All Chapters of The alpha's forbidden desire: Chapter 41 - Chapter 50

Later that night, Silius didn't know exactly when it happened, or how — one moment he'd been staring blankly at the pages in front of him, thoughts still tangled far beyond any hope of repair, and the next, he was simply asleep. His head had come to rest against the open books, arms folded loosely beneath it, the hard wooden chair doing absolutely nothing to offer any real comfort. Exhaustion, it seemed, had won out over heartbreak and confusion in the end.The room stayed quiet for a long while after that — undisturbed, dim, lit only by the small desk lamp he'd forgotten to switch off. Then the door creaked open.Mathew stepped inside without announcing himself, his eyes landing immediately on Silius's slumped figure at the desk. He paused just past the threshold, taking in the sight before him — the way Silius's pale hair had fallen messily across his face, the faint, stubborn furrow still creasing his brow even in sleep, and the thoroughly awkward, clearly uncomfortable position he

"It's tonight at his house," the message read, buried somewhere near the top of the group chat that had been steadily lighting up Silius's phone all afternoon.*I'm in,* Rile replied almost instantly.Silius stared at the thread for a long moment before typing out his own response. "Ooh i… I don't think I can join you guys."*Ooww.. Why not?* Rile shot back.He hesitated, thumb hovering over the screen. There wasn't really a good way to explain it — not without sounding completely ridiculous, or worse, completely controlled. *(How can I say that someone had left a threatening note on my table saying that I shouldn't talk or meet with anyone else?)* he thought bitterly, the words never quite making it into the chat itself. *(He'll kill me if he knows that I went to Josh's party.)*It wasn't an exaggeration, either. Mathew had made his position on the matter painfully clear before he'd even left — the possessive warning whispered against his sleeping ear about anyone who dared get close

"No, no, no," Silius said quickly, shaking his head at Michael. "Mathew won't do such things." His hands were trembling slightly, though he tried to keep his voice steady. "I know him…. he's hot-tempered, but he won't—""There's evidence, Silius," Michael cut in, voice flat and unhurried, entirely certain of what he was saying.Silius's protest died in his throat."And he himself confessed," Michael continued, "that it was him who did it.""H… he might have his reasons," Silius said, the words weak even to his own ears, grasping for something, anything, that might make sense of it all."For killing someone?" Michael's eyebrows lifted, disbelief written plainly across his face. "What the heck is wrong with you? You weren't like this before."The accusation landed harder than Silius expected. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, unsure how to defend a position he wasn't even entirely certain he believed himself."You think someone can take another person's life," Michael pressed,

Silius arrived at the office a full fifteen minutes before Marco expected him, the way he always did. It had become a kind of ritual over the past eight years — arrive early, straighten his tie in the elevator's reflective doors, knock twice, and wait for Marco Volkov to open the door himself rather than let an assistant do it for him. Marco always insisted on that. He said it made the office feel less like a fortress. The door opened, and Marco stood there in his usual crisp shirt, hair still damp from a morning he'd clearly rushed through. "Good morning, sir," Silius said, offering a small smile as he stepped inside. "We have a meeting at ten with the xxx company." Marco huffed, not quite a laugh, and reached out to ruffle Silius's hair before he could duck away. "Stop speaking to me so formally." "But I'm your secretary," Silius said, swatting his hand away with practiced ease, though the smile didn't leave his face. "Okay. Then I'm firing you from your job." Silius blinked.

Silius stood in front of Mathew's door for longer than he'd like to admit, arms crossed, jaw tight, rehearsing words that kept dissolving the moment he tried to string them together."Okay, so what if he acted like that?" he muttered under his breath. "He must've been tired." *He mumbles it to himself, half-convinced.* "After all, it was a pretty long flight." He shook his head, trying to talk himself out of the ache still sitting heavy in his chest. "It's not like he acted like that on purpose."*He takes a deep breath.* "Okay. That's it." His hand curled into a fist, resolve settling over him even as his heart still hammered against his ribs. "I'll go and have a proper talk to him now."*Knock knock.*The door opened a moment later, and Mathew's face appeared, easy and unbothered. "Ooh, hey." *He smiles.*"*Smile.*" Silius forced his own smile into place, bright and hopeful despite everything. "Heey. Um... do you want anything to drink? I can get it—""Ooh, no, it's okay." Mathew wa