chapter 9

THE BEAST: ETERNAL OBSESSION

*LEONHART POV*

I stood by the window, watching the distant red taillights of the SUV completely disappear down the rain-slicked road.

My jaw was clenched so hard the bone ached.

I could still smell the sweet trace of her vanilla scent lingering on my skin, but it was already fading, ruthlessly torn away by the heavy downpour and the growing physical distance between us.

Gone.

In a sudden burst of violent frustration, I slammed my fist flat against the stone wall of the courtyard. The sound of cracking bone echoed in the quiet, and fresh blood began dripping from my knuckles, mixing with the rainwater on the ground.

The physical pain flared instantly, but it was absolutely nothing compared to the hollow, agonizing ache tearing through the center of my chest.I dragged both hands through my hair, pacing the length of the dark courtyard like a caged animal. The freezing rain soaked completely through my dress shirt, chilling my skin.

Good.

The cold helped drown out the feral need to shift form and sprint down the highway after her car. I should have stopped her. The mere thought of her being away from my side was driving my wolf insane.Turning on my heel, I marched back inside the pack house. I need a fucking drink.I strode into my private office, throwing myself into the room.

Radolf was already waiting inside, leaning casually against the far wall with his arms crossed tightly over his chest.

"So, you're actually letting her go?" Radolf asked, tilting his head to the side with a calculating look.

"Fuck no," I snapped, my voice a dangerous snarl.I grabbed a bottle of top-shelf whiskey from the cabinet, tilted the glass neck back, and gulped the burning liquid down straight from the bottle. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand, my eyes tracking the empty window where her car had just vanished from sight. Thick veins popped aggressively along my forearm as my grip on the glass bottle tightened to a near-shattering point.Just then, the office door clicked open, and Lyall walked inside, calmly taking a seat in the leather chair opposite my desk.

"How did the drop-off go?" I asked, refusing to look up from the floor.

"Perfectly. She is completely secure, Alpha," Lyall replied smoothly, reaching out to pour himself a heavy glass of whiskey from the decanter. "The stealth guards are already stationed around her apartment perimeter. She won't even notice them.”I nodded slowly, walking over to my desk. I sank deeply into the leather executive chair and leaned my head back against the headrest, staring fixatedly at the dark ceiling.

"If she honestly thinks I am ever letting her walk out of my life," I muttered, my jaw clenching hard enough to draw blood, "she is dead fucking wrong."I poured the remaining liquor down my throat, my wolf clawing beneath my skin in agreement.

"She's fucking mine.”

*AMELIA POV*

I woke up with a brutal headache. Honestly, I didn’t expect much else after the absolute breakdown I’d had yesterday.

I forced myself out of bed early to prepare for work, dragging myself through my standard morning routine. Like clockwork, by 8:00 AM, I was on my way to the office. Speaking of work… ever since the day I met Leon, I realized I hadn’t had that recurring nightmare a single time. I couldn't help but wonder what had fundamentally changed within me.

Reaching the building, I pasted a fake, professional smile onto my face and walked into the lobby. But before I could even make it to the elevators, I ran directly into my boss’s entitled daughter, Alice.She let out a sharp laugh, clapping her manicured hands together mockingly.

"Look who's back from her so-called vacation," she sneered, stepping aggressively into my personal space with her arms crossed tightly over her chest.I didn’t answer her immediately. I flat-out wasn’t in the mood to catch a lawsuit or lose my source of income today.

"Yes," I said. Just one word. Flat, cold, and entirely uninterested.Her smug smile dropped instantly. Before I could even blink, her fingers flew forward, twisting brutally into my hair. A sharp flare of pain shot through my scalp.

"Because of you," she hissed, yanking harder on the strands, "I lost my only damn chance with Mr. Leonhart, you pathetic bitch.”The mention of his name triggered something feral inside me. I shoved her back with everything I had.

Hard.

Alice stumbled backward, her eyes widening in sheer shock. Good.I stepped forward into her space, my voice dropping into a low, freezing register. My heart twisted uncomfortably at her choice of words. Her only chance? As if he was ever hers to begin with.

"Here’s some free advice, Miss Alice," I said, drilling my gaze into hers. "Go to school. Actually study. Because right now, you’re just another pretty blonde with absolutely nothing inside her head."Her face contorted with rage, and her hand flew up to slap me across the face.I caught her wrist mid-air with blinding speed, squeezing the bone tight. Who the hell did she think she was, trying to claim a man who didn't belong to her?

"Try that again," I whispered dangerously, "and I'll ensure Mr. Leonhart is the absolute last man you ever get to look at. Know your place princess."I dropped her wrist like trash and walked right past her.

Let her choke on her own useless fury.

The moment I reached my private desk, I roughed up my hair, threw myself into the office chair, and breathed heavily.

What the heck? How dare she? I was angry, but surprisingly not at Alice I was furious with myself. Why on earth was I reacting like a violently jealous girlfriend? Leon didn't belong to either of us. So why was my heart beating so fast?Gosh, all I wanted to do was walk out and go home.

As the hours dragged on, I felt entirely drained, as if the very life force was being systematically sucked right out of my body.

My mind, my physical limbs, my entire soul it was all silently screaming for Leonhart. I literally couldn't focus on a single spreadsheet.I took a deep, shaky breath.

"Come on, Amelia. Keep it together," I muttered to myself.The grueling day dragged on forever, until suddenly, the clock ran out. I grabbed my belongings and dragged myself out of the complex, moving entirely on autopilot. I was beyond exhausted. Twelve hours on my feet, a screaming match with Alice the mad cow, and a corporate boss who genuinely believed "urgent" meant a 6:47 PM file drop on a Friday. All I wanted was to crawl into my apartment, take a scalding hot shower, and have five minutes of total isolation.

Was that really too much to ask the universe for?But the moment I stepped up to my apartment door, my blood turned to pure ice.The door was cracked open.

I knew for a fact I had locked it this morning. I remembered the metallic click sound perfectly. I looked down, and my brass keys were still gripped tightly in my palm.

My heart started hammering wildly against my ribs.

A break-in.

A stalker. Or something infinitely worse.

I pushed the heavy door open slowly, barely allowing myself to breathe. My brain was already calculating the distance to the stairwell, trying to see if I could sprint back down before whoever was inside noticed me.Then, I heard a loud crunching noise.Noah was lounging stretched out across my couch, his muddy feet kicked up on the cushions, digging casually into the cherry pie I had specifically saved for tomorrow morning.

He didn’t look even a fraction of a percent guilty. He just glanced up at me as if I had rudely interrupted his N*****x marathon.

"The door was unlocked," he mumbled, his mouth completely full of pastry. "You left the spare key under the welcome mat again. I wasn’t about to let you stand out in the hallway after a double shift.”

Relief hit my system so violently that my knees actually buckled. No intruders. No magical danger. Just my stupid best friend, Noah.I dropped my heavy work bag to the floor with a loud thud and glared at him.

"I have told you a thousand times to stop using that key, Noah."

"And I told you to find a better hiding spot," he shot back, flashing me a brilliant grin.I should have been furious. I was furious. But mostly, I was just... tired in a completely different way now. The kind of protective tiredness that finally eases up the second you see a familiar, safe face.I walked past the couch into the kitchen, muttering,

"Next time, text me first," while pouring myself a tall glass of ice water.

"Where’s the fun in that?"I rolled my eyes so hard it physically ached.

Typical Noah.

Infuriating, annoying, and quite frankly the only reason I wasn't currently dialling the police. I walked back over, sank onto the cushioned arm of the couch, and ruthlessly snatched the pie dish out of his lap.

"Hey! That's mine!"

"It never belonged to you, Noah," I said, instantly taking a massive bite. Damn it, the jerk was right. I was entirely too exhausted to deal with being outside my comfort zone anymore. Well, there went my quiet alone time."I need a bath," I stated, standing up after a few minutes of quiet chewing."Are you sleeping over today?" I asked.He simply nodded his head, his eyes glued right back to the television screen.

I took a deep breath and headed straight into my bathroom. My apartment had two bedrooms one permanently set up for Noah when he came to visit from across town, and one for me. Noah was like a real brother to me. The two of us had met at the orphanage when I was only five and he was ten. Ever since that day, we had been absolutely inseparable. But ever since he had gotten a serious girlfriend, I barely ever saw him anymore.

I respected his boundaries; girls get jealous easily, and I knew I would absolutely hate it if my boyfriend spent the majority of his free time with his female best friend. So, I completely understood his absence.I stripped out of my corporate clothes and stepped beneath the showerhead, letting the hot water wash away the tension in every single muscle. I closed my eyes, completely leaning into the comfort of the steam.And then, his face immediately flashed into my mind.Is it weird to say that I already miss him?I missed the gravelly resonance of his voice. I missed the effortless way my frame fit perfectly against his broad chest. I missed his lips, and God help me, I even missed hearing that stupid nickname he gave me.

Kitten.

I’d dated before this. I’d had my fair share of men. But not a single one of them had ever managed to get my head stuck in a permanent, spinning twist like he did.

He was my mate, after all.

Just like he said. Soulmate in human language. A man who was carefully crafted by fate for me, and only for me.A small, involuntary smile found its way onto my lips in the steam.When I finally snapped out of the trance, I checked the digital clock on the counter and realized it was already past 20:30. I had spent nearly an hour standing under the running water. My skin was entirely wrinkled, my complexion looked pale, and suddenly, I was thirsty as hell. I really hadn’t meant to stay inside that long.I stepped out of the glass stall, wrapping a plush white towel tightly around my chest.Walking out into the hallway, I saw Noah on a phone call, pacing frantically by the living room window.

His jaw was locked tight, his face pinched with deep frustration. I walked over to the kitchen counter, poured myself another glass of water, and downed it in one fluid go.Then, the front door violently crashed open, the wood splintering against the drywall.

Leonhart stood framed in the wreckage. His massive chest was heaving erratically, acting as if he had sprinted the entire distance from the pack territory to my apartment building.

He looked like an apex predator breathing absolute fire.Noah moved instantly, throwing his body directly in front of me to shield my exposed frame.

"Back off," Noah commanded, his voice low, steady, and protective.Leonhart’s dark eyes flicked past his shoulder. Directly to me.The moment his gaze landed on my damp skin, his irises darkened into a terrifying, pitch-black abyss.I froze on the spot, clutching the edge of the towel desperately against my chest. My heart slammed frantically against my ribs like a trapped bird.

I couldn’t speak a single word.

I couldn't even draw a breath.For a terrifying, suspended second, the only sound in the entire apartment was the heavy, furious, and deeply possessive rhythm of his breathing.