Marked By My Best Friend's Brother

~Elara

I barely registered the shuffling of students leaving the lecture hall. Aria Valecrest leaned over my desk, eyes sparkling with excitement as she waved her phone in front of me.

“Wow, I actually improved! From 56th to 24th, can you believe it?” She grinned wide. “Those extra lessons you gave me after class really paid off. Thank you, seriously.”

I tried to smile back, but it felt flat. My own screen showed 94% at the top, yet all I could focus on was the heat crawling through my veins like liquid fire.

Aria wasn’t finished. She suddenly spun toward the front row and shouted, “Hey, guy! You got first as usual, but last time you had 86, now 94? You’re truly a nerd, damn!”

A few people laughed and congratulated me. I stayed silent, fingers digging into the edge of the desk. The restlessness was getting worse.

My skin felt too tight, my pulse heavy and low between my thighs. Every small movement sent a fresh wave of aching need through me.

Aria finally noticed something was off. Her smile faded as she slid into the seat right next to me, voice softening. “Hey… what’s wrong? You’ve been weird the whole class.”

I kept my frown locked in place, jaw clenched. How the hell am I supposed to tell my bisexual best friend that I’m horny right now?

It had never been an issue between us though. She knew I didn’t swing that way with ladies, and she’d always respected the boundary without making it awkward. Still, saying it out loud felt embarrassing.

I leaned in closer, dropping my voice to a whisper. “I’m in trouble again.”

Aria’s eyebrows rose, but she just nodded, understanding instantly. She knew everything about me.

This heat everyone talked about? It comes, it pushes, it unsettles. But I’ve learned how to handle it even without fulfilling its urge.

Most of my colleagues lose control when it hits. They disappear into instincts, into impulse, into mistakes they regret later.

Not me.

I feel it, yes. The restlessness. The pressure under my skin. The way my instincts try to take over but I don’t break.

I breathe through it. I shut it down. I ground myself until it passes. I’ve never needed anyone to survive it and I don’t intend to start now.

But right now I f*el extremely drained and restless and I definitely f*e like I need to find someone to fuck.

My ex broke up with me two months ago, so I’ve been on my own since then. I’m not really a dick chaser, but this heat thing surprised me this month. Gosh… I’m screwed.

The sealed wolf spirit inside me stirred, pushing against the magical seals that kept her contained.

It only made the fire worse, a deep, throbbing ache that made my thighs press together under the desk. Unstable magic prickled at my fingertips, threatening to spark if I didn’t get control soon.

Aria glanced around to make sure no one was close enough to hear, then gently touched my arm. “Shit, El. This one looks rough. You’re practically shaking. Want me to cover for you if you need to bail early? Or I know a couple discreet guys in the pack who could help take the edge off.”

I dropped my forehead onto the cool desk for a second, groaning softly. “Not yet. I can hold it together a little longer… I hope.”

But even as I said it, I knew this heat felt different. Stronger. Like something, or someone was pulling me toward a breaking point I wouldn’t be able to run from this time.

The hottest girl in school fucking some random guy? No way.

I’m the Gamma’s only daughter. The most brilliant student in my department. I have the perfect grades, perfect looks, body fully loaded, back and front. A solid ten without any hype. I still have some pride left, no matter how badly this heat is trying to drag me under.

I turned to Aria, voice strained. “Please, just take me home.”

She didn’t argue. She grabbed her bag, helped me up, and we slipped out of the lecture hall. The walk to the parking lot felt endless. Every step made the ache between my thighs sharper, my nipples tight against my bra, my skin burning.

Aria’s red Ferrari gleamed under the afternoon sun, this is the first time I'm noticing something like this. I slid into the passenger seat, immediately dropping my head down, forehead pressed against my knees.

I kept my eyes shut the entire drive, breathing through my mouth, trying to fight the waves of need rolling through me. The leather seat felt too warm. Everything felt too much.

When the car finally stopped and the engine cut off, I lifted my head, expecting to see my house.

Instead, I was staring at the Valecrest mansion.

My eyes widened. “Aria, no! I said mine.”

She gave me that calm, knowing look. “You want your mum to see you in this state?” She raised an eyebrow. “Remember last month you told me you don’t want her knowing about your breakup with the Beta’s son? This heat will ruin your plan.”

I groaned, rubbing my face. “My mum’s not even at home right now.”

Aria winked. “Don’t take chances, baby girl. My house is safe. And trust me, I won’t touch you.”

I actually laughed despite everything, a short, breathless sound. She always knew how to ease the tension.

“There’s no one at home anyway,” she added as we got out. “My parents are completely out of the pack territory until tomorrow. I’m home alone.”

As we walked closer to the grand front doors, the urge hit me even harder. My steps slowed. The throbbing between my legs became almost painful, my wolf stirring restlessly inside the seals.

Heat pooled low in my belly, slick and insistent. Why is it this bad today? I usually suppress them. I’m good at it. But this one felt unstoppable.

Mum had explained it to me once, this level of heat only happens when your mate is nearby. For all twenty two years of my life, my wolf had never sensed a mate. So why now? Why this sudden, crushing intensity?

We stepped inside the cool, luxurious house. I'm so familiar with the house anyways and I've never felt this strange.

Aria dropped her keys on the marble table. “I need to quickly get something I ordered. It was delivered earlier. Just stay here, okay? Don’t leave the house.”

I nodded, leaning against the wall for support. “Yeah… as long as there’s no man around, I can handle it till it goes down. That seems like a wise idea.”

Aria gave me one last concerned look before heading upstairs. “I’ll be quick. There’s water and snacks in the kitchen. Try to relax.”

The door clicked behind her as she disappeared. Silence settled over the massive house.

I exhaled shakily and slid down onto the plush couch in the living room, thighs pressed tightly together. My body was screaming. The sealed wolf inside me paced and whined, pushing against the magic holding her back.

Something felt… different. I can feel it. I closed my eyes, trying to breathe through it.

Just a little longer, I can handle this.

But deep down, a strange, instinctive pull told me something was already shifting.

I don’t even know when I stood up from the couch. My body moved on its own, legs carrying me toward the grand staircase even though a small voice in my head whispered go back downstairs.

I ignored it. The heat was pulsing stronger now, clouding my thoughts, making everything feel hazy and urgent.

I climbed the stairs, one hand sliding along the polished railing for support. At the top, I heard a low voice coming from one of the rooms down the hallway, deep, smooth, unmistakably male.

My heart jumped. Aria said she was home alone. Maybe a maid? Or someone who worked here?

I adjusted my glasses, pushing them properly up my nose. As a proud nerd, they added to the aura I already had, the brains, beauty, and curves that turned heads without trying.

I pressed my ear against the door, listening. Definitely someone was inside.

I don’t know where the courage came from, maybe the heat was burning away my common sense but I turned the handle and pushed the door open.

Time stopped.

There he was.

The hottest guy I had ever seen in my entire life. He's tall, easily 6’4”, with a body carved like an ancient weapon. Intricate tattoos ran from his right chest, across his collarbone, up his neck, and along his arm all the way to his ear.

His hair was a striking ash grey with a stylish love pattern shaved into the side, a silver earring glinted in his left ear, and a perfectly shaped eyebrows framed intense eyes.

He was fresh out of the shower, wearing nothing but a white towel tied dangerously low on his hips. Water droplets traced slow paths down his muscular chest and abs.

He looked like a demon, not the scary kind, but a day walking, sinfully beautiful one. Like from the movie I watched a decade ago, Damon Salvatore from The Vampire Diaries, but upgraded in every single way.

“Did heaven lose its keys?” His voice rolled over me, deep, flirty, and dripping with confidence. “How did you escape, angel?”

My knees nearly buckled. That voice… it did terrible, delicious things to me. My wolf stirred violently inside the seals, sending a rush of signals I couldn’t fully read.

“I’m sorry,” I forced out, voice shaky. “I missed the rooms and…”

“Oh no wonder,” he cut in, stepping closer with a predatory smirk. Water was still shining on his skin. “I was wondering how you ended up here while you’re supposed to be in heaven. You lost your way? I can take you right back up to the clouds if you let me.” His eyes dragged slowly over my body. “Nine or ten?”

He was dead serious.

Shit. I needed to run. This man looked exactly like those playboys from movies, the kind every girl lost her mind over. The kind that ruined lives and left you addicted.

I looked him up and down despite myself, from the sharp lines of his jaw, down the tattoos decorating his powerful chest, past the defined V disappearing under that dangerously low towel, to his strong legs. My mouth went dry.

I can't help but wonder what would be behind his towel.

Did hell lose its keys? How the fuck did this hot demon escape? Elara, please wake up. I’m sure you’re dreaming.

But I wasn’t. The throbbing between my thighs had become unbearable. Wet heat pooled, my nipples painfully tight, and the sealed wolf inside me was practically howling.

This heat had never felt like this before. It was as if my body recognized him on a level I didn’t understand.

I took one shaky step backward, trying to find the willpower to leave.