06. Dine With The Devil I Know

ARIELLA….

The air at the table felt like it had teeth. Zach’s father was still talking, something about a new property deal, but nobody was really listening. Not when Vaughn’s glare was aimed squarely at me, and Zach’s hand was still resting lightly against my back like a silent claim.

“So,” Vaughn said finally, leaning back in his chair with calculated ease, “how exactly did this happen? One minute you’re with me, the next you’re playing house with my stepbrother. Seems… quick.”

I opened my mouth, but Zach beat me to it.

“When you know, you know,” he said smoothly, taking a sip of his wine.

Vaughn let out a sharp laugh. “Oh, please. What’s the real story, Ariella? Did you marry him because you love him, or because you knew it would piss me off?”

I felt my father-in-law’s eyes flick to me, assessing. The last thing I wanted was for this to turn into a spectacle.

“It’s none of your concern, Vaughn.” I said through gritted teeth. Does he want me to tell his father how he used me for his own benefits and now cast me aside to find a bigger fish he thought she's.

“Sounds like a yes,” he said, smirking.

Zach’s hand shifted from my back to rest over mine on the table. “She married me because I’m not you,” he said evenly. “That’s all that matters.”

The smirk dropped from Vaughn’s face. “You always were good at stealing what’s mine, weren’t you?”

“She was never yours,” Zach replied, his voice low but lethal.

For a long moment, the two of them just stared at each other, the tension so sharp I was sure you could hear it hum.

“Alright,” Zach’s father said, his voice mild but firm. “Enough.”

The conversation limped along after that, real estate, mutual acquaintances, polite questions directed at me that I answered with measured calm. But every so often, I’d catch Vaughn watching me with a look I couldn’t quite read.

And every single time, Zach would meet his gaze without blinking, like he was silently daring him to try something.

By the time dessert arrived, I knew one thing for certain: this wasn’t just about me anymore. This was a war between them. And whether I wanted to be or not… I was right in the middle.

Vaughn excused himself and walked away when he got a call. I was feeling suffocated so I excuse myself too.

“I need to use the rest room.” Saying that I got up and walked towards the restroom. I closed the washroom door behind me and leaned against the cool tile wall, trying to calm the frantic beat of my heart. The air outside had been suffocating, Zach’s presence on one side, Vaughn’s burning stare on the other. I turned toward the sink, staring at the reflection of the pale, tensed woman in the mirror might have the answers I didn't. I splash my face with cold water, but the relief was short-lived.

The door clicked shut behind me.

I froze.

The scent hit me before the sound of his voice did, familiar, intoxicating, dangerous. Vaughn. I turned and there he was standing in the doorway, shoulders tense, jaw clenched. The sight of him here, this close sent a shiver down my spine.

“What are you doing?” I demanded, voice low but unsteady.

“What am I doing?” His laugh was bitter, almost mocking. He stepped forward, forcing me to retreat until my back brushed the wall. “What are you doing, Ariella? You married him? My stepbrother?” His eyes searched mine, wild with hurt. His jaw clenched, “You loved me. You still love me.”

My heart pounded so loud I could barely hear him. “Vaughn, I—”

He stepped forward, closing the space between us until my back hit the cool tile wall. My pulse skittered. I could feel the heat rolling off him, the raw pull of the bond that had never broken.

“We’re still fated mates,” he said, his voice breaking with a mix of rage and longing. “You know what that means. You still belong to me. We never rejected each other, your bond to him is nothing compared to what we have.” he said, his voice rough now, almost a plea beneath the fury. “You still belong to me. You’re still mine, Ariella.”

His words hit like a punch to the gut. The truth in them was dangerous, because I felt it too. The bond hummed under my skin, calling, tempting, betraying every reason I’d told myself for walking away.

I wanted to say something. Anything. But my throat was tight, my hands trembling at my sides.

Because at that moment, with his breath brushing my face, I wasn’t sure if I was fighting him… or myself.

“Stop,” a whisper left my mouth, my own voice felt alien to me. “It’s over.”

But the way he looked at me said he didn’t believe that for a second.

Vaughn’s hand was braced against the wall beside my head, his eyes locked on mine as if daring me to deny the bond between us. Vaughn’s shadow was all around me, his breath mingling with mine, his eyes locking me in place like there was no world outside of this moment. My pulse was frantic, my mind screaming pushed him away, but the mate bond was a cruel, silken chain, pulling me closer instead.

His fingers trailed down my arm, and I swore I could hear my heartbeat in my ears, until another sound cut through.

The doorknob rattled.

“Ariella?” Zach’s voice came from the other side, calm but edged with curiosity. “You’ve been gone for a while.”

I froze, panic surging in my body. Vaughn’s smirk was slow, deliberate.

“I guess your new husband’s come to rescue his little wife,” he murmured, his tone dripping with challenge. He didn’t move away.

The lock turned, and the door swung open.

Zach stepped in, his gaze shifting from my flushed face to Vaughn’s looming figure far too close to me. His eyes darkened instantly.

“What the hell is going on here?” His voice was low, dangerous. His fists clenched at his sides.

Vaughn straightened, but not without one last lingering look at me. A look that said this isn’t over. “Just having a little… conversation,” he said smoothly. “Between two people who share… history.”

“Your wife and I go way back. Don't we Ariella?"

Zach’s jaw tightened. He took a step forward, the tension in the air snapping tight. “Your history is irrelevant. She’s my wife now. Get away from her. ”

“Or what?" Vaughn challenged, his tone low and dangerous.

My throat tightened as both men stared each other down, the tension coiling so thick in the air I could barely breathe. I knew if I didn’t say something, this could turn into more than just words.

In a blink, Zach’s hand shot out, grabbing Vaughn by the collar. Vaughn’s smirk vanished, replaced by a cold glare, and I felt the bond flare between us in dangerous protest—like it didn’t want them fighting.

“Stop it!” My voice cracked, my hands shooting out to push between them. “Both of you, stop!”

Zach’s grip didn’t loosen. “Why was he so close to you, Ariella?”

I swallowed hard, heat rising in my cheeks, not just from guilt but from the bond’s lingering pull. “It’s not what you think.”

Vaughn chuckled darkly, eyes locked on Zach. “It’s exactly what he thinks.”

“Vaughn, enough!” I snapped, shoving him back with more force than I thought I had. He stumbled a step, his jaw tightening, but he didn’t retaliate.

Zach’s arm was still tense under my hand, his glare locked on his stepbrother like he was ready to tear him apart.

“This isn’t the place,” I said, voice low but firm, my chest still heaving. “Not here. Not now.”

Neither of them moved at first, but finally, Zach released Vaughn’s collar with a sharp shove. Vaughn straightened his shirt slowly, his smirk returning as if nothing had happened.

“This isn’t over,” he murmured, to both of us, I suspected, before brushing past Zach and leaving the washroom.

I stayed there for a moment, pinned between Zach’s heavy stare and the echo of Vaughn’s touch, wondering how much longer I could survive in the middle of this war.

We both returned to the table where Alpha Philip was waiting for us. We couldn't make him wait for us. The father and son again engrossed in polite conversation. But I could feel Zach’s tension radiating beside me like a storm waiting to break. He didn't speak to me during the rest of the lunch, his hand resting on the table but curled tight into fists. Every time Vaughn's voice drifted across the room, my stomach knotted.

Just one day. Tomorrow I'm going to strip down your smug face and reject you. Then I will see how you hold this same smug look. I made up my mind with determination while staring at him.

The second we stepped out of the restaurant, Zach’s hand closed around mine, not gently and he guided me towards the car in taut silence.

Once the door shut, the air between us thickened. He didn't start the engine. He just sat there, gripping the steering wheel.

“Tell me the truth," He demanded, his voice low but sharp.

“Why was Vaughn that close to you?" I hesitated, my gaze dropping to my lap. “It's complicated."

“Complicated?" He laughed bitterly, but there was no humor in it.

“You think I'm going to sit back and watch him circle you like that? My stepbrother? No, Ariella." His eyes cut to mine, and the hurt in them twisted something in my chest.

“I WON'T LET HIM TOUCH WHAT'S MINE.”

"Zach,”

"No,” his voice hardened, leaving no room for argument. "Tomorrow. At the project signing event, you are going to reject him… publicly.”

"I have already made a plan for this. You don't have to order me. I know what I have to do. Even though I'm not bound to answer you, still, I'm letting you know why I let him come so close to me. Because the Mate bond between us is strong. I don't have any interest in having any kind of relationship with a cheater.” Saying that I got down from his car.

"Don't follow me." Saying that I shut the door with a thud venting my anger on it.

I was mad at him for behaving like that with me. I'm his wife, it doesn't mean he owns me. He can't tell me what to do.” I hired a cab and left for home. I have many things to do for tomorrow's event. I don't have time for this shit.

It was nine o'clock but Zach hadn't come back home yet. I was working on my laptop in the living room sitting on his couch. I was so exhausted that I drifted off on the couch, laptop still open on my lap.

I woke up to the faint sound of the door clicking shut, then the rustle of footsteps. My eyes fluttered open halfway, heavy with fatigue, and I saw Zach standing in the dim glow of the lamp. He looked tired, his tie loosened, his hair slightly mussed, his shoulders tense like he was carrying the weight of the world.

For a moment, he just stood there, staring at me. His expression softened, the anger I had seen earlier replaced by something quieter… something almost guilty.

Zach walked over, carefully shutting the laptop and setting it aside. His fingers brushed against my hand as he did, lingering there as if he wasn't sure whether to hold or let it go. He thought I was sleeping.

“Ariella," he called me in a low voice as if afraid to wake me up fully. "I'm sorry… for earlier."

I stayed still, my lashes low against my cheeks, though my heart picked up at the sound of his voice.

“I shouldn't have … behaved like that earlier.” He admitted, his voice rough, stripped of its usual certainty. "I just … the thought of him near you… close to you… it drives me insane. I can't stand it. The thought of losing you again scared me. I didn't want him to take you away from me.”

He crouched down beside the couch, his hand brushing against my hair this time, gently tucking it behind my ear. The warmth of his touch was careful, almost reverent, so unlike the tension that had burned between us earlier.

‘I will never go back to Vaughn again, Zach. I hadn't rejected him yet because I wanted to reject him when he got to know about my real identity. The guilt of losing me will be ten times worse. I could have rejected him the same day I found him cheating on me. But I didn't. I waited for the right time. And tomorrow is the day when he will be shot by two pains. His dream of becoming the son-in-law of the Davenport family will be shattered down.’ I thought in my mind.

"I’ll never do that again. I will try at least… for both of us. I'm sorry again.” Saying that Zach leaned forward and pressed a kiss against my forehead, warm, and lingering.

By the time I stirred, pretending to wake up, he’d pulled back, his expression caught between guilt and something deeper, I couldn't name it.

“Zach?" I murmured, my voice still husky from sleep.

He straightened slightly, clearing his throat. “Go back to sleep. I’ll… carry you to the bed.”

And when he slipped his arms under me, lifting me as though I weighed nothing, I didn't protest. I just let my head fall against his chest, hearing the steady beat of his heart beneath his shirt, steady but not calm. Because both of us knew tomorrow was going to be a big day for us.