Adonis POV
The first ten seconds of the kiss were careful and tentative, as if we were both trying not to cross boundaries, but the moment I pressed into him, that invisible line broke.
The seemingly innocent kiss escalated into a full-blown makeout session.
His hands grabbed the back of my head, and he gripped my hair tight.
He tasted like white wine and coffee, a disgusting mix, but in his mouth, it tasted like the cleanest spring water I’ve ever had.
One of his hands landed on my chest; the other eventually left my hair and curled around my neck, pulling me even closer.
We stumbled back slightly, bumping into the wall behind me.
I began to feel hot, hotter than I’ve ever felt before.
I couldn’t explain what was happening to me right now.
I gripped his waist tightly, digging my fingers into his hips as his arm tightened around my neck.
The kiss got messy and desperate as if we were removing every pent-up energy we’ve been storing for months.
He began to moan into my mouth, grinding against me like a needy little omega in heat.
His hands went back to my hair, and he fisted it like he wanted to pull them all off my scalp.
I was about to slide my hand into the waistband of his trousers when he suddenly pulled away.
His breath was ragged, and his eyes were wide with shock, staring at me as if he couldn’t comprehend what we had just done.
I blinked, completely thrown off and confused.
“What’s wrong?”
He shook his head as he stepped back.
“I can’t,” he whispered.
“This… this is wrong.”
My chest dropped in the most drastic way possible.
Wrong?
How in the hell could something that felt so good be wrong?
“What’s so wrong about it?” I demanded.
He didn’t respond.
Instead, he just kept moving back.
I was just about to reach out and pull him back when a guard’s torch flashed directly at us.
I stepped back immediately, stepping out of the light.
“Whatever happened in your chambers that night was only done in necessity to save your life.” He looked away as he spoke.
“And what was this?” I challenged, stepping closer.
“What was done just now?”
He hesitated at first before summoning enough courage to look me in the eyes.
“Whatever happened now was done out of curiosity; I was curious to know what Eris enjoyed so much in your chambers.”
Lies.
All lies.
“And what exactly did you find out?” I sneered.
“That you are not my type.”
He was lying.
I could hear his heartbeat a different way when he said that, meaning it was all a lie.
He wanted this just as badly as I did, but I didn’t push.
“The only relationship between us is patient and healer,” he continued, his voice going cold.
“And seeing how active you are now, I can say that relationship has come to an end.”
”Is that so?” I asked, my chest heaving as I breathed hard.
“Alright then, Caspian…”
He bowed immediately, something he had never done before, and walked away.
I watched his back as he walked away.
He didn’t look back once and never locked eyes with me days after that night.
I tried so many different ways just to get his attention.
I would intentionally cut myself, or even break a bone, but no matter how grave my wound was, he would just send his assistant to deal with it, or my body would heal on its own.
Worse than that, sex with Eris became very painful.
It wasn’t that I wasn’t attracted to her; she was still incredibly appealing to look at.
But my cock never actually craved her anymore.
It craved Caspian, in the purest, most terrifying way possible.
What in the fuck was happening to me?
xxx”We’ve finally gotten word back from the troops stationed in the borderlands,” Drago, my beta, announced to everyone in the war room.
I looked up, now interested in the topic of discussion.
Finally, something to take my mind off that spell-casting bastard.
“And what message did they send back?” I asked, clearing my throat and sitting up straight.
The moment I shifted, everyone else who had been slouching around the table straightened up immediately.
“Your suspicions were correct, Alpha,” Drago explained, shifting uncomfortably under my gaze.
“There had been suspected movements towards the southern side of the border, signs of habitation by a hidden pack.”
”And why haven’t we ambushed them yet?
I growled.
“You have more than enough warriors for that.” The whole room suddenly went silent.
“What’s the problem now?”
”We had planned an immediate invasion,” Drago admitted carefully.
“But the problem at the time was the fact that we couldn’t find their village…”
”What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” I roared.
“It means they have some kind of camouflage protecting them.
Our men were about to uncover it before we were attacked.”
”Attacked?!
I slammed my fist onto the table.
“When did this happen, and why am I only hearing about it now?!”
“Alpha, I strongly advise caution.
With how hostile they looked and how they attacked our men, I can tell that they aren’t to be messed with.
It would be better if we let them be…”
”Let them be?” I shot from my seat.
“Don’t you realize that Thalia would be hiding there?
That’s where she is, you morons!”
”We didn’t consider…”
”I don’t give a damn about your pathetic excuses!” I screamed in their faces.
“All I want from all of you right now is to go in your numbers and uncover that fucking camouflage.”
”What if things get aggressive?” one of the warriors asked, stepping forward nervously.
“Then you destroy every single thing that stands in your way of bringing me back, Thalia, be it wolf, man, woman, or even child.”
I pushed the table in a burst of anger, and it flipped over, scattering the maps and ink on it to the ground.
“I WANT THALIA UNDER MY ROOF BEFORE THE NEXT FULL MOON, IS THAT UNDERSTOOD?!”
They all bowed down and chorused.
“Yes, Alpha.”
Without waiting for a second command, they all scrambled out of the war room to prepare for what might most likely be war.
“Why are you still so interested in finding Thalia?” Eris grumbled, crossing her arms.
“Hasn’t Caspian stabilized you?”
”Caspian might have stabilized me, but it’s not permanent.” I snapped, brushing past her.
“If we don’t find Thalia now, there’s every possibility I will collapse again.”
”Right…
but from the way you were screaming orders just now, one would think your heart still craved—”
”Don’t.” I cut her off, pointing a finger in her face.
“Don’t start tonight, Eris.
You always have something to say, but you do absolutely nothing to actually help.”
”Don’t blame me for trying to protect what’s mine.’ She seethed.
That was the last straw.
She had been getting on my nerves since I fell ill, saying the wrong things and behaving like a fucking witch.
In a flash of blind rage, I crossed the room and grabbed her by the neck.
“You don’t own me!” I growled into her face.
“Don’t forget that I was once Thalia’s before you seduced your way into my bed!
I wouldn’t have looked at you twice if it weren’t for your pathetic games!” I tossed her back, and she almost stumbled to the ground.
“Don’t you dare blame it all on me!” she screamed back, holding her bruised neck.
“You wanted to fuck me just as much as I wanted to fuck you!”
I stormed out of the room.
I didn’t want to keep talking to her because I wasn’t sure how long I could hold myself back from ripping her fucking face off.
When I got to a turn in the hallway, Caspian appeared before me.
“I’m going with the warriors.” He declared.
“You will do no such thing…”
”I have already prepared my horse, and this is not me asking for permission.
This is me telling you to fulfill all righteousness.”
He turned to walk away.
“And what happens if you get killed down there?!” I shouted after him, panic clawing at my throat.
Caspian paused for a fraction of a second, not bothering to turn around.
“Then I’ll meet my fate.”