Chapter 100: A mistake
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Killian’s silence stretched between them until it became almost suffocating. He wasn’t glaring at her or arguing. He simply watched her with that unreadable expression of his, and somehow that unsettled Yuki far more than if he had raised his voice. Her stomach twisted.
She knew very well that if the triplets truly wanted to, they could make her their breeder. It was the practical choice. The safest choice for the pack. A nightmare for her. She couldn’t bear the thought of spending the rest of her life watching the men who were supposed to be her mates devote themselves to Eloise while she existed only to bear children. Smiling through dinners. Standing beside them during ceremonies. Pretending none of it hurt while they loved another woman. It wasn’t a life. It was a prison.
"Your decision then," Killian said at last, his voice calm enough to make her even more irritated. He stepped closer and extended a hand towards her. "You’ve made your point. Now come on. Let’s get you fed."
The way he said it, as though he were humouring a stubborn child, made her blood boil. Before she could stop herself, she slapped his hand away. The sharp sound echoed through the quiet bedroom. Killian actually froze.
Genuine surprise crossed his face before the corner of his mouth twitched. His little mate had just rejected his help without a second thought. If she had any idea how difficult the day had been for him, she certainly wasn’t showing it. Holding an unclaimed mate in his arms for hours while every instinct urged him to claim her had been exhausting enough. Instead of appreciating any of it, she’d smacked his hand away.
"I can walk on my own," Yuki hissed.
She swung her legs over the side of the bed and planted her feet on the thick charcoal rug beneath her. It was so soft it almost swallowed her toes. Ignoring Killian’s gaze, she pushed herself upright and managed exactly three unsteady seconds before her knees buckled beneath her. The room tilted. A squeak escaped her lips before she collapsed right back onto the rug in an entirely undignified heap.
Silence filled the room.
Killian pressed his lips together so tightly they almost disappeared. He honestly tried not to laugh. He really did. A muffled snicker still escaped him.
Yuki’s head snapped towards him.
"What’s so funny?" she demanded, glaring at him.
"Nothing," he replied far too innocently, though the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth ruined the act completely.
She narrowed her eyes. "You are impossible."
With an annoyed snort, she grabbed the edge of the bed and hauled herself upright again. One step. Then another. Her legs trembled violently before giving out for a second time. She landed back on the rug with a frustrated groan.
Killian folded his arms across his chest, watching the tiny fox wage war against her own body. Considering how dangerously high her fever had been only hours earlier, it was remarkable she was even conscious. His wolf watched the scene with quiet amusement.
She really is stubborn. More stubborn than Kaden?
Killian almost laughed again. Finding anyone capable of competing with Kaden’s legendary stubbornness felt like discovering a mythical creature.
"Are you quite finished proving your point?" he asked.
"I can handle myself, dear Alpha," she retorted.
"I’ve noticed," he snickered.
"I wouldn’t want your girlfriend getting upset because you were helping another woman." The sarcasm wasn’t hard to miss.
The word girlfriend rubbed him the wrong way. He couldn’t explain why. It simply lodged beneath his skin in an irritating way he chose to ignore.
Instead, he watched her attempt to stand for a third time. She fell again.
This time she remained sitting on the rug, glaring accusingly at her own legs as though they had betrayed her.
"I told you your condition was worse than you’re willing to admit," Killian said. "You’ll collapse again and get worse at this rate."
"I won’t," she retorted, finding his remarks annoying.
"You will." He shrugged.
"I said I won’t," she snapped back, gritting her teeth.
His eyebrow lifted before a teasing thought crossed his mind. "Unless," he said with the faintest smirk, "you’re doing all this because you wanted another excuse to stay in my bed."
Yuki stared at him as though he’d lost his mind. "What?" she blurted in disbelief, unable to believe her ears.
"You seem remarkably determined not to leave it," he stated.
"You wish," Yuki hissed, glaring at him once more like an angry fox.
"I wasn’t suggesting it was intentional."
"It certainly sounded intentional."
He shrugged, unable to hide his amusement. He already knew how this would end. She was far too proud to ask for help. She would rather go hungry than admit she couldn’t even make it across the room.
Without another word, he stepped forward.
"What are you..." Before she could finish, one arm slipped beneath her knees while the other supported her back. She gave a startled yelp as the floor disappeared beneath her.
"What are you doing?" she demanded.
"I told you," Killian replied, as though the answer were obvious. "I’m getting you something to eat."
"I can walk," she insisted.
"Yeah, you can, and you’ve collapsed multiple times," he sneered.
"I literally can," she stubbornly argued.
"You’ve demonstrated otherwise. Don’t you get tired?" A long sigh escaped his lips. She was indeed his nightmare, as he claimed. The thought of handling another wolf as stubborn as Kaden was exhausting.
"I hate you," she hissed.
"I know. The sentiment is the same right here."
She immediately began squirming in his arms. One elbow bumped his ribs. Her hand smacked his shoulder, then clipped the side of his jaw. Holding the feisty little fox quickly became an exercise in patience.
"Would you stop moving?" he sighed.
"No!" Another slap landed against his shoulder.
His patience finally wore thin. Without ceremony, he shifted her onto his shoulder, flipping her over as her legs kicked the air.
Yuki’s eyes widened. "Killian!" she roared.
He ignored her.
"Put me down!" she demanded.
His ears went deaf.
She beat both fists against his back.
"You hit like a masseuse," he said dryly, comparing her punches to a massage. "Can you adjust a bit to the left?"
Yuki almost died of rage at that moment. "I’ll show you a masseuse!"
Frustrated beyond reason, she leaned forward and did something spectacularly foolish.
She bit him.
She bit him on his shoulder, suspiciously close to his neck. It was a sensitive spot for shifters. Not hard enough to break the skin, but close enough to the sensitive marking gland between his shoulder and neck that every instinct inside the Alpha recognised it.
Killian stopped walking. Every muscle in his body locked. A deep growl vibrated through his chest.
His eyes flashed molten gold. Yuki released him immediately.
"Oh no..."
The words barely left her mouth before the world spun. In one swift movement, he lifted her from his shoulder and set her on her feet, one hand braced against the wall beside her as he put distance between them with visible effort. His breathing had changed. It came harder now, his jaw clenched so tightly a muscle ticked beneath his skin. Golden eyes held hers for one dangerous heartbeat before he shut them, drew a long breath, and forced the wolf back under control.