4| LENORA

The room was dark, the soft hum of a distant city filling the silence. I stirred slowly, my body aching with a dull, persistent ache. My head throbbed as my memories began to surface—vivid, haunting, and unmistakable. The bar. The music. The dance. Him.

The weight of it all pressed down on me, suffocating and relentless. I opened my eyes, my breath catching as they settled on the man next to me. His golden eyes were closed, his dark hair tousled, his expression soft in sleep. He looked peaceful.

Elijah.

A jolt of panic ran through me. What had I done? What had we done?

I sat up quickly, the blanket slipping from my shoulders. My heart pounded in my chest, my breath uneven. I grabbed the edge of the blanket, clutching it tightly around me as though it could protect me from the memory, from him.

My memories of last night were vivid, but it felt like I was watching someone else do all those things. The conversation, the dance, the desperation I felt, the need, the sex, the way I pleaded for him to take me, the way I unabashedly reacted to his touch…

“Fuck me,” I pressed my palms into my face. I could sit here for hours gaping over how ridiculously stupid I had been, but I didn’t have time. I needed to get home and get ready for work and down the potion that would snuff out the presence of my wolf.

I looked around then reached into the cabinet to pull out a pen and paper. I scribbled my words haphazardly, flinching when he turned over in his sleep— Thank you for last night.

That was all, nothing else needed to be said. No exchange of phone numbers, no last names, no hints as to where we could find each other. Exactly as it was meant to be, this was meant to be a one night thing anyway. My fingers trembled as I carefully placed it on the nightstand without waking him. I didn’t want to have to face him.

Even now, as he lay there next to me, we weren’t touching, not even talking. I felt that tug, something within me didn’t want to leave him there. It was an illogical feeling and I chalked it up to the effects of spending the night with him and I didn’t like it. I couldn’t afford such feelings.

Looking away, I got out of bed and hurriedly grabbed my clothes from the floor, slipping them on without much thought. I crept out of the room, careful not to wake him up and then left the club, avoiding the gazes of the staff that were cleaning up after last night.

I hailed a cab back to my apartment and within minutes I arrived and hurried up the stairs and into the small, intimate space I’d learnt to call a home my last two months of living here.

I suddenly felt very tired, drained, and then there were the echoes of strain caused by my wolf’s presence. I quickly moved toward the small kitchen, and found the small vial tucked away in a drawer. It was my salvation, my shield from the parts of me I couldn’t control—the wolf that stirred beneath my skin, wild and restless.

The potion slid down my throat smoothly, the bitterness a small reminder of what I had to do to stay grounded. Almost immediately, the edges of the strain began to dull, the whispers of my wolf retreating into silence once again.

With a sigh, I took off my clothes. As much as I’d love to ruminate on the events of last night and my own stupidity, I had a lot to do. Minutes later, I was showered and dressed. I thought the hot water would burn off the effects of last night, but the moment my eyes shut, I saw his face and I frowned.

I shouldn’t be thinking about him, he was a stranger, it was just one night. I repeated this over and over, but I felt like I was losing control over my own damn thoughts.

Later, I stood in front of the mirror, pinning my hair up into the same sleek bun that Elijah had unceremoniously unraveled last night.

Staring at myself, I forced my demeanour to hide away anything that could give away how I truly felt. My usual composed demeanor now a shield against the emotions threatening to overwhelm me. I forced back any and all thoughts of Elijah, and ignore the hollow pit in my stomach as well

The walk to Lupine Moon University was brisk, and soon, the building was looming over me. It was a large, old building— stone walls, tall windows and well trimmed grass. It was impressive to say the least, and I couldn’t help but feel even more nervous as I walked into the winding, busy halls to where the faculty quarters were sequestered.

Those nerves that sent me to that bar last night nearly suffocated me today as I made my way to my faculty’s wing. Did I deserve to be here? I barely got the opportunity to teach before Marcus insisted on our mating and after then I was too busy being the ‘Luna’ to even start my career. But this was supposed to be my fresh start, my chance at living the life I should have lived if it weren’t for Marcus.

If it weren’t for Victor agreeing to help me hide here, I’d probably have been taken back to Marcus by now. But the payment for his help seemed even more daunting than being dragged off back to my ex-husband.

I waved the thoughts away. Like I didn’t have enough things to dampen my mood today.

I swallowed back those feelings of inadequacy, and slowly made my way down the hallway. Most of the professors were lingering about their offices, laughing and chatting amongst themselves, but as I passed, all attention seemed to fall onto me.

Their glances were sharp, measuring, assessing. Most avoided eye contact with me altogether, some offering polite nods, while others openly scowled at my presence.

Victor had made it clear that the role I was getting now was one that many professors within Lupine Moon were already vying for. For someone like me to just come here and take it out of nowhere… it wasn’t surprising that they weren’t all that welcoming.

It was all part of the territory, I knew that.

After taking a moment to familiarise myself with my office and putting aside the book I brought with me. I sucked in a deep breath and made my way to my first class.

I deliberately walked slowly, giving myself time once more to calm down. I pushed through the door to My lecture hall. The students were already seated, murmuring among themselves until they fell silent the moment I walked in.

Hundreds of stares weighed on me, but I kept my chin up and walked over to the lectern, dropping the material on the smooth surface. I looked up then parted my lips to introduce myself, only for my words to get stuck in my throat when that feeling washed over me. That awareness, that pull, the same thing I felt last night when I looked at...

My gaze darted across the room, jumping over one unfamiliar face to another until I landed on his, he was seated in the front row, arms crossed, looking half as shocked as I was.

Golden eyes, dark hair, beautiful features and the sparks that crackled in the space between us.

Ellijah.

My eyes widened. The guy I just spent the night with was my student.