Unmatched Wife: Not His To Claim Anymore novel Chapter 148

Chapter 148

Chapter 148

MATTHEW

“I am, yes. I have some matters to attend to in Silver Moon territory and the surrounding region over the next few days. I have some people that I do need to meet, so I felt like I should reach out, settle all awkwardness between us” He said it lightly, informatively. Nothing in his tone suggested anything other than routine business travel. “I could come to your office tomorrow morning, if that’s convenient? I won’t take much of your time.”

“Ten o’clock,” I said. “That gives me time to deal with the morning essentials first.”

“Perfect. Ten o’clock.” A warm pause. “And how is Theo? I hope the transition back has been smooth.”

The question was natural, concerned, something that showed someone who had been genuinely invested in the outcome of Theo’s treatment,I had no rational reason to hear anything in it beyond what it

was.

And yet.

“He’s adjusting well,” I said. “Better than I’d hoped.”

“I’m very glad to hear that. Children are resilient in ways that constantly surprise us.” Another pause. “I won’t keep you–go enjoy your evening with your son. I’ll see you tomorrow at ten.”

“Thank you for calling.”

The line disconnected.

I stood holding my phone in the kitchen for a moment, the kettle beginning to sound behind me.

He was in Silver Moon territory. Had come to my office without prior notice, on a whim he said, only to find I’d left early for school pickup.

The Alpha King had told me to proceed as planned. Had told me not to change my behavior in ways that might alert anyone that I’d received specific intelligence.

So I was not going to call Thorne back and withdraw the invitation, they probably were working together and this was some kind of routine procedure, just to make sure everything was working well.

So with this in mind, I decided that I was not going to rearrange the meeting tomorrow. Was going to do exactly what I’d told him I’d do, which was meet him at ten in the morning in my office.

And I was going to make sure Marcus was present for that meeting, and that two additional security people were positioned in the building, and that Theo was nowhere near my office building during those hours.

Proceed as planned. Handle what I could control. Trust that the things I couldn’t control were being

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managed.

I made myself a cup of tea I didn’t particularly want and was staring at the counter thinking about nothing useful when I heard Theo come back downstairs, changed into his home clothes and carried Daniel’s books already open to something he wanted to show me.

I put Thorne Lockwood away in the part of my mind that was kept for things to be dealt with, in the future but not at the moment, and I turned to look at what my son had found in his borrowed books.

At six–fifteen, Marcus knocked on my living room door.

I knew it was Marcus because Marcus had a specific knock–three measured raps, evenly spaced, the knock of someone who’d decided on a signature and maintained it across fifteen years of working together. I’d teased him about it once, years ago, and he’d pointed out that a recognizable knock was a security feature, which was so purely Marcus that I hadn’t had a response.

I opened the door.

Marcus was there, which I’d expected. What I hadn’t expected was the person standing beside him.

The man was huge, well not huge, but despite being tall as me, had more definite muscles that were pronounced and well seen, in the short sleeve black top that seemed to be sewn to his body.

“This is the one you sent for,” Marcus said, which was Marcus’s way of saying he’d followed my instructions and had opinions about the timing but was going to keep them professional.

I looked at the man. “Come in.”

We moved to the front room, away from the stairs where Theo was occupied with his books. Marcus positioned himself near the door, something he always did subconsciously and had not yet gotten rid of

the habit.

The stranger stood in the center of the room and waited without saying anything, which told me he understood that he was aware this was an assessment and he was willing to be assessed.

“Name,” I said.

“Liam Callahan.”

“Who sent you?”

“I was recommended through the inter–pack security network. Alpha Reeves of Creston territory used my services for a year before his family’s circumstances changed and the contract ended. After that, I spent three years with the Harlow pack providing close protection for their Alpha’s daughter during a prolonged threat situation.”

“The Harlow situation resolved two years ago,” I said. “Where have you been since?”

“Independent contracts. Two protective assignments, both concluded successfully. A short–term

Chapter 148

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intelligence consulting role that I’m not at liberty to discuss under terms of that agreement.”

He met my eyes and continued speaking. “I don’t do long contracts that keep me static. I work best in situations that require active assessment and adaptive response.”

“What Marcus told you about this assignment,” I said. “Repeat it back to me.”

He didn’t check with Marcus before answering, which was correct–the instructions were mine and the accountability was to me.

“Close protection of a minor, male, age four, in a context where the threat level is assessed as credible but not yet defined. “The objective is for the child to be protected without being aware of being protected, and without any change to his normal routine that might signal to potential threat actors that additional security is in place.”

He’d gotten it exactly right.

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