I caught a whiff of an unfamiliar wolf fragrance clinging to him—a she-wolf in particular. A pang of unease tightened in my chest, but I refused to acknowledge it. I turned my head slightly, evading his touch.
“Oh, nothing important,” I replied, forcing a smile that felt brittle. “Everything’s fine.”
The Alpha nodded, his expression a mask of concern mixed with something else—guilt, perhaps? “My position as an Alpha has been giving me a hectic schedule lately,” he said, his tone a bit too rushed. “I've been kept very busy.”
I could sense the lie behind his words, the weight of an unspoken truth hanging in the air between us. But instead of confronting him, I chose to bury my suspicions. Rolling over to face away from him, I murmured, “Maybe you should take a shower before going to bed.”
For a moment, he hesitated, as if contemplating whether to explain further. But he remained silent. I listened as he opened the bathroom door, the sound of water beginning to flow from the showerhead filling the quiet room. The soft trickling of the water was the only sound, mingling with my thoughts as I lay there, willing myself back into the refuge of sleep.