Not Yet

Denise stood still for a long moment outside the mansion gates, staring at her own wrist like it had betrayed her memory.

There was no mark.

No bruise.

No redness.

Nothing.

But she remembered the pain clearly. The grip. The pressure. The way it had hurt so much she’d thought it might leave a mark for days.

Her fingers tightened slightly.

That wasn’t normal.

A car horn blared in the distance, snapping her out of it. Life outside the estate kept moving like nothing strange had happened at all.

Denise slowly started walking again.

But she couldn’t shake the feeling that something had changed inside her the moment Liam Dawson touched her chin.

Not just fear.

Something worse.

Something that stayed.

—

Inside the mansion, Liam stood by the tall glass window long after she left.

He didn’t move.

Didn’t blink.

The city lights reflected faintly in his eyes, but his attention wasn’t on the skyline.

It was on her.

Even now.

Behind him, one of his men entered silently.

“She left, sir.”

“I know.”

A pause.

The man hesitated. “The council meeting was cancelled. They’re asking questions.”

Liam didn’t turn around.

“Let them ask.”

Another pause.

Then carefully: “And the girl?”

At that, something shifted in Liam’s expression.

Not enough for anyone else to notice.

But enough.

“She’s different,” he said quietly.

The man frowned slightly. “Different how?”

Liam’s jaw tightened just a fraction.

Like he was annoyed at the question.

Then:

“Don’t touch her file again.”

That was all he said.

The man immediately lowered his head. “Understood.”

He left.

Silence returned.

Liam finally moved away from the window and walked back toward his desk.

But he didn’t sit.

Instead, he picked up the glass on the table and crushed it in his hand without realizing he had done it.

The glass shattered.

Blood appeared instantly across his palm.

He stared at it.

Then at the fragments on the floor.

His breathing was steady.

Too steady.

Because something inside him was not.

“She should have been afraid of me,” he murmured to himself.

A pause.

Then, quieter:

“So why did she look at me like that?”

—

Denise didn’t go straight home.

She stopped halfway down her street, leaning against a wall while trying to steady her thoughts.

The envelope.

The mansion.

His voice.

His eyes.

It all kept looping in her mind like something she couldn’t shut off.

A group of boys passed by laughing loudly, one of them calling out something she ignored.

Normally she would’ve kept walking.

But tonight, she barely registered them.

Her mind was still stuck on Liam’s warning.

Don’t talk to any men tonight.

She scoffed under her breath.

“Like I listen to orders from strangers…”

But even as she said it, her voice didn’t sound convinced.

She pushed off the wall and started walking again.

That was when she noticed him.

A man standing across the street.

Watching her.

Denise slowed slightly.

He wasn’t like the drunk men from before.

He was dressed too neatly. Too clean. But something about him still felt off.

He smiled when he saw her looking.

Then started walking toward her.

Denise immediately turned away.

She wasn’t in the mood for this.

“Hey,” the man called.

She kept walking.

Footsteps followed.

Faster now.

“Wait a second.”

Denise’s pulse tightened.

She turned sharply. “I’m not interested.”

The man chuckled lightly. “I didn’t say anything.”

“You were following me.”

“Just trying to talk.”

Denise crossed her arms. “Talk from over there.”

The man stepped closer anyway.

Too close.

Her stomach tightened instantly.

“I saw you earlier,” he said. “At the Dawson Estate.”

That name made her freeze.

Her eyes narrowed. “How do you know that?”

The man smiled faintly. “Everyone knows who goes there.”

Denise didn’t like his tone.

“Move,” she said flatly.

But instead of moving, he tilted his head slightly, studying her.

“You’re not his type,” he said casually.

Denise frowned. “Excuse me?”

“Liam Dawson doesn’t take girls like you seriously,” the man continued. “He plays. That’s all.”

Something sharp twisted in her chest.

She didn’t understand why it bothered her.

It shouldn’t have.

But it did.

“I said move,” she repeated.

The man sighed as if disappointed.

Then his gaze shifted slightly past her shoulder.

And something in his expression changed.

Denise felt it before she saw it.

The air behind her shifted.

Cold.

Heavy.

Dangerously still.

A low sound came from the man in front of her.

“…oh.”

Denise turned slowly.

Liam was there.

Standing in the middle of the street like he had always been there.

But he hadn’t been.

She was sure of it.

His gaze wasn’t on her.

It was locked on the man in front of her.

Unblinking.

Unreadable.

The streetlights flickered slightly overhead.

The man near Denise took a careful step back. “Liam… I didn’t realize—”

“Don’t say my name,” Liam interrupted quietly.

The man went silent immediately.

Denise’s breath caught.

Because Liam’s voice… wasn’t normal now.

It was lower.

Heavier.

Like something was underneath it.

Liam took one slow step forward.

The man instinctively stepped back again.

“I was just talking to her,” he said quickly.

Liam finally looked at Denise.

Just briefly.

Then back to the man.

“That’s the mistake,” he said.

The words were calm.

Too calm.

The man tried to laugh nervously. “Come on, it’s nothing—”

He never finished the sentence.

Liam moved.

Denise didn’t even fully see it happen.

One moment he was standing there.

The next, the man was slammed against a nearby wall hard enough to crack the surface.

Denise gasped sharply.

“Liam—stop!”

But he didn’t look at her.

Not even once.

The man struggled, panicking now. “I wasn’t— I didn’t—”

Liam leaned closer.

And for the first time, Denise saw it.

Something faint in his eyes.

Not just anger.

Something animal.

Feral.

“You heard my warning,” Liam said quietly.

The man trembled. “I didn’t know she was yours—”

That word changed everything.

The air went still.

Even the night seemed to hold its breath.

Liam’s expression sharpened.

Slowly.

Dangerously.

Then he smiled.

But there was nothing human in it anymore.

“She’s not mine,” he said softly.

A pause.

Then, quieter:

“Not yet.”

Denise’s heart slammed in her chest.

Before she could process what he meant, Liam released the man and stepped back as if nothing had happened.

The man collapsed to the ground, gasping.

Liam finally turned toward Denise.

And this time, his eyes softened slightly.

Not much.

But enough for her to notice.

“You ignored me,” he said.

Denise swallowed. “I didn’t expect you to—show up like that.”

A brief pause.

Then Liam stepped closer.

Not threatening now.

Just close.

Too close again.

“You should listen,” he said quietly.

Denise frowned slightly. “Why do you care so much?”

For a moment, Liam didn’t answer.

His gaze drifted over her face slowly.

Like he was struggling with something he couldn’t name.

Then, very softly:

“Because if I don’t…”

He stopped.

His jaw tightened.

Then he reached out and gently adjusted the collar of her shirt without thinking.

The touch was brief.

Controlled.

But it sent that same strange heat through her chest again.

“…I don’t like what happens when others get too close,” he finished.

Denise stared at him.

“That’s not an answer.”

“It’s the only one you’re getting.”

A silence stretched between them.

Then Liam stepped back.

“Come,” he said.

Denise blinked. “Where?”

His eyes held hers.

“Home.”

And for reasons she didn’t fully understand yet…

she followed him.