Chapter Four

My breath hitched as his gaze locked onto mine.

The world narrowed until there was only him,broad shoulders cloaked in shadows, eyes dark as midnight yet burning with something I couldn’t name. My fingers curled into the silk of my dress, clutching tight, as though the fabric could anchor me against the pull of him. Selara prowled inside me, snarling, whimpering, unsettled all at once.

Then it happened. A flicker in his eyes, sharp and dangerous, like lightning in a storm. He shut them quickly, as if locking something feral behind his lids, chest rising with a restrained breath.

When he opened them again, they were calmer. Cooler. The predator’s fire banked.

“I entered the wrong living room, I guess.”

His voice…Gods!.

It was low, deep and resonant,rolling through the air like thunder, rich enough to vibrate in my chest. Each word lingered long after it left his mouth, a sound that belonged not to men, but to kings of the wild. I swallowed hard, a lump burning down my throat.

Before I could move, before I could even breathe properly, the door swung wider and my stepfather strode in.

“Ah!” His smile split wide. “You’re here!”

He crossed the room with the ease of an old friend, his arms spreading. To my utter shock, the dark Alpha allowed himself to be embraced.

My jaw nearly unhinged.

“Evelyn,” my father’s voice rang with warmth, pride, and command, “come down, child. Greet him properly. This is no stranger. This is my dearest friend.”

Dearest… friend?

My knees wobbled as I obeyed, descending the steps that separated the sitting platform from the floor where they stood. His eyes followed me the entire way, pinning me with a weight that made my skin prickle. It was too much. Too consuming. I couldn’t look away, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t—

My slipper caught the edge of the step.

A squeak tore from my throat as the world tilted, silk and pearls tangling around me. My arms flailed uselessly—

And I fell.

I burned across my cheeks the moment my foot missed the step. My body pitched forward, the world spinning, and all I could think was how utterly humiliating it was to fall like a clumsy child in front of my stepfather’s guest.

Embarrassment warred with something far more dangerous in my chest.

“Are you okay, little one?” The deep timbre of his voice curled around me, velvet and dangerous, like a predator pretending to be gentle.

I looked up. He was already there, crouched slightly, his hand stretched out to me. My heart stuttered. For a moment, I forgot how to breathe, too caught in the storm of his eyes.

Wordlessly, I slipped my trembling hand into his. His grip was warm, firm, steady as he pulled me effortlessly back to my feet.

He was too close to me now,and when I gazed at his face,I nearly tripped again.

Gods, he wasn’t what I expected. His mismatched eyes were beautiful yet dangerous.

Alphas in their thirties often carried their years plainly—lines of battle, the weight of command etched into their faces. But this man… no. His face was unfairly handsome, carved with sharp cheekbones and a strong jaw that looked like it had been chiseled by something otherworldly. His skin was smooth, his lips full and pressed into a faint smirk, and those eyes,storm-dark, glowing faintly at the edges—pinned me where I stood.

He looked like a man in his early twenties, but with his presence and the raw power, he felt like someone who had already lived lifetimes.

I swallowed hard, heat crawling down my neck as he straightened me on my feet. His fingers lingered around mine for a heartbeat too long, squeezing ever so slightly before he let go.

My knees threatened to buckle again, this time not from clumsiness but from the sheer force of him.

My pulse was still racing when his fingers gave mine the faintest squeeze which snapped me back to reality.

For a breath, he didn’t let go. His thumb pressed ever so slightly against my skin, a subtle squeeze that sent fire racing up my arm. Then, with maddening restraint, he released me.

But not fully.

Fingers brushed against my cheek as he reached up, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear. His touch was deliberate—soft, yet laced with possession, like he had every right to smooth me back into place.

His voice followed, low and steady, cutting straight through the silence.

“Why are you hiding yourself in such heavy clothes? In the palace of all places.”

The question burned hotter than the hand that had just left mine.

My lips parted. No sound came. Sylvara pressed against my ribs, urging me to speak, to snarl, to breathe,but my tongue was frozen.

I couldn’t answer. Not with his eyes anchoring me, never blinking, never straying. He looked at me like I was the only one in existence. Like he was peeling me open, layer by suffocating layer.

My father chuckled, stepping in to fill the silence. “She’s always been that way,prefers covering up, even in summer.”

I still couldn’t move. Couldn’t even glance away. My body obeyed only him, trapped in the pull of his stare.

And all the while… his gaze never left mine.

My father’s words hung in the air like a blade suspended above my head.

“Evelyn will be betrothed to Aldric. A golden chance for our pack.”

I didn’t dare breathe.

The man’s gaze,once steady and scorching,shifted. Darkened. Hardened. Something lethal flashed in his eyes, an edge sharp enough to slice through the air itself. The room grew colder, the walls seeming to hold their breath as if even the stones feared to rattle against his storm.

Sylvara whimpered low in my chest, flattening herself against me, not in fear but in recognition of dominance so raw it made my knees weak,again!

My stepfather’s tone softened as he turned to me. “Go and fix your hair, Evelyn. You should look your best.”

Grateful for the chance to escape, I nodded and let my maids usher me toward the mirror. They fussed around me, smoothing curls, adjusting the gold pins at my temples. Their chatter was a blur; I couldn’t hear them over the roaring of my pulse.

And then,I looked up.

Through the gilded reflection, my gaze collided with his.

He was seated with my father now, the two of them deep in conversation, wine goblets glinting in the light. But he didn't look like he was listening,rather,he was watching me.

The mirror betrayed me, exposing the way my throat bobbed as I swallowed hard. His eyes pinned me through the glass, molten and unrelenting, like chains that wrapped around my body from across the room. My fingers dug into the velvet of my gown, clutching fabric as if it could shield me.

Sylvara whimpered again, her tail curling low. He sees us.

And he did.

I couldn’t look away. Couldn’t pretend the mirror was only glass. It was a tether,one that bound me to him, no matter how hard I wished to breathe freely again. Prince Aldric was supposed to be here few minutes ago,where was he?