Chapter 3

Aria POV:  

I sat across from him at the long dining table, the white roses between us filling the air with a soft, almost mocking sweetness. My hands rested in my lap so he wouldn’t see them tremble. Leo was waiting outside with the servant. This interview, if it could even be called that, would decide whether my son got the medicine he needed or whether we went back to that damp basement and the endless cycle of unpaid bills.

Kael Thorne watched me over the rim of his glass, golden eyes half-lidded, expression unreadable. The silence stretched.

She didn’t recognize me at all, he thought, the words curling through his mind like smoke. What a heartless woman. I really should take a hard bite out of her neck… No. The nature of a wolf is to be swift and decisive, but when facing my prey, I must take it slow.

I cleared my throat, forcing my voice to stay professional.

Is this how rich people conduct interviews? I wondered. No questions about my résumé, no discussion of duties just sitting here like we’re on some kind of date.

“Hello, Mr. Kael,” I began, meeting his gaze as steadily as I could. “My name is Aria. I’m applying for the family doctor position. I graduated from Oxford University School of Medicine and have three years of clinical experience.”

He set the glass down with a soft click.

“Eat,” he said. “Let’s talk while we eat.”

Servants appeared as if summoned by the words alone, placing silver-domed plates in front of us. The scent of perfectly seared meat and fresh herbs rose between us. I stared at the food, suddenly aware of how hollow my stomach felt. Years of stretching every dollar had trained me to ignore hunger. Now the sight of real, abundant food made my mouth water.

Over the years you’ve fed yourself so poorly, Kael observed silently, eyes tracing the delicate line of my collarbone, the faint shadows under my eyes. “Little rabbit… you will taste better when you’ve fattened up.”

I picked up the fork, more to give my hands something to do than from real appetite. The first bite melted on my tongue. I had to fight not to close my eyes in sheer relief.

“Are you married?” he asked suddenly.

The fork nearly slipped from my fingers. I gasped, a small, startled sound, and covered my mouth with my free hand. The question hit like a slap too personal, too abrupt, stirring up memories of a night I had spent six years trying to bury.

He slid a glass of water across the table toward me. I took it, fingers brushing his for the briefest second. Heat sparked up my arm. I pulled back quickly and drank.

“Just a routine background check,” he said, voice calm. “As my personal family doctor, I must know everything about you.”

I set the glass down carefully. “No. I’m not married. I have no plans to get married… not in this lifetime.”

Big bosses probably don’t want their employees distracted by marriage affecting their work efficiency, I told myself. There shouldn’t be any problem with me saying this, right?

Across the table, Kael’s eyes flickered with something unreadable.

There shouldn’t be any problem with me saying this… right? he echoed in his own mind, a dark amusement curling through the thought.

I straightened my spine, desperation pushing past pride. “Mr. Kael, I really need this job. As long as you’re willing to give me a chance to stay, no matter what the requirements are, I will definitely satisfy you.”

He leaned back slightly, studying me. “Really?”

“Yes.” I nodded once, firm.

He adjusted the cuff of his black shirt, the movement slow and deliberate. When he spoke again, his voice was soft, almost gentle and somehow more dangerous.

“Alright. First: apart from me, you cannot have any contact with the opposite sex.  

Second: your time, your energy, and your attention can only be focused on me.  

Third: you will live with me.”

I stared at him. The words hung in the air between us, heavy and absolute.

He continued as if discussing the weather. “Your work needs to be kept confidential. After all, my family’s business accounts for fifty percent of the global market. I don’t want a little cold to affect the global stock market.”

My mind raced. No contact with other men. live here. Focus only on him. It was possessive. Unreasonable. Borderline insane.

But one hundred thousand dollars a month.

Leo’s medicine.

I swallowed. “Okay. I will.”

A beat of silence. Then, carefully: “Then… What exactly does my job entail?”

Kael’s mouth curved, just slightly. “Tonight is the full moon. You’ll find out soon enough.”

Something cold slid down my spine. I looked at him with mixed feelings of gratitude, unease, and a strange, unwanted pull I refused to name. The golden eyes watching me felt far too familiar, like a memory trying to surface through fog.

He stood. “Come. I’ll show you to your room.”

I followed him out of the dining hall and up a sweeping staircase. The mansion was even larger than it had looked from outside endless corridors, soft lighting, the quiet hush of extreme wealth. He stopped in front of a set of double doors and pushed them open.

I stepped inside and froze.

The bedroom was enormous easily two hundred square meters. A bed the size of my entire former apartment sat against the far wall, draped in silk the color of moonlight. Floor-to-ceiling windows looked out over the dark forest. A private bathroom gleamed through an open doorway. Everything smelled clean and expensive.

Such a big bed… is this my room? This is insanely luxurious,I thought, almost dizzy with it.

“You are my personal doctor,” Kael said from behind me, “so you must live closest to me. My bedroom is right next to yours. That way you can be on call at all times.”

I turned to face him. For a moment the years of cold floors and leaking ceilings and Leo coughing through the night pressed against my chest. Then the weight lifted, just a little.

Finally… I don’t have to live with Leo in a dark and damp basement.

A small, genuine smile touched my lips. “Thank you, Mr. Kael.”

He held my gaze for a second longer than necessary. Something unreadable passed through those golden eyes. Then he inclined his head and turned to leave.

The door clicked shut behind him.

I let out a shaky breath and pressed a hand to my chest. It was done. We had a place to stay. Leo would get the injections. Everything else, the strange conditions, the full moon, the way Kael looked at me like he already owned me could wait until tomorrow.

A soft knock came at the door.

“Mum? Can I come in?” Leo’s small voice, hesitant and sweet.

I crossed the room quickly and opened the door. My son stood there in his slightly-too-small sneakers, looking up at me with those big, serious eyes. I pulled him into a tight hug, burying my face in his soft hair.

“We did it, baby,” I whispered. “We’re staying.”

--

Outside in the hallway, Kael had only taken three steps when the scent hit him.

He stopped dead.

It was faint, almost hidden beneath Aria’s familiar fragrance and the clean soap smell of a child but unmistakable. Young. Untamed. Still soft around the edges.

Wolf cub.

His pupils blew wide. Slowly, very slowly, he turned

back toward the closed bedroom door, a sharp, predatory smile curving his mouth.

The night was only beginning.