Gentle Hands To Her

Keiran paced the length of his office, his golden eyes flashing dangerously. The documents Tobias had placed on his desk only confirmed what he had feared—Selena had been alone in this world far too long.

"She's an orphan," Tobias began, his tone measured but cautious, knowing how close Keiran was to snapping. "Her parents died when she was young. She moved to the city to try and build a life for herself, but it wasn't easy. She picked up odd jobs here and there. Couldn't finish college after their passing."

Keiran's hands curled into fists. She had struggled, fought to survive on her own, while he had spent the last month oblivious to her existence. He should have found her the moment he realized she was his mate. Now, she was out there, pregnant, alone, and vulnerable.

"What else?" His voice was tight, controlled. Barely.

"She was renting a small apartment in the city. No family. No strong connections. Just a few casual acquaintances, no real friends." Tobias hesitated before adding, "No significant relationships either. You were the only one."

Something possessive surged inside Keiran at those words. The only one. Even without knowing it, her soul had belonged to him.

Tobias continued, "Before she left, she withdrew most of her savings. Not much, but enough to start over somewhere else. My team tracked the movement. She went to Grayville."

Keiran's breath hitched. Grayville. A small town nestled at the base of the mountains. He had passed through it before, years ago, when his pack had been dealing with rogue wolves in the surrounding forests. It was remote, quiet, the kind of place someone would go to disappear.

He exhaled sharply. "She's running."

Tobias nodded. "She thinks she can start fresh there, away from the city, away from… whatever she believes this pregnancy will bring."

Keiran ground his teeth. She had no idea what she was carrying inside her. A child of the Lycan King. A prince or princess born from fate itself. The thought of her thinking she was alone in this—thinking he wouldn't come for her—only made his resolve burn hotter.

"I'm going to Grayville," he declared, grabbing his coat. "I should have never let her slip away in the first place."

But before he could move, Tobias stepped in front of him. "There's something else."

Keiran stopped, his sharp gaze locking onto his Beta. The tension in the room thickened. "What is it?"

Tobias hesitated before finally saying, "The Hunters are on the move. Here. In the city."

A deadly silence settled between them.

Keiran's jaw clenched, his pulse thrumming with sudden, lethal rage. The Hunters—the very people responsible for taking his first mate from him. The same monsters that had hunted his kind for generations.

His fingers twitched with the urge to shift, to rip through every last one of them.

Tobias continued, his voice heavy, "We don't know why they're here yet, but it's too much of a coincidence. We know they don't attack unless they have a target. And you just found your mate—"

Keiran growled low in his throat. "Are you saying they're after her?"

"I'm saying we can't ignore the possibility." Tobias' expression was grim. "She's human. She doesn't know about our world. But if they suspect she's carrying your child… Keiran, they will not let that child be born."

Keiran's vision blurred with red. He knew what the Hunters were capable of. They feared anything that threatened the balance between humans and supernatural beings. And a child born from a Lycan King and his fated mate? That was something they would see as a weapon or a curse.

He inhaled sharply, forcing control over the rage simmering inside him. "We move now," he ordered, his voice dark with promise. "I need to get to her before they do."

Tobias didn't argue. He nodded. "I'll have a team sweep the city for signs of Hunter activity. But you need to get to Grayville as fast as possible."

Keiran was already heading for the door. "She's mine. They won't touch a hair on her head."

And with that, the Lycan King vanished into the night, his only focus on the woman carrying his child. His mate.

x-x-x-x-x

The scent of freshly baked bread and sweet pastries filled the air as Selena stood in the middle of her newly renovated bakery, Lovely Sweets.

The morning sun poured through the large glass windows, casting a golden glow across the pastel-colored walls. The place was warm and inviting, a perfect reflection of the dream she had been slowly bringing to life. The wooden shelves lined with baskets of muffins, loaves, and croissants, the glass display case filled with delicate pastries, and the soft hum of instrumental music in the background all made her feel like she was exactly where she was meant to be.

Her hands gently traced the edge of the countertop as she took in everything around her. It had taken a lot of work, but now, Lovely Sweets was hers. A new beginning in Grayville. A place where she could carve out a future not just for herself, but for the child growing inside her.

She placed a hand on her stomach, a bittersweet smile playing on her lips. "I hope you'll love it here," she whispered to the little life inside her.

The thought of her child running around the bakery, laughing and filling the place with warmth, brought a lump to her throat. She could almost see it—tiny feet pattering against the wooden floor, chubby hands reaching for cookies, giggles filling the air as they ran around the counter. A family. A life she had never truly dared to dream of before.

But the weight of loneliness settled on her shoulders soon after. She had no one to share this with. No one to hold her hand and tell her everything would be okay. No loving partner to rub her aching feet or press a comforting kiss to her forehead at the end of the day. She had thought she was fine with being alone, but this pregnancy had unearthed a raw vulnerability inside her.

She missed them. Her parents. The only family she had ever known.

The bakery wasn't enough to fill the void in her heart today. She needed to see them.

With a deep breath, Selena locked up Lovely Sweets and made her way to the cemetery nestled behind the mountain. The hike up the stone pathway was familiar, one she had taken many times as a child when she visited with her mother to tend to her father's grave. Now, both of them rested here, side by side beneath the towering oak tree.

She knelt in front of their tombstones, brushing away the fallen leaves and wiping the smooth surface with trembling fingers. "Mom… Dad…" her voice cracked as the weight of grief and loneliness crashed down on her. "I miss you so much."

Tears streamed down her cheeks as she wrapped her arms around herself, shaking with sobs. "I don't know if I can do this. I'm so scared. I thought I could handle being alone, but… I just want someone to hold me and tell me I don't have to do this all by myself."

The wind howled through the trees, whispering through the branches as if offering a quiet comfort. The rustling leaves and distant calls of night creatures filled the air, but Selena didn't notice. She was too lost in her pain, in her longing for the family she had lost.

Unbeknownst to her, golden eyes glowed in the shadows of the forest behind her.

Keiran stood in his Lycan form, hidden among the trees, his massive frame blending with the darkness. His claws dug into the earth as he watched his mate weep before the graves of her parents. He had followed her scent, traced it through the town, past the bakery she had built for herself, and up to this secluded graveyard.

Seeing her like this—so fragile, so broken—made something inside him twist painfully. The beast within him raged against his inaction, demanding he step forward, take her into his arms, and promise her she would never be alone again. But he held himself back, restrained by the weight of his past failures.

He had already lost one mate. He had failed to protect the one he had once sworn his heart to. And now, fate had given him another chance. But what if he failed her, too? What if his presence only brought her more danger?

His heart ached as he listened to her cries, to the loneliness in her voice. He had spent weeks searching for her, desperate to find the woman who had ignited something primal and undeniable within him that night. And now that she was here, so close, he hesitated.

Because once he revealed himself, there would be no turning back.

He was not just any man. He was the Lycan King, a ruler, a warrior, a beast that was meant to protect and conquer. But could he be a gentle hand for her? A loving mate? The father she and their child needed?

His golden eyes softened as he took in her form, her shoulders shaking from her sobs.

She was his mate.

His.

And he would never let her cry alone again.

But not tonight. Tonight, he would watch, waiting for the right moment to step into her life.

As Selena wiped her tears and placed a soft kiss on her fingertips then touching the gravestone with them before standing up, Keiran took a step back into the darkness, his mind set on one thing.

Soon, he would claim what was his.