Page 90 of The Alpha Under My Bed

Now, I was paying for it.

The cold realization settled in my bones, spreading like ice through my veins. My fists clenched at my sides as I turned toward the door, my pulse a slow, heavy thud in my ears.

And then?—

A knock.

Loud. Firm. Wrong.

The kind of knock that sent a warning straight to the gut, that made instinct crawl up my spine like a live wire.

I didn’t hesitate. Didn’t second-guess.

I yanked the door open?—

And there they were.

Pack Cross.

The second I swung the door open, my brother’s scent slammed into me like a fist to the gut.

Julian stood there, all tall, golden, and fucking perfect. His smug smile didn’t just piss me off—it twisted something sharp in my chest. He actually looked pleased to be here, as if this wasn’t a damn invasion. As if I was supposed to behappyto see him.

Behind him were the same faces I’d known all my life—the same pack that had stood by him when they’d dismissed Ellie all those years ago. The same ones who had let him decide she wasn’t worthy of their time. Worthy ofanything.

I barely heard his voice over the roar of blood in my ears.

“Mal.” Julian’s tone was too calm—too controlled. Like he had any fucking right to show up at my door with his pack in tow,acting like this was some kind of family reunion. “You going to let us in?”

I didn’t move. I just stared, letting the silence stretch.

Ibreathed.

For a split second, I considered snapping his neck right there in the hallway. It wouldn’t have been the first time I’d thought about it.

Instead, I stepped forward, closing the space between us. My body blocked the doorway like a wall.

“You’ve got thirty seconds to tell me why the hell you’re here,” I growled, “before I start breaking bones.”

Julian’s lips twitched—amusement—because he thought this was some fucking joke.

“We’ve been trying to reach you,” he said, casually, as if I should give a shit. “You don’t answer calls. Don’t visit. Don’t check in. We were worried.”

I exhaled slowly, letting the control flood back in. “I told you I wasn’t coming back.”

His expression didn’t budge. He’d heard it a thousand times. “Yeah, I figured.”

“Then why the hell are you here?”

Julian’s gaze slid past me, his eyes scanning the apartment, lingering—searching—for something. Orsomeone.

My hands curled into fists. “Eyes on me, Julian.”

He smirked—like I had just confirmed whatever the hell he’d come to prove.

“Relax, little brother,” he said, his voice dripping with amusement. “I just wanted to see if it was true.”

I stilled. “If what was true?”

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