Chapter 5 Be mine

The receptionist was flustered, “Alpha Reid, I didn't know she was your friend ......”

“You do now.” Reid's gaze was cold, yet filled with warmth when he looked at me.

My throat closed, but I forced the words out. “I need to see you. Please… it’s urgent.”

He glanced at his watch, his jaw tight. For a moment I thought he would dismiss me, send me back to the humiliation of the receptionist’s sneer. But instead, he gave a short nod and gestured toward the elevator. “Come.”

The ride up was quiet. 

When we stepped into his office, he leaned against the edge of his desk, with eyes on me. “Speak.”

I twisted my fingers together. “My mother… she needs surgery. Ten thousand dollars. If you lend it to me…” My voice faltered, heat rising in my cheeks. “…I’ll do anything you ask.”

The words hung between us.

His eyes swept over me, slow and deliberate. They caught on the faint bruises at my collarbone, the pale scars lining my arms. His expression darkened as though the marks offended him.

“How did you get hurt?” His tone was cold.

I dropped my gaze, shame burning my skin. “It’s always been like this.”

Silence stretched. I could feel him weighing and measuring me. My stomach turned with each second he didn’t speak.

Finally, he pushed off the desk and moved closer. The air thickened as his shadow fell over me. “Stay by my side,” he said flatly. “As my mate until the child is born.”

The words didn’t register at first. “What…?”

His eyes didn’t waver. “You’re pregnant.”

The floor tilted. “That’s impossible. It’s only been—”

“An Alpha knows,” he cut in. “Your scent has changed. I can smell my pup in you.”

My hand flew to my stomach before I could stop it. The thought of life inside me made my chest twist. I wanted to deny it, but deep down, I knew he wasn’t wrong.

“So that’s why,” I whispered, voice raw. “You want the pup.”

His eyes narrowed. “This isn’t a request. Stay, and your mother’s surgery will be paid for. She’ll be transferred to my pack’s clinic. She’ll be safe. You will be safe. You’ll want for nothing.”

The weight of it crushed me. This wasn’t marriage. This was surrogacy dressed as protection.

I wavered, caught between dread and desperation. Mama’s face flashed in my mind, pale on the hospital bed, without this, she would die.

But another fear twisted deeper. He wants to marry me… because of the baby.

Marriage? Was I really going to give myself to him just for the mere ten thousand dollars needed for Mom’s surgery? 

We’d only met a few times.

But right now, I had no money left, no other choice at all.

Nothing mattered more than Mom surviving. I bit my lower lip and said, “Okay, I agree.”

Only then did he move, pulling open a drawer and signing a slip of paper with quick strokes. He slid it across the desk toward me. “The transfer is already set. You’ll have what you need.”

I picked it up with trembling fingers. The numbers swam on the page. This was real.

.

My fingers tightened around the paper, the numbers blurred through unshed tears. My pulse pounded in my ears, louder than the silence stretching between us.

I swallowed hard, forcing the words out. “Thank you… Alpha Reed.”

It was all I could manage. My voice cracked on his name.

He said nothing, only watched me, his gaze steady and unreadable.

I turned before my knees gave out, clutching the slip of paper like it was the only thing tethering me to the ground. My chest ached, but I kept moving, each step heavier than the last.

When I finally stepped out into the hall, the cool air hit my face. Only then did I realize I was shaking.

What am I supposed to do now? If Bill finds out, he’ll kill me. And Calista… she’ll make sure I never breathe easy again.

Shock wrapped around me like ice. I had agreed. I had bound myself to a man I barely knew for survival.

I ran the whole way back to the hospital. My lungs burned, my legs ached, but fear drove me faster than breath could keep up. If I was too late—

The sight that met me froze my blood.

Two men from my father’s pack stood at the nurse’s station, their arms crossed, blocking the hallway that led to Mama’s room. 

“Alpha Wynn said this woman has no right to stay here,” one barked at the trembling nurse. “She’s nothing but a burden. Discharge her now.”

“She’s still critical,” the nurse said weakly.

“She can die at home for all we care,” the other snapped. “This is the Alpha’s order.”

“No,” I gasped, pushing forward. “You can’t take her!”

Both men turned, their eyes narrowing as they saw me.

“Well, look who crawled back,” one sneered. “Your father said you and your mother have no business here.”

I rushed past them, trying to reach Mom’s room, but one grabbed my arm and yanked me back. Pain shot through my shoulder.

“Let go!” I cried, twisting, but his grip only tightened.

“You think you can fight the Alpha’s will?” His breath was hot and foul near my ear. “You and your mother should have learned your place long ago. You’ve offended the wrong people.”

My stomach turned cold. Offended. That’s what he called it, because Mama dared to raise me alone, and I dared to breathe in the same world as Calista.

The second man shoved the nurse aside and started down the hall toward Mom’s room. “I’ll drag her out myself.”

“No!” I screamed desperately. I fought harder, nails scraping uselessly at the arm that held me. “Please—she’ll die—don’t do this!”

“Shut up,” the man hissed. “Your father doesn’t want you both here.”

Hopelessness crashed over me. I couldn’t fight them and couldn’t save her.

And then the air shifted. A low, commanding voice cut through the chaos.

“Unhand her.”

The grip on my arm vanished at once. I stumbled forward, gasping for air, and turned.

Reed stood at the end of the corridor, tall and dark against the light. Power rolling off him in waves that made the men’s bravado crumble. His eyes burned gold, locked on the men.

The two men froze, their faces draining of color. One stammered, “A–Alpha Reed…”

Reed’s steps echoed down the corridor, unhurried but heavy with authority. “You dare lay a hand on her?” His voice was calm, but the danger in it was unmistakable.