CHAPTER 4

I didn’t need to turn to know who it was.

Damian Storm.

The crowd of wolves near the house hushed instantly, their whispers slicing through the silence like knives. The Lycan Chairman never appeared without reason. And yet here he was, cutting through the shadows like he owned the night.

“Step away from her,” Damian’s voice boomed, deep and sharp enough to send a shiver through me.

Ethan stiffened. “This isn’t your concern, Chairman.”

Damian’s gaze landed on him like a predator sizing prey. “Everything concerning Aria is my concern.”

My heart lurched at the way he said my name—like he already owned it. Owned me.

Ethan squared his shoulders, but I could feel the tremor beneath his bravado. “She’s my mate.”

Damian’s lips curved in something that wasn’t quite a smile. “You broke that bond the moment you touched another. Don’t speak to me about mateship you don’t deserve.”

The air thickened between them. My pulse raced, torn between anger at Ethan and a dangerous thrill at Damian’s protectiveness.

“I don’t need you fighting my battles,” I snapped, though my voice shook.

Damian’s eyes flicked to me, burning with something fierce. “I’m not here to fight your battles, Aria. I’m here to make sure no one else dares to think they can touch you. Not even him.”

Ethan let out a harsh laugh. “And what are you then? Her savior? Oh please, don’t make me laugh. Everyone knows your secret. You are not better than me. You don’t keep women. You use them and toss them aside like trash.”

Gasps erupted from the pack wolves in the distance. No one spoke to the Chairman that way.

But Damian didn’t falter. Instead, he stepped closer, closing the space between him and Ethan until dominance poured off him in waves. My knees threatened to give way under the sheer force of it.

“You’re right,” Damian said calmly. “I never keep women.”

His eyes cut to me, dark and burning.

“Until I met her.”

The world stopped. My chest constricted so tightly I could barely breathe.

Ethan’s face twisted. “You think she’ll be yours? She’s not some toy you can collect, Damian.”

“She’s not a toy,” Damian said, voice low, lethal. “She’s mine. And I don’t share.”

Before Ethan could spit another word, Damian’s hand wrapped around my wrist. His touch seared into me, sending sparks of heat up my arm. The kind of heat that made my breath hitch, my body betray me.

“Come with me, Aria.” His command wasn’t loud, but it thundered through my chest.

I froze, staring at his grip on me, my heart torn between fury, fear, and a shameful rush of desire.

“Don’t,” Ethan growled, stepping forward.

Damian’s head snapped towards him, his Lycan aura slamming outward like a tidal wave. Ethan staggered back, his wolf whining audibly under the force of it.

“I said, she’s mine.”

The words cracked through the night like lightning, and before I could stop him, Damian tugged me against him. 

My chest collided with his, my breath stolen by the sheer size and heat of his body. His scent engulfed me, dizzying, addictive.

“Tell me you don’t feel this,” Damian whispered against my ear, low enough that only I could hear. His grip tightened at my waist, holding me against the hardness of him, the raw tension sizzling between us.

I wanted to shove him away. I wanted to slap him.

But my body? My body leaned closer, traitorous and desperate for more.

“Damian…” I breathed, my voice barely audible.

His lips brushed the shell of my ear, enough to send a shiver down my spine. “You can deny me with your words, Aria. But your heartbeat doesn’t lie.”

I gasped, heat rushing through me, only to be cut short by the sharp vibration of my phone in my pocket.

My mother’s name lit up the screen.

I answered with trembling hands. “Mom?”

Her voice cracked, frantic. “They’ve taken him deeper. Your father, he’s not in the cells anymore. They’re moving him tonight! I fear execution...”

My blood ran cold. “What? Where?”

But the line went dead.

Before I could process it, Damian plucked the phone from my hand and slid it into his coat pocket.

This damn phone call. Always interrupting at the wrong time.

“Wha—give it back!” I tried to snatch it, but his hand caught my chin, forcing my gaze up into his burning eyes.

“No distractions,” Damian said, his voice dangerous, possessive. “From now on, you move when I say. You breathe when I allow. You want your father back?” His thumb brushed my bottom lip, sending heat spiraling low in my belly.

“Then you’ll stay right here. With me. No questions.”