Chapter 17 Night visit

RILEY

I turned stiffly and found Dale standing behind me, wide-eyed. His tall, well-muscled frame was clad in nothing but a pair of athletic shorts, his tan skin smooth and lightly sheened with sweat beneath the moonlight.

The moment he saw the terror on my face, he immediately took a step back.

“Hey, hey, hey, it’s okay,” he said gently, as though calming a frightened animal, both hands raised. “It’s just me, Riley. Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“W-what are you doing out here?” I demanded, my heart still pounding.

“I was out jogging,” he explained, running a hand through his damp chestnut hair. “What are you doing out here?”

I-I-I saw,” I stammered. My eyes flicked back toward where I’d seen the glowing eyes. But when I pointed toward the trees…

The eyes were gone.

“There was something watching me,” I whispered, fear and disbelief mingling in my voice. “Over there. By the trees. I saw a pair of eyes...”

Dale’s brows drew together.

“There’s nothing out here, Riley. At least not this close to the center,” he said gently. “Why don't I walk you back? It's getting late, and you'll catch a chill if you stay out here.”

I hesitated before giving him a hesitated nod.

As Dale escorted me back toward the medical center, I cast one last glance at the trees.

Had I really imagined it?

Or had something been out there...

Watching me?

***

KILLIAN

“Alpha.”

 A medic lowered his head respectfully as I walked down the corridor of the medical center.

“Good evening.”

I gave him a brief nod in return.

The medic bowed once more before returning to the chart in his hands.

It was nearly eleven.

The arrival of the Moon Ridge warriors had occupied nearly every waking hour. Endless pack meetings, fruitless alliance discussions, and corporation matters had left me pulled in too many directions at once.

My temple throbbed dully. Honestly, I was exhausted, and it was too late for visitors.

Still…

I found myself here.

Visiting Dominic had somehow become part of my routine. A strange one, considering how little time I had known him.

A month ago, I would never have imagined spending part of my day sitting idly beside a four-year-old's hospital bed.

Dominic understood very little of the burdens weighing on my shoulders. His attention span was also fleeting; one moment he was completely absorbed in building towers with blocks, and the next he'd abandoned them for toy cars.

Yet, somehow, spending time with him had become the most pleasant part of my day.

As I walked through the suite, Lisa rose from her chair. Her sleepy eyes widened the moment she saw me, and she quickly lowered her head.

“Al – ”

She was about to announce my arrival when I raised a hand, silently ordering her to keep quiet.  

She immediately nodded, and I opened the door to Dominic’s room.

The steady hum of the medical equipment filled the silence. A warm yellow nightlight glowed beside the bed.

Dominic was fast asleep beneath the blanket, the corner of his mouth curved into a faint smile as though he were dreaming.

Riley had fallen asleep beside the bed.

Her long golden hair spilled across the blanket. One hand rested around the edge of the sheet while the other lay protectively across Dominic.

As I stepped closer, she curled in on herself. A faint shiver ran through her, raising goosebumps along her bare arm.

I picked up the spare blanket from the couch and draped it over her.

My gaze lingered on her for a moment.

Even in sleep, there was a slight crease between her brows. But the constant vigilance she carried while awake was gone, leaving her features softer than I was used to seeing.

My thought drifted back to the previous night.

The full moon.

She had wandered dangerously close to the forest, and directly locked eyes with my wolf.

I had been in the middle of my night training. Full moon always weakened my control, and it was a miracle that I hadn’t attacked her on instinct.

Had Dale not spotted her in time and intervened, I wasn't sure how the night would have ended.

“It’s only a matter of time before she figures out what we are,” he’d told me after escorting her inside. “She’s very smart. Maybe we should just tell her and get it over with.”

Perhaps he was right.

She was intelligent, and far more reckless than she realized.  Few women would wander into the forest alone at midnight. Fewer still would hold a wolf's gaze without immediately fleeing. If she’d done it once, she could very well do it again.

Would it be safer to just tell her the truth?

No, I didn’t think it was an option.

What Bram had said was true. Humans and werewolves rarely coexisted peacefully. Especially humans as stubborn and defiant as Riley Clarkson. “Killian?”

Dominic's whisper pulled me from my thoughts.

I shifted my attention to him.

“Sorry,” I murmured. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

He shook his head, silvery strands of hair falling into his eyes.

“I was already awake. I was just pretending to sleep.”

The corner of my lips twitched. “Is that so? Why?”

“I don’t want mommy to feel worried about me,” he explained carefully. “If I don’t sleep, she won’t sleep either.”

This sounded very much like her.

I stepped a little closer, trying not to disturb her sleep as Dominic had requested. “Do you want me to sit with you for a while?” I asked.

Dominic nodded enthusiastically, his vivid blue eyes blinking up at me hopefully.

I pulled a chair over and sat on the other side of his bed.  

Dominic tilted his head as he looked me.

“Something on your mind?” I asked, leaning forward a little.

I struggled to find a comfortable position, not quite at ease with all of this. Perhaps it was simply the atmosphere that had me feeling slightly on edge.

“Are you a bad guy?” he asked me suddenly.

I raised my brow in surprise.

“Mommy always looks nervous whenever you’re here,” he explained,

 “No,” I answered. “I’m not a bad guy. Your mom… she just worries a lot. That’s all.”

Dominic nodded. I couldn't tell whether he believed me. His little face remained serious.

“Mommy has been sad ever since I got sick,” he said. “She tells me every day that she isn’t, but I know she’s lying.”

“She isn’t lying to you on purpose.” I exhaled slowly. “She just loves you very much.”

Dominic nodded again.

He fell silent for a moment, absentmindedly rubbing the edge of the blanket between his tiny fingers, a habit strangely reminiscent of Riley.

“Do you love me too?” he asked.

The question caught me off guard.

Of course, Riley wouldn't have told him who I was. He was probably asking out of nothing more than innocent curiosity. Even with my limited experience around children, I knew they often spoke whatever came into their minds without hesitation.

“I don’t know,” I admitted after a long pause. I didn't want to lie to him.

“Oh.”

Dominic’s eyes dimmed slightly, and his gaze dropped to his hands.

I felt a heaviness settle in my chest.

I pressed my lip together before speaking up again, almost too quickly.

“But I will always make sure that you’re safe. No one will ever hurt you, Dominic.”

 He blinked. Then a bright smile spread across his face as he glanced down at Riley. “Mommy promised the same thing.”

My gaze followed his.

Riley shifted slightly in her sleep. She was no longer shivering, and the tension in her face had eased. She had begun to snore softly, as though she'd finally found a moment of peace.

“Killian,” Dominic called me again. “Are you strong?”

"I suppose so,” I said, uncertain where the question was leading.

“Mommy will protect me. So I don’t need you to protect me. But…” He fixed me with wide, innocent, impossibly serious eyes before holding out his little finger.

“Can you help me protect mommy?”