"I need to take this." I said, already standing, moving toward the hallway for privacy, my expression carefully neutral despite the tension coiling in my shoulders.
"Everything okay?" Keira's voice followed me, tinged with concern, her brow furrowing as she watched me go.
"Just work." I kept my voice light, reassuring, tossing her a small smile over my shoulder. "Nothing to worry about." The call was, predictably, a headache. The V-Live from yesterday had sparked a wildfire of speculation online. Trending topics about our "secret omega" had management in a tailspin. They wanted statements, damage control, a carefully crafted narrative.
"We can't confirm or deny anything yet." I said, keeping my voice low, one eye on the living room where I could still see Keira laughing at something Tae-min was showing her on his phone, my jaw tight with frustration.
"The fans are going crazy, Jae-won. Hwan practically announced it on camera." Our manager's voice was strained, the frustration evident even through the phone speaker, his words clipped and urgent.
"He didn't confirm anything." I pinched the bridge of my nose, fighting the urge to sigh, exhaustion pressing at my temples. "He was being Hwan. Playful, cryptic. That's his brand."
"His brand is going to blow this wide open if we're not careful." The warning in his tone was unmistakable, heavy with implied consequences.
Protect her,my alpha growled.Keep the chaos away. She's not ready.
"I'll talk to him." I said finally, my voice firm despite the weariness creeping in. "But the answer is still no. We're not making any announcements until she's ready. This is her choice too."
There was a long pause, the silence stretching thin between us. "Fine. But we need a strategy session soon. Before the comeback promotions start."
"Understood." I ended the call before he could add anything else, slipping the phone back into my pocket. I stood in the hallway for a moment, letting the tension drain from my shoulders, rolling my neck to release the knots forming there. When I returned to the living room, Keira looked up immediately, her eyes scanning my face with an intensity that made something in my chest tighten.
"Bad news?" Keira asked, her voice quiet, concern evident in the furrow of her brow, her fingers stilling in Hwan's hair.
"Just logistics." I settled back into my chair, forcing my body to relax, my expression to smooth out into something more casual. "Management stuff. Nothing that can't wait."
She didn't look entirely convinced, but she let it go. Smart. Perceptive. She could read me better than anyone except maybe Jin-ho, and that knowledge was both terrifying and thrilling.
The afternoon passed in comfortable domesticity. Keira worked on lyrics at the kitchen table, her laptop open, headphones half-on as she muttered to herself and scribbled in a notebook. I handled emails and schedules from my phone, but mostly I watched her.
The way she chewed on her pen cap when she was thinking. The small furrow between her brows when a line wasn't working. The satisfied smile when something clicked into place.
Beautiful,my alpha murmured.
Beneath it all, something else. Something I'd started noticing yesterday, stronger today. Her scent was changing. It was subtle — a sweetening at the edges, a deepening of that honey-and-jasmine that was uniquely her. Most people wouldn't notice. I wasn't most people. I was her alpha, one of five, and my instincts were finely tuned to every shift in her biology.
Pre-heat. Early stages, but unmistakable.
Soon, my alpha whispered, something primal stirring in my chest.Heat coming. Must be ready. Must be worthy.
I pushed the thought down, buried it beneath layers of control. Not yet. Not until we'd talked. Not until she understood what completing the bonds would mean.
By evening, she was yawning, fighting to keep her eyes open even as she insisted she wasn't tired. The others had drifted off to various activities — Hwan and Tae-min gaming in the other room, Jin-ho in his studio, Min-jun reading in the corner. I was the one who finally called it.
"Bed." I said, not quite a command but close to it, my voice brooking no argument.
"I'm fine." Keira protested, even as another yawn undermined her words, her eyes heavy-lidded and unfocused, her body swaying slightly where she sat.
"You're exhausted." I stood, offering her my hand, watching the way she took it without hesitation now, her fingers curling around mine like it was the most natural thing in the world, her palm warm against mine. "The nest. Now."
“Mean." Keira muttered, but she was smiling, letting me pull her to her feet, her body swaying slightly with fatigue as she leaned into my steadying grip.
"Pack alpha." I corrected, guiding her toward the nest room with a hand on the small of her back, her warmth seeping through the fabric of her shirt, my touch gentle but firm. "It's my job."
"Your job is to be insufferably in charge of everything?" Keira's voice was teasing, sleepy, her words slurring slightly at the edges as she let me steer her down the hallway.
"My job is to take care of you." I said quietly, and felt her stumble slightly, her breath catching at the sincerity in my voice, her fingers tightening around mine.
She didn't argue after that. I got her settled in the nest, surrounded by blankets and pillows that carried all our scents. She was asleep within minutes, curled on her side, one hand tucked under her cheek. Peaceful.
