Intense

CHAPTER 5

I lasted exactly seventy-two hours.

Seventy-two hours of staring at my phone until my eyes burned. Seventy-two hours of my mother blowing it up with wedding dress fittings and guest list updates. Seventy-two hours of Luca sending me stupid texts like "can't wait to make you mine" while I pictured his father's hands on me in that hotel room.

My wolf wouldn't shut the fuck up.

She clawed at my ribs every night, restless, pushing images into my head I didn't ask for — dark cedar on skin, steady breathing against my neck, the way Xavier had said I have you like he meant it. Luca's scent had never done that to her. Not once in six months. Now she paced like a caged animal, and I hated her for it.

At 1:17 a.m. on the fourth night I was in the kitchen pouring tea I didn't want when my phone buzzed on the counter.

Unknown number.

Come downstairs. Now.

I read it twice. My thumb hovered over delete.

Another text came through right after.

Your father's company has three major contracts pending with Blackwell Holdings. Would be unfortunate if they fell through.

My stomach twisted hard. I set the mug down before I dropped it.

I didn't change out of my oversized t-shirt and shorts. Didn't brush my hair. I grabbed my keys, took the elevator down, and stepped out into the cool night air.

The black car sat at the curb, engine running low. No driver. Xavier was behind the wheel, one hand resting on the gear shift, staring straight ahead like he'd been waiting exactly as long as he expected.

I climbed into the passenger seat and slammed the door.

He pulled away from the curb without a word. The city lights slid across the dashboard as we drove. I kept my hands under my thighs so he wouldn't see them shaking. The leather seat felt cold against my bare legs. His scent filled the car — that same dark cedar mixed with something sharper tonight, like smoke and control.

"You threatened my family," I said after five minutes of silence.

He didn't look at me. "I gave you a reason to stop hiding."

"I told you I want to forget it happened."

"You keep saying that." He made a turn onto the road leading out of the city, toward the hills. "Yet here you are. In my car. At one in the morning."

"I didn't have a choice."

He let out a short breath through his nose. Almost a laugh, but colder. "You had a choice. You chose to come down."

The road climbed. Buildings gave way to trees. My wolf pushed harder under my skin, alert, interested in a way that made my jaw clench. I could smell him stronger now with the windows closed. It made my pulse kick up.

We reached the estate gates. They opened automatically. He drove past the main house, down a narrower path through the trees until the headlights hit a smaller building — a guesthouse or something, set back from everything. Private. Isolated.

He killed the engine. The sudden quiet pressed in.

"Get out."

I followed him inside. The place was simple but expensive — dark wood floors, low lights he flicked on as we entered. One big room with a couch, a kitchen area, and stairs leading up. No pictures on the walls. Nothing personal. Just clean lines and the heavy sense that this was a space where things happened without witnesses.

Xavier locked the door behind us.

I stayed near the entrance, arms crossed tight over my chest. "What do you want?"

He took off his jacket, hung it on a hook, and rolled up the sleeves of his black shirt. Slow. Deliberate. The muscles in his forearms stood out under the light. He walked to the kitchen counter, poured two glasses of water, and set one down closer to me.

"You've been fighting it for three days," he said. His voice was low, even. "Your wolf hasn't. I can smell her from here."

"Stop talking about my wolf."

He picked up his glass and took a drink, watching me the whole time. "She wants out. She's been locked down around Luca. Around your parents. Around that whole respectable cage they built for you. But with me?" He set the glass down. "She's wide awake."

I felt her then — pushing, scratching, wanting to get closer to him. My skin felt too tight.

"Leave me alone," I said.

He crossed the room in three steps. Not fast enough to scare me, but steady. Inevitable. He stopped right in front of me, close enough that I had to tilt my head back to meet his eyes.

"You don't want me to leave you alone."

His hand came up. Not grabbing. Just his fingers brushing my jaw, then sliding into my hair at the back of my neck. The touch sent heat straight down my spine. I grabbed his wrist but didn't pull it away.

"Xavier—"

"Say it again." His thumb pressed lightly under my chin. "My name. The way you said it in the hotel when you came the third time."

My face burned. I shoved at his chest. He didn't move. Solid. Unshakable.

"This is fucked up," I hissed. "You're his father. I'm supposed to marry your son in a month."

"And yet you let me fuck you for four hours straight without knowing my name." His voice dropped lower. "You begged me not to stop. You dug your nails into my back hard enough to draw blood. Remember?"

I did remember. Every second.

My breathing got faster. I hated how my body reacted — nipples tightening under the thin t-shirt, heat building low in my stomach. My wolf surged forward, pressing me to lean in, to taste him again.

Xavier's eyes darkened. He could smell it on me. I knew he could.

"Leave Luca," he said. Same as in the car. Calm. Like he was stating a fact. "End it. Come to me."

"No."

He backed me up until my shoulders hit the wall. One hand braced beside my head. The other stayed on my neck, thumb stroking the side where my pulse hammered.

"You're lying to both of us right now." His face was inches from mine. I could feel his breath. "Your parents want the alliance. Luca wants the optics. You? You want to be ruined properly. Not used as a pretty prop."

"Stop."

"Make me." His mouth hovered over mine. Not kissing. Waiting. "Tell me to leave and mean it. Tell me you don't want my hands on you again."

I opened my mouth. Nothing came out.

He kissed me.

Not soft. Not patient like the hotel. This was rough, demanding. His tongue pushed in and I met it with mine before I could stop myself. My hands fisted in his shirt. He pressed his body against me — hard chest, the solid line of his cock already pushing against my stomach through his pants.

I made a sound in my throat. Half moan, half protest.

He broke the kiss just enough to speak against my lips. "That's what I thought."

His hand slid down, under the hem of my t-shirt, palm flat against my bare stomach. Rough skin. Calluses. He moved higher, cupped my breast, thumb brushing over my nipple. I arched into it without thinking.

"Fuck," I breathed.

"Yeah." He pinched lightly. "That's the real you. Not the modest dresses. Not the good girl act."

I grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him back down. Kissed him harder. My wolf howled inside me, urging me on, flooding me with need. His scent was everywhere now. In my lungs. On my tongue.

He lifted me suddenly. My legs wrapped around his waist like they belonged there. He carried me to the couch, dropped me onto it, and came down on top of me. Heavy. Perfect weight.

His mouth moved to my neck. Teeth scraping. Sucking. Marking. I tilted my head to give him better access and hated myself for it.

"Xavier—"

He pulled my t-shirt up and off in one move. No bra underneath. His eyes locked on my breasts for a second, then his mouth was there — hot, wet, pulling my nipple between his teeth. I cried out, back bowing off the couch.

His hand pushed between my legs, cupping me through the thin shorts. I was soaked already. He rubbed slow circles with the heel of his palm and I ground against him, chasing the pressure.

"Look at you," he said against my skin. "So fucking wet for the wrong man."

"Shut up."

He chuckled low. The sound vibrated through me. Then he shoved my shorts and underwear down my legs in one rough pull. I kicked them off. Naked now under him while he was still fully dressed. The power in that made my stomach flip.

He pushed two fingers inside me without warning.

I gasped. My walls clenched around him. He curled them, hitting that spot that made my vision blur.

"Still so tight," he muttered. "Even after I stretched you out for hours."

I rocked my hips, fucking myself on his fingers. My hands yanked at his shirt buttons. Some popped off. I didn't care. Skin. I needed his skin.

He let me pull the shirt off him. His chest was solid, scarred in places, dark hair trailing down his stomach. Older. Stronger. Nothing like Luca's smooth gym body.

He added a third finger. Pumping faster. His thumb worked my clit in tight circles.

I was close already. Embarrassingly close.

"Don't you dare come yet," he ordered.

"Fuck you."

He pulled his fingers out. I whimpered at the loss.

He stood up, unbuckled his belt, shoved his pants and boxers down. His cock sprang free — thick, hard, the head already slick. Bigger than I remembered in the dark.

He stroked himself once, looking down at me spread out on his couch.

"Turn over."

I hesitated half a second.

"Now, Zara."

I flipped onto my stomach. He grabbed my hips, yanked me up onto my knees. Ass in the air. Face pressed into the cushion.

He rubbed his cock along my slit, coating himself in my wetness. Teased my entrance.

"Beg."

"No."

He slapped my ass. Hard. The sting made me jolt forward.

"Beg me to fuck you."

I bit the cushion. My wolf was screaming yes. My brain was screaming no. My body won.

"Please," I choked out. "Fuck me."

He thrust in deep in one stroke.

I cried out into the fabric. Full. So fucking full. He didn't give me time to adjust — just pulled back and slammed in again. Hard. Deep. Skin slapping skin.

"God—"

"Not God." He gripped my hips tighter, fingers digging in hard enough to bruise. "Me. Say my name while I fuck you."

"Xavier—"

Louder. He pounded into me. The couch creaked. My knees slid on the leather. Every thrust hit that perfect spot and sent sparks up my spine.

He reached around and rubbed my clit again. Fast. Rough.

I came hard. Shaking. Clenching around his cock. My vision went white at the edges.

He didn't stop. Kept fucking me through it, drawing it out until I was gasping, oversensitive.

Then he pulled out, flipped me onto my back, and pushed back in. Face to face now. His eyes locked on mine.

"Again," he said.

"I can't—"

"You can."

He hooked one of my legs over his shoulder, changing the angle. Deeper. Brutal. His hand wrapped around my throat — not squeezing hard, just holding. Possessing.

My second orgasm hit even stronger. I scratched down his back. Drew blood again.

He groaned. His rhythm faltered. Then he buried himself deep and came, pulsing inside me, hot and thick.

We stayed like that, breathing hard. Sweat slick between us. His cock still twitching inside me.

After a minute he pulled out slowly. I felt his cum leak down my thigh.

He stood, walked to the kitchen, came back with a warm cloth. Cleaned me up without a word. Gentle now. The contrast fucked with my head.

I sat up, pulled my t-shirt back on with shaky hands. My shorts next. My legs felt like jelly.

"This doesn't change anything," I said, voice hoarse.

Xavier pulled his pants back on but left the shirt open. Scratches from my nails stood out red on his chest and shoulders. "It changes everything."

He sat on the couch beside me. Close. His hand rested on my bare thigh.

"Your wolf knows it. I know it. You know it."

I stared at the floor. "Luca—"

"Luca is weak." His voice went flat. "He'll never be Alpha. Not really. The pack elders see it. I see it. He's been gone three months training and still acts like a spoiled pup."

I looked at him. "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying the engagement was always a mistake. One I let happen because I hadn't met you yet." He squeezed my thigh. "End it. Or I will."

My phone started ringing on the floor where it had fallen from my shorts. I picked it up.

Luca's name on the screen.

Xavier saw it too. His expression didn't change.

"Answer it," he said.

I declined the call. Texted Luca back quickly: Can't talk now. Headache. Talk tomorrow.

Xavier took the phone from my hand. Powered it off. Set it on the table.

"We're not done tonight."

He pulled me onto his lap. I straddled him. His cock was already getting hard again against me.

"Xavier..."

"One more time," he said against my mouth. "Then I'll take you home. For now."

I kissed him first this time.

We didn't leave until almost dawn.

My body ached in the best and worst ways. Bites on my neck. Fingerprints on my hips. Cum drying on my inner thighs even after he cleaned me again.

He drove me back to my building in silence. The city was waking up around us. Normal people starting normal days.

As we pulled up to my street, his phone rang. He glanced at it, then answered on speaker.

"Luca."

"Dad." Luca's voice came through, tired but trying to sound casual. "You coming to the pack meeting this afternoon? Elders want to talk about the transition."

Xavier's hand rested on my leg the whole time. High up. Possessive.

"I'll be there," he said. "Bring Seraphine— sorry, Zara. Family should be together."

He ended the call.

I stared at him. "You can't be serious."

"Be there, Zara." His eyes met mine. Cold steel now. "Or I tell my son exactly how his fiancée spent last night. How she sounded when she came on my cock. How she begged."

My blood ran cold.

He leaned over and opened my door.

"Think about it. You have until the meeting."

I got out on shaky legs.

As I walked toward my building, his car didn't move. He watched me the whole way.

Inside the elevator I leaned against the wall, heart pounding.

My wolf was quiet now. Satisfied.

But I knew this wasn't over.

It had only just started.

And when I checked my phone after turning it back on, there was a new text from an unknown number.

Wear the black dress you brought to the hotel. The short one. No underwear.

See you this afternoon.

— End of Chapter 5 —