to sleep peacefully since that

night; every night, I would ache to be inside her. Every night I would deny myself the pleasure of

touching her because I thought that she wasn’t ready. If I’d known not touching her would have made

her feel less desired, I would have taken her right then in the damn f*****g spring. I would have had her

in every possible way.

If she had a chance to read my thoughts, Autumn would understand the pain she put me through. She

would know that Anya had nothing to do with me not touching her on those separate occasions. I was

only thinking about her; I was only doing what I thought was best for her.

How could I not see how much I’d been hurting her all along? Now that I knew the truth, there were so

many things I wish I had done differently. There were so many ways I could have shown her how much

she meant to me.

If I’d shown my raw emotions to her, if I didn’t try to stop my feelings for her, things wouldn’t have been

like this between us. She wouldn’t have had to doubt me as much as she did now.

Damn it, Atticus. What the f**k did you do? Why? Why did you hurt her so much? I felt like punching

the walls. I felt like doing anything to inflict pain upon myself for everything I’d put her through.

The door opens then, and I see my family walking in with worried expressions. I can’t pay attention to

any of them right now. Autumn is the only person on my mind.

She’s been through so much, and she’s kept it to herself this entire time. She’s been tortured all this

time, and she chose to bottle everything up inside of her.

I closed my eyes as the realization of what I’d put her through finally sunk in.

I’d been a fool this entire time. How could I have mistreated someone that loved me so much? Autumn

loved me more than anyone, and I didn’t even know it until now. How long was she planning on

keeping this to herself? She wouldn’t have told me if I hadn’t pulled it out of her. If I hadn’t insisted on

her giving me an answer, I would have never known how much Autumn loved me.

“Did something happen?” Clarissa asks me. “Autumn left crying. Did you say something to her?”

I couldn’t answer her. I was still lost in my thoughts of her. I couldn’t believe how stupid I’d been not to

notice how much she loved me. All of the signs were always there; I just chose to ignore them. Autumn

wasn’t good at hiding her feelings, but I wasn’t any better at picking up on them.

She was like an open book, and I chose not to read it. I’ve never been this disappointed in myself as I

feel now.

“Son,” my mother whispers. “Is everything okay between you and Autumn? Should we get her?”

“I don’t think that is necessary.” Anya cuts in. “She didn’t even care enough to be here while he was

lying in this hospital bed. She went home to look for clothes. Who does that when their husband is in so

much pain? Atticus was right to put her in her place. She needs to give him some space and let him

spend them with the people that actually care for him.”

“Anya,” Damon growls in a warning. For once, he’d stepped up to her. Even he realizes that she’d just

crossed a very big line.

“What?” She asks. “It’s the truth. Autumn does not care for Atticus. She’s selfish and only cares for

herself. Look at the way we found him on the side of the road, but there wasn’t a single scratch on her.

It shows that she didn’t care enough to fight back against the fearsome.”

“Don’t f*****g talk about my wife like that!” I roar.

Anya’s eyes widened at my words. She looked startled that I’d spoken to her in that tone. I’ve never

once spoken to her like that before. But she’d asked for it. She had no right speaking about Autumn like

that. She didn’t know anything. She knew nothing about Autumn and the type of person that she was.

“Atticus.” She gasps. “I’m only trying to protect you. Why are you defending her when she doesn’t care

about you? I can see it; I’m sure everyone else can too.”

“Stop it,” I growl. “You know nothing.”

“Then please explain why you believe she cares for you.” She huffs.

“Were you there when Carter and the other boys came to attack me?” I ask her. “Did you see the entire

fight to make a foolish comment like that?”

“No.” She says stubbornly. “But I can tell from your injuries while she has none.”

My jaw clenches, and I grab the sheets below me in a rage, “she’s the reason why my injuries aren’t

worse than it is now. She’s the reason why I’m awake right now. Autumn is the only reason, no one

else. She protected me from the fearsome.”

“You expect me to believe that she protected you?” Anya asks in disbelief.

“What do you mean she protected you?” My father asks. “Autumn is not as strong as them. How could

she have protected you.”

How did I explain it without telling them what I saw? I wasn’t sure what had happened; all I

remembered was being beaten on the ground when suddenly everyone flew in all different directions.

When I looked over at her, her eyes were a different color. Powerful and glowing.

I didn’t think even Autumn understood what was happening to her. Something was going on; now I

realized that tasting something strange in her blood wasn’t coincidental. Autumn was not a regular

werewolf. She was a hybrid.

The power that she held was mighty. And it almost seemed like she had no control over it. There were

many times that I saw her struggling to control it. Like the dinner with my family, I knew she was

responsible for the incident. She was the one that had splashed all the soup and water over Anya, and

now I understood why. She was in love with me; seeing how Anya acted around me must have pissed

her off to the extent that she lost control of herself.

But why did her power only show itself now? Why did it take so long to reveal itself?

I wanted to explain what happened to everyone present, but I knew that Autumn wasn’t ready to reveal

the truth.

My parents weren’t the most understanding either. They would feel betrayed that her parents never told

her she was a hybrid. They didn’t like secrets and were likely to fuss over them. I didn’t want that to

happen. I had to protect Autumn even from my parents. When we had an explanation for what was

happening to her, only then would I find a way to tell everyone. Until then, it would stay a secret for

Autumn’s protection.

But I wasn’t the only one who’d seen what had happened. Carter and his friends had seen everything

as well. But I knew them; they would feel embarrassed that a girl had kicked their asses. Because of

that, they would not dare tell anyone what had happened. She was safe for now. I’m sure they weren’t

even sure that they’d seen correctly. No one would say anything unless they were convinced that

Autumn had magic inside of her.

“Atticus.” My mother reminds me that they’re all waiting for me to explain.

“Autumn shielded me with her body.” I finally say. “The fearsome could have attacked her, but she

didn’t care about her own life; she was only concerned with protecting mine. They chose to leave us

because they didn’t want to hurt her. She wasn’t backing down. I watched her stand in front of me with

so much bravery and strength that it filled me with pride to know she was my wife. She didn’t have to

do it, but Autumn protected me without caring about herself.”

Everyone is shocked to learn this new detail from the fight. From their expressions, she hadn’t even

told them everything that had happened. Even though she’d risked her life for me, she didn’t even

bother boasting about her heroic behavior to my family.

Autumn was an amazing woman, unlike any other woman I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing. And I

was f*****g lucky that she was my wife. I was even more fortunate that she loved me so much. I was a

lucky man, and it took me this long to realize it.

“I can’t believe she risked her life for you.” My mother whispers. “We have to thank her.”

“I always knew Autumn was an amazing person,” Clarissa says. “Aren’t we lucky to have her in our

lives?”

“If you ever speak about my wife like that again in front of me, I will ensure that you never step foot in

our house again,” I warn Anya.

“Atticus.” She gasps.

“I did not marry you, Anya. It’s time you face the facts. I chose to marry Autumn. She’s the woman that

I chose to spend the rest of my life with. I’ve been neglecting her because of you. I’ve been running to

protect you instead of protecting her. All of that ends now. You had enough time to come to terms with

my marriage. If you can’t accept it and if you can’t respect my wife, you need to stay away from the

both of us.”

She doesn’t say anything; she stares at me in horror. I was done caring for her. Now it was time for me

to fulfill my duty towards Autumn.

I would not hurt her anymore. I would treat her the way she deserved to be treated from the start.

Everything was about to change now. Everything.