Adrien.

My fingers tightened around her wrist as I dragged her down the corridor, my strides long and impatient. I could hear the faint echo of our footsteps bouncing off the stone walls, but it did nothing to quiet the noise raging inside my head.

Her scent.

It clung to me. Warm. Soft. Infuriating.

Every time she tried to pull away, even slightly, my wolf snarled in warning. Mine.

I wasn’t thinking clearly. I knew that. But clarity was the last thing I wanted right now. All I wanted was to shut the door to my room, pin her against it, and....

Control yourself.

My jaw clenched so tightly it hurt. I had already kissed her once in the hallway like a fool. Like some reckless pup who couldn’t restrain himself. And she had looked at me afterward with something that resembled hurt.

That look had unsettled me more than her accusations.

She stumbled slightly as she tried to match my pace.

"Alpha Adrien," she began carefully, her voice steadier than I expected, "you’re hurting me."

The words should have made me loosen my grip.

They didn’t.

Instead, I slowed just enough so she wouldn’t fall again, but I did not release her. If I let go now, I might lose the thin thread of control I was barely holding onto.

I needed her away from everyone.

Away from Daniel.

The thought of his name alone sent another wave of heat through me.

And as if summoned by my irritation...

"Alpha Adrien."

The voice was calm. Firm.

I stopped abruptly.

Speak of the devil.

Daniel stood at the far end of the corridor, posture straight, gaze steady. He didn’t look angry. He didn’t look amused. He simply looked... composed.

Too composed.

Maria’s hand went still in mine.

My wolf bristled.

"What do you want?" I asked, my tone colder than the walls around us.

Daniel’s eyes flicked briefly to Maria before returning to me. That small glance was enough to make my grip tighten again.

"I need to speak with her."

Simple.

Direct.

As if he had every right.

I let out a short, humorless laugh. "You need to speak with her?"

"Yes."

The audacity.

"She is not part of your pack," I said sharply. "You don’t get to summon her whenever you please."

Daniel didn’t react to the edge in my voice. Instead, he stepped closer. Not threateningly. Not aggressively.

Just enough to show he wasn’t backing down.

"This concerns what just happened," he replied evenly. "I would rather speak to her privately before assumptions spread further."

Assumptions.

My mind flashed back to Anabel’s accusation. To the way Daniel had defended her. To the way he had looked at her.

A growl built in my chest before I could suppress it.

"She has nothing to explain to you," I snapped.

Maria shifted slightly behind me, as if trying to see around my shoulder. I didn’t like that.

Daniel’s gaze hardened, just a fraction. "This isn’t about territory, Adrien. It’s about clarity."

Clarity.

Was he mocking me?

I stepped forward until there was barely a foot between us. I was taller. Broader. I let the dominance roll off me without restraint.

"You overstep," I warned quietly.

His eyes didn’t waver. "And you’re not thinking clearly."

That did it.

My wolf surged forward, claws scraping against my control. I could almost feel the shift threatening beneath my skin.

Not here.

Not now.

"You think I don’t see what you’re doing?" I demanded. "First you interfere. Then you defend her. Now you want her alone?"

Maria stiffened behind me.

Daniel exhaled slowly, as though dealing with a child throwing a tantrum. That only fueled my anger further.

"I defended her because the accusation was baseless," he said. "And I want to speak with her because someone is playing a deeper game here."

His words struck something sharp inside me.

But I refused to show it.

"You will not question my authority in my own territory," I said through clenched teeth.

He held my gaze for a long moment.

Then, deliberately, he addressed her.

"Maria."

The sound of her name on his lips sent a violent spark through my veins.

Before she could even respond, I moved, placing myself fully between them, blocking his line of sight.

"She is not available," I said.

Silence stretched between us, thick and charged.

Daniel’s jaw tightened slightly. "Is that her choice?"

My hand flexed at my side.

Careful.

Very careful.

"You forget yourself," I said lowly. "She is my personal maid."

The words left my mouth smoothly, confidently.

Possessively.

"And right now," I continued, my voice dropping into something unmistakably final, "she is needed for a task."

Maria inhaled sharply behind me, but she said nothing.

Daniel’s gaze flickered over my shoulder once more, searching her expression. I shifted again, ensuring he saw only me.

This wasn’t about logic anymore.

It wasn’t about suspicion.

It wasn’t even about pride.

It was instinct.

Raw.

Territorial.

Unapologetic.

After a long pause, Daniel gave a small nod, not in agreement, nor in surrender.

Just acknowledgment.

"Very well," he said quietly. "But this conversation isn’t over."

"I didn’t say it was."

He held my stare a second longer before finally stepping aside, allowing us passage.

I didn’t waste another second.

I turned, gripping Maria’s hand again, and resumed walking, faster this time.

My heart was still pounding.

My wolf was still restless.

And as we reached the corner that led toward my chambers, I knew one thing with terrifying certainty...I wasn’t just losing control.

I was already too far gone.

The door shut behind us with a sharp thud.

The sound echoed in the room like a verdict.

I didn’t release her immediately. For a brief second, I simply stood there, my back still to the door, my chest rising and falling harder than I intended. My room suddenly felt smaller, warmer, thick with the scent of her.

She was still in my grasp.

Still here.

And Daniel wasn’t.

That should have calmed me.

It didn’t.

Instead, the image of him saying her name replayed in my mind like a taunt. The way he had looked at her. The quiet confidence in his voice.

I turned.

Without sparing her a glance, without giving myself another second to think, I pulled her toward me and claimed her lips.

It wasn’t gentle.

I wasn’t careful.

It was possession.

She gasped against my mouth, her hands instantly pushing against my chest. I felt the resistance, felt the tension in her fingers as she tried to create space between us.

But I didn’t budge.

I couldn’t.

My hand slid to her waist, gripping firmly as I deepened the kiss, not tender, not patient. My wolf surged forward, drowning out reason. She tasted like defiance and something dangerously close to vulnerability.

She turned her face slightly, breaking the seal for a second. "Alpha Adrien..."

I captured her lips again before she could finish.

The world outside this room ceased to exist. There was no Noah. No accusations. No Anabel. No Daniel.

Just the heat between us.

She struggled harder this time, palms pressing against my chest, fingers curling into the fabric of my shirt as if to push me away. I felt the tremor in her movements. Not fear.

Conflict.

That realization only made my control thinner.

"Stop," she whispered against my mouth.

The word should have anchored me.

Instead, it cut through the haze just enough to make me pull back an inch, our foreheads nearly touching, our breaths colliding between us.

Her eyes were glassy, wide, searching mine for something I wasn’t sure I could give.

"Why?" she demanded softly, her voice shaking despite her effort to steady it. "You accuse me one moment and then you..."

"I didn’t accuse you," I snapped, though I knew that wasn’t entirely true. My grip on her waist tightened unconsciously. "I questioned what happened."

"You treated me like I was guilty."

The accusation stung more than it should have.

I looked away for a fraction of a second before forcing my gaze back to hers. I wasn’t ready to examine that.

Instead, the jealousy returned like a flame catching dry wood.

"Why did he defend you?" I asked quietly.

Her brows furrowed. "Because he believed I didn’t do it."

"And you think I didn’t?" My voice lowered, dangerous not with anger, but something else.

She hesitated.

That hesitation felt like betrayal.

My jaw clenched. I stepped closer again until her back nearly brushed the door.

"You don’t get it," I muttered, my hand sliding from her waist to her arm, not hurting, but firm enough to keep her in place. "I don’t care what Daniel believes. I don’t care what he suspects."

"Then what do you care about?" she shot back, frustration finally breaking through her composure.

I stared at her for a long moment.

At the flush in her cheeks.

At the way her lips were slightly swollen from the kiss.

At the way she refused to look weak in front of me.

And the truth hit me with humiliating clarity.

"I care that he wants you alone," I said.

Silence filled the space between us.

Her breathing slowed slightly, but her eyes searched mine as if trying to determine whether I was serious.

"He wanted to talk," she said softly.

"That’s not the point." 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

"Then what is?"

My hand slid up to her jaw, tilting her face slightly so she couldn’t look away. My thumb brushed just beneath her lower lip, not tender, but deliberate.

"The point," I said slowly, each word controlled, "is that you will stay away from him."

Her eyes widened. "You can’t dictate who I speak to."

A muscle ticked in my cheek.

"I can," I replied evenly. "And I will."

She pulled her face from my grasp. "You’re not making sense."

"I don’t need to make sense," I said. "I need you to listen to me."

Her expression shifted at that.

Confusion.

Hurt.

Something softer that I refused to name.

"Listen?" she repeated.

"Yes." My voice dropped, losing its edge for the first time. "Daniel is not simple. He is not harmless. And I don’t trust his interest in you."

"You think he..."

"I don’t think," I interrupted. "I know."

She stared at me as though trying to see past the dominance, past the possessiveness, past the Alpha standing in front of her.

But this wasn’t about rank.

This was about instinct.

And mine was screaming.

I stepped back slightly, finally giving her space to breathe.

But my eyes never left hers.

"You will not meet him alone," I said firmly. "You will not entertain private conversations. If he approaches you, you walk away."

Her lips parted as if to argue again.

I didn’t give her the chance.

"You stay away from Daniel," I finished, my tone leaving no room for negotiation.

Because I meant it.