Voren went completely still, every muscle locking up as the words hit him. An old man. The phrase alone sent a cold spike of fury racing under his skin, and he had to fight hard to keep it from spilling into his voice.
If Esperanza called someone an old man, she meant someone around the same age as the elders back in the pack, someone like Voren's father, the ones who carried decades of weight and secrets in their bones. That possibility made his blood run hotter than it should have.
He had hoped to face someone around the same age as him, not an elder but Voren did not mind sending one to an early grave if his suspicions were true.
"Grandpa should know him. They talked like friends," Esperanza reported, trusting her father to know the rest and handle it amicably.
Indeed, hearing that only tightened the knot in Voren's chest. He reached down and scooped her up into his arms, pressing a soft kiss to her cheek.
