Chapter 3: Pack law

I didn’t sleep.

The guest room was bigger than my entire apartment, with soft sheets that smelled like expensive detergent and a view of the city that should have been calming. Instead I lay awake staring at the ceiling, listening to the quiet hum of the penthouse and the low, restless feeling under my skin that refused to settle.

Every time I closed my eyes I saw silver.

When the first gray light of morning crept through the glass, I got up, washed my face, and tried to look less like a woman who had spent the night fighting the urge to walk down the hall and knock on his door. My dress from the gala was wrinkled. I found a plain black T-shirt and soft gray sweatpants folded on the chair—clearly left for me. They smelled faintly of him. I hated how much I liked it.

I was in the kitchen trying to figure out the complicated coffee machine when the elevator doors opened with a soft chime.

A man stepped out.

Tall. Broad. Dark blond hair cut short, sharp blue eyes, and the kind of presence that made the air feel heavier. He wore a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up, revealing thick forearms and a tattoo of a wolf’s head on his right wrist. The moment he saw me, he stopped dead.

His nostrils flared.

“Shit,” he muttered.

I froze, coffee mug halfway to my mouth.

He recovered fast, but the tension stayed in his shoulders. “You’re the human.”

“I’m Aria,” I said carefully. “And you are?”

“Kane. Beta of the Blackridge Pack.” His eyes flicked over me once, assessing, then past me toward the hallway. “Where is he?”

“Still in his room, I think.”

Kane’s jaw tightened. He pulled out his phone, typed something quickly, then looked back at me with an expression that was equal parts curiosity and concern.

“You shouldn’t be here,” he said, voice low. “A human in the Alpha’s penthouse after a full moon recognition? That’s the kind of thing that starts wars.”

Before I could answer, Damian’s voice cut through the air like a blade.

“She’s exactly where she needs to be.”

He walked out of the hallway wearing black sweatpants and a white T-shirt that did nothing to hide the hard lines of his body. His hair was still damp from a shower. The second his eyes landed on me, something possessive and dark flashed in them. Then he looked at Kane.

“Report.”

Kane straightened immediately. “Liora called an emergency council meeting for tonight. She’s already spreading the word that you left the gala early with a human female. Elders are asking questions. Two border packs have requested clarification on whether the Alpha King is… compromised.”

Damian’s face didn’t change, but the temperature in the room dropped.

“And the howl last night?” he asked.

“Rogue. Caught the scent of the mate bond from a distance. We put him down before he could cross into the city, but there will be more.” Kane’s gaze flicked to me again. “They’re already hunting the source.”

My stomach turned. “Hunting me?”

Damian moved so fast I barely saw it. One second he was across the room, the next he was standing between me and Kane, his back to me, shielding me with his body.

“No one touches her,” he said, voice quiet and deadly. “Make that clear to every wolf in the territory. The first one who tries loses their throat.”

Kane held his Alpha’s stare for a long moment, then nodded once. “Understood. But Damian… the purebloods won’t accept this. A human Luna? They’ll see it as weakness. They’ll challenge you.”

“Then let them challenge.” Damian’s tone left no room for argument. “She’s mine. The bond already started. Fighting it will only make it worse for both of us.”

I stepped out from behind him, anger finally cutting through the fear. “I am standing right here. Stop talking about me like I’m a problem you have to solve.”

Both men looked at me.

Kane actually looked impressed for half a second. Damian’s eyes narrowed.

“You don’t understand pack law yet,” he said.

“Then explain it.”

He turned fully toward me. The intensity in his gaze made my pulse jump.

“Once the mate recognition happens, the Alpha’s wolf will not rest until the bond is either completed or rejected. Rejection is rare and almost always ends in blood. Until one of those two things happens, you are under my protection whether you want it or not. Leaving this building alone is not an option. Going back to your old life is not an option. And if anyone from your past comes looking for you, they will answer to me.”

The last part hit harder than the rest.

Your past.

I felt the blood drain from my face. How much did he already know?

Kane cleared his throat. “I should go prepare for the council. Do you want me to bring her?”

“No,” Damian said immediately. “She stays here. Double the security on the building. No one enters this floor without my direct order.”

Kane nodded, gave me one last unreadable look, then stepped back into the elevator. The doors closed, leaving me alone with Damian again.

Silence stretched between us.

I crossed my arms. “You can’t just keep me locked up here.”

“I can. And I will.” He walked past me to the coffee machine, poured two cups, and slid one toward me. “Until I know why a human triggered a bond that should only exist between wolves, you’re the most valuable and most dangerous thing in this city. My enemies will use you. Your past will try to take you. And my wolf…” He looked at me over the rim of his cup, silver flickering in his eyes. “My wolf already considers you claimed.”

I swallowed. “And what do you consider me?”

Damian set the cup down slowly. He stepped closer until there was almost no space left between us. His hand came up, fingers brushing a strand of hair behind my ear. The touch was gentle, but the look in his eyes was anything but.

“I consider you the one thing I was never supposed to want,” he said quietly. “And the one thing I’m no longer willing to give up.”

My heart was beating so hard I was sure he could hear it.

Before I could answer, his phone buzzed on the counter. He glanced at the screen and his expression hardened.

“Liora,” he muttered.

He answered on speaker.

Her voice came through smooth and sharp. “Damian. The council is restless. They’re demanding answers about the human you left with last night. Some are already calling for a formal challenge if you refuse to reject the bond.”

Damian’s free hand settled on my waist, possessive and firm, like he needed the contact.

“Tell the council the Alpha King does not reject what is his,” he said coldly. “Anyone who has a problem with that can say it to my face tonight.”

He ended the call without waiting for her reply.

Then he looked down at me, eyes burning.

“Tonight I go to war for you,” he said. “Whether you’re ready or not.”

Outside the glass walls, the city kept moving, completely unaware that the most powerful wolf in the region had just declared a human his mate.

And somewhere in the back of my mind,

A memory of the past I had been running from whispered that this was only the beginning of the danger.