SOPHIA’S POV

It had been hours since Leah was rushed into surgery.

The doctors had taken Leah upstairs for more emergency treatment. My entire body felt exhausted after helping stabilize her condition.

My muscles ached from tension, and my head still felt slightly light from the stress of everything that had happened.

Yet despite all that, my attention remained on only one person.

Zade.

I sat beside his hospital bed and stared at him.

After donating so much blood, he had completely ignored the doctor’s instructions. He had refused to rest until he personally saw his mother taken into surgery. The moment the operating room doors closed, all the strength seemed to leave his body, then he collapsed.....right into my arms.

I could still remember the terrifying moment. His body had suddenly gone limp. His face had become pale.

I’d barely caught him before he hit the floor.

My wolf whimpered inside me. Even now, she was restless. She hated seeing him hurt. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"He’ll be fine." Lance’s voice pulled me from my thoughts.

I looked up. Lance stood beside me holding two cups of coffee.

He handed one cup to me "You should drink something."

I accepted it quietly "Thank you."

Lance sat down across from me. For several seconds neither of us spoke.

The silence wasn’t uncomfortable. It was simply the silence of two exhausted doctors who had spent the day fighting to save a life.

Lance sighed "I honestly thought he was going to pass out much earlier."

I chuckled "So did I."

Lance shook his head "I’ve never met anyone this stubborn."

Neither had I.

My eyes returned to Zade.

His dark hair was messy. His face looked unusually pale. Even asleep, he seemed worried, as if his mind refused to rest while his mother remained inside the operating room.

Suddenly, Zade stirred. His fingers twitched, then his eyes slowly opened.

The first thing he did was look for me. He didn’t look for the doctors or his mom.

Me.

The moment his eyes found mine, he looked relieved..

"Sophia..." His voice sounded weak.

I leaned closer and whispered "Don’t move."

He ignored me. Of course, he did.

Before I could stop him, he reached for my hand. His fingers wrapped around mine tightly.

I frowned "You need rest."

His eyes became red. Then something happened that completely shocked me. Tears appeared in his eyes.

My breath caught.

Tears filled his eyes as he stared at me.

"I was scared." His voice cracked.

The confession hit me harder than expected.

"What?" I breathed.

He tightened his grip on my hand.

"I was scared." He repeated. His breathing became uneven. "When I saw my mom covered in blood... I thought I was going to lose her."

His shoulders trembled. For the first time since I’d met him, Zade looked completely broken. He looked like a son terrified of losing his mother.

My heart ached. My wolf whimpered softly.

I squeezed his hand "She’s still fighting."

He lowered his head "I know."

Then he looked at me again. His eyes were filled with emotions I couldn’t escape.

"And you saved her." he said.

I shook my head. "Lance and a whole team of experts helped."

"You saved her." His voice became firmer. "If you hadn’t been there..."

He stopped talking. The words refused to come out.

I knew why. Because he couldn’t bear to imagine the alternative. Neither could I.

The room fell silent again.

Zade laughed bitterly "You know something?"

I raised an eyebrow "What?"

He stared directly into my eyes "I think I love you even more now."

I froze.

Lance nearly choked on his coffee

"Zade." I said.

But Zade didn’t stop.

"I mean it." His voice became serious. "Sophia, I don’t know when it happened."

His eyes never left mine. "Maybe it was when you kept helping people who didn’t deserve your kindness." His fingers tightened around mine. "Or maybe it was when you almost died and I realized I couldn’t breathe without you."

The room became very quiet. I could hear my own heartbeat.

My wolf paced restlessly. Part of her loved hearing those words. Part of her was terrified.

"Sophia." His voice softened. "I love you."

The words sounded genuine, raw and honest.

My chest tightened.

I didn’t say anything. I didn’t know what to say.

I truly didn’t.

Before I could answer, Lance suddenly stood up. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

"Well." He muttered "This is becoming uncomfortable."

Zade glared at him.

Lance smirked, then his phone rang. Immediately his expression changed.

He looked down at the screen and his smile disappeared.

"Damn." Lance muttered.

I knew that tone. It must be an emergency.

He answered immediately. Several seconds later he hung up.

"There was an accident." Lance told me. He sighed heavily. "They need me in surgery."

I stood up "You should go."

Lance looked reluctant. His eyes shifted toward me, then toward Zade, then back toward me again.

"I can stay." He said.

I shook my head "No."

He frowned. "Sophia-"

"Lance, they need you."

His jaw tightened. For a moment he looked like he wanted to argue. Then he finally nodded.

"Fine." he said.

He grabbed his coat but before leaving, he stopped beside me. His expression became serious.

"If you need anything, call me." he said to me.

I nodded "I will."

With that, he left. The room became silent again.

Now, I was alone with Zade.

My wolf became nervous, very nervous. So was I.

I sat back down, trying to ignore the way Zade kept staring at me.

"What?" I finally asked.

He smiled "I like looking at you."

I groaned "You’re impossible."

His smile widened "No. I’m in love."

My cheeks grew warm. I hated that he noticed.

His grin became even bigger.

"Zade."

He leaned in and wrapped both arms around me.

My breath caught instantly. My heart started pounding hard.

His heartbeat was strong beneath my ear. His scent surrounded me completely.

My wolf melted inside me.

“Mine” she whispered.

I ignored her....or at least tried to.

I swallowed "Let go."

"No."

"Zade."

"No. If I let go, you’ll run away."

I sighed "I won’t."

"Liar."

Unfortunately he wasn’t entirely wrong.

His arms tightened around me "Sophia."

His voice became quiet "I know you still think about Damien."

Pain spread through my chest at the mention of his name. My wolf lowered her head.

Of course I still thought about Damien. How could I not?

He’d been my husband. He was the father of my child, the man I once believed I’d spend forever with.

Zade pulled away to look at me. He seemed to read the emotions on my face. His expression softened.

He gently lifted my chin, staring into my eyes.

"Forget him." he whispered.

I stared at him "What?"

"Forget him." His eyes burned with sincerity. "Sophia, he doesn’t deserve you."

I looked away. My throat tightened.

"It’s not that easy." I muttered.

"I know, but I’ll wait."

I looked back at him in shock "What?"

"I’ll wait as long as it takes."

His fingers moved through my hair.

"As long as you need." He said.

My wolf whimpered. I hated how much those words affected me. Nobody had ever said something like that before, not even Damien. Especially not Damien.

"I don’t want you to wait." I said.

Zade smiled sadly "Too bad. I already decided."

Then his expression became serious.

"Sophia."

My heartbeat quickened "What?"

"If I spend the next ten years proving myself to you...then that’s what I’ll do."

My chest hurt, not from sadness or pain. It was from something else - Hope.

My wolf lifted her head.

I immediately pushed the feeling away. I couldn’t afford hope. Not after everything.

But Zade kept holding me patiently. He looked at me as if he understood every fear inside me.

Hours passed and the hospital became quieter.

Soon, it was night time.

My body had already been weak from illness and the stress. Everything became too much.

I felt my eyelids growing heavy. I wanted to sleep so bad.

Zade noticed.

"Sleep." He said.

I shook my head "I’m fine."

"You look half dead."

I glared at him. He laughed softly.

Then he gently pulled me closer. Before I realized what was happening, my head rested against his chest. His arms wrapped around me.

My wolf sighed happily.

I was too tired to argue, far too tired.

"Sophia."

"Hm?"

"I love you."

My eyes slowly closed.

I didn’t answer. I couldn’t.

His fingers stroked my hair which made me even more sleepy.

The last thing I felt before sleep claimed me completely was Zade tightening his arms around me....as if he never intended to let me go.

And for the first time in a very long time... I fell asleep feeling safe.