Chapter 9

I didn’t return to disturb Alpha David.

Instead, I went back to the rogue lair’s villa, my heart still pounding from everything I had overheard at the Seductress Club. My wolf was unusually quiet, as if processing it all alongside me.

As soon as I stepped into the study, I froze.

The walls—every inch of them—were covered in portraits of me.

Sketches. Oil paintings. Watercolors. Some detailed, some rushed, all of them unmistakably me. Different ages, different expressions—my laughter, my scowls, even the rare moments when I thought no one was watching.

And the dates…

Some of these were from years ago.

My breath hitched. My fingers traced one of the paintings—a delicate piece where I was caught mid-smile, as if David had frozen time itself just to keep the moment alive.

I swallowed hard.

Each stroke, each detail, each shade of color—this was love. Love so deep, so raw, that it had been poured out onto canvas over the years without me ever realizing it.

A lump formed i