Chapter 6 – The Line She Drew (Part 2)

The room froze again.

Michelle stared at him, shocked. Jason, the loyal beta, Patrick’s right-hand man, the one who never interfered, had just sided with her.

Patrick’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Jason,” he said, his voice low, warning.

Jason didn’t flinch. “This is unnecessary, Alpha. We still have the summit to plan this week. Don’t waste your energy on this.”

The way he said it, cool, dismissive, was deliberate. He was protecting her by redirecting Patrick’s anger, making it seem as if she wasn’t worth the effort.

Patrick studied him for several seconds, his breathing harsh, his hands flexing at his sides. The air between them crackled with dominance and challenge.

Beta Jason was an alpha by breed, powerful in his own right, but to openly contradict his Alpha, especially over Michelle, was dangerous.

Michelle held her breath.

Finally, Patrick scoffed, breaking the tension. “You’re defending her now?”

“I’m defending your focus,” Jason said carefully. “You have bigger matters to deal with than a suitcase.”

Patrick exhaled through his nose, then turned away abruptly, muttering under his breath. The danger passed, barely.

Rebecca, still frozen near the doorway, gave a nervous little laugh. “I can carry it myself,” she said quickly, trying to smooth things over.

She bent to grab the handle of her suitcase and rolled it toward the bedroom without another word.

Michelle stood motionless, her arms still folded, her pulse racing in her ears.

Jason stepped slightly aside but didn’t look at her. His expression was neutral again, but there was a flicker, just a flicker, of something else in his eyes. Pity, maybe. Or respect.

Patrick sank back into his chair, visibly forcing himself to calm down. He poured a drink, his movements sharp and irritated. “You let her forget her place too often,” he muttered, glaring at Jason. “Next time, I won’t be so generous.”

Jason didn’t respond. He simply picked up his folder of notes and straightened. “We should finish discussing the summit plans,” he said quietly. “You’ll want to finalize the speaker list before the night’s over.”

Patrick grunted, more focused now on the glass in his hand than the woman he had almost struck.

The conversation between the two men resumed, but Michelle wasn’t listening. She was still standing where she had defied him, her heart thundering, adrenaline coursing through her veins.

For the first time in years, she had drawn a line, and someone had stood beside her instead of watching in silence.

It was a small victory, invisible to everyone else, but to her it felt monumental.

She glanced at Jason, still seated across from Patrick now, his face expressionless as he reviewed the notes. To anyone watching, he looked perfectly composed. But she knew what he had done, how much risk he’d taken in that moment.

He’d stopped Patrick.

And though he pretended otherwise, he had done it for her.

She didn’t thank him. She couldn’t. Gratitude might make things worse, might draw Patrick’s suspicion. But as she turned toward the hallway, her eyes lingered on Jason’s for a brief moment.

He met her gaze just long enough to let her know he understood.

Then she walked away, her back straight, her face unreadable.

Inside, her heart was a storm of emotion, fear, relief, disbelief. For years she had learned to survive by silence, by compliance, by shrinking herself until she barely existed. But now, something inside her had shifted.

Defiance.

It was small, fragile, but alive.

She didn’t know if it would last. She didn’t know if she would pay for it later. But for now, she allowed herself the smallest taste of pride.

Patrick and Jason’s voices continued behind her, blending into the low hum of the house.

Michelle paused in the hallway, one hand against the wall, steadying herself. The house still felt like a cage, but for the first time, one of the bars had bent, even slightly.

In the dim light, she allowed herself a single, fleeting breath of freedom.

Jason remained in the living room, his posture composed but his mind restless. He had crossed a line, too, and he knew it. Patrick wouldn’t forget the defiance, not easily. But watching the way Michelle had stood her ground, something in him had shifted as well.

Respect.

He wasn’t sure when he’d started to feel it, but it was there now, firm and undeniable.

He turned another page in the report to disguise the faint clenching of his jaw.

Across the room, Patrick was already talking about the summit again, as if nothing had happened, pouring himself another drink.

Jason answered him mechanically, nodding at the right times, but his attention flickered once toward the hallway where Michelle had disappeared.

He didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, but he knew one thing for certain: she wasn’t as broken as Patrick thought.