Page 11 of The Alpha's Forbidden Secret Baby

Her sweet baby. She was right there in front of him, yet he didn’t feel assured. He seemed convinced that he would disappear without physical touch.

For all she knew, he could be right. Rayla did not know how things worked. Xander had never told her about young wolves.

Although, he once told her about werewolves’ emotional intensity. He explained that they felt emotion more strongly than humans. So she had figured that her son’s violent tendency was due to that.

She wondered if Xander’s emotional intensity was what made him love her so deeply. And yet, despise her just as much. Even more.

Rayla knew she shouldn't think of Xander now. Her son was her priority.

She cleaned the mess and sat down back on the table. She took his hands back in hers. “I'm ready to listen when you are ready to talk,” she nudged.

He nodded and attempted a smile. It came out sad. “It was scary, Mom. The urge to run was too much. I didn't know when I jumped out of the bed and flew out the window.”

Abel had kept his cool so far. His eyes distanced as he spoke. It seemed like he was living the moment again. Rayla ran little circles on his hands.

He continued in a little voice, “I ran into the forest. I had no control of my body. I tore into my skin as I ran.”

Why should her poor boy have to go through this?

“What scared me most was when I ran past a tree and found myself in a strange man’s room,” he said quickly, then went quiet.

“A strange man’s room?” Rayla questioned.

“Yes, one minute I was there in the forest. The next minute, I was in a dark room. I saw a man. He was huge and scary,” He explained.

Like Xander

She gasped in shock.

Huge and scary. The description matched Xander.

Again, Rayla’s mind swarmed with questions. But she waited for him to continue before she made the wrong assumption.

“The man was surprised to see me in his room. He asked who I was, but I was too scared to answer.” He leaned into the table, picked up the cup, and sipped from it before he went on.

“I was so scared, and I needed you. I cried and called out to you. The next thing I knew, I was back at the forest entrance,” he finished.

Like Xander.

One minute he was there; the next, he wasn’t. Rayla mulled this over.

Her mind took her back in time…

She was waiting for Xander at their usual spot. It was under a tree on the outskirts of her town. When he called earlier he promised not to be late.

Yet, it was ten minutes past the agreed time, and he hadn’t shown. She’d thought to call him. Just as she was about to do so, he materialized at her back.

She yelped in shock. He laughed and rained kisses on her neck. This calmed her down. But she could have sworn that he appeared from thin air. She had not sensed him coming.

Her memory shifted to a different time it had happened.

Rayla had traveled with her parents to a different town far from home. She was bored on the trip. So, she texted Xander. He had asked if she would like for him to be there with her. Innocently, she had replied with a yes.

One moment she was texting him; the next, he was standing before her with a shopping bag in his hand and a huge grin on his face. She was startled.

When she asked him about it. He told her he had business close by and decided to surprise her.

On different occasions, Xander had pulled the same appearing-out-the-shadows act on her. But he always had a tangible explanation.

---