Chapter 219 The Fang

Alpha Killian caught the faint skepticism in his sister’s expression and gave her a cool look.

Lila immediately backed down. "Okay, okay. It’s a nice necklace. A little understated, maybe, but I guess that’s the point."

She glanced at the fang, then quickly looked away.

"Don’t give me that look," she added. "I’m just saying, if you were trying to impress her, you could’ve gone with something a little less subtle."

Alpha Killian’s eyes narrowed.

Lila lifted both hands. "What? It’s pretty. It suits her. I’m done."

She turned to Eira with an innocent smile. "See? Very understated. Very mysterious. Completely on brand for your terrifying billionaire Alpha."

Eira ignored the last part and studied the pendant in her palm. She turned the chain over, then tried to fasten the tiny clasp herself.

The clasp slipped between her fingers.

Alpha Killian noticed. "Here."

Eira glanced at him, then handed him the chain.

Alpha Killian stepped behind her and gently moved her hair over one shoulder so he could reach the clasp. His fingers brushed the back of her neck as he fastened it.

Eira held still, suddenly aware of how close he was.

"There," he said.

He let her hair fall back into place. The fang settled against her sweater, just below her collarbone.

Eira touched it lightly. "How does it look?"

Alpha Killian’s gaze rested on the pendant, then lifted to her face.

"It looks good on you."

His tone was simple and matter-of-fact, which somehow made the compliment feel more personal.

"Thank you," Eira said.

He gave a quiet hum and returned to his slice of cake.

"Let’s eat," Eira said, nodding toward Mrs. Jones. "Dinner’s probably getting cold."

Mrs. Jones began bringing the food to the table.

Alpha Killian looked up. "You haven’t eaten yet?"

"Dinner was ready around the time you landed."

"See?" Lila said. "Eira waited for you, and I’ve been sitting here starving."

"You ate cake," Alpha Killian said flatly.

"That was hours ago," Lila protested. "Cake isn’t dinner."

Mrs. Jones brought out bowls of chicken soup, roasted vegetables, and pasta, putting an end to the siblings’ teasing.

The four of them settled around the table, the earlier teasing giving way to the easy quiet of a family dinner.

When Eira leaned forward, the wolf fang swung lightly against her sweater. Killian’s gaze followed the movement, and a faint smile touched his mouth.

Before she could reach for the ladle, he filled her bowl with soup.

"Eat."

Eira picked up her spoon, then glanced toward the tall dining room windows.

Rain streaked down the glass, blurring the garden lights into soft, golden smears. The storm had washed the roads clean, leaving the yard dark and shining.

"I have to leave for the airport tomorrow afternoon," she said. "Hopefully the roads won’t be this bad by then."

"Let’s hope so," Lila said. "I’m not spending all night at the lab because the roads turn into a mess."

Alpha Killian looked at Eira. "You’re leaving tomorrow to look for Sam?"

"Yes. Miles said I should clear it with you first."

"Have Natalie book the flight through the office as a business trip," Alpha Killian said. "Keep the destination off the regular itinerary. She can loop Vanessa in and limit access to the details."

If Alpha Sebastian found out Eira was returning to the Omega home, he would put people on every gate. That would make her search much harder.

Alpha Killian handled the problem in three sentences. No argument. No unnecessary questions.

He had seen the risk before it became a problem.

"What time is your flight?" Alpha Killian asked.

"Afternoon or evening. I’m having lunch at my mentor’s wife’s place first."

He nodded and let the subject drop. Then he reached for the breadbasket and nudged it toward her.

"Have some of that too."

Eira looked at him. "I’m eating."

"Not enough."

"I’ve barely touched my soup."

"You’ve barely touched anything."

Lila glanced between them, her smile growing. "Should I leave you two alone?"

"No," Alpha Killianand Eira said at the same time.

They looked at each other.

For a second, neither of them spoke. Then Eira lowered her eyes to her bowl, while Alpha Killiancalmly picked up his spoon.

Lila bit back a laugh and focused on her dinner.

To anyone else, Alpha Killianand Eira might have seemed distant and impossible to read. Lila thought they were operating on the same wavelength, communicating through pauses, glances, and silences no one else could decode.

--

On his way home from a business dinner, Alpha Sebastian passed Number Nine. The warm light glowing through the tall windows made him slow down.

It looked like a family dinner.

Rain streaked the glass. Eira sat beside Alpha Killian, warming her hands around a bowl of soup and taking slow, careful bites. Someone was always checking on her, adding food to her plate or passing her a napkin before she had to ask.

Alpha Killian, obviously.

But not just Alpha Killian. His sister was there too, along with Mrs. Jones, the housekeeper Alpha Sebastian had hired to look after Eira.

Lila said something that made Eira laugh. It was an easy, unguarded laugh, the kind Alpha Sebastian had never managed to draw from her.

If he had been sitting beside her, he would never have treated her with Alpha Killian’s quiet patience. Isabella would not have made her laugh either. And his parents would not have shown up at all.

For four years, Eira’s birthday had been just the two of them. A grocery-store bouquet. A supermarket cake. Whatever dinner they could throw together after work.

He had never gotten a chance to make it five.

His eyes burned.

Alpha Sebastian stepped out of the car and stood in the rain, watching through the glass until the cold soaked through his coat.

He stayed there long after dinner ended and the others left the room.

He remembered the last time he had managed to get inside. Eira had been on the couch, with Alpha Killian’s arm around her waist as if it belonged there.

Alpha Sebastian’s hands slowly curled into fists.

He wanted to go in again. But the guard beneath the porch roof would spot him the moment he approached.

And Eira might not come out at all.He knew how much she hated him now.

The lights inside dimmed.

A few minutes later, Alpha Killian stepped out through the front door. He found Alpha Sebastian standing near the edge of the property, half-hidden in the darkness, soaked through and staring at the house.

Alpha Killian’s silver-gray eyes narrowed.

The guard approached with the dogs, but Alpha Killian lifted a hand.

"Don’t wake her."

His gaze moved over Alpha Sebastian’s wet hair and rain-darkened coat. His voice was low and cold.

"Well, look at that. You finally managed to let her eat dinner in peace."

He paused.

"Enjoying the view, Hale?"

The way Alpha Killian said his last name carried more weight than a direct insult.

Alpha Sebastian’s jaw tightened.

"You can throw your weight around all you want," he said. "Eira will never choose you."

Alpha Killian said nothing.

"She likes men who are gentle," Alpha Sebastian continued. "Men with manners."