Chapter 5: The Wrong Name

Adrian

“Mm...” The she-wolf whimpered beneath me, her breath hitching as I traced the curve of her waist. Her lips were warm, her tongue pliant under mine, but it was all mechanical. I wasn’t chasing connection, just release.

I didn’t care to know her name. That detail didn’t matter.

“You’re gorgeous, Betty,” I murmured against her lips, letting the lie slide off my tongue as easily as my hand slid beneath her shirt.

She stilled beneath me.

“Did you just call me... Betty?” she asked, her voice low, unsure.

I pulled back slightly, brushing my knuckles along her cheekbone with practiced ease. Her skin was soft, her face lovely in that delicate, forgettable way.

“What’re you talking about?” I said smoothly. “I didn’t say anything.”

Her eyes searched mine. “I’m Isabella, Alpha Adrian.”

Right. Isabella.

Didn’t matter.

I smiled, lazy and disarming. “Slip of the tongue.”

She exhaled slowly, her fingers trailing down my chest. “You can call me anything. You know that, right? I love you, Adrian.”

Of course she did.

They all said that.

“I know,” I whispered back, my voice low and coaxing. “Then prove it.”

She grinned, crawling down my body as she pulled at the zipper of my jeans. My boxers followed, and she didn’t hesitate, already licking, already moaning like I was the only man in the world. I knew this was her first time, and I knew what she wanted.

But I wasn’t going to give it to her.

Not completely.

Not raw.

Not without Blaze’s damn interference.

I’d never risk that, not with a she-wolf who wasn’t mine. Blaze, my wolf, had made that rule clear from day one.

No unprotected sex unless it’s with our true mate.

And for once, I agreed. I didn’t believe in love. Mates. Soul-bonded nonsense. That kind of weakness destroyed men, tied them down, made them soft. I didn’t become Alpha of Moonridge Pack by chasing fairy tales.

Still, I enjoyed the perks of power. The willing mouths. The eager eyes.

“Shit,” I groaned, threading my fingers through Isabella’s hair as she worked me with a hunger that bordered on desperation. Her throat flexed around me, and I bit back a grunt. She was talented.

“Like that?” she asked between licks, her voice breathy.

“Yeah,” I muttered. “You’re a natural.”

She blinked up at me, her eyes shining with want. “I want you inside me, Alpha.”

I smirked. “And why should I give you that?”

Her lips curled. “Because I’m ready. Because I want to feel you, every inch.”

She didn’t understand what she was asking for.

“You think you’ve earned that kind of privilege?”

She crawled back up, eyes wide and filled with false innocence. “I thought... you’d want to taste me.”

My breath caught, not from desire, but amusement. She really thought this was love. That tonight would mean something.

I flipped her gently onto her back and hovered over her, letting my length press against her abdomen.

“I dare you to handle what I’ve got.”

“Please,” she whispered, already trembling beneath me.

Here we go again... Blaze’s voice cut into my thoughts like a sharp blade. You’re pushing it. Again.

Not now, I hissed back.

You know the rule. You want a pup from a stranger? A she-wolf you don’t care about?

I’m handling it.

You’d better.

“I need protection,” I said out loud, already rising from the bed, completely nude. I grabbed the hotel phone, ignoring Isabella’s surprised gasp.

“Room service,” came the polite voice on the other end.

“I need condoms. Now.”

“Of course, sir. They may take a few...”

“Make it fast,” I snapped. “This is urgent.”

I hung up and turned to Isabella, who was now biting her lip, half-covered by the sheets.

“Relax,” I told her with a grin. “I’ll give you what you need.”

My hand slid down her belly, under her panties, and found her slick warmth. She gasped as my fingers circled her clit, her thighs trembling.

“Oh, goddess,” she moaned, clutching the pillow as I pushed two fingers inside her, then three.

“Damn, you’re tight,” I murmured. Her moans only got louder as I worked her, building her up until she was writhing beneath me.

Just as her breath caught, her body stiffening...

A knock at the door.

I cursed under my breath, pulled my hand away, and quickly grabbed a towel, wrapping it low around my hips. “Stay put,” I told Isabella, who whimpered softly in protest.

I spritzed some cologne over my hands and opened the door.

And there she was.

Not Isabella.

Not anyone I’d seen before.

The woman holding the box of condoms was... radiant.

No. She was dangerous.

Wavy hair framed a face that could start wars. Her body was flawless, athletic, curvy, perfectly balanced. But it wasn’t just that. It was the way she carried herself. Calm. Unbothered. Confident, like she knew she had every man’s attention and didn’t give a damn.

My cock twitched again. Not because of the woman in my bed.

But because of her.

Her scent hit me next...fresh rain and something darker underneath. Even Blaze stirred, interested for the first time in months.

She avoided my gaze, then looked up, her green eyes locking with mine.

I leaned closer, ignoring the way my pulse spiked. “You look like trouble, rogue.”

Her brows lifted slightly, but she didn’t move.

“You need a place to stay?” I asked, voice lower now. “Because I’ve got room. All you need to do is serve me.”

The air between us shifted.

I reached out, brushing a knuckle beneath her chin. “You could be the most irresistible Omega in my pack.”

She didn’t flinch.

Didn’t smile.

Didn’t swoon like the others.

Instead, she pushed my hand away with a strength that caught me off guard.