Forbidden Flame

Deric’s POV

The hospital room smelled antiseptic and monitor beeps continuously.

I stood at the foot of my father’s bed, staring at the gaunt shell of a man who’d once been the fiercest Alpha I knew. His breathing came in shallow rasps, his chest rising and falling like each breath was a war he was losing.

The pack doctor’s words echoed in my head—“He doesn’t have long, Deric. Be here for him. He needs his son.”

I clenched my fists at my sides, jaw tight as I forced myself to stay. Carlton had helped the way he could but my father’s situation didn’t seem to be getting better,...