Chapter 210 A Blade Wrapped in Silk

Eira stood outside the lab, phone pressed to her ear. Her jaw tightened.

"What are you playing at, Sebastian?"

"I’m not playing at anything." His voice turned soft, almost pitiful. "I just want to talk, Eira. That’s all. Can you give me a few minutes?"

"I received your legal notice six days ago. Very professional. Very carefully worded."

She leaned against the wall as engineers moved through the corridor around her.

Alpha Sebastian let out a quiet breath, as if she had wounded him. "Did Alpha Killian help you write it? I warned you about him. He’s dangerous. Get too close, and he’ll use you until there’s nothing left."

"You’re the dangerous one, Sebastian."

She ended the call before he could answer.

Anger burned beneath her calm expression. She took two slow breaths, squared her shoulders, and kept moving.

Her phone buzzed again.

Sebastian: Tomorrow at ten. Just you and me, Eira.

A second text followed.

Sebastian: Sam is staying with a distant relative, but it isn’t a good situation. He isn’t enrolled in school, and no one is really looking out for him. I’ve already helped arrange a place for him. We can talk about it tomorrow.

Eira read the messages twice.

The words looked harmless. The pressure behind them was not.

Alpha Sebastian had not threatened her. He did not have to. He knew she would want to know where Sam was, who he was staying with, and whether he was safe. He was counting on the fact that she could not get those answers without meeting him.

He knew exactly where to push.

Eira was one of the former residents who still came back to the group home. Some returned during the holidays. Others sent money when they could. A few vanished from the records the moment they aged out.

Eira simply kept showing up.

She brought winter coats, school supplies, grocery cards, and birthday presents. She remembered who hated thunderstorms and who needed a little extra time to answer a question. The pupstrusted her because she never treated them like charity cases.

Alpha Sebastian knew she could ignore him.

He also knew she would never ignore Sam.

Eira had always cared about the people the Packs left behind: abandoned Omegas, wolfless children, and anyone without a family name or a powerful Alpha to protect them.

In their world, an Omega pup with no bloodline could be treated as less valuable than an Alpha’s hunting dog.

Eira knew exactly what that felt like.

She had told Alpha Sebastian everything when she still believed marriage meant complete trust. She had given him her childhood, her fears, and every place where she was most vulnerable.

He had remembered all of it.

Now he was using it to pull her back.

Eira had never thought of herself as naturally gifted. She knew hard work could not always beat talent. She simply refused to let that stop her.

That stubbornness had taken her from a remote mountain town to Stanford, then to a federal lab and the Sovereign Processor Initiative.

She had never lost a class, a position, or a research opportunity.

Love was the only place where she had ever let herself lose.

She ended the call, opened her contacts, and called Miss Gwen at the group home.

Miss Gwen answered after a few rings.

"Sweetheart, I can’t discuss Sam’s situation over the phone. We need the proper paperwork, and I can’t make exceptions. Not even for you."

Miss Gwen paused.

"But you could come home a little earlier this year, couldn’t you?"

Eira understood the message. Miss Gwen could not discuss Sam over the phone, but she was asking Eira to come back in person.

"I’ll come home for Christmas," Eira said, softening her voice. "Not just for a quick visit. I’ll stay a few days."

Miss Gwen’s silence warmed.

"I’ll get your room ready. Send me your flight details, and I’ll pick you up myself."

"Thank you. And please take care of yourself, okay? I have to go."

"I will. Love you."

"Love you too."

They ended the call.

The next morning, Eira was pulling on her coat when Mrs. Jones appeared with a wool scarf. Before Eira could object, she wrapped it around her neck and handed her a black umbrella.

"The forecast says rain," Mrs. Jones said. "Take the umbrella. It’s supposed to be cold and windy."

"I’ll be fine."

"That’s what people say right before they come home soaked and sick."

Mrs. Jones opened the front door. The two German shepherds waited beside it, watching Eira with sleepy concern.

Eira scratched both dogs behind the ears, then headed for the black Sterling SUV waiting at the curb.

Alpha Killian had been gone for almost a week, handling Pack business near the Sterling border.

According to Mrs. Jones, a group of rogues had crossed into Sterling territory, and several abandoned pups had been found hiding in the mountains. Alpha Killian had stayed behind to manage the border patrols and find the pups a safe place to stay.

Eira had been just as busy. She spent her days in the lab, came home after dark, and checked on the renovation at 10 Ashford Lane whenever she could.

They were both running on empty.

By the time one of them was finally free, the other was usually already asleep.

Mrs. Jones watched the SUV pull away, then texted Alpha Killian.

[When are you coming home, Alpha? Miss Eira looked upset when she got back last night. She looked even worse this morning.]

Eira rarely showed when something was bothering her, but Mrs. Jones had helped raise two generations of Sterling Alphas. She knew what pain looked like.

Alpha Killian replied within minutes.

[Wrapping things up. I’ll be home soon.]

Mrs. Jones rolled her eyes.

[Don’t text me that. Text her.]

A few minutes later, another message came through.

[Flight’s booked. I’ll be home tonight.]

Mrs. Jones smiled and slipped her phone into her pocket.

--

By the time Eira stepped out of the SUV, the sky had turned dark and gray. Cold rain drifted through the air, carried by a sharp wind. She pulled her coat tighter as she walked toward the coffee shop. Her breath came out in faint white clouds before disappearing.

The birch trees outside were bare, their thin branches scratching at the sky. Warm light spilled through the café windows, and the smell of fresh coffee reached the sidewalk every time the door opened.

This was where Alpha Sebastian had proposed.

Years earlier, Eira had come here after the Sovereign Processor Initiative was shelved. Overnight, the project she had built her career around had disappeared, and she had no idea what would come next.

With only a few crumpled bills in her wallet, she had bought a large drip coffee and taken a seat by the second-floor window. She had stared at the rain until the coffee went cold.

Then Alpha Sebastian had called.

He arrived half an hour later and found her sitting alone by the window. He did not push her to talk. He simply sat beside her and let her explain how close she was to losing her job and everything she had worked for.

When she finally ran out of words, he pulled her against his chest and lowered his mouth to her ear.

"It’s okay."

A moment later, he took her hand.

"Eira, marry me. Let me give you a home."

She believed him.