"Work?" Kaelen's jaw tightened.
"She wanted to go," Riven said quietly. "After everything that happened, I didn't push."
Kaelen looked away, his eyes darkening as something complicated flickered across his expression.
"She shouldn't be there," he said.
"I know," Riven replied. "But she didn't feel like a victim. And honestly? I don't think she is one."
Kaelen's wolf stirred at that restless and uneasy.
"She doesn't understand what is circling her," Kaelen said. "Not yet."
Riven studied him. "And you do?"
Kaelen didn't answer.
Instead, he said, "Double security at Blackthorn Enterprises quietly, no uniforms."
"I already did," Riven replied. "She won't even notice."
Kaelen nodded once.
"Riven," he added, voice lower now, controlled but edged with something dangerous. "If anything happens to her—"
"It won't," Riven cut in firmly. "Not while I am breathing."
For a moment, they just stood there—Alpha and Beta, bonded by loyalty older than the curse itself.
