Chapter 261 Five Alarms

Chapter 261: Chapter 261 Five Alarms

Before Eira could decide how to respond, Fiona sent another photo with a short message.

[Thought you’d want to see this.]

Eira opened it and zoomed in.

It was a real estate listing.

Alpha Sebastian was selling the Hale estate. The asking price was far below its market value.

Eira stared at the screen.

Was Alpha Sebastian selling it to pay for Margaret’s brain surgery, or to cover Serena’s legal and medical bills?

Before she could decide, her phone lit up again.

Killian.

She answered.

"Eira." His voice was low and warm. "You should be heading out."

"I’m already outside the lab."

"Good. My driver is waiting by the front entrance."

He had not come for her himself. That meant he was still tied up at the office.

Eira glanced down the empty hall. Neither of them spoke. Neither ended the call.

"When will you be home?" she asked at last. "Mrs. Jones wants to know whether she should wait for you before serving dinner."

"I’m not sure yet."

A brief pause followed.

"It’s cold outside. Get in the car."

The call ended.

Eira slipped her phone into her coat pocket and walked toward the lobby. It was rush hour, and the Sterling Tower entrance was packed with employees leaving for the evening.

Alpha Killian’s SUV was dark and understated, but the custom plate was easy to recognize. When his driver stepped out and opened the rear door for Eira, several conversations stopped.

People pretended not to stare. They failed.

The moment Eira looked back, everyone suddenly found something else to look at.

The tinted window rose, shutting out the whispers.

Eira pulled out her phone and opened a driving school website.

[I really need to get my license and buy a car.]

She saved the page.

After the hearing, she would deal with it. For now, the case came first. The date had been pushed back a week, but Susan’s files still waited for her.

Eira opened the first document and began memorizing every line.

--

Back at Number Nine, Mrs. Jones brought up the move over dinner.

"After the hearing," Eira said.

"Why wait?" Mrs. Jones set a dish of roasted vegetables on the table. "Christmas is less than two weeks away. You could spend it in the new house. New place, fresh start."

Eira glanced at her plate. "That does sound nice."

Mrs. Jones smiled. "But Christmas with only the two of us might feel a little lonely. Is there anyone you’d like to invite?"

Eira looked toward the stack of legal files beside her chair.

"Let me think about it."

"Take your time. "

After dinner, Eira settled on the couch with the files.

Mrs. Jones brought her sliced fruit and a mug of tea, then left her to work.

Hours later, exhaustion finally won.

When Mrs. Jones returned, Eira was asleep against the cushions. One file lay open across her lap, and her glasses had slipped crookedly down her nose.

"Poor thing," Mrs. Jones murmured.

She turned up the heat and pulled a soft throw over Eira. Just as she finished tucking it around her shoulders, the front door opened.

Alpha Killian stepped into the living room, silent despite the cold still clinging to his dark coat.

"You’re home," Mrs. Jones whispered.

"Mm."

His gaze went straight to Eira.

"Don’t wake her," Mrs. Jones added.

"I wasn’t planning to."

He removed his coat and handed it to her. Then he bent and carefully lifted Eira, blanket and all.

Her head fell against his shoulder. One hand caught in the front of his shirt, her fingers curling into the fabric as if she knew exactly where she was.

Alpha Killian went still.

Her hair brushed his jaw. The faint herbal scent of her shampoo mixed with the fresh hint of mint lingering on his skin. Even asleep, she seemed to fit against him too easily.

Mrs. Jones hid a smile and hurried ahead to open the bedroom door.

The sheets were cold. Eira shivered against his chest, and Alpha Killian tightened his hold without thinking.

Her lashes fluttered.

For one dangerous second, he thought she was awake.

But she only murmured, "Cold..."

Alpha Killian lowered his head. "I know."

His voice was softer than usual.

He laid her on the bed and pulled the blanket up to her chin.

Alpha Killian stood beside the bed for another moment, watching her breathe. Then he quietly stepped out of the room.

Only after his footsteps faded did Eira open her eyes.

--

Downstairs, Mrs. Jones gathered the legal files from the coffee table while Eira’s phone lay beside them.

Alpha Killian remembered what Professor Davies and Claire had told him. Once Eira slipped into deep focus, the rest of the world could disappear around her.

If she had no room in her head for anything outside her work, Alpha Killian would make space for himself.

He picked up her phone and set reminders for everything she was likely to forget: breakfast, lunch, dinner, leaving work, and bedtime.

Then he handed the phone to Mrs. Jones.

"Give it back to her later," he said.

Mrs. Jones studied him. "Have you eaten, Alpha?"

"At the office."

"You always say that when you haven’t."

Alpha Killian paused at the door.

"I ate."

"That was not what I asked."

He gave her a look.

Mrs. Jones only smiled. "Good night, Alpha."

Alpha Killian shook his head and stepped outside. A moment later, the front door closed, and the sound of his car faded down the street.

Upstairs, Eira lay with her eyes closed, listening until the engine disappeared.

He was gone.

Her fingers found the fang resting over her heart. She rolled it between her fingertips, thinking about Alpha Killian’s arms around her, the steady beat of his heart beneath her cheek, and the quiet safety she felt in his voice.

I know.

The memory warmed her more than the blanket.

Sleep finally took her.

For once, her body did not wake her.

Her phone did.

At seven thirty, Eira opened her eyes and stared at the alarm label.

Breakfast.

She had not set it.

Then she noticed the others.

Lunch. Dinner. Leave work. Bedtime.

Five alarms.

She sat up slowly, the phone still in her hand.

Alpha Killian had placed himself in every empty space of her day without asking permission. He had not told her to eat. He had not ordered her to rest. He had simply built reminders into her life because he had noticed what she kept forgetting.

Eira pressed her lips together.

It was only a few alarms. Nothing more.

So why did her chest feel warm?

She touched the fang beneath her sleep shirt and tried to push the thought away.