Chapter 85
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“Amelia!” Aiden called while walking behind her, but she refused to turn.
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“Amelia…” he called again, this time his hand reached out, closing gently but firmly around hers. He spun her toward him, and their bodies collided. The rush of contact sent an electric jolt shooting through her, sharp and undeniable.
Their gazes locked. His brown eyes bored into hers, filled with a storm of emotions, pain, longing, regret. She felt her wolf stir violently, restless inside her, as if answering to his presence.
His scent enveloped her, familiar and maddening, making her chest tighten. Her heart hammered against her ribs, her breath coming in quick, an uneven bursts. He saw it all, the tremor in her lips and the heat in her
eyes.
“Are you okay?” he asked softly, his voice low and ragged, carrying concern so raw it almost broke her.
Okay? She was anything but okay. Sitting in his car had been suffocating while she was drowning in his scent, in his nearness. Her wolf kept flickering between death and life, fighting to awaken fully in his presence. It was torture being reminded of what she once had, and no longer had and what she could never forgive. The hatred she nurtured for him tangled cruelly with the pull that refused to let her go.
She yanked her hand free, pushing herself away from him as though his touch burned.
“What do you want again, Aiden? Why do you keep following me?” she snapped, her voice sharp enough to mask the trembling inside.
“You left your bag in the car,” he said simply, holding it out to her.
Her breath caught. She blinked, glancing at the bag. For a moment, she had thought he was chasing her down again, but no, he was just returning something she had forgotten. Guilt flickered briefly before she smothered it. She took the bag from him, their fingers brushing, and another unwanted shiver ran up her arm.
She turned away, desperate to flee, when his voice stopped her.
“Amelia p>
Her feet froze, but she refused to meet his gaze.
“Thank you for today p>
She finally turned her head. Their eyes met, and his were soft, shimmering with sincerity.
“I mean it, Amelia. Thank you for defending me in front of them. Thank you so much…” His voice cracked, and the weight of his gratitude pressed into her chest.
She still said nothing. But he stepped closer, so close she could feel the warmth of him radiating through the thin space between them.
His hand rose slowly, trembling as though afraid she would shove him away. His fingers slipped through her hair, caressing the strands like they were something precious he had lost and never thought he’d touch again.
18:03 Mon, Oct 20
Chapter 85
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Every instinct screamed at her to push him off, to remind him of the hatred she carried but her wolf refused. Her wolf wanted more.
“You don’t know the effect you have on me, Amelia,” he whispered, his breath ghosting over her lips. His finger trailed lightly down her hair, his chest rising and falling with restraint he barely held onto.
A low growl rumbled from him as his wolf stirred, drunk on her scent. His need to claim her surged, pulling him closer, his lips inches from hers.
Her eyes fluttered shut. Against her will, she waited, her pulse thundering, her body betraying her hatred.
And then p>
A cough.
Sharp, deliberate.
They both turned, dazed, to find Alpha Alaric standing a few steps away, his hands clasped neatly behind his back, his face utterly unreadable.
“Doctor Cassia,” Alaric said flatly.
Cassia snapped back to herself. Her lips pressed into a tight smile as she nodded quickly and hurried away, leaving father and son face to face.
Aiden’s jaw clenched. He shoved his hands deep into his pockets, every muscle tight with frustration. He turned to leave, but his father’s cold voice cut through the air.
“So, you’re going to keep avoiding me because of her p>
Aiden paused, his back stiff. He didn’t turn.
“I heard what you did. You brought Amelia and her son into my home p>
Aiden whirled around, fury igniting in his chest.
“Your home? That is my home, not yours. I built that place with my sweat and blood while you and your wife were too busy traveling the world. You don’t get to tell me who I bring into it. That house hasn’t felt like a home in years but Amelia made it home for me.” His voice cracked with conviction, but his eyes burned with pain.
Alaric’s face darkened.
“You’ve lost your damn mind, Aiden. That woman has twisted her ways into your mind. Since she came back, you’ve been chasing her like a mad dog, blind to reason. She’s using you, manipulating her way back in just to ruin you, to ruin this pack. She’ll turn you into her puppet and destroy everything you’ve built p>
“Then let me be a mad dog, Father,” Aiden spat, stepping closer. His voice rose, shaking with rage and desire. “Let her twist her way into me. Let her use me. I’ll gladly be her puppet if it means she’s in my life again. I crave her, I need her, I want her. And I’ll never stop. I love her and damn it, I love her and not even you stand in my way p>
will
18:03 Mon, Oct 20
Chapter 85
The last word barely left his lips before Alaric’s hand cracked across his cheek.
The sound echoed, sharp and final.
“Do not push me to get rid of her before she even finds the cure,” Alaric growled.
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Aiden laughed then, bitter and broken, the sound more frightening than rage. He leaned close, so close Alaric could feel the tremor of his son’s breath against his skin.
“Try to touch her, Father. Try to harm her. If even a strand of her hair falls off, or a scratch on her skin, I swear I’ll rain hell down on you. Stay away from her p>
Alaric’s eyes widened, real fear flashing in them. His son’s gaze burned with something primal, love so fierce it was madness.
Aiden turned, storming away, his body trembling with fury and longing, leaving his father frozen in horror.
Alaric stood there, shaken to his bones by his son’s threat.
“What has she done to you? This… this isn’t my son. My son obeys me. My son listens to me. My son doesn’t defy me. What is it about this woman, Amelia p>
TBC
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