THE PLACE HE NEVER SHARES

CHAPTER 4

The elevator descended in silence.

Aria stood beside Damien and tried, unsuccessfully, not to notice him. The private car was large enough for ten people, yet somehow it felt too small and too quiet, too intimate. Heat radiated from his body. That strange scent returned with every breath: wood, smoke, and something wild she still could not name. Each inhale made her pulse climb.

Ridiculous. She had known him for only a few hours. A few hours should not feel natural. Dangerous, maybe. Natural was the problem.

The doors opened onto an underground garage lined with luxury vehicles. Aria’s eyes widened slightly.

“Wow.”

Damien glanced at her. “What?”

“You weren’t kidding when you said you were a businessman.”

A faint smile tugged at his mouth. “Something like that.”

He led her toward a sleek black car. The moment he unlocked it, Aria stopped.

Damien turned. “What is it?”

She folded her arms. “Before I get into a mysterious billionaire’s car in the middle of the night, I should probably know where we’re going.”

His lips twitched. “Billionaire?”

“You have a private elevator and enough cars to start a dealership.”

Damien chuckled, and the sound sent an unexpected flutter through her chest.

“We’re getting coffee.”

Aria blinked. “Coffee?”

“Disappointed?”

“A little.”

Amusement deepened in his eyes. “You expected something more dramatic?”

“I don’t know. Maybe a secret underground lair.”

“That’s on Tuesdays.”

She laughed genuinely, unguarded. Once again, Damien found himself staring. His wolf stirred at once.

Mate. Mine.

The possessive growl moved through him. He ignored it and tried to.

Across the city, Isabella Steele sat in her penthouse with a fresh report in her hands.

She hated every word.

Aria Johnson. Twenty-six. Actress. No werewolf blood. No powerful family. No political connections. Nothing. A nobody.

And somehow Damien’s wolf had reacted to her.

Isabella crushed the paper. “No.”

The word escaped through clenched teeth. It wasn’t fair. For years she had stood beside him, preparing herself for the role of Luna Queen enduring council meetings, pack expectations, endless political performance. And now a human actress was going to take her place?

Absolutely not.

Her phone rang. The man she had hired earlier.

“Did you find anything else?”

“Only one thing.”

Isabella frowned. “What?”

He hesitated. “Damien has never taken a woman to that location before.”

Silence.

Then Isabella’s expression darkened because she knew exactly which location he meant.

The lake house.

Aria watched city lights blur past the car window.

The drive was peaceful in a way that unsettled her. Most conversations with men felt like performances. With Damien, even silence felt safe, and that scared her more than awkwardness would have.

She glanced at his hands on the wheel: strong, steady, capable. Her eyes darted away. Hours ago, she had been crying over Jason. Now she was noticing another man’s hands. Pathetic.

As if sensing the thought, Damien spoke. “You’re frowning again.”

Aria groaned. “Can you stop noticing everything?”

“No.”

“That’s creepy.”

“I’ve been called worse.”

The corner of her mouth lifted as her phone buzzed.

Jason. Another number. Another attempt.

Please talk to me. I love you.

Anger surged through her, sharp and clean. Love did not look like betrayal. Love did not look like another woman in her bed. She deleted the message and blocked the number again without hesitation.

Beside her, Damien remained silent. His grip on the steering wheel tightened.

Good. The man deserved it.

If Damien ever met him, his wolf would growl at the thought.

Forty minutes later, they arrived.

Aria stepped out of the car and froze.

The lake stretched endlessly before her. Moonlight moved across the water. The forest swayed in the night breeze, and in the distance, a wooden house overlooked everything. The view stole her breath.

“Oh, my God.”

Damien watched her carefully. “You like it.”

“I love it.”

For the first time all evening, the sadness left her face. Seeing that settled something restless inside him. This place mattered. Very few people knew it existed. Fewer still had ever been invited. Bringing Aria here had felt natural, as if she belonged. The realization both comforted and unsettled him.

Inside, the lake house was elegant without coldness: warm wood, soft light, lived-in comfort. Not the sterile luxury she had expected from a billionaire.

“This doesn’t seem like you,” Aria said.

Damien raised an eyebrow. “What does that mean?”

She looked around. “I expected something colder.”

His expression softened. “This place belonged to my mother.”

Something rare flickered across his face, vulnerability, quickly controlled. Aria noticed at once. For the first time since meeting him, she understood he was not invincible. He carried pain too. Different from hers. Pain nonetheless.

“I’m sorry.”

Damien looked at her. “For what?”

“Whatever happened.”

For several seconds, he only stared. No one usually noticed things like that. No one usually cared. Somehow she did, and that made her dangerous in ways she could not yet imagine.

Later they sat on the wooden deck overlooking the lake, two cups of coffee between them. The night was quiet. Peaceful. Almost perfect.

Until Damien stiffened.

Aria noticed immediately. “What is it?”

His eyes narrowed toward the forest, listening, watching, sensing. Something was wrong. His wolf snapped, fully alert.

Danger was close. Very close.

A low growl threatened his throat.

“Damien?” Aria’s heartbeat quickened.

He stood abruptly. The calm man she had spent hours with was gone. In his place stood someone far more dangerous. Far more powerful.

“Get inside.”

The command shocked her. “What?”

“Now.”

His voice left no room for argument. Fear crawled up her spine, and then she heard it.

A howl, deep and terrifying . Not far away.

Another followed. Then another. The sound echoed through the trees.

Aria went pale. “What was that?”

Damien’s eyes flashed red.

This time she saw it clearly.

Before she could react, several enormous wolves emerged from the darkness. One stepped forward, glowing eyes locked directly on Aria.

Damien moved instantly placing himself between her and the pack, protective and absolute, as if his life depended on it.

The lead wolf lowered its head.

Then it spoke.

“My Alpha”

Aria’s entire world stopped.

Wolves were not supposed to talk and Damien was one of them.

Damien did not look surprised at all with her facial expression.