Mated to Her Alpha Instructor (Eileen and Regis) novel Chapter 186

Nina

I woke to unfamiliar softness, and my first instinct was to freeze. The bed was too comfortable, the blanket too warm, the pillow smelling faintly of lavender and chamomile. Not the harsh medicinal scent of the station, not the musty damp of places I’d hidden before. This was different.

Memory crashed back: Silas’s hands on my throat, Eileen’s voice cutting through terror, the silver–black wolf that had driven him away. Being brought here.

This cabin.

I sat up slowly, listening. Voices drifted from below–Eileen’s gentle cadence and a deeper voice, controlled in that way Alphas had when deliberately restraining power. I padded to the door and cracked it open, staying hidden in shadow.

They were in the kitchen. Regis stood at the counter arranging food on plates while Eileen sat at the table, one hand on her rounded belly, the other wrapped around a steaming mug. Morning sunlight caught in her copper hair. When she looked up at him, her face held a softness I’d never seen anyone

direct at a wolf before.

She caught his hand briefly, squeezing once before letting go. No fear. No flinching. Just trust.

Every instinct screamed this had to be a trap, but the longer I watched, the less convinced I became. No one was that good an actor when they thought no

one was watching.

You saw what he did to Silas, a small voice whispered. He would have killed him for touching you.

But Alphas didn’t care about people like me. This had to be different, another manipulation I hadn’t learned to recognize yet.

Except Eileen had stayed with me last night. Had held my hand and told me her own stories of being hurt, being dismissed. Had looked at me like I was a person, not a thing. And she’d cried when she promised protection, as if my safety actually mattered.

I pressed my forehead against the doorframe. Part of me wanted to believe. Wanted so badly to believe someone might mean what they said. But belief had always been dangerous.

But so does staying silent forever, Eileen’s words echoed. So does accepting that you deserve to be hunted.

if they find out what I am, none of that will matter.

But I didn’t say it. Couldn’t bear to see the moment they realized protecting me was too much trouble.

“We’ll keep you safe, Eileen said softly, her eyes steady. “Both of us. We’re in this together.”

We. She kept saying that, positioning herself alongside me as if we were allies. It made my chest tight.

But when Regis set the plate down and returned to his position by the counter, when Eileen pushed it closer with an encouraging smile, I found myself sitting. Found my hand reaching out to pick up a piece of bread.

It was still warm. Fresh. Made with care.

I took the smallest bite, and the simple goodness of it almost undid me. When was the last time anyone had offered me food made with care? When had anyone looked at me the way Eileen was looking now, like my basic needs mattered?