2. Dante Salvador.

I glanced at my watch. "Damn it".

The full moon was sinking, and the first hint of morning crept over the horizon. If I didn't get home now, I'd have no excuse for being missing when James woke up.

I grabbed my weapons, stuffing them into my bag before sprinting through the abandoned streets, my breath coming in sharp bursts. The adrenaline still pulsed through my veins, my body stronger than it should have been after what I'd endured.

I gritted my teeth, trying to shake the warmth that still hummed under my skin. That wasn't normal. I'd taken healing potions before, but never one that made me feel like this.

My earpiece buzzed in my ear. The organization.

"Alexis," came a voice, cold and controlled. The Handler. "Report."

"You sent me into a trap," I hissed, dodging into a dark alley to avoid passing headlights. "They were waiting for me. That wasn't a rogue pack, it was a damn execution squad."

"They have now been three confirmed reports of this, Werewolf's setting up traps for our hunters," The handler continued "I am not authorized to say much over this line" The radio crackled before the voice returned, flat and impersonal. "We'll debrief at headquarters. Come in once you've secured your location."

I wanted to scream. To smash something. Instead, I kept running. Because as much as I wanted to storm into headquarters and demand answers, I had something more important to do first. I had to get home.

By the time I reached my house, the sky was starting to lighten.

My heart hammered as I slipped in through the backdoor, moving as silently as a shadow. The scent of fresh coffee filled the air, and I froze for a second, panic rising. Was James already awake? No. The house was quiet.

I crept up the stairs, stripping off my bloodstained gear as I went, shoving it into the hidden compartment in the closet. The moment my bedroom door creaked open, I saw James still sound asleep. Relief washed over me. I slid under the covers beside him, my body still running on high alert. His warmth should have been comforting.

Instead, it felt foreign. I couldn't stop thinking about him, About Dante Salvador.

The way he moved. The way his voice curled around my ear. The way he had looked at me, not as prey, not as an enemy... but as something else entirely.

Why had he saved me?  And why, why did I still feel the heat of his touch, hours later?

I turned on my side, staring at the wall, unable to sleep. James shifted beside me, his arm lazily draping over my waist, his breathing deep and steady. Normally, I would have melted into him. Would have felt safe, at home.

Now?, Now I just felt like I did not belong in my own bed, my own home, Maybe it was the lies and what happened tonight.

The sun crept through the window, marking the beginning of a new day. And all I could think about... was a golden-eyed werewolf whispering his name in the dark.

I woke up feeling restless. Sleep had been impossible. No matter how many times I turned over, no matter how tightly I closed my eyes, all I saw was him.

Donte Salvador. His golden eyes, his voice like a whisper in the night. The way he had saved me, held me, healed me. I should have been grateful. Instead, I was obsessed.

I groaned, pressing the heels of my hands into my eyes. Get it together, Alexis.

I was married. I had a life, a home, a husband who loved me. And yet, I had spent the last few hours lying beside James, thinking about another man. No, Not a man, A werewolf.

I was able to get like fifteen minutes of sleep, after waking up, James wasn't beside me,  he had already left for work, leaving behind a note on my nightstand.

Good luck with your interview Tomorrow, remember I will be away for two days, love. You'll do great.

Right. The interview.

I had agreed to it because I was trying to be normal. Because if I started saying no, if I started acting different, James would suspect something.

I couldn't let that happen.

So I forced myself to play the role.

I spent the day cleaning, organizing, folding laundry, doing anything to keep my hands busy, to keep my mind from slipping back into the night before.

But every time I closed my eyes, I felt the heat of Donte's touch, the whisper of his breath against my skin. I threw myself into preparing for the interview.

The next morning, I dressed in a sleek navy-blue dress, modest yet professional, with heels that made me feel powerful. My dark hair was pinned up, my makeup light but polished.

James had been thrilled when I agreed to the interview. He had been pushing me to take a step back from my 'freelance work' if only he knew and move into something stable. Something normal.

That was all James ever wanted, a normal life. And I was trying to give it to him.

I grabbed the keys to one of his cars, sliding into the driver's seat of the smooth, black luxury sedan. The leather was cool beneath my fingertips, the scent of James' cologne still lingering in the air.

I was ready. I kept my hands clenched on the steering wheel, the hum of the engine barely drowning out the racing thoughts in my head. The interview was all that mattered. Looking normal mattered.

By the time I pulled into the towering glass office building where the interview was scheduled, I had forced my heartbeat to slow. The facade of Alexis Sullivan, devoted wife and aspiring professional, was firmly in place.

I stepped out of James' car one of his many luxury vehicles, and straightened my dress, smoothing down the deep navy fabric. I had chosen this outfit carefully. Polished. Professional. Confident. Everything I needed to be today. Everything I wasn't feeling inside.

But I had spent years perfecting the art of deception. This was no different.

With one last deep breath, I strode toward the glass doors, pushing everything, the hunt, the blood, Donte Salvador out of my mind. For now.

The waiting room was cold and sterile, a space designed to intimidate. The walls were sleek, the floor polished marble, and the air smelled faintly of expensive cologne and fresh coffee.

A few other candidates sat in stiff-backed chairs, their eyes flickering nervously around the room. I forced myself to blend in.

I sat down, crossing my legs, keeping my posture perfect. Normal. Completely normal. A woman in a tailored black skirt and white blouse approached, a tablet in her hands. She looked down at me with polite efficiency, her smile practiced but professional.

"Mrs. Sullivan?" She waited, then said again, "Alexis Sullivan?" She said once more pointing her neck slightly towards me

I blinked. "Yes, that's me." The woman nodded. "Mr. Salvador will see you now."

My entire body froze. Salvador!

I must have misheard her. There was no way absolutely no way this was happening.

The air left my lungs. Blood pounded in my ears, my mind snapping back to  that night, to the dark abandoned building, to the man who had whispered that name like a secret against my skin. Donte Salvador. It couldn't be. It couldn't be.

I forced my expression into something calm, but my fingers curled into the arms of the chair, my heart hammering so hard I swore everyone in the room could hear it.

"Mr. Salvador?" I repeated, my voice too steady. Too forced.

"Yes," the assistant said, glancing at her tablet. "Mr. Salvador, CEO of Vidor Industries."