Chapter 10 - THE TRUE ALPHAFive years later.
The private courtyard of the Kensington estate in upstate New York was filled with the sound of laughter and splashing water.
A sprawling, modern mansion surrounded by iron gates and acres of pristine forest—far away from the cramped alleys of Brooklyn and the cold glass of the Manhattan penthouse.
Willa walked across the green lawn, wearing a simple linen dress, her hair blowing gently in the afternoon breeze. In her hand, she held a tray of fresh treats.
A few feet away, a massive, silver-gray mastiff—though slower now with age, still majestic and powerful—lay lazily in the shade of an oak tree, his tail thumping against the grass as he saw her coming.
And right beside him, rolling clumsily in the grass with a squeaky toy, was a little four-year-old boy with dark hair and his father’s unmistakable, sharp gray eyes.
"Mommy! Look! Ghost caught the ball!" the little boy shouted, scrambling up and running toward her with muddy sneakers.
Willa knelt down, laughing as she wiped a smudge of dirt off her son's cheek, just as Jared stepped out onto the veranda, dressed in a casual white shirt, holding two glasses of iced lemonade.
Jared walked over, handing one glass to Willa before wrapping his strong arm around her shoulders, pulling her close against his side as they watched their son play with the massive dog.
"You know," Jared murmured, pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head, "the vets in Manhattan still talk about the miracle dog who refused to die."
Willa smiled, leaning her head against his chest, feeling the steady, powerful heartbeat of the man who had given her a kingdom.
"They still don't understand, do they?" Willa whispered, watching Ghost nudge the little boy affectionately with his giant nose.
"No," Jared replied, his eyes dark with deep, unwavering devotion. "They thought it was medicine. They didn't realize that sometimes, broken souls just need the right pack to find their way back."
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Willa looked up, meeting his eyes with a fierce, unbreakable love.
The mafia boss and the Brooklyn clinic worker. Two broken pieces that had collided in the dark, and together, had rewritten the entire world.
