Lahat ng Kabanata ng The Wolf Inside Her: Kabanata 11 - Kabanata 18

The city outside Selene’s hotel window hummed like a restless machine as it always did, with neon bleeding into the dark streets below. She sat on the armchair, legs folded under her, a half-empty glass of red wine on the table beside her. The night was quiet inside, but her head wasn’t.Lucas’s words from dinner circled her thoughts—the way his voice had softened when he spoke about his father, the way he’d gone almost guarded when she asked about his mother. That flicker in his eyes… the one she recognized too well.Abandonment.She swirled the wine absentmindedly, thinking about the threads that tied people together. Most threads were fragile—chance meetings, passing encounters. But theirs? Fate had knotted it tightly from the moment she’d seen him that day. She didn’t believe in coincidences and certainly not after him.She leaned back and stared at the ceiling. Maybe she’d been meant to save him from those thugs that night. Maybe she was meant to pull him out of this city entirel

The second the invitation escaped, he regretted it. His throat tightened, ready for the polite brush-off.“Yes.”The answer was immediate. Too immediate.Lucas blinked at her, caught off guard. Selene’s eyes widened a fraction, and for once her poise faltered. She looked away quickly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear as if she hadn’t just jumped at his offer like a kid snatching candy.Inside, she was cursing herself. Smooth, Selene. Real smooth. She could charm her way through negotiations with rival packs, could stare down men twice her size without flinching, but one awkward barista and she was saying yes too fast like a lovesick teenager.Lucas smiled faintly, trying not to look as flustered as he felt. “Okay then… uh, it’s not much, but I can whip something up.”“I’m sure I’ll survive,” she said dryly, though her voice carried a warmth.He led her up the creaky stairwell to his apartment. The building wasn’t impressive—faded paint, dim hallway lights—but it was clean, and

When the last plate was stacked neatly in the drying rack, Lucas wiped his hands on the dish towel and was ready to collapse into the couch. But Selene had other plans.“Sit,” she said firmly, motioning toward the small table again.Lucas blinked. “I just sat through dinner.”“Then sit again. This time, you’re going to work.”There was no winning against that kind of tone, so he dragged himself back into the chair with a sigh. Selene leaned forward, elbows on the table, eyes bright with that relentless energy that always left him feeling like he’d been pulled into her current without warning.“Work on what?” he asked, wary.“On our tour,” she said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “You said yes moments ago, remember? Now it’s time to start. Routes, places, the order of travel—everything.”Lucas’s brain froze. He’d imagined vague things: planes, maybe trains, maybe beaches. But sitting across from Selene with her sharp gaze and her voice humming with expectation made

Lucas pushed open the café door, the little bell above jingling in its usual cheer. He slipped behind the counter, and went through the motions. Grinding beans, wiping the counter and restocking the pastry case.But his hands worked on autopilot while his mind spun elsewhere.Resign. Just like that.Selene’s words replayed in his head like a broken record. Every cup he handed out came with the thought: What if today was my last?His regulars streamed in—Mrs. Doyle with her cinnamon bun obsession, the young lawyer who always ordered black coffee but tipped generously, the trio of college kids who laughed too loudly at everything. They smiled at him, waved, made casual small talk. And all he could think was: Would they even notice if I were gone?Around evening, he was behind the register when his manager, Pete, lumbered out of the back office, yawning like always.“Lucas, can you cover the early shift tomorrow too? Jen called in sick again.”Lucas looked at him. Really looked. The wear