Wolfe’s POV:The leather seat creaked as I turned to face the boy in the back. "Any word about Aria?""Not yet, sir," he replied, shifting under my gaze. "But soon. I'm getting closer to the source.""Good work." I exhaled slowly, my hands rubbing the smooth leather of the steering wheel. Reaching for the dashboard, I pulled out a plain envelope, thick with cash, and handed it to him without a word."That's for your troubles," I said, watching his reflection in the rearview mirror.His eyes went wide as he tore the envelope open. "What the—?" he breathed, staring at the stack of bills like he'd never seen so much money.My voice dropped to a low, deliberate tone as I held his gaze in the mirror. "You'll get double that when you tell me exactly where Aria is and how I can get to her."He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing. "Y-yes, sir. I promise. I won't let you down.""You'd better not," I said, the engine rumbling to life with a turn of the key. The unspoken threat hung in the
Back in Lancaster’s Mansion.. *Author’s POV: Lancaster’s hand struck his desk with a force that silenced the room. “Enough!” he roared. The two well-built men before him startled at the sudden violence but held their ground as Lancaster rose to his full height. “I have heard enough of your excuses,” he stated, his voice dripping with contempt as he leveled an accusing finger at them. “S-sir, we are doing our best to—,” one of them insisted, his voice strained. “Best? You call this your fucking best?!” Lancaster shot back. “W-we a—“ “I don’t want to hear it!” He roared again, violently clearing his desk, sending documents and folders scattering across the floor. He advanced around the desk until he was mere inches from them. A short, sarcastic laugh escaped him. “Let me be certain I understand,” he began, his tone dangerously calm. “You have conducted a search across the entire city for Aria, and you have absolutely nothing to show for it?” “The search is on
Aria’s POV: It was Rand’s voice. *Fuck.* He could not find me here. Not with Kade. And definitely not with my juices still slick on my inner thighs. Kade turned to face me fully. His eyes locked onto mine, a silent , frantic question hanging between us: *What now?* We stared at each other, frozen. I bit my lip , already imagining Rand’s confusion and disgust after my whole “I can’t stand your brother act.” Then the knock came again. *Knock. Knock.* “Hellllooo,” Rand called, dragging out the word. “What are you even doing in there?” Kade’s lips moved soundlessly. “Hide.” “Where?” I whispered back, my voice tight with panic. “There’s nowhere to go.” He jerked his chin towards the space under his bed. “Absolutely not,” I mouthed, my face twisting in disgust. He just leaned back against the wall and folded his arms, looking completely unbothered. “Your options are under there,” he whispered, pointing again, “ or right there, explaining ‘that’ to my brother,”
Aria’s POV: I stumbled back, my blood freezing solid in my veins. It was him. Kade. He filled the doorway, a broad silhouette against the hall light. His eyes were glazed, his pupils dilated and rimmed with red. High, drunk, or both—it didn’t matter. The effect was the same: a predatory, lazy focus that locked onto me. He squinted, his brow furrowing in a haze of shock and confusion, trying to process why I was in his room and what I was doing here. The silence stretched, thick and suffocating. I could hear the hammer of my own heart. I had to break it before he did. “Just looking for the house WiFi,” I lied, the words too bright, too fast. I shrugged, a pathetic attempt at nonchalance, as if my skin wasn't still humming and his scent wasn't clinging to me like a confession. “Nothing more.” I moved to shove past him, a desperate bid for escape. He didn’t budge. Instead, he shifted, stepping fully into the room and forcing me to retreat further inside. The door click
Aria’s POV: The door creaked behind me. My blood ran cold. *Shit.* Had he caught me? Every muscle tensed. I turned, a slow, agonizing pivot, my heart hammering a frantic rhythm against my ribs. My eyes scanned the doorway, dreading the silhouette that would shatter this forbidden moment. But there was nothing. Only the empty frame and the dim, silent hallway beyond. I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding, the air shuddering from my lungs. Clutching the vibrator like a stolen relic, I crept forward and pushed the door open wider, leaning out to scan both ends of the corridor. *Empty.* It was just the wind. Just the old house settling. Or perhaps it was my own guilty conscience, manifesting as a phantom sound to torture me. A nervous, relieved laugh escaped my lips, the sound thin and shaky in the quiet. I stepped back into Kade’s room and shut the door, my back pressing against the solid wood as if I could barricade myself inside. This was it. My one c
While Keisha and Ivy were having fun… Aria’s POV: I waited. And waited. Ivy still hadn’t replied to my text, even after I’d responded to her voice note. The clock ticked later into the night, my eyelids growing heavier by the second. With a sigh, I dragged the blanket up, curling onto my side, my back to the door. Just as I fluffed my pillow and sank into the mattress— *Click.* The door creaked open. I jolted, twisting around to glare at the intruder. “It’s me,” came Rand’s voice, hushed, his face half-hidden in the dim hallway light. “Sorry to disturb you.” *Again.* I clenched my jaw. “You could at least *knock*.” “Thought you were asleep,” he said, shifting awkwardly in the doorway. “Didn’t wanna disturb you.” I scoffed under my breath. “Like you don’t disturb me every other day.” “What was that?” He leaned in, brows furrowed. “Nothing,” I snapped. “What do you want, Rand?” He stepped inside, shutting the door behind him. “Just grabb