Off-Field Sparks

I never thought I'd be scared of sitting next to someone in a damn chair.

But there I was, forced into a velvet seat at the league's charity gala, with Jude Stone right beside me under the bright lights. My hands were sweating. My wolf was losing its mind.

"Why the hell did they seat us together?" I muttered under my breath as the cameras flashed.

Jude leaned slightly closer, his voice low and mocking. "Because they know the fans eat up our fights. Smile for the cameras, Alpha. Or are you scared they'll see how bad you want me?"

"Shut up," I hissed, turning to face the interviewer. But my knee brushed Jude's under the table and neither of us pulled away. The contact burned.

The reporter leaned in with her fake smile. "Captain Cole and Mr. Stone, the rivalry between you two has been the talk of the league. Care to comment on this historic matchup between werewolf and dragon?"

Jude spoke first, smooth as silk. "Historic? More like necessary. Time to show the league what real power looks like."

I laughed sharply. "Real power? Your kind ran from the fight last time. Hid in the mountains while the rest of us bled."

Jude's hand tightened on the arm of his chair. "Ran? Or survived what your packs did to us? How many dragons did your ancestors string up for sport, Cole? How many wings did they cut off as trophies?"

The reporter's eyes went wide but she stayed quiet. Smart woman.

I turned in my seat, facing him fully now. "You want to talk about history? Your people betrayed us. Burned entire packs while we slept. My grandfather's blood is still on your clan's hands."

"And your grandfather hunted my family like animals," Jude shot back, voice cracking with real pain. "Don't sit there acting like wolves were innocent. You slaughtered us for sport. For fun."

The air between us felt too thick to breathe. I could see the slight tremble in his jaw. The way his eyes flashed gold with emotion. It made something in my chest twist hard.

"You don't know what you're talking about," I said, but my voice wasn't as strong as I wanted.

Jude leaned closer, ignoring the cameras. "I know exactly what I'm talking about. I know you look at me like you want to tear my throat out. Or maybe something else."

My heart slammed against my ribs. "Don't."

"Don't what?" he challenged. "Don't call you out? Don't admit that when you tackled me yesterday I felt how much you—"

"Enough." I stood up suddenly, chair scraping loud behind me. "I need air."

I walked away from the table, blood roaring in my ears. The hallway behind the event space was quieter, dimmer. I braced my hands against the wall, trying to steady myself.

Footsteps followed me.

Of course he followed.

"You can't run from this, Jax," Jude said, voice rough as he stepped into the hallway. "It's eating you up. I can smell it on you."

I spun around and grabbed him before I could think. My hands fisted in his fancy charity event shirt as I shoved him back against the wall. Hard.

"You think this is a game?" I growled, face inches from his. "You think I wanted any of this? Your scent in my nose. Your face in my dreams. I should hate you. I do hate you."

Jude didn't fight me. He stared up at me, breathing fast, lips parted. "Then hate me. But don't lie and say you don't want this too."

My body pressed against his. I could feel every inch of him. The heat. The way his chest rose and fell against mine. Scales flickered faintly along his neck where my breath touched him.

"Tell me to stop," I whispered, forehead nearly resting on his. "Tell me to walk away right now."

Jude's hands came up, gripping my waist. Not pushing me away. Pulling me closer. "I can't. God help me, I can't."

Our mouths were so close. I could taste his breath. Smoke and fire and something sweet that made my wolf howl. My hands slid up to frame his face, thumbs brushing those sharp cheekbones. One second. Just one second and I'd close the gap.

"Jax?" Jake's voice cut through the hallway like ice water.

I jerked back like I'd been burned. Jude stayed against the wall, chest heaving, eyes wide and dark with the same storm I felt ripping me apart inside.

Jake stood at the end of the hallway, looking between us with pure shock. "What the hell is going on?"

"Nothing," I said quickly. Too quickly. My voice shook. "It's nothing."

Jude let out a bitter laugh, wiping his mouth like he could still feel me there. "Yeah. Nothing. That's why you had me pinned like you wanted to devour me."

"Shut up," I snapped, but there was no heat left in it. Only fear.

Jake walked closer, eyes narrowing. "Jax, talk to me. You've been off since the scrimmage. Now this? You're shaking."

I looked at Jude one last time. He was watching me with something raw and vulnerable that terrified me more than any tackle on the field.

"I need to go," I said, stepping back. My hands wouldn't stop trembling. "I can't do this right now."

Jude pushed off the wall. "Running again, Alpha? That's becoming a habit."

"I'm not running." The words felt like a lie even as I said them. "This... whatever this is, it ends here. It has to."

"Does it?" Jude asked softly. His voice broke a little on the last word. "Because it doesn't feel over to me."

Jake grabbed my arm, pulling me away. "Come on. Before someone sees you two like this."

I let him drag me down the hallway but I couldn't stop looking back. Jude stood there watching me go, hands clenched at his sides like he was fighting not to follow.

Back at the table the rest of the event passed in a blur. I smiled for photos. Answered questions on autopilot. But my mind was back in that hallway. The way Jude had looked at me. The way my body had responded.

Jake didn't let it go for long.

Later that night as we left the venue, he cornered me by the cars. "You almost kissed him. Don't even try to deny it. I saw your face."

I leaned against the cool metal of the car, eyes closed. "I don't know what's wrong with me, Jake. Every time I'm near him I lose control. The wolf doesn't know if it wants to fight him or claim him."

Jake exhaled slowly. "This is dangerous territory. Not just for you. For the whole pack. For the league. Ancient feuds don't die easy."

"I know that," I whispered. My voice cracked. "But when he touched me back there... I didn't want to stop. I wanted to keep going. I wanted everything."

Jake stayed quiet for a long moment. "Then what are you going to do?"

I looked up at the night sky, heart heavy with conflict. "I don't know. But I can't stay away from him. And that terrifies me more than anything."

My phone buzzed in my pocket. I didn't need to check it to know who it was.

Jude.

The message preview lit up the screen.

Jude: We need to talk. Alone. Tonight.

I stared at it, desire and fear twisting together until I couldn't tell them apart.

This wasn't just a rivalry anymore.

It was becoming something that could destroy us both.

And I was already reaching for my phone to answer him.