Nightshade Hollow's edge-of-town tavern throbbed with life.
It wasn't fit for kings and knights. It was raucous, rough, suffused with magic and chaos. Which made it the perfect hunting ground for Aria.
She glided through the crowd like smoke, her hips undulating to tribal drums and hypnotic strings. Her leather corset molded itself to every curve, and a delicate tattoo of silver vines glowed with a soft light at the base of her throat. It was a spell—one that masked her natural fragrance, toning her tie just enough to toy with Kaine's senses.
She could feel him seeking her out.
Night after night, like a clockwork ritual.
And tonight?
She would leave him something to find.
"Aria." A gruff voice called out from the darkened booth at the far end.
Her eyes flickered over, resting on him slumped loose with a glass of black wine cradled between his fingers.
Darian Thorn.
Soldier. Mercenary. Rogue Alpha of the Ravenguard. And oh-so-perilously charming.
He wasn't Kaine.
That was the point.
"You came," she stated, sitting beside him in the booth, their knees touching under the table.
"You invited me," he replied, his golden eyes dancing across her body. "And I don't have a habit of refusing invitations from lovely witches."
"I'm not just a witch anymore," she said softly, tracing the edge of his glass with her finger. "I'm… changing."
His smile grew. "I enjoy change. Particularly the sort that bites back."
They laughed, the sound intimate, charged. Aria tilted her head just so, baring her throat. A gesture Kaine used to claim.
She felt the wave in the air before it even reached her senses. A flash of power. A rush of anger.
Kaine was watching.
Lovely.
"Tell me something, Darian," she whispered, leaning forward so their faces were inches apart, poised to kiss. "How do you feel about forbidden things?"
"I'll chase after them," he replied with certainty.
Her eyes glittered. "Then dance with me then."
---
Outside – Kaine
He leaned in shadows, just beyond the tavern door, staring at her like a ravenous animal.
She was laughing. Laughing.
And not at him.
At Darian Thorn. That scoundrel of a rogue alpha whose loyalty changed with the seas. Whose name for sleeping with witches and leaving chaos in his wake made him dangerous. Whimsical.
Deserving no respect.
Kaine's wolf snarled deep within him, clawing at the lining of his skin.
Why was she touching him?
Why was she smiling like this?
Why were her eyes shining in a way they hadn't in years?
Something broke inside Kaine. A delicate fragment of control that had sustained him these past weeks.
She was doing this deliberately.
She was aware he was watching.
She wanted him to notice.
And curse her—she couldn't look away.
When she drew Darian onto the dance floor and pinned her body to his, skin flush with his, Kaine's fists clenched at his sides.
She belonged to no one now. Not even him.
But that did not prevent the madness.
---
Inside Back Here
Aria's heart thrashed as she danced to the music, Darian's strong fingers wrapped around her hips. He was a good dancer—effortless, confident, dominant but not controlling.
He was exactly the kind of man that would drive Kaine crazy.
She could feel Kaine's rage like a hot tether at her back. His nearness cracked against her like heat lightning.
And it succeeded.
Every glance she directed Darian's way. Every small lean. Every laugh.
She was pouring gasoline on the fire that still smoldered between her and Kaine.
And tonight, it would burn to nothing.
Darian leaned in, his lips brushing against her ear. "You're playing with fire, Aria."
She didn't pretend not to know. "Am I?"
"Your boyfriend is waiting outside, looking like he wants to kill me."
"Let him watch," she said, her voice low and sneaky. "Let him see what he let go."
Darian grinned with a wicked gleam. "If you want to drive him crazy, you're doing a great job."
"Good," she gasped. "He should know what I know."
---
Later — The Alley Behind the Tavern
Aria pressed against the icy stone wall, gasping, her magic humming under her skin. Night air stroked her flushed cheeks, and her heart surged wildly—not just from the dance, but from exhilaration.
The power.
Darian stepped up beside her, pushing his hair out of his eyes.
"You're sure you want to continue goading the wolf, witch?"
She gazed at him, a grin on her lips. "Oh, I'm not prodding him. I'm burning him alive."
"Why?"
She turned away from him, her smile trembling unsteadily. "Because he thinks I am his. At heart. Because he thought to push me away would mean I'd vanish. Because he said I meant nothing to me in the eye."
Her voice shook—not with tears, but with anger.
"I want him to feel me now. In his bones. In his blood. Until he can't sleep. Can't eat. Can't breathe without me."
Darian whistled low. "Remind me never to get on your bad side."
"You're not Kaine," she said flatly. "You never tried to tame me."
He crept closer. "Would it make you feel better if I kissed you right now?"
Her eyes flashed up to meet him.
"I don't want to feel better," she said to him. "I just want him to hurt worse."
But she didn't push Darian away when he leaned forward.
And she didn't hide when she knew Kaine was observing her.
---
Across the Street – Kaine
The moment their lips touched, something inside Kaine snapped.
His claws extended before he could retract them, ripping into the bark of the tree he leaned against.
The kiss ended all too quickly. It was superficial.
But done on purpose.
Purposefully.
Aria had chosen this night. This man. This moment.
To prod him.
And succeeded.
He was losing his grip.
Not on power.
But on his mind.
---
Behind at Crimson Hollow Manor
Kaine strode into his room, yanking the door from its hinges with a snarl. His Beta stepped into the hallway, taken aback, but one look from Kaine choked him.
The alpha prowled like a caged beast, his mind spinning with images of Aria's body against Darian's.
She wanted to be stalked.
She wanted him to be wild.
She wanted obsession?
Then she'd have it.
Everything.