Semua Bab Resisting The Alpha Cowboy: Bab 101 - Bab 110

★。＼｜／。★VANESSA DAVIS★。／｜＼。★Colton’s arm around me was warm, his body heavy with exhaustion as he breathed evenly against my shoulder. I had spent last night, and this morning taking care of him, making sure he ate, took his medicine, and actually rested for once in his life. He was always the one looking after everyone else, but I could tell this time had hit him hard.He was sick, drained, and barely hanging on before I forced him to let go and rest.I was just beginning to feel like things had settled, like I could relax for a moment, when my phone rang.I tensed, glancing toward the coffee table where my phone buzzed. I carefully reached over, making sure not to wake Colton as I picked it up.The name on the screen made my stomach drop.Dr. Reeves.Something about the sight of it, about the late hour and the still-pouring rain outside, sent a shiver down my spine.I swallowed hard before carefully untangling myself from Colton’s hold, slipping out from beneath his arm. His brows

▄︻デ══━一 COLTON HAYES💥 I woke up again to the sound of rain—still pouring, steady and relentless like the weight pressing down on my chest. Being sick just isn’t for me. I feel like I’ve been run over by a damn truck. Everything hurts. My head, my limbs, even the inside of my eyes when I blink too fast. I’m exhausted just existing. Just being. Laying here and doing nothing is supposed to be restful, right? But it’s not. Not when I’m used to motion. Not when I’m used to moving until my muscles scream for me to stop.The dull throb in my temple pulses with the storm, and when I sit up, I hear it more clearly—the rain smacking the windows, the occasional gust of wind rattling the old wooden frames, and voices. Not loud. Just enough for my brain to register that I wasn’t alone.I scanned the room slowly, and there she was—Vanessa—sitting on the floor with her back pressed against the couch I’d been knocked out on. Her legs stretched in front of her, one bent lazily at the knee. She was w

★。＼｜／。★VANESSA DAVIS★。／｜＼。★I was disappointed by the news I’d gotten. Frustrated. Drained. It was like every lead we chased only circled us right back to the starting line, like some cruel loop we couldn’t escape. The more we uncovered, the more tangled everything became. And now, with Oliver’s call settling heavily on my chest and Abel still silent, I couldn’t stop thinking about Darcy’s blood staining the floor, about the message she died trying to deliver.It was all too much.I glanced over at Colton. He was lying back, his head tilted toward the ceiling, one arm draped lazily over his stomach. His eyes were half-closed, fever still riding him, but he looked better—less pale than this morning. There was a softness to his expression now, a certain peace he only seemed to wear when he wasn’t trying to carry the weight of the entire world on his shoulders.Maybe I could give him something else to focus on. Maybe I could give myself a break from everything, too. Just for a few minu

★。＼｜／。★VANESSA DAVIS★。／｜＼。★Abel and his family… well, Colton’s entire family ended up settling into the house by nightfall. The rain hadn’t let up, in fact, it had gotten worse—loud sheets of it slapping against the windows, wind howling like it had its own voice, and thunder rolling in like a warning drum. We were all grateful the bodies had already been sent out to the city; the last thing we needed was death sitting with us inside the house.It was clear we weren’t going anywhere tonight. We were trapped. And it wasn’t just the weather that had everyone uneasy—it was each other.With everyone scattered around the house, the air had that heavy feel. Everyone was present, but no one felt here. I could tell—everyone was dealing with their own mess.Samson looked hollow, like his mind was a thousand miles away as he sank into the second living room couch—yeah, Colton had a second living room. This house kept revealing itself in new corners and corridors I hadn’t noticed before. Did

▄︻デ══━一 COLTON HAYES💥 The house was too quiet.Even with the storm raging outside, it still felt like everything inside had gone still—like time had frozen in grief. No one was speaking. No one was eating. Dad was seated in the corner chair with his head in his hands, Curtis silently pacing near the window, eyes locked on the rain. Ross was curled up on the stairs with Catia who had returned back after Curtis took her up, holding her as she slept in exhaustion. Ashley hadn’t spoken since Laia was carried in, and Samson… no one even knew where he went.Laia was gone.And with her, something in all of us had gone too.I was soaked through, my clothes clinging to my body, my hands still trembling from how tightly I’d held her. I couldn’t feel the chill of the house, not really. Not with the way my chest ached, my head pounded, and every breath felt like I was inhaling splinters.I sat there beside her body on the couch, unmoving. I hadn’t spoken since they pulled me away from her body.