After Six Years The Alpha Begs For My Return Chapter 34
He tucked the unlit cigarette back into his pocket and suddenly asked, “That young Alpha with you—what is he to you?”
I glanced back at Reese.
He was leaning back in his chair, looking relaxed, the glow of his phone screen lighting his face as if he were just passing the time.
But I knew him. That was a stance ready to move at a moment’s notice. He had his Alpha pressure tightly controlled, but the edges of his awareness still covered everything within thirty feet of me. And he had not once tried to listen in on our conversation.
“A friend,” I said.
“A friend?” Corrigan let out a short, rough laugh. “From the moment he got out of that van, his eyes haven’t left you. And you call that ‘just a friend’?”
For a moment, I didn’t know how to answer.
Corrigan waved a hand, not pushing it. He braced himself on the armrests and rose slowly to his feet.
Only when he stood did I realize how much shorter he seemed than he had twelve years ago, how his back had bent with time.
“I’ll be at the hospital next Wednesday for the surgery,” he said. “It’s been over twenty years since I last saw Miriam. I should go see her.”
Then he turned and went inside. The old wooden door closed softly behind him. He didn’t say goodbye, and he didn’t look back.
I stood by the reeds as the wind rushed through them, filling the air with a soft, endless rustle.
Reese came up behind me. He didn’t touch my waist, not like he had at the hospital. He just reached up and straightened my collar where the wind had tousled it.