All Chapters of TABOO (A DEAL WITH THE SHADOW ALPHA): Chapter 21 - Chapter 29

29 Chapters

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

AXELThe silence after I told her we were leaving was worse than any noise. I could feel the disappointment coming off her in waves, even though all she said was a quiet “Okay." She loved it here. I saw it in the way she’d relaxed on the terrace, in the focused peace on her face while she sketched. This place gave her peace.And I was ripping her away from it. Because I had to.The memory of that man leaning into her space, her polite smile aimed at him, was a fresh burn behind my eyes. She was smiling so brightly as much as I hated her fake smiles, I was more pissed that she was smiling at some that wasn't me. She was smiling and I was responsible for it. It had taken every ounce of my control not to cross the room right then and till his throat out so I can stop hearing his annoying stupid voice, because I heard every word he said from across the room, that what being cursed as a wolf gave me, I could hear things I don't even men to hear but last night I wanted to hear everything

Last Updated : 2025-12-12

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

ADDISON The flight back felt different. The heavy, suffocating decorum from the car ride to the airport was still there, but the space inside the plane had changed. Last time, I was a ball of panic, clinging to him just to breathe.This time, when I walked up the steps, my stomach did its usual nervous clench, but it was quieter, I was nervous but I wasn't scared not as much as before. Axel followed me in. He didn't go to his usual seat across the cabin. Without a word, he sat down right next to me again, his large body making the plush leather seat feel small.He didn't look at me. He just stared straight ahead, buckling his seatbelt. But his presence was a solid, warm wall beside me. I breathed a sigh of relief, at least I had someone to cling to but I had to mane sure not to hurt him like I did before. When the engines roared to life, my fingers instinctively twisted together in my lap. The familiar fear started to rise, a cold hand squeezing my lungs.Then, his hand came down. N

Last Updated : 2025-12-13

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

ADDISON The note in my hand wasn't just a paper anymore. It felt like a threat made solid. The words How long do you think you can hide, Addison? weren’t a question. They were a confirmation. A confirmation of the life I was now back trapped in. The escape was over, and the nightmare was here, inside my own home.The fear was a cold, sick feeling in my stomach. But under it, a different feeling started to boil. Anger. A hot, sharp, clean anger. I was tired. Tired of being scared. Tired of looking over my shoulder. Tired of Feign Paxton thinking he owned a piece of me.I didn’t think. I just acted. I pulled out my phone, my hands shaking, but not from fear this time. From rage. I went into my blocked contacts, found his number, and unblocked it. Then I hit call.It rang twice before he picked up. His voice was slick, pleased. “Addie? I knew you’d come around.”“Why do you keep doing this to me?” My voice came out low and steady, which surprised me. “We broke up. We are living separate

Last Updated : 2025-12-14

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR (You're okay)

ADDISON The sound wasn’t loud. That was the worst part.It wasn’t a crash or a bang. It was a soft, sliding scrape from the direction of my living room, like a piece of furniture being gently nudged across the hardwood floor.My eyes flew open in the dark. My heart instantly slammed against my ribs, a frantic, trapped animal. I held my breath, my whole body frozen under the covers.Silence.Maybe it was the building settling. Maybe it was Jules, having forgotten something? But no, she’d texted me if she would be coming. Then I heard it again. A faint, shuffling step. Not outside in the hall. Inside.Pure, cold terror flooded my veins. The note. How long do you think you can hide?My phone was on the nightstand. My hand shot out, fumbling for it in the dark. My fingers were so clumsy with fear I almost dropped it. I didn’t think. There was only one person my mind screamed for.It rang once before he picked up. His voice was alert, clear, not sleepy at all. “Addison?”“Axel,” I whispe

Last Updated : 2025-12-16

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR (IS SHE A SCREAMER?)

AXEL The night was long. I didn’t sleep, not that I slept often on normal occasions but tonight I was restless. I sat in the dark of my study, waited, and waited.Every hour, exactly on the hour, my phone would light up with a text from Marcus.00:00: All quiet. Lights out in main bedroom.01:00: All quiet.02:00: All quiet.03:00: Heard movement. Ms. Amber got a glass of water. Returned to bedroom.Every chime was a relief and a fresh wave of frustration. I should be there. Not outside the door. Inside. In that bedroom, with her back against my chest, where I could feel her breathe and know with my own senses that she was safe. But I stayed away. Being that close, with the moon’s pull already making my blood feel too hot and my thoughts too sharp… it was a risk. I might lose control. And I couldn’t let her see that.The stupid, selfish part of me was furious. The mega moon was a ticking clock. My plan had been simple: finish in Greece, send her home, and then I would disappear. Go s

Last Updated : 2025-12-18

TWENTY SIX (TIME IS RUNNING OUT)

Axel “Time is running out, Axel,” he said, no greeting, just business. “You have one week. You need to come to Greece. To the usual place. You know the preparations that have to be made.”A memory flashed, sharp and humiliating. Not a memory of sight, but of sensation. The cold, unforgiving bite of reinforced silver chains against my wrists and ankles. The sting of the needle as they injected the concoction meant to dampen the fire in my blood. The taste of my own rage, metallic and hot, as I fought against all of it. And the worse memories—the times the chains had strained, the times the drugs had felt like water against a forest fire, and the times where my bloodlust had won. The aftermath I was never allowed to see, only clean up.“I know,” I said, my voice flat. “I’ll be there.”There was a pause on the other end of the line. A suspicious one. “You’ve never been late before, Axel. You usually come months in advance, to… acclimatize. What’s keeping you?”The image of her face, lau

Last Updated : 2025-12-19

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

AxelHer eyes were wide reflecting confused and sleepy. “How did you even get in?”“I know the code.”“What?” Her voice rose, sleepiness replaced by indignation. “How? Axel, this is an invasion of privacy! It’s, like, a top-tier crime. I could sue.” She pouted a little, her arms crossing over her robe.I couldn’t help it. A smile touched my lips. She looked so serious, and so completely adorable.“Why are you smiling?” she demanded. “I’m being serious here!”“I understand that,” I said, forcing my expression to soften. “I’m just checking for loopholes. Anything a stalker could use. There is no privacy when it comes to your safety, firefly.”Her face changed, curiosity softening her anger. “Firefly? Why out of all nicknames do you call me that?”The truth came out before I could stop it. “Because you are very similar to one. Absolutely gorgeous and attractive… but dangerous, too.”A slow, teasing grin spread across her face. “So you find me attractive. Well, that’s new, Mr. Rex.”“It’s

Last Updated : 2025-12-20

CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT

AXEL I was so close. Her breath was warm on my lips, her eyes wide and trusting. The world had narrowed to the space between us, and for a second, I forgot about absolutely everything.Then my phone rang. The shrill sound was like a bucket of ice water. Fuck!I flinched back, a low growl of frustration rumbling in my chest. “Damn it,” I muttered, pulling the phone from my pocket. It was Williams, my assistant. The timing was perfect, and perfectly awful.“I have to take this,” I said, my voice rough. I saw the flicker of something—disappointment?—in Addison’s eyes before she nodded and I turned and walked out of the kitchen, putting the living room between us.“This better be important,” I snapped into the phone.“Sir, I’m sorry,” Williams’s voice was tense. “But there’s a situation at the main headquarters. A significant data breach. We suspect someone is feeding project specs to Haper-corp Industries. They’ve underbid us on three major contracts this week with impossible precision

Last Updated : 2025-12-22

CHAPTER TWENTY NINE

ADDISON I’d cancelled my studio session. The idea of walking through the busy streets, into a building with so many people, so many windows… it made my chest feel tight. It was easier to hide here. I told my manager I was “working from home.” It wasn’t a complete lie. I was trying to work, but my mind kept drifting.It drifted to last night. To the kitchen, warm with the smell of cookies. To Axel standing so close I could see the different shades of green in his eyes. To the feeling of his thumb on my neck, his breath mixing with mine. The memory sent a shiver through me that had nothing to do with fear. We almost missed.Then I’d hate myself for it. He’d practically said it. He didn’t do love. He was just being “helpful.” I was a problem to solve with his resources, last night a part of me wished he answered differently. I sighed, burying my face in my hands.My mom’s call had been the pin that popped the bubble. “You need to bring this Axel Rex to the house, Addison. It’s time we m

Last Updated : 2025-12-22

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