CHAPTER 003: THE FIRST CRACK

ASHLEY;

School?

That had become a hellhole, somewhere the devil resides. I had come to notice, at home, Ryder was different… not necessarily an angel but at school, it was as if he swore never to allow me any peace.

I pulled up from my bed, and got ready, like every other day. I was hoping for some tranquility, but it was worse.

I walked through the halls of Stoneridge Academy almost running, just so I could avoid stares, but it didn’t help.

The whispers were barely whispered now… everyone knew already. I was the new stepdaughter, who somehow slipped into the Knight’s family, through her golddigger of a mother!

I paused at once when a group of girls called Mom a golddigger, my fist curling at my sides, it was a hard pill to take. But how many of them would I fight? I walked away, and into the class. That was the only place that offered me some silence, especially when there was a lecturer in.

Unluckily, there was none at the time. The next class was to begin in ten minutes. I walked in and secured a seat at the far end of the wall.

“Fair enough,” I muttered. I was sure not to be lynched by the time a teacher arrived.

A few students sat in different seats. But the air seemed to change as I walked in, discussions paused, I could feel the stares burning into my forehead as I sat.

Gosh! I couldn’t lift my eyes, I was bound to come into contact with hundreds of different pairs of eyes. I pulled my backpack, a novel was inside, something about finding love in the strangest places. I pulled it out, burying my face into it.

Love? I didn’t really believe in that. If I ever did, I mean, if I ever agreed that there was something like that in existence, seeing Mom move on this fast, without bothering about the whereabouts of the man she married for eighteen years, crumbled that part of me.

I knew she made efforts, but they would barely be called that. Things had changed between them a few years before Dad went missing, but that wasn’t enough reason for her to act like she had lost just a grain of rice. He was her husband, and the father of her child, or so I thought.

And when I thought about this thing I feel, how my body reacted each time Ryder was near, well, I wouldn’t call it love… I can’t be in love with the one person who tormented me. So, I guess it was because the devil was good-looking.

I waved off the streams of thoughts and pulled my mind back to the book and…

A big hand pressed against the locker next to mine, caging me in. His tall frame blocked out the light. He stood so close I could feel the heat rolling off his body.

“Well, well,” Ryder said, voice low and rough. “Let’s welcome you to the family properly, princess.”

My heart slammed against my ribs. I turned slowly, forced to look up at him. He towered over me, his broad shoulders filling my vision. Up close, I could see the faint shadow of stubble on his jaw and the way his dark eyes burned with intensity.

“This doesn’t change anything,” he murmured, leaning in closer. His breath brushed against my ear, warm and intimate. “You still don’t belong here.”

The words were cruel, the same kind he had thrown at me for years. His lips were inches from my ear, close enough that I could feel the ghost of them against my skin.

My cheeks burned. I hated how my body reacted, nipples tightening under my sweater, a slow throb building between my thighs.

“Leave me alone,” I whispered, my voice shaky. “Funny how you hate me, yet can’t stay away.”

Did I just say that to him? That had fallen out, I promise. I wasn’t supposed to say that to the Alpha heir, to my mother’s husband, to my stepfather.

He smirked, so hard that I felt I could take those words back. But still, he didn’t move right away. His big frame stayed there, towering over me. For one dangerous second, his gaze dropped to my mouth, then he straightened, that familiar cold mask sliding back into place.

“You are starting to think highly of yourself, huh?” He scoffed, his shoulders shaking a little “See you at home, stepdaughter.”

He walked away, his powerful back straight, teammates falling in beside him as if nothing had happened. But I felt the heat of his body lingering on my skin long after he disappeared into the crowd. My legs felt weak. I shut my eyes for a second, I had said what I wasn't supposed to say.

Every time I saw Ryder in the distance… laughing with friends or dominating the game during practice, I remembered the stupid words I had blurted. Ryder was powerful beyond words, just a snap of his thick fingers and I would be doomed.

****

The mansion was quiet again, the kind of quietness that made breathing sound too loud. I tossed and turned in my big bed, the soft gray sheets twisted around my legs, the new room still didn’t feel like mine.

Every creak of the house reminded me that Ryder was somewhere under the same roof… my stepfather. The school kept replaying in my mind, like I was still waiting for my punishment for uttering those words.

I had expected him to taunt me at dinner, but nothing came. We all ate like one big, happy family, with Mom grinning widely, and resting against his huge biceps at intervals.

“Gosh! Is she trying to have another baby?” I grumbled as I thought about it now. “Baby Ryder would be so grumpy.. She shouldn’t dare.”

Finally, I gave up, throwing back the covers. I slipped out of bed wearing nothing but an oversized t-shirt that skimmed the tops of my thighs. It was old and soft, barely covering me, no bra, just panties underneath. I just needed to cool the restless heat building inside my head from this dramatic turn in my life.

Barefoot, I padded down the wide staircase and into the dimly lit kitchen. Moonlight streamed through the large windows, casting soft shadows across the marble counters. I opened the fridge, reaching for a bottle of cold water.

Then I felt it.

A presence behind me. I turned slowly and froze.

Ryder stood in the kitchen doorway, fresh from what must have been a brutal late-night training session.

Once again he was shirtless, his powerful chest rising and falling with deep breaths. Sweat gleamed on his skin, highlighting every cut of muscle, broad shoulders, ripped abs, the sharp V-lines disappearing into low-slung gray sweatpants.

His knuckles were raw and bloody, like he had punched something hard enough to break skin. His tattoos swirled across his shoulder and chest, looking almost alive in the low light.

Our eyes met across the kitchen island and the air thickened instantly. Ryder’s dark gaze locked onto mine, intense, then his eyes slowly dragged downward, over my messy hair, down the thin T-shirt that allowed my full breasts to sway underneath, lingering on the bare skin of my thighs. His jaw clenched tight.

He stepped closer, slowly. My back pressed against the cool fridge. My heart raced so fast I felt dizzy, and I was suddenly so aware of how short and revealing the oversized shirt was.

“You shouldn’t wander around like that,” he said, his voice just above a whisper. “Not in my house, not looking like this.”

I felt small at the moment, at the way his eyes ran over me like he was sizing me up. My throat gulped really hard.

I crossed my arms, but it only pushed my breasts up more.

“I… I was just getting water.”

He stayed right there, still breathing hard from his training. I could see a bead of sweat trail down between his pecs, sliding over the hard ridges of his abs. My wolf stirred wildly inside me, drawn to him in a way that terrified me, instead of turning away from him.

The silence stretched on for what felt like forever, just him slowly lifting the bottle of water in his hand to his lips repeatedly, while his eyes still measured me up. Then he moved closer, about to touch me, but instead he muttered a savage curse under his breath.

“Fuck.” He turned sharply and walked away, his broad back tense, muscles flexing with every step.

I stayed frozen against the fridge, legs trembling.

I slid down to the floor, pressing my thighs together, trying to calm my racing heart.