My fingers tighten around the phone 53

Aria’s POV
I was gathering my training equipment, still catching my breath from the last demonstration, when Sarah approached.
Her footsteps echoed across the now-empty practice mats as I checked my phone for messages from Lucas.
“Would you like to grab dinner together, Instructor Reynolds?” she asked, her eager smile reminding me of how Emma
used to look at me, back when I thought our friendship was real. The memory made me instinctively wary, but Sarah had
proven helpful and supportive over the past weeks.
“Sure,” I found myself saying.
I tossed my gym bag over one shoulder as Sarah and I headed to the training facility’s locker room. At this hour, most
instructors and students had already left, leaving the space eerily quiet except for the distant hum of fluorescent lights.
“I’ll just wait outside,” Sarah said, leaning against the row of metal lockers. “I didn’t train much today, so I don’t really
need a shower. I can keep an eye on your things.”
I nodded gratefully, tucking my phone and clothes into an open locker. After a long day of demonstrations, the thought
of hot water on my tired muscles was too tempting to resist. The empty shower room echoed with the sound of running water as I let it wash away the day’s tension.
Over dinner in the facility’s cafeteria, Sarah proved to be surprisingly good company. She asked intelligent questions
about combat techniques and shared amusing stories about her early training days. For a moment, I almost forgot my
usual reservations about getting too close to anyone in the wolf world.
After showering, we stood outside waiting for a taxi. The evening air carried the first bite of autumn, making me pull my
light jacket closer. A sleek black Range Rover suddenly appeared, its engine purring quietly as it pulled up beside us. My
heart skipped a beat even before the window rolled down.
“The area’s not safe at this hour.” Ethan’s deep voice sent an involuntary shiver down my spine. His forest-green eyes met mine in the dim light. “Let me give you both a ride.”
Before I could form a polite rejection, Sarah’s hand closed around my arm. “That’s so kind of you, Alpha Heir!” She
practically dragged me into the backseat, leaving me no choice but to follow or cause a scene.
The interior of his car was saturated with his alpha presence – pine needles and mountain air mixed with something
dangerously male that made my head spin. I pressed myself against the door, trying to maintain as much distance as
possible while Sarah chatted about training techniques. Every time we hit a bump in the road, his eyes found mine in the
rearview mirror, making my skin tingle with unwanted awareness.
After dropping Sarah at the dormitory, Ethan made an unexpected turn toward the city center. I sat up straighter, tension
coiling in my muscles. “This isn’t the way to my apartment.”
“Lucas needs new school uniforms for fall,” he stated matter-of-factly. The mention of my son’s name on his lips made my
heart stutter. “I’ve already had the store prepare some options.”
He pulled into the parking lot of Shadow Fang’s premier shopping center, the kind of place I usually avoided due to its
excessive prices. Before I could protest, he was already striding toward the entrance, his powerful frame drawing admiring
glances from passing she-wolves.
Inside the store, I made a beeline for the children’s section, hoping to select what Lucas needed and leave before—
“Alpha Heir!” The store manager appeared, bowing deeply to Ethan. “We’ve prepared everything as requested. Should I
clear the section for your privacy?”
“That won’t be necessary,” Ethan said smoothly. “We’re just browsing.”
Despite his words, I noticed other shoppers discreetly shifting away from our path. Whispers and curious glances
followed us through the store – or rather, followed him. The Shadow Fang heir didn’t often appear in public spaces like
this, and his commanding presence drew attention like a magnet.
I quickened my pace, keeping my eyes fixed straight ahead. Shopping with the pack’s future alpha wasn’t exactly how I’d
planned to buy Lucas’s uniforms. The weight of strangers’ stares made my skin prickle uncomfortably. This was exactly
why I preferred handling everything on my own, away from pack politics and aristocratic wolves.
I made a beeline for the uniform section, hoping to grab what I needed and escape. But before I could reach the rack of
blazers, Ethan’s hand caught my wrist. The warmth of his skin against mine sent an unwanted jolt of electricity up my arm.
“Why do you always run?” His voice was low, almost intimate. The question seemed to fill the suddenly empty space
between us, making my chest tight with unspoken emotions.
“I’m not running.” I kept my eyes fixed on the blazer in my hands, pretending to examine the stitching. “I’m shopping for
my son’s school clothes, nothing more.”
“We need to talk about what’s between us.” He stepped closer, his alpha presence making the air feel thick and heavy. My wolf might be dormant, but my body still responded to his proximity in ways that terrified me.
“There’s nothing between us,” I said firmly, though my thundering heart betrayed me. I grabbed uniforms in Lucas’s size
without really looking at them, desperate to escape the intensity of his gaze.
“You can’t keep avoiding this forever.” The dangerous edge in his voice made my pulse jump. “Every time I get close, you
run. When are you going to stop denying what’s happening?”
“Nothing is happening,” I insisted, though my voice sounded weak even to my own ears. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need
to pay for these.”
The store manager reappeared as if summoned, though he seemed reluctant to interrupt the tension-filled scene. I
practically threw my credit card at him, desperate for any excuse to escape Ethan’s burning gaze.
“The items have already been taken care of,” the manager said apologetically, glancing at Ethan.
“I can pay for my son’s uniforms,” I snapped, my carefully maintained composure finally cracking. The last thing I needed was to be indebted to the Shadow Fang heir.
“Consider it compensation for your extra training hours,” Ethan’s voice brooked no argument.