FAYE
I was overreacting.
+25 Points
Not because what was happening wasn’t serious–it was. Helen was gone. Shadow Fang had made their move. War was looming like a storm cloud that refused to pass. But this… this argument, this sudden collapse into tears over being told no?
That was me.
Or rather, me lately.
I admit that pregnancy had turned my emotions into something else. They didn’t come with warnings anymore. One moment I was steady, convinced I could face anything, and the next I was unraveling over something that wouldn’t have shaken me before. It was kind of embarrassing, really.
I exhaled slowly and nodded to myself.
“I’m sorry,” I said quietly.
Alexander blinked.
That clearly wasn’t what he’d expected.
I lifted my head and met his eyes. “I shouldn’t have reacted like that. You’re right. About everything.”
He didn’t say anything, which only made the apology feel heavier as it settled between us.
“I know I’m not weak,” I continued, forcing myself to stay calm, to speak honestly instead of emotionally. And I hate feeling like I’m being sidelined. But… I get why you said no. Truly.”
My throat tightened again, but this time I breathed through it.
“They want me,” I said. “Walking into their territory with you would make things worse, not better. I know that. I just “I paused, choosing my words carefully. “I feel useless sitting here while your mother is out there because of me.”
Alexander’s jaw flexed at that.
“Faye-”
“I know you said it’s not my fault,” I rushed on. “And logically, I agree. But feelings don’t always follow logic. Especially now.”
I gestured vaguely at myself, at my stomach, at everything that felt slightly out of control lately. “My emotions are everywhere. I cry, then I get angry, then I feel stupid for both. I’m not surprised anymore
when it happens. Just… tired.”
He crossed the room and sat beside me on the bed.
< Chapter 250
For a moment, he just looked at me.
Then he sighed softly.
“Okay,” he said. “That makes more sense.”
I huffed out another small, embarrassed laugh.
“You thought I’d lost my mind, didn’t you?” I said.
+25 Points
“I thought maybe I’d missed something important,” he admitted. “Or said something worse than I realized.”
I shook my head. “No. You didn’t.”
I hesitated, then added, “You were being an Alpha… and a mate, and a father. All at once. I just…. needed a
second to catch up.”
Alexander nodded slowly, like he was recalibrating, adjusting his expectations to match where I actually
was instead of where he thought I should be.
He reached for my hand, his thumb brushing over my knuckles in that absent–minded way he did when he
was thinking.
“I don’t expect you to sit around and do nothing,” he said. “And I don’t think you’re weak. Not for a second.”
“I know,” I whispered.
“And you don’t have to carry the blame for Helen,” he continued. “It’s not your fault.”
I swallowed.
“I’m trying to believe that.”
“That’s enough for now,” he said. “Trying is enough.”
The room fell quiet again, but this time it wasn’t heavy. It felt… calm.
I leaned back against the headboard, exhaustion finally catching up with me, and wiped the last of the
tears from my face.
“I’m really sorry,” I said again. “For snapping. For crying over… that.”
Alexander snorted lightly. “I think I can survive a few tears.”
I smiled faintly, my chest easing.
“Still,” I said. “I didn’t mean to make things harder.”
“You didn’t,” he replied without hesitation.
I looked at him then, really looked, and saw the weight he was carrying–the pack, his mother, the looming war, the impossible choices ahead.
< Chapter 250
I was deep in sleep when the sound cut through the darkness.
A phone ringing.
+25 Points
At first, it blended into my dreams, distant and irritating, but then Alexander stirred beside me, and the movement pulled me halfway awake. I kept my eyes closed, my body heavy beneath the covers, listening as he reached for his phone on the bedside table.
His voice was low when he answered, rough with sleep. “Kyle?”
It was Kyle calling.
There was a pause. Then his tone changed–not louder, just sharper, more alert
“I’ll be right there.”
That alone was enough to wake me fully.
I cracked my eyes open just enough to see the faint blue glow of his phone screen as he checked the time. 3:00 a.m. The room was still dark, the kind of quiet that only existed in the deepest part of the night,
when even the pack seemed to be holding its breath.
Alexander swung his legs off the bed and stood. I stayed still, slowing my breathing, pretending sleep had not already abandoned me. I watched through lowered lashes as he pulled on clothes quickly and efficiently–no hesitation, no wasted motion. Whatever that call had been about, it wasn’t routine.
He paused once, just briefly, and looked back at the bed.
At me.
I kept my face relaxed, my breathing even, playing the role he expected me to play: sleeping, unaware,
safe.
Satisfied, he grabbed his phone and quietly left the room, closing the door behind him with careful
precision.
The moment the door clicked, my eyes opened fully.
I lay there for a heartbeat longer, staring up at the ceiling, my pulse already picking up. Three in the morning. Kyle calling. Alexander leaving without waking me.
Something was wrong.
I pushed the covers aside and sat up, the cool air brushing against my skin. Ignoring the faint ache in my lower back, I slipped out of bed and pulled on clothes as quickly and quietly as I could–leggings, a
sweater, shoes.
I eased the bedroom door open and stepped into the hallway, letting my senses stretch outward. The pack house was quiet, but not asleep. There was a subtle tension in the air, a hum of alertness that hadn’t been there when we’d gone to bed.
< Chapter 250
+25 Points
I moved silently, keeping to the shadows, padding down the corridor until I reached the top of the stairs. From there, I could hear voices drifting up from below.
Kyle’s voice.
“…one of the guards on patrol called it in,” he was saying, his tone serious. “I went to confirm it myself, an
she was right there.”
She.
The word made my stomach tighten.
I leaned slightly over the railing, careful not to let myself be seen. I couldn’t see them from where I stood only the edge of the entry hall and the faint glow of lights below–but I didn’t need to. Their voices carriec clearly in the stillness.
Alexander spoke next. “Where is she now?”
There was no anger in his voice, no panic–just that dangerous calm he used when he was bracing for
impact.
“Still out there,” Kyle said.
Out there.
My fingers curled around the banister.
Whoever she was, she wasn’t inside the house. She wasn’t a guest. She wasn’t expected. And the fact tha Kyle hadn’t already dealt with it told me this wasn’t something simple.
I strained to hear more, my heart beginning to pound.
Alexander said something too low for me to catch, and then I heard movement–footsteps shifting. The scrape of shoes against the floor.
They were heading outside.
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
