Nicholas’s POV

"Mama!"

The sweet, innocent voice completely shattered the suffocating, heavy silence in the bedroom.

I violently froze. My heart aggressively slammed against my ribs.

Luka. My son. He had just spoken his very first word. And it was for her.

I slowly looked down at my fragile mate. Irina was staring at our tiny boy in absolute, pure shock. Thick tears instantly welled up in her beautiful, terrified eyes. She was still trembling so violently. Her pale, delicate fingers completely dug into the dark silk sheets.

Her scent was a chaotic, terrifying mess.

Fear. Panic. Sheer confusion.

The sharp, bitter stench of her pure terror violently assaulted my nose. It drove my inner wolf completely insane. My beast was violently clawing at my chest, furiously demanding to protect our mate from whatever was scaring her.

I snapped my head up. My golden eyes violently flared with lethal, raw Alpha power.

I glared at the men standing around the massive bed.

Roman. Andrei. Dr. Harrison.

They were suffocating her. Their heavy, dominant underworld presences were completely crushing my fragile little bird. She couldn’t breathe.

"Get out," I growled. My voice was a dark, lethal rumble that violently shook the bedroom walls.

No one moved fast enough for my liking.

"I said GET OUT!" I roared.

My terrifying Alpha aura violently exploded across the room. It was thick, aggressive, and completely merciless.

Dr. Harrison violently flinched. He nearly dropped his black medical bag in pure terror. The older man practically sprinted for the heavy oak doors.

Andrei lowered his head in immediate, utter submission. The Royal Gamma quickly backed away without saying a single word.

Roman lingered for exactly one second. His cold, calculating eyes darted from my furious face straight down to Irina’s flat stomach. Then, he tightly clamped his jaw shut and swiftly turned around.

*Slam.*

The massive bedroom doors violently clicked shut.

We were finally completely alone.

Just me, Irina, and Luka.

The suffocating tension in the room slightly dropped, but Irina was still utterly terrified. Her small chest was heaving with harsh, ragged gasps. She looked so incredibly small, so painfully fragile against the massive, dark pillows.

She looked at me. Her huge, beautiful eyes were completely swimming with fresh, panicked tears.

"Nicholas," she whispered. Her voice was completely broken. It physically shattered my dark heart. "What... what happened?"

I slowly sat down on the edge of the mattress. The bed dipped heavily under my massive weight.

I gently reached out. I carefully brushed a stray strand of soft hair away from her sweaty, incredibly pale forehead. My hand was still violently shaking. I couldn’t control it.

"What is wrong with me?" Irina frantically demanded. Her voice grew higher, entirely desperate. "Why was Roman here? Why was the doctor here? Nicholas, please!"

She violently grabbed my wrist. Her tiny fingers were completely ice-cold.

"Am I dying?" she choked out. A massive, heartbroken sob violently ripped from her dry throat. "Is it a disease? Tell me!"

"No!" I snapped.

My chest violently constricted. The mere thought of losing her made my blood run completely freezing cold. I couldn’t breathe.

I quickly shifted closer. I firmly wrapped my massive, warm hands entirely around her tiny, trembling ones. I squeezed them securely. I needed her to feel me. I needed her to know she was completely safe.

"You are not dying, little bird," I said deeply. I forced my rough voice to soften. "You are perfectly healthy."

Irina violently blinked. The heavy tears spilled over her pale cheeks, completely staining the silk sheets.

"Then why?" she begged. Her frantic gaze darted wildly around the empty room. "Why were they all looking at me like that? Why did I pass out?"

I stared at her.

My heart violently pounded in my chest. A wild, untamed, absolutely overwhelming surge of pure joy violently crashed through my veins. My inner wolf was proudly, fiercely howling at the moon.

I was going to be a father again.

We were having another pup.

I stared down at her pale, frightened face. I took a deep, heavy breath.

"You passed out because your body is exhausted, Irina," I said softly. My glowing golden eyes intensely locked onto hers. "You are pregnant."

The words hung heavily in the air.

Irina completely froze.

It was like someone had hit a brutal pause button on her entire existence.

Her ragged breathing completely stopped. Her tearful eyes violently widened. The very last drop of color entirely drained from her beautiful face. She looked like she had just seen a ghost.

"What?" she whispered. It was barely a breath.

"You are pregnant," I repeated firmly. My dark voice rumbled with intense, fierce pride. "We are having another baby."

Irina didn’t move. She didn’t speak.

She just sat there, entirely frozen in absolute shock. Her completely blank stare was fixed directly on my chest.

Luka babbled happily beside us. He slapped his tiny, chubby hands against the mattress, completely unaware of the massive bomb I had just dropped on our lives.

The silence in the room stretched on.

It grew heavier. Thicker.

I watched her carefully. I waited for the tears of joy. I waited for the soft, beautiful smile she used to give me. I waited for her to throw her arms around my neck and hold me.

But she did absolutely nothing.

Her frozen reaction felt like a cold, sharp knife violently twisting in my gut.

Did she hate this? Did she hate the idea of carrying my pup again?

I tightly clenched my jaw. The soft, tender feeling in my chest instantly hardened into cold, impenetrable steel.

My dominant Alpha instincts violently surged forward. She was carrying my heir. She was carrying my blood. I had to protect her from everything. I had to protect her from this dangerous, lethal world, and even from her own wild, reckless desires.

"You will stay home," I ordered. My voice was a deep, commanding, entirely non-negotiable rumble.

Irina slightly flinched, but she still didn’t speak.

"You need absolute rest," I continued coldly. "You are too fragile right now. The doctor said your stress levels are incredibly dangerous for the pup. You will stay right here, in this house. You will focus entirely on your health and our baby. I will handle absolutely everything else."

I firmly patted her cold, stiff hands.

I prepared to stand up. I needed to go speak with Dr. Harrison. I needed to completely overhaul the estate’s security. I needed to ensure not a single damn threat could even come within a mile of my pregnant mate. I was going to lock down the entire pack.

But as I pulled away, her tiny hand suddenly shot out.

She violently grabbed the thick fabric of my ruined white dress shirt.

Her grip was incredibly tight. Her small knuckles turned completely white.

I paused. I slowly looked back down at her.

Irina finally blinked. The thick, absolute shock in her eyes was completely gone. It was violently replaced by a fierce, desperate, entirely frantic panic.

She looked at me like I was her absolute worst nightmare.

"So..." Irina gasped heavily. Her chest violently heaved. Her voice was trembling, breaking with raw, undeniable devastation. "So my going to school..."

The words hit me like a violent, brutal slap to the face.

School.

She just found out she is carrying my child. She just found out we are having another baby.

And all she cares about is leaving me. All she cares about is her damn freedom. All she wants to do is escape this pack, escape this family, escape *me*.

A dark, furious, entirely lethal rage violently exploded in my chest.

My golden eyes flashed dangerously. My beast violently snarled inside my mind, absolutely furious at her blatant rejection of our pup.

I looked down at her small, trembling fingers gripping my shirt. I looked at her desperate, pleading face.

I felt absolutely nothing but cold, brutal fury.

I forcefully grabbed her fragile wrist.

I didn’t say a single word.

I pulled my hand away and left.