Leo

When Rhys and Kayden returned from speaking with Rami Calder, I immediately noticed the change in the expressions on both their faces, and that could only mean one thing.

Rami Calder had done something insane again.

Honestly, nothing good ever came out of that man, and I could not help wondering what exactly he had said this time.

I stood near the long conference table while watching Rhys carefully guide Kayden toward the exit. His arm remained firmly wrapped around Kayden’s waist as though he was afraid that letting go for even a second would make everything around them completely fall apart.

Honestly, after overhearing fragments of their conversation, I could not even blame him.

Kayden looked emotionally drained.

Even from across the room, I could still see how pale he looked beneath the pheromone camouflage masking his omega scent. The confrontation involving his father’s illness had clearly affected him far more deeply than he wanted anyone to realize.

Rhys glanced toward me before reaching the doorway.

"I am taking him home," he said quietly. "He needs rest."

"That is probably the best thing for him right now," I replied immediately.

Kayden looked toward me afterward and managed a small smile despite how exhausted he looked.

"Thank you for today," he said softly. "Seriously. Without you, none of this would have been possible, and I am genuinely grateful for everything you did for us."

I rolled my eyes dramatically.

"Please do not initiate emotionally destabilizing behavior in my presence," I said dryly. "I already spent the entire day preserving your athletic career, maintaining your relationship stability, and preventing prenatal complications involving your unborn child. My psychological bandwidth for tears and emotional gratitude has officially reached maximum capacity."

That earned a weak laugh from him.

Good.

At least he was still smiling.

Rhys adjusted his hold around Kayden before nodding once toward me.

"Thank you, Leo," he said sincerely. "For everything."

I shrugged casually even though part of me genuinely felt relieved things had not spiraled into complete disaster today.

"You can thank me properly by making sure he avoids unnecessary stress from now on," I replied firmly while looking directly at Rhys. "And that includes emotional confrontations, public scandals, media outrage, and whatever other forms of chaos the two of you seem biologically programmed to attract."

Rhys smirked faintly. "I will try."

"You better."

Kayden laughed softly again before finally allowing Rhys to guide him completely out of the meeting room.

I watched the elevator doors close behind them before finally releasing the deep breath trapped inside my chest.

"They really are attached at the hip," Miller muttered beside me.

I glanced toward him.

He stood with both hands shoved casually into the pockets of his jeans, but there was softness in his expression while staring toward the hallway Rhys and Kayden had disappeared into.

"Bonded pairs usually are," I replied quietly.

Miller’s eyes slowly shifted toward me afterward, and immediately I looked away before he noticed the uncomfortable tension tightening inside my chest.

Because unlike Rhys and Kayden, I was not entirely sure what would happen if I ever completely lost control around someone I genuinely cared about.

That thought alone unsettled me far more than I wanted to admit.

Across the room, Andrew Park was still speaking with several board members while Jeremy Young reviewed the remaining documents spread across the conference table.

The atmosphere had become calmer now that the voting was over, but the emotional weight of everything that happened still lingered heavily throughout the room.

I adjusted my glasses before motioning toward Miller.

"Come with me," I muttered quietly.

Miller raised a brow. "Where?"

"I need to speak with my uncle."

Curiosity flashed briefly across his face, but he followed beside me without asking any further questions.

The closer we got to Andrew, the more I noticed how different he looked compared to everyone else inside the room.

Composed.

Controlled.

Untouched by the chaos surrounding him.

That was the terrifying thing about powerful Enigmas.

No matter how overwhelming the atmosphere became around them, they somehow always remained calm enough to make everyone else around them feel emotionally unstable instead.

Andrew noticed us approaching almost immediately.

"There is my favorite nephew," he greeted casually. "You look exhausted."

"That is because I am exhausted," I replied flatly. "I spent the entire day preventing disasters, and I am not your favorite nephew. Nicholas is."

Jeremy chuckled softly under his breath while Andrew smiled knowingly.

Then Andrew’s attention shifted toward Miller.

"And this must be the person Rhoda and Gabriella have been repeatedly mentioning to me."

Miller nearly choked. "Excuse me?"

I immediately groaned. "Can you not start this already?"

Andrew looked genuinely amused now.

"You brought him over personally," he pointed out calmly. "That alone already tells me enough. Besides, I do not particularly mind gaining another nephew."

Miller glanced awkwardly between both of us before extending his hand politely.

"Miller Reid," he introduced himself.

Andrew shook his hand casually. "Andrew Park."

"I know who you are," Miller admitted immediately. "Honestly, after today, the entire hockey world knows who you are."

"That sounds exhausting," Andrew replied dryly. "I generally dislike exhausting things."

Miller chuckled lightly.

Jeremy quietly excused himself afterward to speak with the remaining board members, leaving the three of us standing near the large windows overlooking the rink below.

For a moment, silence settled comfortably between us.

Then Andrew’s eyes slowly returned to me again.

"You wanted to talk about something," he said calmly.

Of course he noticed immediately.

Nothing ever escaped him.

I adjusted my glasses quietly before nodding once.

"Yes."

Beside me, Miller’s expression shifted slightly with concern.

I hesitated briefly before speaking again.

"Before anything else... thank you," I said sincerely while looking directly at Andrew. "For helping Kayden today. If you had not supported him during the voting, things could have ended very differently."

Andrew’s expression softened slightly.

"You should stop carrying everyone’s problems alone," he replied quietly. "You looked like you were preparing for war inside that meeting."

"That is because I practically was."

A faint smile touched his lips before disappearing again.

Then I exhaled slowly and finally forced myself to continue.

"Miller already knows I am an Enigma," I admitted calmly.

Andrew did not react with surprise.

Of course he did not.

He probably figured it out the second he saw us standing together.

Beside me, Miller shifted slightly closer toward my side without even realizing he was doing it.

"I need advice," I admitted quietly after a long pause.

That finally caught Andrew’s full attention.

"What kind of advice?"

For the first time in a very long while, uncertainty twisted heavily inside my chest.

Then finally, I forced the words out anyway.

"How do you suppress the dominant instincts properly?" I asked quietly. "Without eventually losing control completely."

The atmosphere around us shifted instantly.

Miller slowly looked toward me in confusion while Andrew’s expression became unreadable.

"I am not referring to ordinary pheromone management," I continued before either of them could interrupt me. "I mean the actual biological dominance. Territorial aggression. Possessive instincts. Dominance surges."

Miller frowned immediately. "Leo..."

I ignored him completely and kept my eyes fixed on Andrew instead.

"For years, I believed I had everything under control," I admitted honestly. "But recently it has been getting worse."

Andrew remained silent.

That somehow made continuing easier.

"There are moments where my instincts spike so aggressively that it becomes difficult to think rationally," I confessed quietly. "Especially when it involves protecting people I care about."

My throat tightened slightly.

"And I genuinely do not know what happens if I completely lose control one day."

Beside me, Miller stared at me in shock like he had never heard me sound this vulnerable before.

Honestly, neither had I.

Andrew remained silent for several seconds before finally speaking.

"An Enigma’s dominant instincts are directly connected to emotional attachment," he explained calmly. "The stronger the emotional connection becomes, the stronger the biological response develops alongside it."

Miller slowly looked between both of us now.

"So basically," he muttered carefully, "you are saying Enigmas become more dangerous when they fall in love?"

Andrew’s eyes shifted toward him.

"Yes."

The answer came far too quickly.

An uncomfortable silence settled afterward.

Then Andrew continued quietly.

"The problem is that most Enigmas make the mistake of trying to suppress those instincts entirely instead of learning how to regulate them properly."

I frowned slightly. "What exactly is the difference?"

"Suppression creates instability," Andrew explained calmly. "The more aggressively you suppress your instincts, the more violently they eventually resurface later."

Something uncomfortable twisted inside my chest hearing that.

"Then what exactly am I supposed to do?" I asked quietly.

Andrew studied me carefully for several long seconds before answering.

"You learn control," he said simply. "Not repression."

The words lingered heavily between us afterward.

Then Andrew’s gaze briefly shifted toward Miller before returning back to me again.

"And more importantly," he added quietly, "you stop treating emotional attachment like a weakness that needs to be controlled."

For some reason, that sentence hit me harder than I expected.

Beside me, Miller slowly reached for my hand without saying anything.

The warmth of his fingers grounding against mine immediately calmed something restless inside my chest.

Andrew noticed it instantly.

Of course he did.

Nothing ever escaped him.

Then unexpectedly, a faint smile appeared on his face.

"You are already calmer around him," he pointed out casually.

I immediately frowned. "That sounds concerning."

"It should," Andrew replied smoothly. "Because an Enigma who truly falls in love becomes terrifyingly devoted."

Miller looked alarmed.

I looked exhausted.

Meanwhile, Andrew looked entertained.

And somehow, that made the entire conversation feel even more unsettling than before.

What exactly was he even trying to imply?