Despite my anger, I kept my voice calm and reminded myself that this was all in the past. Still, it didn’t make the truth any easier to hear.
“So you decided his future for him,” I said as gently as possible to hide my frustration. “You thought he’d have a better life as some alpha’s live-in maid and babymaker?”
Evelyn’s voice was stiff. “When you say it likethat, it sounds unpleasant, yes. But honestly, what’s so awful about it? He’d never worry about having a roof over his head, or meals, or money. He would have an alpha to protect him and be a father to their kids.”
I shook my head, glad they wouldn’t be able to see it.
“In any case,” Dennis said hurriedly, “that’s all in the past now. We’re happy that Felix has you now, and a child on the way.”
I cracked a smile. “Yeah. Me too.”
“Yes. Thank you for taking care of him,” Evelyn said, sounding genuine for the first time. “We appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome. Ah, now if you’ll excuse me, I was in the middle of running an errand for him. Chocolate cake craving. You know how it is with pregnancies.”
Dennis chuckled. “Right. Go ahead.”
“Goodbye, Elijah.”
After hanging up, I couldn’t stop smiling. Things were still a little rocky with Felix’s parents, but despite my initial annoyance towards them, I knew now that their hearts were in the right place. They truly did want the best for their son, and I intended to fulfil that role.
“All right, River,” I said, making River perk up. “We still got a cake to buy.”
I trusted the woman at the bakery to pick me out the freshest, most moussey cake available and happily handed over a nice chunk of change for it. It felt heavy in my hands, and I hoped the bag was sturdy enough to carry it single handedly.
It was on the way back home that I noticed River was pulling more than usual. I frowned and gently pulled back on the handle to let him know to slow down.
But River wasn’t slowing down.
“River,” I said firmly. “Easy.”
In the years since receiving him from the program, River had displayed intelligent disobedience a handful of times. I remembered when he’d pulled me out of the way of traffic the day I met Felix. But the way he pulled now seemed different somehow. Urgent.
Doubt wormed its way inside me.
He nosed ahead. I sighed and let him lead me home, chalking it up to his excitement to see Felix again. The two had grown close since Felix moved in, and I suspected River smelled a baby growing inside him, too. Dogs always knew about that sort of thing.
“You excited for the kid, huh?” I asked him. “Well, that doesn’t mean you have to drag me down the street, you know.”
It wasn’t until he lurched forward hard enough to make me stumble that I realized something.
He was acting the same way as the time he pulled me out of the way of the car.
Something was wrong, and River knew it.
My heartrate quickened, and then so did my feet. Moving faster than a brisk walk could be dangerous, but with River guiding me home, I allowed myself to break out into a sprint. Whatever River was sensing, I trusted him.
He stopped abruptly at the front door and went stiff.
“Okay, just hang on,” I muttered.
I heard a softthunk, and then the sound of the door swinging open and River’s tags jostling with his movement. River had pushed the door in with his head and ran inside.
Which meant the front door was already open. Frowning, I stepped inside. It was strange of River to run off without letting me take his harness off first.
If the door was open, did that mean Felix went somewhere without me? Maybe he got tired of waiting. Maybe I took too long on the phone, or--
A sudden commotion exploded. It came from upstairs. Screams, male voices, and River barking.
