Too Late To Regret, My Alphas Chapter 9: No Home To Return To

Rosalie:

Eiden laughed for several long seconds before finally collecting himself. The sound filled the room in a way I hadn’t expected - warm, rich, and completely unrestrained. It didn’t sound mocking or cruel the way laughter usually did whenever people talked about rumors or weakness.

It sounded... genuine.

Which sohow made him even more dangerous. Because beautiful n who laughed like that should not exist.

Eventually, he let out a slow breath and lightly rubbed the corner of one eye before looking back at with amusent still lingering in his deep blue gaze.

"My apologies," he said smoothly. "It’s just been a while since I last heard those particular rumors about myself." Another faint chuckle escaped him despite his obvious attempt to suppress it. "I got carried away."

I stared at him in surprise.

Honestly, I had expected irritation at the very least. Maybe even anger. Anyone would be upset hearing people accuse them of dark magic and punishnt. But Eiden Thorn seed almost entertained by it. And the realization confused more than it should have.

He cleared his throat lightly, though the smile never quite left his lips as he spoke, "People can be surprisingly creative when left alone with their imaginations for too long."

Without thinking, I nodded quickly. "That’s true," I blurted out before my brain could catch up with my mouth. "So people even said you were an ugly old man with horns on your head and-"

I stopped.

The words echoed loudly inside my own head while I stared at him in horror as realization slamd into .

Did I seriously just say that out loud?

"...but that’s obviously not true," I muttered weakly at the end, my voice shrinking into embarrassnt. I genuinely wanted the bed to swallow whole.

Across from , Eiden’s lips curved again. It wasn’t a full laugh this ti, but that dangerously beautiful amused smile that made warmth spread across his face in a way that should honestly be illegal.

Goddess! Why did I keep humiliating myself in front of him? Maybe I really had hit my head harder than I thought.

Desperate to save what little dignity I had left, if any at all, I quickly changed the subject before he could comnt further. "How did I end up here?"

Thankfully, he let escape my embarrassnt. The smile remained faintly on his lips, but he answered without teasing further.

The last thing I rember was falling into the river. The cold water, darkness, pain, and the terrifying certainty that I wasn’t going to survive. Even now, rembering it made my chest tighten painfully.

I looked around slowly again, at the expensive room, the machines monitoring , the warmth surrounding like a shield against the nightmare outside. Then my gaze returned to him. I hesitated briefly before adding honestly, "I heard you don’t take patients."

Though admittedly... I was beginning to suspect most of the rumors surrounding Eiden Thorn were complete nonsense. Especially the ugly-with-horns part.

He leaned back slightly in the chair, studying with an unreadable expression. That soft smile never fully disappeared from his face. Nor did he correct my statent.

Instead, he asked calmly, "How could I possibly refuse to take you in when the Moon Goddess practically delivered you directly to ?"

I blinked in confusion. "What?"

He folded his hands loosely together, his silver hair slipping slightly over his shoulder as he spoke. "I found you four days ago."

My breath caught slightly as I repeated, "Four...?"

He nodded.

"I was running near the riverbank when I sensed sothing." His gaze remained steady on mine. "At first, I thought it was debris carried by the storm. Then I realized it was a person."

A strange expression flickered briefly across his features before disappearing. "You were unconscious. Badly injured. Hypothermic. And barely breathing."

The words settled heavily in the room.

I swallowed slowly as the image ford vividly in my mind despite myself - my broken body washed onto an unfamiliar shore. Alone. Forgotten... Abandoned.

"And it’s really been four days?" I asked quietly.

He nodded again. "Yes."

Sothing sharp twisted painfully inside my chest. Four entire days had passed since that night. Since my world ended.

The realization hit differently than I expected. It felt too heavy and too real. It ant four days had passed since Alastor looked through like I was nothing. Four days since Darien stood beside another woman and announced her as his mate. Four days since Kaiser wrapped his arm around Charlotte while I stood there breaking apart in front of everyone.

And four days since they decided my existence was disposable.

My fingers tightened weakly against the blanket beneath as the pain in my chest returned instantly. It wasn’t physical this ti, but far worse. Hot and suffocating tears threatened to rise again, but I forced them back with everything I had.

No. I wouldn’t cry. Not for the n who betrayed my love, my trust, and my loyalty. Not for the n who trampled over my dignity in front of both packs and then tried to erase completely.

Because that was the truth now, wasn’t it?

The realization no longer felt uncertain. They wanted gone. Dead and out of the way so their precious fated mate could have her perfect future without complications.

The thought hollowed sothing inside .

I lowered my gaze slightly, breathing carefully through the ache in my chest. Only then did I realize Eiden had been watching quietly the entire ti. Not intrusively, just observing. As if waiting for to gather myself without forcing comfort onto .

It felt strangely respectful.

Then, after a mont, he asked softly, "What’s your na?"

The question startled slightly. My lips parted before I answered automatically. "Rosalie." My voice sounded smaller than usual. "Rosalie Hale."

He repeated my na silently beneath his breath, almost thoughtfully. And for so reason, hearing my na in his voice sent sothing strange fluttering through my chest.

I quickly ignored it.

"There’s not much else to say about ," I added quietly before the silence stretched too long. My gaze drifted toward the blankets covering .

"I don’t have family." The words hurt less than they used to. Maybe because I had already lost everyone important long ago. "My parents died two years ago." I swallowed. "I don’t have any relatives either."

The next words felt heavier. "I don’t really have a ho to return to anymore."

A small part of waited for questions after that. For suspicion, or curiosity. Sothing. Most people would ask how I ended up broken in a river. Where had I been living all these years? What happened to ?

But Eiden didn’t ask any of it. Not a single question. Instead, he simply stood from the chair beside my bed.

The movent drew my attention upward instantly. Even standing casually, he sohow carried an effortless grace that made it difficult not to stare at him again.

"Rest," he said quietly. His voice had softened noticeably as he added, "You are safe here."

The words settled into far deeper than they should have.

Safe.

I couldn’t rember the last ti soone genuinely ant those words when saying them to .

Eiden adjusted the blanket slightly near my injured arm before continuing, "Right now, your only responsibility is recovering."

Then, he said my na again. "Understood, Rosalie?"

My breath caught.

It was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous. And yet, hearing my na spoken in his low voice did sothing strange to - sothing warm and unfamiliar that made my heart stumble painfully against my ribs.

For one terrifying second, I almost forgot how to breathe. And sohow... that frightened more than anything else.