The word Alpha landed on him like a crack in a glass, he went still. She was different, genuine surprise flickered across his face before he could stop it. His hand loosened against her neck, his thumb pausing over her pulse as if he had forgotten what he was doing.
“…Alpha?” he repeated as his eyes searched hers. Ember held his gaze, her chest rising and falling unevenly. “Yes,” she replied. “I know exactly what you are and what you do to people like me.”
In that split moment, he realized everything had changed. The distance between their worlds wasn’t hidden anymore. What they had was something more complicated than he could understand. He couldn’t leave Iris even if he didn’t love her, that too was complicated. He wished he could explain why his relationship was so complicated to Embe
