The office is quiet.
Not even the ticking clock dares to breathe tonight.
Hunter sat in the leather chair behind his desk, elbows braced on the arms, a bottle of dark whiskey sitting unopened on one side, and an already half-empty one on the other. His hands clenched and unclenched restlessly, his jaw clenched tight, the muscles twitching like the beast in him was pacing.
She was supposed to be out of his system by now.
He takes the glass in one hand, downs the burn in a go, he stares into the empty fireplace like it's going to give him answers.
Ava.
Her name tastes like sin in his mouth.
Too soft for the chaos she stirred in him.
He remembered her standing on that stage, shoulders squared like she wasn't terrified, chin tilted up, even while her voice trembled. He'd never been so intrigued by a person. He could taste her fear yet he could see the fire in her eyes. It pulled something primal inside him, and God help him, the second her eyes met his, he'd wanted her.
Not just to fuck.
Not just to break.
To own.
And that was the problem. Because Hunter Draven doesn't obsess.
He doesn't ache.
He doesn't need.
And yet, there he was, remembering how her skin looked under the low lights, remembering the steam curling around her bare body in that bathroom, the curve of her waist, the soft swell of her breasts, the way her lips parted in shock before she caught herself, even in fear, even naked, she still had that fight in her.
It messed with his soul so much.
He shifted in the chair, the ache between his legs sharp and hard. He didn't move. Didn't relieve it. He sat with it. Let it torment him.
She will beg.
She will melt.
And when she finally breaks, then, he'll have her. All of her. Body, mind, and soul.
His hand clenched around the glass again, the pressure cracking the rim just slightly.
The door creaked open, he didn't look up.
"Alpha," the person said, their voice calm and familiar.
It was Ezek, his beta. Loyal, smart, annoyingly observant.
When Hunter didn't respond, Koda stepped in, pausing only a few feet from the desk. Silence stretched.
"Alpha, we have gotten news from the Onyx pack. It's good news." He paused when he got no reaction from the said man. His eyebrows furrowed.
"Alpha," he called out again, more firmly this time.
Hunter's head lifted slowly, his eyes dark with something dangerous. "What?" he rasped. "Everything okay?"
"I don't know, you tell me," Ezek said. "You've been in here since she arrived."
Hunter hummed. He got up from the chair, glass still in hand, and walked toward the wide window. The night outside was quiet, moonlight shining over the landscape. He rubbed at his jaw like it could help him scrub the tension away.
"Alpha," Ezek paused, watching him for a moment longer. "Is everything okay? Is this because of her?"
He paused for a second, "You've never been like this. Not for anyone."
Hunter's jaw clenched hard. He glanced at the beta, eyebrows raised. "What are you insinuating? She's no different from the others."
Ezek raised a brow. "Sure. Just another girl who's got you drinking and brooding like some cursed immortal." He mumbled lowly.
Hunter, of course, catches this, he's a werewolf and one of their best abilities was their super hearing. He shot Ezek a look as the beta tensed.
"I apologize, but maybe it's better if you just take her. Get it out of your system. You're coiled so tight you're gonna snap."
Hunter turned slowly, his gaze landing on Ezek like a predator's. For a second, his expression was unreadable. Then… a quiet, bitter laugh.
"If I wanted her just for that," he said, his voice low, "I would've had her already."
Ezek is taken aback, since when did Hunter not want to fuck? That has always been the goal. Buy them, fuck them, and dispose of them. What was so different this time around?
"Alpha, if I may ask. What's different this time?"
Hunter didn't answer.
Because he didn't know.
All he knew was that her presence ignited something in him. Something old, primal, and raw. His wolf clawed at his insides when she was near, restless, wild, obsessed.
Mine.
That word. That curse.
His glass tilted again, and he gulped the whiskey. Still not enough to drown the pull of her.
Finally, he murmured, "Continue with what you were saying."
Ezek starts talking again, but Hunter's attention's already drifting. His head tilts slightly, nostrils flaring. He smells something faint. Familiar.
Her.
Lavender. Soap. Skin.
He turns toward the door slowly, glass forgotten on the table. His beta trails off mid-sentence.
"Alpha, what is it?"
Hunter doesn't answer; he's already moving.
~~~~~~~
I shouldn't have left the room.
I know that.
But the food tray was just sitting there, and the air in the room was too still, too quiet. So I figured a short walk wouldn't hurt, right?
Except, I'm wrong.
Now, I'm somewhere deep in this maze of a house, holding a silver tray like some awkward maid, with no clue where I'm going. Every corner looks the same, expensive, and lined with creepy-ass portraits of dead-eyed men who definitely burned witches or something.
I turn down another hall.
And freeze.
Something prickles at the back of my neck. Like I'm not alone. I spin around just as a figure steps from the shadows.
I nearly scream. The tray slips from my hands, falling to the marble floor. The glass plates and cup all shattered. Pain zings through my finger as a shard pricks me.
Blood. Shit.
I barely register the pain before I see him.
Hunter. Silent and still. Watching me like I just bled into a shark tank.
"You scared the hell out of me!" I snap, clutching my finger, heart pounding.
He doesn't say a word. Just stalks forward in slow motion. I back up instinctively, but it's no use, he's already there, his hand wrapping around mine before I can protest. His thumb brushes the bleeding cut.
Then—oh my god—he brings my finger to his lips.
I freeze. Everything in me freezes. His mouth is warm, soft, and so, so wrong.
My blood. On his tongue.
His eyes stay on mine the entire time. Like this isn't weird. Like this is normal.
He finally pulls back, lips still brushing my skin.
"Be careful," he murmurs. "There are dangerous things in this house."
My breath catches. 'You're one of them' I want to say. But my voice is gone.
A maid's sharp gasp pulls me out of the haze. I jerk my hand back, heat flushing up my neck. My face is burning.
Hunter's lips tilt into the barest smirk, eyes still locked on mine like he's savoring the way he's unraveling me.
"Show the miss to her room, Claudia," he says, calm and controlled like he didn't just suck blood off my finger.
And just like that… he's gone.