Chapter Four

The sky over Lycan Isle was a deep, metallic grey – the kind that hinted at rain without ever fully delivering it. The island breathed in a low, steady rhythm, the sea dragging its heavy waves across the jagged rocks below the mansion. To Tiana, it felt as though the entire world was hushed, listening for something.

Inside, the mansion mirrored that stillness. Vast hallways echoed with her footsteps as she moved through her chores, dusting the winding staircase and straightening the velvet drapes that framed the tall windows. Yet beneath the routine, her thoughts churned.

Ross Lycan. He lingered in her mind like a shadow cast by a distant storm.

Every time she crossed his path, she felt as though she stepped into a different climate – colder, sharper, more unpredictable. And yet… every now and then, his guard would falter. Just long enough for her to glimpse something else. Something raw. Something human.

Something dangerous.

She tried not to think about those moments, but they slipped into her thoughts like water through cracks.

Late morning found her in the east wing, folding linens in the small laundry alcove near the window. The air was crisp, scented faintly with the sea drifting in from outside. Tiana reached for another sheet when she sensed movement behind her. She turned and nearly jumped.

Ross stood in the doorway. Silent. Dark. Watching.

She straightened immediately, pulse quickening. “Mr. Lycan,” she breathed.

His eyes travelled slowly over her face, lingering for a moment too long before he spoke. “Is this where you hide?”

She frowned. “I… wasn’t hiding. I’m just finishing chores.”

He stepped inside. The alcove was small – too small for someone like him. Or maybe it was just the way his presence filled the space. Ross moved closer, not intimidating exactly, more like overwhelming. The air thickened.

“Most people avoid this part of the mansion,” he murmured. His voice had a coarseness to it, like gravel underfoot. “Too quiet. Too… close.”

“I don’t mind the quiet,” she whispered.

“I know,” he said, studying her again. “That’s what concerns me.”

Her heart thudded. “Why would that concern you?”

“People who are comfortable with silence usually have something to escape,” Ross said. “Or something to bury.”

The sheet she held slipped from her fingers.

“You don’t know me,” she whispered.

“No,” he agreed softly. “But I can read people.”

“And what have you read about me?”

Something flickered in his eyes. Something dark, but gently lit at the edges. “That you’re desperate,” he said.

Heat prickled her skin. Shame. Anger. Recognition. “Everyone is desperate for something.”

Ross’s jaw tightened. He leaned one hand against the wall beside her head – not touching her, but close enough for her breath to hitch. Close enough for her to feel the warmth of his body competing with the coldness in his eyes.

“Maybe,” he said. “But your desperation… it unsettles me.”

Her pulse fluttered wildly. “Why?”

He stared at her as though trying to decipher the answer himself. As though he hated not understanding it. Then he stepped back abruptly, as if something in him had snapped taut. “Forget I said anything.”

Before she could reply, he turned and walked away, leaving the room colder than before.

Tiana exhaled shakily, pressing her fingers to her eyes. Her thoughts swirled, tangled in the tension he carried with him like a storm cloud.

By noon, she tried to pour herself into her work, but Ross’s words haunted her. Desperate. Unsettling. Why did he say such things? And why did he linger in doorways and shadows, watching her like a man trying to solve a puzzle he didn’t want to touch?

She didn’t understand him. But she wanted to. And that frightened her.

*

Later that afternoon, the drizzle began, misting the stone paths outside. Tiana went to the greenhouse to collect herbs for dinner – Alma had asked for rosemary and mint. The greenhouse was humid and warm, the glass walls foggy with condensation. The scent of damp earth comforted her.

She was trimming a sprig of rosemary when a voice drifted in from behind her.

“You’re lucky he hasn’t snapped yet.”

Tiana turned to see Mark Burton leaning on a rake near the door. His presence was quieter than usual, his eyes tired.

“What do you mean?” she asked cautiously.

He shrugged. “Mr. Lycan. He’s… volatile. The more someone tries to get close, the more he tries to push them away. Sometimes gently. Sometimes…” His gaze drifted to a broken clay pot in the corner.

Tiana followed his eyes. “He hasn’t been so cruel to me.”

Mark’s smile was faint, sympathetic. “Give it time.”

She stiffened. “You don’t know that.”

“Maybe not,” Mark admitted, lifting the rake again. “But I’ve worked here long enough to know his patterns.” He paused, then added quietly, “I’m not saying stay away. Just… stay careful.”

Tiana nodded, but something stubborn inside her pushed against his warning. She felt drawn to Ross – not blindly, but with an aching curiosity.

Mark left her alone in the greenhouse as the glass fogged around her like the breath of something unseen.

*

Dinner preparations filled the kitchen with noise and warmth. Alma chopped vegetables while Tiana set the table in the dining hall, placing a polished silver fork at each setting. The house felt more alive in the evenings, the shadows lighter, the silence more bearable.

When Ross finally entered, the air shifted instantly.

His presence was a force. Controlled. Brooding. Electric.

“Tiana.” His voice was cool, but not distant. “A moment.”

She followed him down the hallway. He led her to the large window overlooking the ocean, its vast expanse rolling in dark teal waves.

“Mark says you went to the greenhouse,” Ross said, hands clasped behind his back.

She blinked. “Is that a problem?”

“No,” he replied, but his jaw clenched. “I just don’t like surprises.”

“You think I’m planning something?” she asked, nearly laughing.

His gaze slid to hers, sharp. “No. But I can’t… I’m not—” He exhaled, frustrated with himself. “I don’t want you wandering off alone.”

She stepped closer. “Why?”

He didn’t look away this time. “Because this island holds secrets. And not all of them are kind.”

A chill crawled up her spine. “Are you warning me?”

“Yes.” His voice softened, barely. “And I don’t offer warnings lightly.”

Their eyes locked. The silence hummed. Something unspoken passed between them – something fragile and primal all at once.

“You don’t have to protect me,” Tiana murmured.

Ross’s throat bobbed as he swallowed. “I’m not sure I can stop myself.”

Her breath caught. Before she could respond, he turned away again – his retreat swift, almost pained.

“Tiana… don’t make this harder.”

“H—harder?” she repeated, heart hammering.

He shook his head. “Forget it.”

But she couldn’t.

Neither could he. She saw it in the way his hand lingered on the windowsill, fingers flexing as if resisting the urge to reach for her.

He left without another word.

Tiana stood there long after he’d gone, the ocean roaring below like a prescientific caution, or a promise.

*

That night, she lay awake in her room, listening to the distant thunder rolling over the horizon. The festival approached – she had overheard Alma mentioning preparations, decorations, and visiting boats from neighbouring villages. But all she could think about was Ross. His contradictions. His warnings. The way he stood close enough for her to feel the conflict radiating off him like heat.

He was a man carved from shadows and scars. Yet he kept stepping into her light – even as he told himself not to.

Tiana turned onto her side, staring at the faint moonlight on the wall.

She should be afraid, she told herself. But she wasn’t. Because in Ross’s eyes, beneath all the frost and fury, she had seen something unmistakable: He was afraid too.

And that meant the dangerous part hadn’t even begun.