The Alpha’s Warning
1127 Words
Kael looked at me like a man standing at the edge of a cliff.
One wrong move.
One wrong decision.
And he was going over.
The realization sent a strange flutter through my stomach.
His hand still wrapped around my wrist.
His thumb resting against my pulse.
And judging by the way his eyes darkened every time my heartbeat sped up…
He knew exactly what he was doing to me.
Rain continued falling around us.
Neither of us moved.
Neither of us looked away.
Then Kael suddenly released me.
The loss of contact hit harder than it should have.
His jaw tightened immediately.
Like letting go hurt him too.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
“What?” I asked.
His eyes narrowed slightly.
“You keep looking at me like that.”
I blinked.
“Like what?”
His gaze dropped briefly to my mouth before returning to my eyes.
“Dangerously.”
Heat rushed into my cheeks.
The nerve of this man.
“You pinned me against a wall yesterday.”
His expression remained perfectly serious.
“And?”
I laughed in disbelief.
Ronan looked between us.
Then groaned dramatically.
“I can’t do this.”
Neither of us paid attention to him.
Kael took another step closer.
My pulse immediately betrayed me.
Again.
His eyes flickered downward.
Of course he noticed.
“Were you scared?” he asked quietly.
The question surprised me.
Not because he asked.
Because he sounded like he genuinely wanted to know.
I swallowed.
“A little.”
Something unreadable crossed his face.
“Good.”
My eyebrows shot upward.
“Excuse me?”
His expression hardened instantly.
“You should be scared.”
There it was again.
That strange contradiction.
Every time Kael got close to me, he acted like he wanted me near him.
Then seconds later, he’d tell me to run.
Like he was fighting two different battles.
One with me.
And one with himself.
“You’re impossible,” I muttered.
For the first time since I’d met him—
Kael smiled.
Actually smiled.
It lasted less than a second.
But it completely changed his face.
My stomach flipped.
Hard.
Even Ronan looked shocked.
“Well, that’s terrifying.”
Kael’s smile vanished immediately.
The moment was broken.
The tension returned.
Then a distant howl echoed through the woods.
Kael’s head snapped toward the sound.
Every trace of amusement disappeared.
A second howl followed.
Closer.
More urgent.
Ronan frowned.
“That’s not normal.”
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
Kael’s entire body went alert.
Predatory.
Dangerous.
The same way it had the night before.
“What is it?” I asked.
Neither answered immediately.
Not a great sign.
Ronan looked toward the darkness.
Then swore.
“Kael.”
Kael had already seen it.
My skin prickled.
“What?”
Slowly—
Very slowly—
Kael stepped in front of me.
Protectively.
Again.
The trees ahead began moving.
Branches shaking.
Leaves rustling violently.
Something was coming.
Fast.
My pulse accelerated.
Then a young man burst from the forest.
Covered in blood.
I froze.
He couldn’t have been much older than me.
Maybe twenty.
His shirt was torn.
Blood covered one side of his face.
And he looked terrified.
Truly terrified.
The guy stumbled into the clearing.
Then collapsed to one knee.
“Alpha.”
The word was directed at Kael.
The entire world seemed to stop.
Alpha.
Not heir.
Not Kael.
Alpha.
Kael moved immediately.
“What happened?”
The guy looked up.
Panic filled his eyes.
“It’s the Hollow Pack.”
Ronan cursed.
The injured wolf continued breathing hard.
“They crossed the eastern boundary.”
Kael’s expression became deadly.
“They took one of ours.”
Silence.
Cold silence.
The kind that arrives before a storm.
I looked between them.
Nobody seemed surprised except me.
Of course.
Because apparently everyone else already knew they were living in a supernatural war zone.
Kael’s gaze turned ice-cold.
“When?”
“An hour ago.”
Ronan swore again.
“This is bad.”
The injured wolf finally noticed me standing nearby.
His eyes widened.
Then confusion crossed his face.
“She’s here?”
Kael’s expression darkened instantly.
The wolf immediately lowered his gaze.
Okay.
That was weird.
The guy looked genuinely afraid of upsetting Kael.
More afraid than he was of bleeding.
Kael crouched beside him.
“Take everyone back to the estate.”
The wolf nodded.
“But—”
“Now.”
The argument ended immediately.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The guy pushed himself upright and disappeared back into the forest.
Leaving silence behind.
The rain had stopped.
The woods felt darker somehow.
More dangerous.
Kael looked toward the trees.
Thinking.
Calculating.
Then he turned toward me.
And I knew immediately I wasn’t going to like whatever he was about to say.
“You need to stay in your dorm tomorrow.”
“No.”
His eyes narrowed.
“No?”
“No.”
Ronan actually laughed.
“You two are exhausting.”
I ignored him.
“So let me get this straight,” I said. “People have glowing eyes, giant wolves roam the woods, someone just called you Alpha, and now you expect me to sit quietly in my room?”
“Yes.”
I stared at him.
Kael stared back.
Completely serious.
Unbelievable.
“You still think I don’t deserve answers?”
His jaw tightened.
“You deserve answers.”
“Then give them to me.”
Silence.
For a second, I thought he might.
Something vulnerable flickered across his face.
Gone almost immediately.
Then he stepped closer.
Close enough that my pulse accelerated again.
Close enough that he noticed.
Again.
His voice dropped lower.
“Amara.”
The way he said my name should honestly be illegal.
“I am trying to protect you.”
The sincerity in his voice caught me off guard.
Because for the first time—
He wasn’t issuing a command.
He was pleading.
Just a little.
The realization hit me unexpectedly.
Kael wasn’t afraid for himself.
He was afraid for me.
And somehow…
That scared me more.
Because powerful men didn’t look at people the way he looked at me.
Like they were worth risking everything for.
His eyes held mine.
Intense.
Unwavering.
“Promise me you’ll stay away from the woods.”
My heartbeat fluttered.
Dangerously.
“Why?”
The answer came instantly.
Without hesitation.
Without thought.
Because it was the truth.
“Because if something happens to you…”
His voice roughened.
The emotion in it nearly stealing my breath.
Then quietly—
Almost painfully—
He finished:
“I don’t know what I’ll become.”
And for the first time since meeting Kael Vale…
I realized the thing he feared most wasn’t losing control.
It was losing me.
⸻
- Writer
