I held my breath, clutching my coat tighter around my belly. There he was, my husband, the Alpha I had trusted, the man I’d bound my life to. His stance was relaxed as he stood by her side, his hand resting gently on her shoulder. I watched as he leaned in close, his face softened, voice murmuring low words of comfort I couldn’t hear. And there she was, Cali—pregnant, glowing, with a smile that stretched wide and easy, basking in his warmth.
Each gesture felt like a sharp slap. A man I hardly recognized was there, showing a tenderness I hadn’t seen in… I couldn’t even remember. All those nights I had wished for him to be by my side, to care for me in my most vulnerable moments, had all gone to her. I gritted my teeth, blinking back the tears threatening to escape. I won’t let him see me break. Not tonight.
Beside me, I felt Jaxon’s energy shift, dark and fierce, the kind of rage that felt like a crackling storm barely contained. I turned to him and saw his usual warm brown eyes beginning to shift. Gold. An icy, terrifying gold that seemed to slice through the night with a silent promise of retribution. He was angry—angrier than I had ever seen him. He wasn’t just standing there; he was coiled, ready to lunge.
“Jax,” I whispered, reaching out to put a steadying hand on his arm. His muscles were taut under my grip, and he looked down at me, but his eyes stayed gold. “Don’t. He’s not worth it.”
“He’s betrayed you, Jasmine,” he growled, his voice low but vibrating with a deadly edge. “How can you just stand here and watch this?”
The fury in his gaze wasn’t directed at me, but it was still intense, enough to make a shiver run down my spine. His eyes, usually filled with warmth and understanding, were now cold, cutting through the night with a dangerous light. He was terrifying like this, an Alpha in his rawest form. I felt his restraint slipping, and for a moment, I worried he would break, that he would actually follow through on his urge to tear Cale apart.
But I gripped his arm tighter. “Jaxon,” I said, forcing calm into my voice. “He isn’t worth losing yourself over. We’re better than him.”
His gaze flickered back to me, and for a brief moment, the gold softened back into brown. “You shouldn’t have to see this, Jasmine,” he muttered, his voice laced with an anger that bordered on pain. “You should leave him. Let him rot in the mess he’s created.”