Vera's pov
The night was quiet except for the soft rustling of leaves outside the mansion windows. Alpha Gideon kept his eyes fixed on the wound he was carefully cleaning, but I could feel his gaze drifting back to me, full of concern and something softer—something I hadn’t seen before.
He finished bandaging the scratch with steady hands, then slowly looked up, his dark eyes catching the faint moonlight.
“Why do you always push yourself so hard?” he asked quietly.
I shrugged, trying to hide my nerves. “I want to prove I’m more than just a title. I want to help.”
He reached out, brushing a stray lock of hair behind my ear. The touch was gentle but sent a ripple of heat through me.
“You don’t have to prove anything to me,” he whispered.
My breath caught. For a moment, everything else—
