"Did I give you permission to touch her?"
The words didn’t come out playful. The lazy, blushing smile vanished from Draven’s face, replaced by a sudden drop in temperature. His voice was a low register that vibrated straight through everyone’s spine.
Julian’s hand froze on Lena’s elbow, his face draining of all color as his breath caught in his throat. Lena had never met anyone who could cut Julian mid-sentence so easily like that.
Around them, the surrounding tables of the Prime floor collectively bowed their heads, terrified to even glance in their direction.
A member of the Quad stepping down to the second floor was already a historical anomaly. But a member of the Quad publicly chasing a random shewolf was like history repeating itself again.
Lena was confused because Draven wasn’t even look at Julian. His eyes remained locked strictly on her, but his presence kept her roommates entirely paralyzed.
Then, just as quickly as his expression had hardened, he smiled.
Draven’s gaze softened, his charm came back into place as if he were an entirely different person. He stepped directly into her space, completely ignoring any concept of a boundary.
Before Lena could even flinch, he reached out, his long, elegant fingers wrapping firmly around her jaw to tilt her face up toward his.
His grip wasn’t gentle. It was tight and held the bruising promise of an absolute predator.
"God, I really can’t take my eyes off you," he murmured, his voice a hypnotic frequency that made the hair on her arms stand up.
His thumb stroked aggressively over her bottom lip, his wild eyes flickering with a dangerous, hyper-fixated hunger. "You’re a mouthy little thing, aren’t you? I think I’m going to keep you."
Lena kept her jaw set, her tough-girl facade holding on by a thread as she forced herself to breathe against his suffocating proximity. This guy was completely unhinged. A literal split-personality psycho.
Draven’s gaze slowly drifted down to her uniform collar, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took in the specific House insignia pinned to her lapel.
He let out a low, disappointed hum, though his dark smirk quickly returned.
House One. Alpha Christopher’s turf.
He slowly released her jaw, his fingers trailing down the side of her neck in a lingering, mocking caress before he stepped back, completely lifting the pressure off the aisle.
He wasn’t leaving because he was satisfied; he was leaving because he had just realized where she was heading.
"Saturday field training," Draven whispered, giving her a mock, respectful tilt of his head. "Christopher is running the grid today, little bird. I’d hate to spoil his fun before the first bell."
He flashed her one last, blindingly charming smile that didn’t match the cold madness in his eyes.
"I’ll see you around, Tits Girl. Don’t let him break you before I get my turn."
Lena hadn’t yet processed the nickname when he walked past her, intentionally letting his shoulders brush hers as he went back to where he came from.
The protective tension in the room felt like a physical weight pressing down on Lena’s shoulders.
She was still finding it hard to recover from whatever such encounter was. To say she was offended he downgraded her to something he thinks he could ever get was audacious.
Her gaze quickly scanned the looks from the surrounding Primes whispering among themselves.
The reality of what had just happened didn’t truly slam into her until she caught Kaelen Cross’s pitiful stare from across the room.
Why was everyone looking at her like she was some big shot just because a lunatic had cornered her?
"Did you hear? He said he couldn’t take his eyes off her. Who really is she?"
"I bet she was a random who got a botched surgery to look like Gemma"
"Does this mean what I think it means?"
"Oh my God, it’s happening again,"
Khloe finally dragged her towards the booth. Looking genuinely worried.
"Are you insane?!" Khloe hissed the exact second her butt hit the vinyl seat of the booth. She grabbed her fork and began aggressively stabbing at her eggs, her hands shaking slightly. "That is Draven Morsel. He is a total wildcard. Do you have a literal death wish?"
"He was staring at my chest," Lena muttered, pulling her tray closer. The scent of her premium Prime meal was incredible, but the sudden rush of adrenaline was making her stomach knot.
"Everyone is staring at your chest, Lena! It’s on the trending page!" Julian whispered loudly, leaning over the table. He picked up his glazed berry croissant and took a massive, frustrated bite. "But you don’t offer to analyze a Quad member’s dick in public. If Christopher doesn’t murder you on the training field today, Draven might just stalk you to death out of pure amusement."
"Fuck, this is... fuck!" Khloe muttered, running a shaky hand through her roots.
Lena could only stare at her roommates in total bewilderment. If she recalled correctly, Khloe had mentioned something about the Quad wanting Gemma.
Could it be he wanted her simply because she looked like the missing girl?
But Christopher clearly hated her. He had slammed her into the lockers on Day 1. If only this specific wildcard wanted her, then there would be no war between them.
Right?
"Lena, when I said get noticed by the Quad, I meant Alpha Christopher!" Khloe whined, leaning in. "Not Alpha Draven! Do you have any idea who that monster is?"
"I told you it was a bad idea," Julian agreed, pointing his half-eaten pastry at Khloe. "Here I was, underestimating her effect on the Alphas. I was wrong. We should lock her up in the dorm. It’s not too late."
"Guys, relax," Lena said flatly, keeping her voice level. "There will be no fighting from any Alphas. I’m sure it’s all just a misunderstanding."
"And you had to get his attention by talking back," Khloe groaned, burying her face in her hands. "You should only talk like that to Alpha Christopher!"