My fingers tighten around the phone 64

Aria’s POV
I gathered my things, mentally preparing for my meeting with Ethan’s mother. I’d spent the morning distracted, running
through possible scenarios and appropriate responses. Now, my plan was simple – pick up Lucas for lunch, then head to
Ethan’s home for the rescheduled meeting.
I pushed open the heavy glass doors of the training center, adjusting my bag on my shoulder, when I stopped dead in my
tracks. There, leaning against his sleek black Range Rover with casual authority, stood Ethan. His tall frame was
impeccably dressed in a charcoal suit that highlighted his broad shoulders, forest-green eyes tracking my movement with
laser focus.
My jaw clenched involuntarily. After yesterday’s fiasco with Emma’s “emergency,” the last thing I wanted was another
dose of Ethan’s confusing presence. I squared my shoulders and continued walking, deliberately averting my gaze as if I
hadn’t seen him.
“Aria.” His deep voice rolled across the parking lot, commanding yet somehow gentle.
I kept walking, my boots hitting the asphalt with determined steps. “I told you I could get there myself.”
In a movement so fluid it seemed impossible for someone of his size, he appeared directly in my path. I nearly collided
with his chest before catching myself, taking an instinctive step back. The alpha energy emanating from him made the air
feel suddenly thinner.
“Stop being stubborn,” he said, his tone matter-of-fact.
Heat rushed to my face. “Stubborn?” I let out a bitter laugh. “Weren’t you the one playing knight in shining armor for
Emma yesterday? How is your girlfriend feeling today?”
Something dangerous flashed in his eyes—a predatory gleam that sent an involuntary shiver down my spine. Before I
could react, strong arms swept beneath my knees and around my back, lifting me against a chest so solid it might as well
have been carved from stone. My breath caught as my world tilted, the ground suddenly distant beneath me. The heat of
his body seeped through my clothes as Ethan carried me across the parking lot with infuriating ease, as if I weighed
nothing at all.
“Put. Me. Down.” My palms pressed against the unyielding wall of his chest, each point of contact sending unwelcome
electricity through my fingertips. The scent of pine and something darker, something unmistakably alpha, enveloped me,
making my head swim.
“Not until you start being reasonable,” he murmured, his breath warm against my hair, close enough that I could feel the
rumble of his voice through his chest.
He deposited me in the passenger seat with surprising gentleness that contradicted his forceful actions, large hands
lingering perhaps a second longer than necessary at my waist. The door closed with a decisive click before I could
formulate a properly scathing response.
My fingers immediately flew to the handle, yanking with enough force that my knuckles whitened. Nothing. I tried again,
harder this time, the muscles in my arm straining against the immovable door. Still locked.
The driver’s door opened and Ethan folded his tall frame into the seat beside me, the confined space suddenly feeling
impossibly smaller. His movement was fluid and controlled, a predator comfortable in his power. The engine awakened
with a throaty purr at his touch, the vibration traveling through the floorboards and up my legs.
“Let me out,” I demanded through gritted teeth, struggling to keep my voice level. “This is ridiculous.”
“Fasten your seatbelt,” he replied calmly, as if he hadn’t just essentially kidnapped me from my workplace.
“Ethan!” My composure cracked. “This is literally abduction!”
“Emma is not my girlfriend.” His sudden declaration hung in the air between us, his gaze fixed resolutely on the road
ahead. His strong jaw worked as he seemed to choose his next words carefully. “She’s just… a responsibility I have to take
care of.”
His knuckles whitened around the steering wheel, betraying the tension behind his composed exterior. The muscle in his
jaw twitched, and I could feel the effort it took him to restrain whatever emotions were brewing beneath that controlled
alpha facade.
I turned away, staring out the window as familiar streets gave way to the route toward Lucas’s school. The silence
stretched between us, thick with unspoken words and tangled histories.
When we pulled up to the school entrance, Lucas was already waiting with his backpack clutched in small hands. His eyes
lit up when he spotted my figure in the passenger seat, then widened with surprise and delight when Ethan emerged
from the driver’s side.
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“Mom! You’re early today!” Lucas called out, racing toward us with boundless energy. Then, spotting my companion, his
face broke into an even wider grin. “Uncle Ethan is here too!”
Something twisted in my chest watching my son’s unbridled enthusiasm for this man. Ethan crouched down to Lucas’s
level, his normally stern face softening as he offered a high-five that my son enthusiastically returned.
“How was school, champ?” Ethan asked, his deep voice gentling in a way I’d rarely heard.
“Awesome! I got an A+ on my history project!” Lucas beamed, glancing between us with undisguised delight at finding
us together.
“That definitely deserves a celebration,” Ethan replied, ruffling Lucas’s hair with a casual affection that made my throat
tighten.
“Can we go out for lunch?” Lucas looked at me hopefully, those forest-green eyes wide with excitement. “Please, Mom?
To celebrate my A+?”
Caught between my reluctance to spend more time with Ethan and my inability to disappoint my son, I found myself
nodding agreement. “Fine, but somewhere quick. We have an appointment later.”
Lucas scrambled into the backseat, chattering excitedly about his day. I noticed Ethan adjusting the rearview mirror not to
see the traffic behind us, but to keep my son’s animated face in view. The casual intimacy of the gesture felt like an
intrusion into our carefully constructed world.
Ethan drove us to Silver Moon Bistro, the most upscale wolf-friendly restaurant in town. As the maître d’ led us to a
secluded booth near the back, I couldn’t help noticing the sideways glances from other patrons. An alpha heir, a woman with no wolf scent, and a child—we made an unusual trio that drew attention whether I wanted it or not.
“This place is fancy,” Lucas whispered, eyes wide as he took in the crystal chandeliers and real silver cutlery. “Do they have
chocolate lava cake?”
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“They have the best chocolate lava cake in three territories,” Ethan answered before I could, a smile playing at the corners
of his mouth. “We can order one if your mom approves.”
I was about to respond when movement from a few tables away caught my attention. A she-wolf who had been
particularly cruel when I first came to Shadow Fang, was making her way toward our table. Her designer outfit and
perfectly coiffed hair couldn’t disguise the malice in her eyes as she approached.
“Alpha heir,” she purred, pretending not to notice me at first. “What a pleasant surprise to see you here.”
Ethan didn’t rise from his seat, merely acknowledging her with a curt nod.
Her gaze slid to me, then to Lucas, her lips curling into a contemptuous smile. “And with… interesting company, I see.”
She leaned closer, voice dropping to a stage whisper that was clearly meant for me to hear. “The Shadow Fang heir dining
with a she-wolf who can’t even shift anymore? And her… mixed-blood pup?”
Lucas’s small body tensed beside me, his hand finding mine under the table. The raw hurt in his squeeze made fury rise
in my throat.
Before I could respond, the temperature around our table seemed to drop ten degrees. Ethan’s eyes narrowed, alpha
energy rolling off him in waves so potent that glasses on nearby tables began to tremble. She took an involuntary step
back, her smug expression faltering.
“Apologize.” The single word fell from Ethan’s lips like a stone, quiet but carrying such weight that several diners at
nearby tables lowered their heads instinctively. “Now.”
Her face drained of color. “I—I’m sorry,” she stammered, the words clearly forced. “I didn’t mean to—”
“Leave.” Ethan didn’t raise his voice, didn’t even shift in his seat, but the command was unmistakable.
As she scurried away, I caught her surreptitiously pulling out her phone.