Chapter 10: Chapter 10

SELENE

The moment the door slammed shut, the air in the room changed.

It was thick—almost suffocating—with everything that had just happened. Everything almost had.

I still hadn’t moved. I couldn’t.

My body was locked in place, my knees pressed into the hard floor, my hand clenched on the scrubbing brush. My breath was uneven, my heart pounding so loudly I thought it might shatter through my ribs.

My alpha hadn’t moved either.

He was still standing behind me, so close I could feel the heat of him. The weight of his presence was a force all on its own, pressing into me, surrounding me.

I should have been afraid.

I was afraid.

But not in the way I should have been.

Not in a way that would make me pull away.

I’d felt him reaching for me before Erik had interrupted. Had felt the barely-there brush of his fingers against my waist, a touch so fleeting yet so devastating that it had left me aching for more.

The thought sent another sharp, needy pulse through me, my body betraying me once again.

His breath hitched.

Just slightly.

Like he felt it, too.

I swallowed hard, my lips parting, unsure of what I was about to say—if I was going to speak at all.

But I never got the chance.

Because he moved.

I barely had time to gasp before his hands were on me.

Oh gods.

It wasn’t gentle.

It wasn’t careful.

His fingers dug into my waist as he yanked me up from the floor, turning me so fast my head spun. My back hit the edge of the desk before I could register what was happening, and then he was there—looming over me, pressing forward until there was barely an inch of space between us.

I could feel him.

The heat of his body, the tension rolling off of him in waves.

He was breathing hard, nostrils flaring, his jaw clenched so tightly I thought it might shatter.

Blind or not, he saw me.

He felt me.

His fingers flexed against my waist, as if he was trying to ground himself. As if he was fighting something I didn’t understand.

I was trembling, but I wasn’t pulling away.

I couldn’t.

I didn’t want to.

A low, guttural sound rumbled in his chest, something raw and hungry. It sent a violent shudder through me.

Then—his hand was on my throat.

Not squeezing. Not hurting.

Just holding.

I gasped, my body going rigid as my fingers curled into the desk behind me.

His thumb traced the delicate line of my pulse, and I knew he could feel how erratic it was.

My lips parted, but no words came.

There was nothing to say.

His breath was so close, brushing against my skin. His grip tightened, just barely, just enough to make my head tilt back further.

And then, gods help me, he leaned in.

I should have stopped him.

I should have.

But instead, I melted.

A soft, involuntary whimper slipped past my lips, and that was what did it.

The man snapped.

His mouth was on mine before I could even process what was happening.

And fuck.

It wasn’t soft.

It wasn’t hesitant.

It was devastating.

A collision of heat and dominance, a clash of something far too primal to be right.

But it felt right.

His hands were everywhere. ~Everywhere~. Sliding down my waist, gripping my hips, pulling me closer—as if he needed me against him, as if it wasn’t enough, as if I wasn’t enough.

A desperate, aching sound tore from my throat, and I didn’t even realize I had lifted my hands until my fingers were tangling in his hair, pulling him closer.

He growled into my mouth.

Deep. Possessive.

His hand slid down, down, gripping my thigh, before lifting me onto the desk.

But as quick as it came, his heat was gone. Ripped away so violently that it left me gasping.

I blinked, dazed, my hands still reaching for him even though he was already across the room.

It took me a second to see him—really see him.

My alpha stood rigid, his chest heaving, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

His entire body shook with tension. With restraint.

His head was tilted down, but his unfocused eyes were burning—stormy, unreadable.

I barely had time to register the shift before he roared in frustration. It was a sound so raw, so furious, that I flinched, my body curling into itself instinctively.

He turned on me.

“Get. Out.”

The words were guttural.

A command.

A punishment.

My throat tightened.

I didn’t move.

I couldn’t.

He took a sharp, trembling breath, but his hands were still shaking.

“I said get out.”

His voice cracked, rough with something dark, something barely restrained.

Something that sent a sharp pulse of fear through me.

I swallowed hard, scrambling off the desk, my legs barely supporting me as I backed toward the door.

He didn’t move.

Didn’t look at me.

Didn’t say anything else.

Just stood there, shaking, his breath ragged and uneven.

I fumbled for the door handle, my hands trembling so badly it took two tries to open it.

And then I ran.

My chest ached, my throat burning with the weight of unsaid things, with the confusion, with the raw, lingering sensation of him still on my lips.

I didn’t stop running until I was far from his quarters.

I didn’t dare.

I didn’t stop running until my legs gave out.

My knees hit the cold stone floor outside the alpha’s wing, my breath coming in ragged, uneven gasps. My hands shook as I pressed them against my chest, as if I could physically hold in the riot of emotions clawing their way through me.

What the hell had just happened?

My alpha had ~kissed me~.

No. He had devoured me, like a man starved, like I was something he had been denying himself for too long.

And then he had thrown me away.

Terror and humiliation warred inside me, twisting into something dark and unbearable. I’d felt the raw hunger in him, the way his body had reacted to mine. There was no mistaking what he had wanted in that moment.

But instead of claiming it, he had pushed me away.

Like he hated himself for wanting me.

Like I was something wrong.

I squeezed my eyes shut, my stomach twisting violently.

I’d never belonged anywhere—not to the pack, not to the wolves, not to the world that Luxury Theron ruled over so effortlessly.

I should have known better than to think he might want me.

Not really.

Not beyond whatever primal force was pulling us together since that first night.

A sharp gust of wind rushed down the corridor, chilling my overheated skin. I forced myself to stand, wrapping my arms around my waist as I turned toward my quarters.

I couldn’t go back to him.

Not after that.

Not when I could still feel the ghost of his hands on my skin, the way he had gripped me like I was his.

I needed distance.

But what I needed didn’t matter.

Because the next morning, Erik would be banging on my door.

LUXURY

I paced the length of my quarters, muscles coiled so tight I felt like I might snap. My hands still shook, my body still thrummed with the phantom heat of ~her~.

Selene.

Her scent was everywhere, clinging to the very air in my room, a reminder of just how close I’d come to breaking.

To ~taking~ her.

I cursed under my breath, dragging a hand through my hair.

I had lost control.

I had ~kissed~ her.

Worse—I wanted more.

I could still feel the soft weight of her in my grip, the way she had arched for me, offering herself without even realizing what she was doing.

And I’d nearly taken it.

A sharp growl ripped from my throat.

~This can’t happen again.~

She wasn’t ready.

And neither was I.

I didn’t trust myself around her—not when my wolf wanted to claim her, mark her, drag her into my bed and make sure no one else could ever ~touch~ her.

I needed to put distance between us.

So I did the only thing I could think of.

I sent for Erik.

And this time, when he entered my quarters, I forced myself to focus.

“What was so important?” I asked, my voice rougher than I intended.

There was a pause. A beat too long.

Then—

“The humans,” Erik said, his tone edged with tension. “They’re closing in.”

The words snapped through me, sharp and immediate, shoving every thought of Selene to the back of my mind.

I turned fully to face him, my posture shifting. “Where?”

“The eastern border,” he said. “The scouts reported movement last night. More than just passing wanderers—this was ~organized.~ Their numbers are growing.”

I exhaled sharply. ~Of course.~

We’d been waiting for this. It was only a matter of ~when.~

“Have they crossed?”

“Not yet,” Erik said. “But they’re getting bolder. If I had to guess, they’re testing us. Seeing if we react. Seeing if we ~care.~”

A slow, simmering heat curled in my gut, but this was different from the fire Selene had ignited in me. This was cold. Calculated.

~They thought we wouldn’t react?~

“They’ll get their answer soon enough,” I muttered.

Erik nodded. “What are your orders?”

“Get everyone on high alert,” I said. “I want every Nightshade wolf running emergency drills—no gaps, no excuses. Full sweeps of the land, every border patrolled in double shifts. We don’t wait for them to make a move—we make them ~hesitate~ before they even try.”

“Yes, Alpha.”

I turned toward the window, inhaling deep, stretching my senses. I couldn’t ~see~ the threat creeping at the edges of our land, but I could ~feel~ it.

It was only a matter of time.

“We’ll hold a full pack meeting,” I said, rolling my shoulders back. “Everyone. From every corner of our land. If the humans want to test us, they should be reminded exactly who ~owns~ these lands.”

Erik’s voice was steady. “It’ll be done.”

I nodded once, still looking out over the dark expanse of our territory. Then I made myself say the next words. The ones that ~ached~ in a way I hated.

“Reassign her,” I said stiffly. “She’s no longer to work under me.”

Silence.

It stretched between us, thick, weighted.

Then—

“Are you certain, Alpha?”

Something in my chest went tight.

“Yes,” I said, jaw clenching. “Do it.”

Another pause. This one heavier.

I felt Erik hesitate. Felt the weight of his unspoken words.

But he didn’t push.

He only nodded.

And left me to drown in my own self-destruction.

SELENE

“You’re being reassigned,” Erik said, his voice flat.

I stared at him, my stomach dropping. “What?”

He sighed, crossing his arms. “You heard me. You’re no longer under the alpha’s direct service. You’ll be placed with the general staff.”

I didn’t know what hurt more—the fact that the alpha had so easily pushed me aside, or the fact that Erik looked pleased about it.

I swallowed the lump in my throat. “Did he…did the alpha say why?”

Erik’s lips curled slightly. “The alpha doesn’t have to explain himself.”

That should have been answer enough.

But I heard what he didn’t say.

I wasn’t worthy.

I wasn’t good enough.

And gods, I’d been so stupid.

Of course he didn’t want me.

I was just some mortal girl, lingering in a world I didn’t belong to.

The kiss…

That moment…

It had meant nothing to him.

I lifted my chin, forcing the pain down deep.

“Understood,” I said coolly.

And I turned on my heel before Erik could see the way my hands trembled.