<h4>Chapter 681: The Deal</h4>


    Olivia’s POV


    ?The atmosphere at dinner was suffocating. Usually, our meals were a chaotic symphony of the boys bragging about their training and the twins giggling, but tonight, the long oak table felt miles wide.


    ?I sat between Lennox and the empty space where Louis usually sat—he was still out at ate meeting. Across from me, the twins were picking at their mashed potatoes, their little faces dark with a stubbornness they had definitely inherited from the man sitting at the far end of the table.


    ?Levi had insisted on joining us. He wasn’t in the wheelchair, but he looked exhausted, his face gaunt as he sat upright in a high-backed chair. He hadn’t touched his food. He just watched the girls, his sea-blue eyes filled with a desperate, quiet hunger to be noticed.


    ?"Pass the salt, Daddy," Lyra said, nudging Lennox’s arm.


    ?Lennox didn’t move. He looked at Lyra, then at the salt shaker sitting right in front of Levi. "The salt is right there by Levi, Lyra. Ask him."


    ?Lyra’s little jaw set. She looked at the shaker, then looked back at Lennox, her eyes narrowing. "I’m asking you, Daddy."


    ?"And I’m telling you that your father is sitting right there," Lennox’s voice was stern,cking the usual yful indulgence he showed them. "Use your words, Lyra."


    ?The silence stretched, thick and ufortable. Lyra looked at Levi for a split second—a cold, fleeting nce—before she stood up on her chair, reached across the table, and grabbed the salt herself. The legs of her chair screeched against the stone floor.


    ?Levi flinched at the sound, his hand trembling as he lowered his fork. He looked like he’d been pped.


    ?"Lyra, that was rude," I said, my voice filled with frustration. "Sit down and apologize to Father Levi for reaching across him."


    ?"No!" Lyra shouted, her eyes sparking with that familiar Alpha fire. "Why do we have to be nice to him? He just came here and made everyone grumpy! You were happy before he woke up! Now you’re mean and Father Lennox is mean!"


    ?"Lyra!" Lennox roared, his palm hitting the table with a loud thwack.


    ?The twins jumped. The boys went dead silent, their spoons frozen halfway to their mouths. Lennox had never raised his voice like that at the girls. Never.


    ?"Listen to me," Lennox growled, his eyes glowing with annoyance. "You two have been pampered too much. But that ends tonight. This man," he pointed a shaking finger at Levi, "is the reason you are alive. He is the reason your mother is alive. If you cannot show him respect in this house, you will not sit at this table."


    ?Lana’s bottom lip began to wobble. "But we don’t know him, Daddy Lennox..."


    ?"Then learn!" Lennox snapped.


    ?Levi suddenly pushed his chair back. The wood scraped harshly. He stood up slowly, his legs shaking so badly I thought they might snap. He looked at Lennox, a look of profound defeat in his eyes.


    ?"Don’t, Lennox," Levi whispered, his voice cracking. "Don’t make them hate me more by forcing it."


    ?"They don’t hate you, Levi, they’re being brats," I said, standing up to steady him.


    ?"No, Olivia," Levi said, stepping away from my touch. He looked at his daughters, his heart bleeding out in the middle of the dining room. "They’re right. I’m a stranger who moved into their home and stole their peace. I’ll eat in my room from now on."


    ?He turned and began the long, agonizing trek out of the room, one shuffling step at a time.


    ?As soon as he was gone, Lyra looked at Lennox, expecting him to soften. "Can we have dessert now?"


    ?Lennox looked at her with a coldness I had never seen him direct at her. "No. No dessert. Go to your room. Both of you. Now."


    ?The girls scrambled out, realizing for the first time that their "favorite daddy" wasn’t on their side anymore.


    ?I sank back into my chair, rubbing my temples. "That went well," I muttered sarcastically.


    ?"I tried, Olivia," Lennox groaned, burying his face in his hands.


    ?Just then, the front door opened, and Louis walked in. He looked at the half-eaten food and the heavy silence. "Did I miss something?"


    ?I looked at Louis, my eyes resting on my swollen belly. "Everything is breaking, Louis. And I don’t know if we can fix it before this babyes."


    ?I watched as Louis sighed, running a hand through his hair before heading toward the twins’ room. I followed him silently, my heart heavy, standing just outside the cracked door to listen.


    ?Inside, the room was filled with the sound of muffled sobs. The girls were huddled on Lyra’s bed, looking small and miserable. As soon as Louis stepped inside, they scrambled toward him, their faces blotchy.


    ?"Daddy Louis!" Lana cried, reaching for his hand. "Mommy and Daddy Lennox are being so mean! They shouted at us because of the man in the chair!"


    ?Louis sat on the edge of the bed, his expression unreadable. He waited until their crying subsided into small hups—he, like Lennox, couldn’t stand it when they cried, but tonight his gaze remained firm.


    ?"You know," Louis said, his voice a low, steady rumble. "I just walked into a dining room that felt like a graveyard. Your mother is upset, Father Lennox is furious, and Father Levi... well, Levi is back in his room feeling like he should have never woken up at all."


    ?"But we don’t like him!" Lyra stomped her foot on the mattress. "He’s boring and he’s not our daddy!"


    ?Louis went quiet for a moment. I held my breath in the hallway.


    ?"Okay," Louis said suddenly, leaning forward. "Why don’t we strike a deal? A secret deal, just between us."


    ?The twins stopped sniffing, their curiosity piqued. They loved secrets, especially with Louis.


    ?"Each day you are nice to Daddy Levi—and I mean truly nice, like giving him a hug or asking him one question about his day—I will give you one extra hour of training in the woods with me and the boys," Louis promised. "And... I’ll make sure you get anything you want."


    ?The girls’ eyes widened. Training with the big boys was the ultimate prize in our pack.


    ?"But," Louis added, his voice turning stern. "If I hear you were rude, or if I see you ignore him when he speaks to you, the deal is off for a whole week. No woods. No gifts. Just extra lessons with the pack schrs."


    ?Lyra and Lana exchanged a long, silent look.


    ?"Do we have to call him Daddy?" Lana whispered.


    ?"You call him whatever you want for now," Louis said, standing up. "But you treat him like family. Do we have a deal?"


    ?Slowly, both girls reached out and shook Louis’srge hand.


    ?I leaned against the wall in the hallway, closing my eyes. It felt a bit like bribery, but at this point, I would take anything.


    ?