Ava barely slept.
Not because the room Kael had given her was uncomfortable—if anything, it was the opposite. The space was warm, quiet, and far too secure for someone who had just been dragged into a world she didn’t understand. The bed was soft, the walls thick, the entire place carrying that same grounding scent that seemed to follow him everywhere.
Kael.
Even without him in the room, his presence lingered.
That alone was enough to keep her awake.
She turned onto her side, staring at the faint glow of moonlight spilling through the window. Her wrist rested against the pillow, the mark still faintly visible. It hadn’t faded. If anything, it looked clearer now, like it was settling into her skin.
Real.
Permanent.
Ava exhaled slowly, dragging a hand over her face. “This is insane,” she muttered under her breath.
And yet, no matter how many times she told herself that, her body didn’t agree.
It remembered the way his touch felt. The heat. The pull. That strange, overwhelming connection that made her feel like she was standing too close to something dangerous—and wanting more anyway.
That was the part that unsettled her most.
Not the wolves. Not the pack.
Him.
Eventually, exhaustion pulled her under.
But it didn’t last long.
A sharp knock at the door snapped her awake.
Ava sat up instantly, her senses oddly alert despite the lack of sleep. “Come in,” she called, her voice rough.
The door opened, and a woman stepped inside.
Ava stilled.
She was striking—tall, poised, with sharp features and eyes that carried a cold, assessing edge. There was nothing welcoming about her presence. If anything, she felt… controlled. Dangerous in a quieter, more calculated way.
And very clearly—
Not happy to see her.
“So,” the woman said, her gaze sweeping over Ava with thinly veiled disdain. “This is the girl.”
Ava raised a brow, unimpressed. “You always introduce yourself like that, or am I special?”
The woman didn’t react to the sarcasm. “I’m Lila.”
Noted. Still rude.
“Ava,” she replied flatly.
Lila’s eyes flicked to her wrist. The moment she noticed the mark, something shifted in her expression. Not surprise—no, this was something sharper.
Disbelief.
Then irritation.
“That shouldn’t be there,” Lila said.
Ava let out a short breath. “Yeah, I’ve been hearing that a lot. Care to explain why?”
Instead of answering, Lila stepped closer.
Ava tensed instinctively.
“You shouldn’t be here,” Lila continued, her voice calm but edged with something unmistakably hostile. “This pack is not a place for humans.”
“I’m starting to get that,” Ava replied. “But your Alpha seems to disagree.”
At that, Lila’s expression darkened.
“Alpha Kael is responsible for this pack,” she said. “His decisions affect all of us. Which means your presence here is a problem.”
Ava crossed her arms. “Then take it up with him.”
“Oh, I will.”
The quiet threat in her tone wasn’t lost on Ava.
For a moment, silence stretched between them, thick with tension.
Then Lila spoke again, her voice softer—but somehow more dangerous.
“You don’t understand what you are,” she said. “That mark… if it is what I think it is, then you’re not just a complication. You’re a risk.”
Ava’s jaw tightened. “Funny. Everyone keeps saying that, but no one actually explains anything.”
“That’s because you wouldn’t survive the truth.”
Before Ava could respond, the door opened again.
The shift in the room was immediate.
Lila stepped back.
Ava didn’t need to turn to know who it was.
Kael.
His presence filled the space instantly, heavy and commanding in a way that made the air feel thicker. Ava’s body reacted before her mind did—her pulse quickening, her awareness sharpening, that now-familiar pull tightening somewhere deep inside her.
Annoying.
“Leave,” Kael said.
The single word carried absolute authority.
Lila hesitated for a fraction of a second, her gaze flicking between them. There was something in her expression—frustration, maybe even something more personal—but she didn’t argue.
“Of course, Alpha,” she said, her tone carefully neutral.
But as she passed Ava, her shoulder brushed just slightly too close.
Deliberate.
A warning.
Then she was gone.
The door closed behind her, and the tension shifted again.
Ava exhaled slowly. “She’s pleasant.”
Kael didn’t respond to that. His attention was already on her, his gaze dropping briefly to her wrist before lifting to her face.
“She came to see the mark,” he said.
“Yeah, I figured that part out.”
He stepped closer.
Ava’s breath caught before she could stop it.
It was stronger today.
The pull.
The connection.
Whatever this was—it was growing.
“You shouldn’t be alone with her,” he added.
Ava frowned. “Why? Is she going to bite me or something?”
Kael’s expression didn’t change. “If she believes you’re a threat, she won’t hesitate.”
That wiped the humor from Ava’s face.
“Good to know,” she muttered.
Silence settled between them for a moment, but it wasn’t empty. It was charged, heavy with everything they weren’t saying.
Ava shifted slightly. “So… what now?”
Kael didn’t answer right away.
Instead, he closed the distance between them completely.
Too close.
Ava’s back instinctively pressed against the edge of the bed as he stopped in front of her. The heat of him was overwhelming, his presence impossible to ignore. Her pulse spiked, her body reacting in ways she was starting to recognize—and still didn’t fully understand.
“You’re staying,” he said.
Ava’s brows drew together. “We’ve been over this—”
“Not as a guest.”
The words cut her off.
Something in his tone made her still.
“Then what?” she asked slowly.
Kael’s gaze darkened, his focus sharpening in a way that made her breath hitch.
“As mine.”
The air shifted.
Ava’s heart slammed against her ribs. “You don’t get to just decide that.”
“It’s not a decision,” he said. “It’s what you are.”
“That’s not how this works,” she snapped, though her voice lacked its earlier certainty.
Kael’s hand lifted, brushing lightly against her jaw before sliding to the back of her neck. The touch was firm but not rough, holding her in place without forcing her.
“You feel it,” he murmured.
Ava swallowed.
Yes.
She did.
That was the problem.
“That doesn’t mean I belong to you,” she said, quieter now.
His thumb brushed against her skin, sending a sharp wave of heat down her spine.
“You already do,” he said.
Before she could argue—
He leaned in.
Ava’s breath caught as the distance between them disappeared. His presence consumed her senses, overwhelming, intoxicating. For a split second, she thought—
He was going to kiss her.
And part of her—
traitorously—
didn’t want to stop him.
But he didn’t.
Instead, his lips hovered just at the edge of her ear, his voice low and dangerous.
“If anyone in this pack challenges you,” he said, “they challenge me.”
A shiver ran through her.
His hand tightened slightly at the back of her neck.
“My claim is not up for debate.”
The words sent something sharp and electric through her chest.
Ava exhaled slowly, trying to steady herself. “You really don’t do subtle, do you?”
A faint smirk touched his lips, though his eyes remained intense.
“No.”
For a moment, neither of them moved.
The tension between them stretched, thick and undeniable.
Then Ava did the only thing she could to regain some control.
She placed her hand against his chest and pushed.
Not hard.
But enough.
Kael let her.
He stepped back just slightly, though his gaze never left hers.
“Good,” he said quietly.
Ava frowned. “What?”
“I don’t want you weak.”
Something about that made her pause.
Because for the first time—
It didn’t sound like control.
It sounded like expectation.
And that was somehow more dangerous.
