The Alpha's Unclaimed Mate (Jason and Laila) by Caroline Above Story novel Chapter 13

Laila's POV

"Where is Ava's father?"

The words hit me like a slap across the face. No warning, no warm-up, just Jason standing there, his green eyes locked on me the way he used to when he was trying to crack some complicated pack problem, or figure out why the quarterly reports weren't adding up. Only this time I was the problem.

"This has nothing to do with you, Jason." It came out sharp, way sharper than I meant, but maybe that was the point. Like I was throwing up bricks, stacking a wall before Jason could even get close.

And then his jaw did that thing. That twitch that always used to drive me nuts during meetings, like the tiniest movement carried a whole storm behind it. Same Jason. Same temper tucked neatly under the surface.

"I was just asking," he said, but the way it came out—like there was something bruised sitting under the words.

I hitched Ava higher on my hip. She's growing so fast it feels like she gains a pound every night, but in that moment, I needed her weight against me. Needed something solid to hold because everything else felt like sand sliding out from under my feet.

"Well, don't. It's not your business."

The silence after that was thick. Heavy. Like the air had been sucked out of the room.

Jason's face went cold, that professional mask he always loved to hide behind sliding into place. He didn't argue. Didn't press. He just turned and walked away, shoulders stiff, like he was holding himself together with pure willpower.

And I just stood there, heart pounding, hating the way a piece of me wanted to call him back. To tell him everything. To finally spit out the truth I'd been swallowing for six damn years.

But Ava's safety wasn't a game. And the truth? The truth could break us both.

When I finally managed to shortyly return to the office at work, the universe thought it'd be hilarious to trap me in an elevator with Jason and Brittany. Like some twisted sitcom nightmare.

I'd spent all morning at the hospital dealing with Ava's pre-surgery prep. Blood work, consultations, and filling out enough paperwork to destroy a small forest.

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