CHAPTER 4

CALEB'S POV

My heartbeat thundered inside my ears.

One second.

Two.

Three....

Nothing.

I cautiously lowered my arms, the Maybach had stopped less than a foot away from me. I stared at the gleaming hood in disbelief.

The driver's door flew open. A middle-aged man hurried toward me. "Young man!" He grabbed my shoulders. "Are you hurt?"

"I..." My voice shook. "I'm okay."

The driver exhaled heavily. "Thank heavens."

He glanced at the tire marks stretching across the road. "If I had reacted a second later..."

He didn't finish the sentence, neither of us needed him to. Behind us, Dorian's gang emerged from the alley.

They slowed. Stopped... Every one of them stared at the Maybach. Then at its license plate.

Dorian's face changed, his arrogance disappeared. "Let's go."

One by one, the gang melted back into the darkness. I frowned. Why would a license plate scare men like them?

The driver noticed my confusion. "They won't bother you tonight."

"I... I'm sorry." I bowed slightly. "They were chasing me because they wanted my salary."

He nodded sympathetically. "These streets have become worse."

Only then did I notice the tinted rear window. Someone was sitting inside but I was unable to see who it was, I bowed again. "I'm terribly sorry for the inconvenience."

The window never lowered and the passenger never spoke.

The driver smiled politely. "Would you like us to take you home?"

I shook my head. "My house is only two blocks away."

"If you're certain." He said.

"I am." I said.

He gave one final nod before returning to the car. The Maybach pulled away with effortless elegance, disappearing toward the city's shopping district. I watched until its taillights vanished.

Whoever had been sitting in the back...

...had unknowingly saved my life.

The moment I stepped inside the Dawson mansion, Victoria's voice hit me before I could even remove my shoes.

"Caleb Dawson!" I winced, my shoulders tightening against the inevitable. She stormed into the foyer, her silk dress rustling like the skin of a snake. "What took you so long?"

"I had work," I muttered, not looking her in the eye.

"I don't care," she snapped. She looked me up and down, her lip curling in disdain. "You still aren't dressed? Augustus will be here any minute!"

I didn't wait to hear the rest of her lecture. "I'm going!" I rushed downstairs toward my room in the basement, the air shifting from the stale scent of the foyer to the cool, damp basement shadows.

My room was acceptable, it was renovated after Victoria transferred me here so her daughter could use my original bedroom.

The first thing I did was head straight for the bathroom. Warm water washed away the sweat from running, the sticky residue of a melted milkshake from my grueling shift, and the exhaustion clinging to my bones like lead. For fifteen minutes, I simply stood beneath the spray, trying to wash away the day itself, but the dread of tonight remained.

When I stepped out, I wrapped a towel around my waist, water dripping onto the cold tile. I reached for my clothes... and froze... the suit. I left it outside Victoria's room.

"You've got to be kidding me..." I hissed.

I hurried upstairs, towel cinched tight, nerves fraying. Thankfully, the garment bag still hung from the doorknob exactly where she’d left it. I grabbed it, relief washing over me. Mission accomplished... I turned to leave.

Click.

Every muscle in my body is locked. A cold, metallic voice spoke behind me. "Don't fucking move if you love your life."

Something hard and unforgiving pressed against the back of my head... a gun.

Years of Alpha combat training took over before my brain could even register the threat. I spun, my leg lashing out in a practiced arc. The armed stranger staggered sideways, my kick knocking his aim off target... the pistol never fired.

He recovered almost instantly. He was fast... much faster than anyone I’d sparred with before. I drove a punch toward his ribs, but he caught my wrist with the ease of a man swatting a fly. I twisted free and threw another strike. Blocked again... the stranger countered with frightening precision, forcing me backward across the hallway.

Who is this guy?

Downstairs, Victoria called out, "Augustus! Where are you?!"

That single moment of distraction cost me. The man stepped inside my guard, seized my arm, and drove me back until my shoulders struck the wall with a jarring thud. "Enough... yield now."

His voice was calm, commanding, and dangerous. Gray eyes met mine... eyes that were cold, sharp, and impossible to ignore.

In one fluid, brutal motion, he flipped me. Before I could regain my footing, he had pinned my arms high over my head with just one hand, his grip like a steel shackle.

My breath hitched, but it wasn't just the physical restraint that left me reeling. As he loomed over me, the air between us suddenly thickened. A scent—musky, heavy, and intoxicating... rolled off him in waves.

His pheromones flooded the narrow hallway, thick and suffocating. They hit my senses like a physical blow, grounding my knees and turning my heart like a frantic bird trapped in a cage.

My head swam... fuck, the scent was addictive, demanding submission, and my Alpha instincts were screaming at me to yield to the sheer dominance radiating from him.

"Who the fuck are you? Are you my girlfriend's lover?" he demanded, his voice dropping an octave. "And why are you half-dressed in my woman's house?"

My breathing turned ragged under the weight of his pheromones. "I—I'm Caleb."

His expression didn't change, though his eyes darkened as he scrutinized me. "Caleb who?"

"Caleb Dawson." I said quickly.

"Never heard of you." He hissed.

"I'm Victoria's stepson," I gasped, struggling against his grip, though my limbs felt heavy and sluggish under the influence of his aura.

His brow furrowed. "Don't lie to me."

"I.... do not!" I tried to talk sense on him.

"Victoria told me she only has two daughters." He said with conviction.

I struggled, but the more I fought, the more his scent wrapped around me, pulling me into a trance. "I'm telling the truth!"

"Then explain why I've never heard your name? And I definitely saw any picture of you around the house." He growled.

"I live here!" I said a bit louder.

Before either of us could say another word, a horrified scream echoed through the hallway. "What the hell is happening here?"

Victoria stood at the far end of the corridor, staring at the two of us in absolute disbelief, her face pale as she took in the sight of her stepson pinned against the wall by the man she was desperate to impress.