Evaline:
I stared at River, my pulse hamring so violently I could feel it in my throat. Fear wasn’t just creeping in, it was crashing over in waves, each one heavier than the last.
What was he going to say about my child?
Had he noticed it too?
The eyes.
Those impossibly familiar eyes that had turned my joy into confusion... and fear.
My breath grew shallow, and before I could gather myself, River was suddenly there - no distance left between us. His arms wrapped around , pulling firmly against his chest. His warmth, his scent, his steady heartbeat... it all rushed into through the bond, soothing my fraying edges.
"Don’t panic, Little Star," he whispered, his voice a low, grounding rumble. "Trust ."
His words weren’t just words, but they carried weight through the bond. Love. Care. Trust. He poured it all into without hesitation, weaving a cocoon around my storm. My racing heartbeat slowed a little, enough for to breathe again. And the nickna felt like a balm.
He tilted my chin up, cupping my face in his large, steady hands. His deep green eyes locked onto mine, serious but so full of tenderness I felt myself shatter. "Are you okay?" he asked.
My throat felt too tight to speak, so I only nodded, letting him see the truth in my eyes.
He pressed a kiss against my forehead, lingering there for a heartbeat before pulling back. Returning to his seat at my bedside, he didn’t let go of my hand. His fingers were laced through mine, strong and unyielding, as if grounding us both.
"Trust with one thing," he said softly. His voice was calm, but beneath it I felt the weight of sothing much deeper. "No matter what we are about to talk about... no matter what the outco is... my love, my trust, my care for you, and for our pup, will not change. Not even a little."
The promise humd through our bond, steady and resolute.
And I couldn’t doubt him. Not for a second.
He never spoke empty words. Every vow he had ever made, he had carried to the end of the world if he had to. He was many things - fierce, terrifying to his enemies, unwavering as steel - but to , he was all of that and more.
I drew in a deep breath, releasing it slowly, and nodded. "Okay."
Even if every part of wanted to run from this conversation, I knew I couldn’t. The questions already clawed inside , demanding answers. Pretending ignorance would only delay the inevitable.
We sat in silence for a long mont. The quiet wasn’t heavy, but it wasn’t light either. It was filled with things unsaid, waiting to spill.
Then he finally spoke.
"Little Star," he murmured, his thumb brushing across the back of my hand. "Did you notice the pup’s eye color?"
My stomach dropped.
The mont those words left his lips, I felt my heart lurch painfully.
So he had noticed.
Of course he had. If anyone else could see the strangeness in those eyes, it was River.
Because he was the only one, aside from , who had ever t Ethan. He knew what color Ethan’s eyes were. And he knew what mine were. Which ant, like , he could see what others couldn’t - that our child’s eyes matched neither mine nor Ethan’s.
The truth I had been desperately trying to push down roared back with sharp clarity.
And worse... those golden-green eyes weren’t just unusual. They were familiar.
Too familiar.
I knew only one person with eyes like that. One person whose gaze carried that sa mixture of green depth and golden fire.
And that identity was the last thing I had ever expected to be tied to my child.
Nothing was making sense anymore.
My whole world tilted sideways, my thoughts scattering like broken glass.
When I finally managed to find my voice, it was rough and trembling. "River... that’s... that’s exactly what I wanted to talk to you about. His eyes."
I swallowed hard, struggling to form the words that could hold everything I was feeling - my confusion, my fear, my disbelief.
Had he co here seeking an explanation? Was he waiting for to confess sothing I didn’t even understand myself?
How could I explain sothing that defied logic?
For months, I had let everyone believe Ethan was my child’s father. I had believed it too. There hadn’t been a single reason to question it... until now. Until those golden-flecked eyes looked back at , and suddenly, nothing made sense anymore.
But before I could stumble further into the chaos of my own words, he spoke again.
And what he said turned my world upside down.
"Kieran," he said quietly, his gaze steady on . "He felt it the mont he held the pup. A bond."
I froze. My mind went blank.
"A... bond?" I echoed faintly.
He nodded once. "It’s a rare bond that only exists for extrely powerful Alphas. It’s a bond between such Alphas and their true-born children. There’s a thread - sothing deep, instinctual, and undeniably... magical. Stronger than instinct, more undeniable than scent. A father always knows his own blood when that bond awakens."
His words slamd into , each one heavier than the last.
Kieran.
Kieran had felt a bond.
With my child.
My lips parted, but no sound ca out. I just stared at River, my heart thundering so loudly I could barely hear anything else.
If what he said was true... then everything I thought I knew was a lie.
My child... wasn’t Ethan’s?
My gaze flickered helplessly to the door, where Oscar and the nurse had carried my baby only monts ago. My chest squeezed painfully.
Golden-green eyes.
The sa as Kieran’s.
And now this bond.
It couldn’t be... could it?
The dread twisting inside wasn’t just fear anymore, it was almost like a nightmare. Because if it’s true... then everything I had believed in for past nine months, and everything I built on that belief... was nothing but an illusion, a misunderstanding, a lie.
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