LOGINInside the car, Melissa sat with Liam. Her eyes followed where he was pointing.It was Derek. He was looking toward the parking lot. Toward the exact spot where their car was parked.“I think he’s staring at us,” Liam said, gripping the door handle, like something was pulling him toward Knox.Melissa couldn’t say a word. She heard everything Liam said, but her heart was pounding too fast, heat spreading through her body.“I think Uncle Knox’s friend is with that man,” Liam added, glancing at her. “Look—Uncle Knox is walking over to him.”Even though she didn’t want to, Melissa found herself looking in that direction.She saw Derek staring straight at them… like he could see through the tinted windows.She tried to calm her racing thoughts, to pretend she knew nothing, when Knox—walking like a man heading into battle—approached the coffee shop entrance.Then—boom.She saw them collide.A sharp gasp escaped her, almost turning into a scream.“Mom… Mom, are you okay?” Liam asked, tilti
Derek’s SUV rolled into the coffee shop’s parking lot a minute before Knox arrived.He didn’t let the engine die before slipping out of the car, moving as if he’d been inside a fire since the drive."Alpha. Are you sure about this?” Michael’s worried voice stopped him halfway out of the car.“Yes, I’m sure, Michael! Stay here. Don’t come in,” Derek said, his tone sharper than he intended, ignoring the flicker of fear coiling in his chest.“Fine,” Michael muttered, his face a sketch of defeat. “Here… these are the things.” He stretched out his hands, passing Lena’s belongings to Derek.Derek took the black tote, wrapped carefully with her items. He hadn’t fully decided to return them yet… there was a condition before the bag would be released to anyone inside that coffee shop.Each time he thought of Knox’s messages, he laughed dryly.The condition: he had to be taken to the mother and her kids before he would release the bag.To be sure. Maybe to get to know them better.“Hahhh!” Dere
Melissa’s hand gripped her phone tighter, her teeth clenched hard, her eyes blazing with anger. Her heart pounded fast, almost violently, her emotions clashing inside her—anger, fear, and confusion—all mixed into one overwhelming storm.She reread the text again, slowly this time, like her brain hadn’t fully absorbed it the first time, like it was playing tricks on her, like it refused to accept what she was seeing.Then another message dropped.You now keep secrets, Lisa? I hope this secret is something I’d love to hear, though. Love you. I do care, even if you hate me.Her skin crawled instantly. Disgust settled deep in her chest. Her blood boiled, heat spreading through her body, almost like it was oozing out from her skin. Her ears rang loudly, painfully, like everything around her had gone silent except that noise.She almost threw her phone across the room. Almost.“Get her ready. We are leaving now!” Knox’s rage-filled voice sliced cleanly through her thoughts, sharp and com
10:30 AM. Crestwood Hospital Room.The air smelled of antiseptics and drugs.Melissa lay on the bed, sleeping. Her chest rose and fell rapidly, like she had gone to sleep carrying a burden.She stirred on the bed. Then—Her eyes snapped open, the hospital light hitting them before she could fully adjust.She blinked once. Twice. Then her eyes fluttered open properly.She had slept last night with a heavy anxiety pressing on her chest. How she even managed to sleep felt like a miracle.Her mind drifted back to all the what-ifs about Derek from the night before…What if he found out about her kids?What if the kids chose him?What if they were taken away from her?Those thoughts had circled her mind endlessly… until she finally slept, drowning in them.She had made sure Knox didn’t notice the anxiety. The fear.And he didn’t.But in the middle of that fear, somewhere deep in her thoughts, she reached a place where her heart actually craved Knox truly knowing Derek.Like—really knowing h
GET READY FOR MEIn Derek’s study, after the callDerek stared at his phone long after the call had ended.His jaw was tight, his eyes blazing, his entire body trembling with pure rage.Knox had ended the call on him?“Damn!” he snapped, slamming his hand against the desk. The desk shook under the force.“Wow… rude-ass man, huh?” he muttered through clenched teeth.He flung the phone against the wall and began pacing the room, anger radiating from every part of him.If Knox were standing in front of him right now, he would have shifted into his Alpha wolf and torn him apart—ripping through him until nothing but bones remained.“He ended the call on you?” Beta Michael asked, his face etched with surprise. There was something else in his eyes—fear. Fear for Knox, maybe.“Just go! Go away,” Derek barked sharply.“Al—”“Do as I said,” Derek cut in, his voice slicing through the air with raw rage.“Um… alright.” Michael bowed slightly and turned, but had just begun to walk away when Derek’
LONG TIME, KNOX.“Hey! Go get Derek! Fast. Now!” Sloane yelled at Avery, who had dashed out of the bathroom, trembling in panic when Laura had run in, gagging and choking.Sloane rushed to the bathroom herself, while Avery hurried off to fetch Derek. Yes, Derek—that was what Sloane called him. She never used “Alpha”; to hell with that title.“Lynnie! Lynnie!” Sloane screamed, panic lacing her voice.Laura hadn’t stopped throwing up. Each time the pain in her stomach eased and she tried to speak, she choked again, retching, her eyes red, tiny tears slipping from her lids.“Be calm,” Sloane soothed, rubbing her back and flicking cool water on her face.Gradually, Laura steadied herself. She cupped water from the tap, rinsed her mouth thoroughly, and poured it out."You good now?” Sloane asked, her tone gentle yet firm. “C’mon, girl. It’s just a pregnancy. Not a big deal.”Laura walked back to the room, Sloane trailing behind, her bags still slung over her shoulder.“Don’t tell me seeing







