When the Alpha Saved Me from My Mate

The clock on my computer screen read 11:42 PM. I rubbed my tired eyes and stifled a yawn as I typed the final sentence of Bryan's report. The pack house was eerily quiet at this hour, with only the soft hum of my laptop and occasional rustling of papers breaking the silence.

"Just a few more minutes," I whispered to myself, stretching my cramped fingers.

The Alpha meeting was tomorrow morning, and Bryan needed these logistical reports completed before then. He'd been gone since dawn—another "emergency patrol" that somehow required his personal attention.

I glanced at the empty chair across from me where he should have been sitting. Five years together, and here I was, finishing his work while he was nowhere to be found.

"You're doing great, Laila," I encouraged myself, skimming through the document one last time. "Just like always."

My fingers moved mechanically across the keyboard, correcting minor errors and ensuring all the data was properly formatted. This wasn't the first time I'd completed his work, nor would it be the last. The pack members never knew—they only saw Beta Bryan confidently presenting reports that I'd spent nights perfecting.

I saved the file and uploaded it to our shared cloud account, a small sense of accomplishment washing over me despite my exhaustion. Maybe tomorrow he'd notice how perfectly everything was organized. Maybe tomorrow he'd actually say thank you.

A notification popped up on my screen—a new upload from Aya's account. My stomach tightened instinctively at the name.

"Don't click it," I warned myself. "It's none of your business."

But my finger hovered over the trackpad anyway. Aya Watson, Bryan's human assistant, had been uploading video diaries for weeks now. Each one seemed more intimate than the last.

My heart pounded as I clicked play on the newest video titled "My Wolf Protector."

The screen filled with Aya's face, her vanilla-scented perfume practically wafting through the speakers as she spoke directly to the camera.

"Today was perfect," she gushed, her eyes bright with excitement. "Bryan took me to the northern cliffs to watch the sunset."

My breath caught in my throat. The northern cliffs—the exact place I'd begged Bryan to take me for years.

"He said it was too dangerous for me to go alone," Aya continued, "but he promised to keep me safe."

The camera panned to show Bryan standing behind her, his hands gently brushing through her long brown hair. The intimate gesture sent a chill down my spine.

"That's... that's a mate's touch," I whispered, my voice breaking.

On screen, Bryan draped his jacket over Aya's shoulders, his scent marking her. "Wear this," his voice came through the speakers, tender in a way I hadn't heard directed at me in months. "It'll keep you warm."

The video cut to them sitting side by side on the cliff edge, watching the sun dip below the horizon. Aya leaned against his shoulder, and Bryan's wolf aura—visible even through the video—wrapped protectively around her.

"He treats me like a queen," Aya's caption read, "even without a wolf."

I closed the laptop with trembling hands, unable to watch anymore. The room spun around me as realization crashed down like a physical blow.

Bryan wasn't just working late. His wolf was bonding with Aya.

The front door opened an hour later. I sat motionless at the kitchen table, waiting.

"Laila?" Bryan called out, sounding surprised to find me awake. "Why are you still up?"

I turned to face him, taking in his disheveled appearance, the forest debris on his clothes, and—most damning of all—the faint trace of vanilla perfume clinging to him.

"The reports are done," I said quietly. "For tomorrow's meeting."

"Good," he replied, loosening his tie. "I knew I could count on you."

Something inside me snapped. "Bryan, we need to talk."

"About what?" He frowned, pouring himself a glass of water.

I opened my mouth to mention the video, but he cut me off with a wave of his hand.

"I'm tired, Laila. Can we do this tomorrow?"

"No," I insisted, standing up. "We need to talk about Aya."

His expression hardened instantly. "What about her?"

"She's posting videos—"

"Enough!" His Beta tone vibrated through the room, pressing down on me like a physical weight. "I don't have time for your paranoia."

"It's not paranoia," I protested, pushing back against his command. "You're spending every day with her, and now she's posting videos of you two together—"

"She needs protection," he snapped. "She's human, Laila. Fragile. Unlike you, she actually appreciates what I do for her."

The words hit me like a slap. I reached for our mind-link, desperate to make him understand, but he shut it down completely.

"I'm sleeping in the guest room," he announced, turning away. "We'll discuss your ungrateful attitude in the morning."

As the door closed behind him, I stood frozen in the middle of the kitchen, the silence of the pack house pressing in around me like a tomb.