Chapter 20 - Leah

Killian walked in the door, and I immediately sensed that something was off with him. My first thought was that I had done something wrong, but I stopped that thought in its tracks. I recognized the trauma response from my upbringing, and knew I needed to ask him to explain instead of assuming his mood was directed toward me.

“How was your trip?” I asked.

Killian shrugged and balled up his fists. “Fine.”

“It doesn’t seem like it went fine,” I pointed out. “You’re very tense.”

“I didn’t find what I was looking for,” he said.

“What were you looking for?”

“It doesn’t matter,” he said with a groan.

He sat down on the couch and took off his shoes before staring off into space. It was clear that his brain was working overtime, but without him opening up about what was on his mind, I knew there was nothing more I could do to help ease whatever problem he was having.

“I wasn’t sure what time you were getting back, so I ordered some food for dinner,” I said. “I’m going to head out and pick it up. Do you want me to grab you something on my way?”

“No, I don’t want you leaving the house without me,” Killian said.

His voice was loud and commanding, completely out of character as far as how he usually spoke to me. The directive to stay by his side on top of his demanding tone rubbed me the wrong way.

“Excuse me?” I clarified, hoping I had misheard him.

“There’s just… a lot going on right now,” he said. “I need you to stay in the house. I’ll go and get your food.”

“Killian, tell me what happened,” I pressed. “You’re keeping something from me.”

“It’s nothing to worry about,” he said as he put his shoes back on.

“If that were true, you wouldn’t care if I left the house,” I pointed out.

“I’m not discussing this with you anymore,” Killian said. “Just stay in the house. I’ll be right back.”

His tone left no room for argument, and I decided it was best to do as he asked. If whatever was causing him to be overprotective was bad enough that he didn’t want to talk about it, all I could do was trust him. As hard as that was, I would try my best.

He returned quickly, and we ate in silence before heading to bed.

The following day, his mood had not improved. If anything, he seemed more anxious, jumping at the slightest sounds.

“This is getting ridiculous,” I finally said. “If you don’t tell me what’s happening, I’m going to start throwing my books at your head.” I was halfway kidding, but the sentiment behind my words was true.

“No need to be dramatic,” Killian said with a sigh. “If you want to assault me, you’ll have to wait until later. I need to go to a meeting at Alpha Nile’s place. Get your shoes on. You’re coming with me.”

I rolled my eyes but did as he asked. Soon, we were sitting in Nile’s front room.

“You wanted to see me?” Killian asked.

“Yes, but let’s wait for Jasper to get here,” Nile said.

A knock on the door came, and we all looked at each other in confusion. Jasper rarely knocked.

Nile left to answer it, coming back into the room followed by a man who looked suspiciously like my mate. The only differences were in hair and eye color. In place of Killian’s light blond locks and hazel-green eyes, the stranger had darker blond hair with eyes the color of a winter sky.

“I told you I’d find you,” the man said, staring at Killian with a dangerous look.

“Franco,” Killian replied, his jaw locked. “Welcome to Alpha Nile Pinedale’s home. Nile, this is my brother.”

“ Half -brother,” Franco corrected. “I believe we’re waiting on one more?”

“I’m here,” Jasper said from behind him.

Franco’s mouth broke into a sinister smile as he turned to greet the newcomer. “Excellent,” he said. “Why don’t we all sit?”

The ease with which he commanded the room unsettled me. Here was a man who had never been in town before, ordering around three powerful alphas.

Killian said down next to me and placed his hand on mine. I hadn’t realized I was shaking, but his closeness comforted me enough to halt the unbidden tremors.

“You must be Killian’s pet,” Franco said to me lasciviously, eyeing our enclosed hands.

“Leah,” I said coldly. “I’m his mate.”

“Ah, how wonderful. Congratulations.”

Although his words were kind, the tone was anything but. I felt a shiver of fear run up my spine as he locked eyes with me, but I held his stare until he broke it.

“If I had known I was going to have a guest, I would have prepared better,” Nile said nonchalantly, ignoring the tension in the room. “But we didn’t know you were coming.”

“Yes, what exactly are you doing here?” Jasper asked Franco, getting straight to the point.

“I’m here to let the three of you know that I’m in town,” Franco began. “I know that alphas are territorial, so I didn’t want my presence to come as a surprise and invite any… violent attention toward myself.”

“Have you done anything that might encourage us to use violence against you?” Nile asked politely.

“Of course not,” Franco said. “But you know how it can be. A strange man comes into town, and everyone’s emotions run a little amok. But I assure you, I mean none of your packs any harm.”

“As long as your presence here is peaceful, you have nothing to fear from us,” Jasper said. His voice sounded as though he doubted that Franco’s intentions were anything but malicious.

“I’m so pleased to hear that,” Franco said. “All I want is to catch up with my big brother. It’s been so long since we had a chance to spend some quality time together, hasn’t it, Ki?”

Killian’s hand squeezed mine, and I knew he was struggling to control himself. I had known he had a brother, one who had chosen a much different path than Killian. But there must have been many more details that Killian hadn’t shared with me yet for him to react so strongly to this man.

“Yes. It’s been a long time,” Killian finally said.

“Well then! No time like the present, I say,” Franco slapped his knees jovially, at complete odds with the tension in the room. “Would the three of you mind giving us the room? I think Killian and I should have a private talk before I head out.”

The alphas exchanged glances, and Killian nodded to them, letting them know he was on board to talk with Franco alone.

“Feel free to let yourself out when you’re done,” Nile said to Franco. “And next time you need to talk, give us a call. No need to come all the way here.”

Franco’s parting smile didn’t reach his eyes as Jasper and Nile left the room.

“You too, sweetheart,” Franco said, jerking his head for me to go.

“No,” I replied.

“What?” Franco hissed.

Killian inhaled sharply at my response, on high alert for any danger that might be headed my way. My palms began to sweat as Franco and I maintained eye contact.

“I’m staying right here,” I said defiantly, lifting my chin up as a challenge.

Franco smiled slowly. “I like this one,” he said to Killian. “Very well, you may stay.”

“Why are you really here?” Killian asked.

“I already told you. I’ve missed you,” Franco replied. “I want us to spend some time together. Drink a couple beers, go for some runs—you know, relive the glory days.”

“Those weren’t the glory days, brother,” Killian said.

“Semantics,” Franco said, flippantly waving his hand. “I want to get to know you again. Maybe we can find more common ground than we had before.”

Killian didn’t have much choice, it seemed, on whether he would accept Franco’s presence in town. The best thing for him would be to get their reunion out of the way as quickly as possible and let Franco go back home.

“Alright,” Killian said. “I’ll drop Leah off at home, and you and I can go grab a drink.”

“No, no,” Franco replied in mock hurt. “You won’t hurry me out of town. In fact, I’m going to stick around for a few days. I’ll spend some time with my favorite brother and show the alphas that I mean no harm to your precious packs.”

I could sense Killian’s frustration grow the longer Franco spoke, but I felt powerless to help him. This was between him and his brother. All I could do was stand by his side in support.

“Of course,” Killian said through gritted teeth.

“Wonderful!” Franco exclaimed. “Now, I must be going. I need to find a place to stay. I don’t suppose you have an extra room for your little brother, do you?”

“No,” Killian said. “Only the one room, I’m afraid.”

“How disappointing. But no matter, I’ll find a place and be in touch with you very soon. Goodbye, brother.”

Franco stood up gracefully and slid from the room. We heard the door close, and Killian took a deep breath to steady himself as Nile and Jasper came back inside.

“You two alright in here?” Nile asked.

“I’m so sorry about this,” Killian said. “It seems like my personal issues keep turning into problems for you.”

“Don’t think twice about it. You know I’ll always have our back,” Jasper assured him, clapping Killian on the shoulder.

***

Killian took me home, locking the front door before doing a thorough sweep of the house. Now that I knew what he was worried about, his overprotective concern made much more sense. What I couldn’t bear was his fear.

“Come lay down,” I urged, pulling Killian away from the storage closet he was investigating and toward our bedroom.

“I need to check outside,” he said, heading toward the back door.

“Killian,” I said, using my most commanding voice. “Stop right now and look at me.”

He stopped with his hand on the doorknob. His head tilted back, and his eyes closed. He paused for a moment before turning toward me, dropping his arms to his sides and slumping his shoulders. I had never seen him look more defeated than in that moment.

“I’m sorry, Leah,” he said. “I’m so afraid that I won’t be able to protect you, I’m driving myself crazy.”

“I know,” I said. “But you need to take a minute and breathe. You can’t protect me or yourself if you aren’t thinking clearly.”

Killian nodded and allowed me to walk him into our bedroom. I shut the door behind us gently, and together, we lay down on the bed.

“Come here,” I said gently, pulling his head onto my chest.

His arm wrapped around my waist, and I felt him melt into me. I breathed a sigh of relief that he was finally beginning to relax.

“He’s bad news, Leah,” he mumbled into my stomach. “He always has been. But I’ve never seen him like this before. I don’t know what he’s planning or how to stop him.”

“Shh,” I said. “You don’t need to do anything right now. We are safe, and we’re together.”

I ran my fingers through his hair as we held each other. After lingering like that for a while, he sat up to sit cross-legged on the bed and looked into my eyes.

“All I want is to protect you,” he said.

We had barely had any real time together as a mated couple, and already, our future was at risk. I refused to spend tonight living in fear of what might happen.

“I want more from you than just your protection right now,” I said.

“Anything you want. I’ll give it to you,” Killian replied.

“I want all of you.”

I got up onto my knees and put my hands on his shoulders, kissing him deeply. He was initially startled by the mood shift, but without hesitation, he leaned into my embrace.

In a flurry of fabric, I began tearing our clothes off while Killian’s hands explored my skin. When all our layers had been removed, Killian returned to a sitting position. I straddled him.

“Make love to me, mate,” I whispered into his ear.

If we were going to have to fight for a happily ever after, I would make sure that our first time together wasn’t our last.