“Mommy!” a small voice cried from the doorway.

“GET THE HELL AWAY FROM HER!”

The kitchen fell silent.

Jennifer spun around, shocked.

There stood Alpha Harrison, soaked from the rain, eyes glowing with rage. Lucas stood just behind him, peeking around his leg.

The entire room went still. Even the air felt heavy.

Harrison took one step forward. His voice was ice.

“I dare you,” he said, staring Jennifer down. “Pick up that knife again.”

Jennifer’s hand trembled.

Harrison walked up slowly and gently helped Elena off the table. She was still shaking, wet, and scared.

He turned his head just slightly, his voice deep and full of threat.

“You two,” he said to the maids who helped Jennifer, “leave. Now.”

They ran like rats.

Harrison took his jacket off and wrapped it around Elena.

Jennifer’s voice broke, “She, she’s lying, I was only trying to…”

“SILENCE!” Harrison’s roar made the windows tremble.

He stepped in front of her.

“If you ever lay a finger on her again… there won’t be a second warning.”

Jennifer stumbled back.

Then Harrison turned to Elena, his voice soft again. “Elena… are you okay?”

She nodded slowly, holding his jacket close.

Then, from behind him, Lucas’s small voice said something that made her knees almost give out.

“See, Mommy? I told you Daddy would come.”

“Mommy, Daddy is here to protect us,” Lucas said proudly, holding Harrison’s hand like he’d known him his whole life.

Elena’s heart squeezed.

Jennifer rolled her eyes. “That’s not possible, okay?” she barked. “Stop feeding that kid lies.”

Elena forced a weak smile. “He’s not your daddy, Lucas.”

Jennifer scoffed and crossed her arms. “Of course he’s not. You had this bastard son with some rogue nobody, and now you’re trying to pretend he’s an Alpha? Keep dreaming.”

Elena stepped forward, trembling with anger. “You were just looking for an excuse to torture me.”

Jennifer sneered. “I was just trying to teach this lowly maid a lesson for smashing my vase.”

“That’s a lie,” Elena snapped. “You’ve hated me since the day I arrived.”

Jennifer raised her hand again, ready to slap her for the third time, but Harrison’s voice sliced through the air like thunder.

“I already told you, don’t touch her again!”

The rage in his voice made everyone freeze.

“Come with me,” he said firmly, placing a hand on Elena’s shoulder and the other around Lucas. “Both of you.”

Elena nodded. Her legs moved before her brain could even catch up.

As Harrison led Elena and Lucas out of the kitchen, the room fell into shocked silence.

One of the maids, still wiping a counter, muttered, “Alpha Harrison… has a reputation for being savage and cruel. Why is he so nice to her?”

Another maid leaned closer. “Maybe… maybe he’s got something for her?”

“SHUT UP!” Jennifer screamed, her voice shaking the glass in the cabinets. “SHUT YOUR MOUTH!”

She could feel her blood boil. Her fists clenched at her sides.

A man like that could never love a woman like her. Never.

Elena and Harrison, they walked in silence down the hallway. Harrison didn’t speak, but his hand stayed firm on Lucas’s shoulder, and the boy beamed up at him like he was the moon.

“Thank you, Alpha Harrison,” Elena said softly once they were far away from the others. “But I can take it from here.”

Lucas tugged on his coat. “Daddy… Mommy’s just shy.”

Elena gasped. “Lucas…”

He grinned, looking up at Harrison. “She used to say that she likes a man strong like Daddy.”

“Lucas!” Elena hissed, her face turning red. “That was a joke! A joke.”

She looked up at Harrison, fully expecting him to be offended or annoyed.

But he chuckled.

“I don’t mind at all,” he said. “Plus… he’s kinda cute.”

Elena swallowed, surprised at the softness in his voice.

She looked into his eyes. They were stormy gray like Lucas’s.

“I thought you… um…” she hesitated.

He took a step closer. “What? You thought I’d be the savage they all talk about?”

His face was so close now. Elena could smell the fresh scent of rain on his jacket.

“No, of course not,” she whispered, flustered. “You’ve saved me twice now. You’re… a good man.”

He smiled slightly. “Good man? That’s a new compliment for me.”

Elena backed away quickly. “Sorry. I should go. Come on, Lucas.”

She took Lucas’s hand and turned to leave, trying to calm her racing heart.

Harrison stood still at the end of the hallway, watching Elena walk away with the little boy.

He should’ve looked away, but he couldn’t.

There was something… familiar.

The boy turned slightly before disappearing around the corner and stared straight at Harrison.

The moment they disappeared, Luke came walking up beside him.

“Alpha,” Luke said, sounding a bit shaken. “That kid… he’s only six years old.”

He paused, glanced down the hallway again, then back at him.

“I mean… if that’s the woman from seven years ago… then…”

“No,” Harrison said quickly, his voice a little too sharp. “No, no, no. That’s impossible.”

Luke looked at him. “But Alpha, think about it. The fire at Moon Valley, the woman you saved... she disappeared before anyone could identify her.”

Harrison clenched his jaw. “I haven’t been able to have children since the war. The doctors made that clear.”

Luke said softly, “Dr. Wood said it wasn’t a hundred percent.

He looked at him. “So… what are you gonna do about her?”

Harrison didn’t answer. He turned and walked away, heart pounding.

Harrison walk into the engagement party

The music was loud, and the guests were laughing and drinking. Mathew sat with Jennifer in the center of their engagement party, raising his glass.

“To us,” he said with a smile.

Jennifer touched her glass to his. “To us. And to me… wearing this stunning necklace.” She flipped her hair and grinned.

He chuckled. “Two million well spent.”

She smiled proudly. “You know it.”

Then, just like that, Harrison walked in and sat right across from them.

He didn’t even blink. He looked Mathew straight in the eyes and said, “I want that maid.”

Mathew frowned. “What maid?”