Chapter 5

POV: Olivia Carter

I slammed the deadbolt home and leaned against the heavy wood of the door, breathing hard.

My skin still burned where he had touched me. The phantom weight of his hand lingered, sending a dull, rhythmic ache of longing through my chest.

*Go back,* my wolf whined, pacing in the back of my mind. *He is strong. He is ours.*

*He is a liability,* I argued back, clamping down on the instinct. *Remember the last time? Remember the twisted metal? The smell of smoke?*

My phone buzzed against my hip, startling me. It was a text from Maya.

*Reed Pack is bleeding out. Ethan's bad bets caught up with him. He's squeezing the Omegas dry to cover the debt. Morale is in the gutter.*

I stared at the glowing screen. A grim, satisfying smile touched my lips.

"Good," I whispered.

The next morning, I tried to bury myself in work, but the memory of those molten golden eyes haunted me.

Around noon, the brass bell above the office door chimed.

I looked up from my sketches and froze.

It was him. The man from the bookstore.

He filled the doorway, blocking out the sun. In the harsh daylight, he was even more imposing than he had been in the shadows. He held a book in his hand-the one we had both reached for.

"You forgot this," he said softly.

The silence in the room was instant. My employees-mostly runaways and cast-off wolves-went rigid. They didn't just see him; they felt him. The air grew heavy, charged with the undeniable static of a high-ranking Alpha.

But unlike Ethan, whose aura was a suffocating cage, this man's power felt... warm. Like a hearth in winter. Protective.

I stood up, keeping the solid oak of my desk between us like a shield. "How did you find me?"

"I followed your scent," he admitted, his voice a low rumble. "It's... unique. Even underneath the mask."

He knew.

"Who are you?" I asked, my voice steady despite the frantic drumming of my heart.

He walked forward slowly, placing the book on the edge of my desk. He stopped there. He didn't lean over. He didn't encroach on my space. He respected the barrier.

"I'm Ben," he said. "Ben Walker."

"I'm Olivia."

"I know," he smiled. It was a genuine smile, crinkling the corners of his eyes and softening the hard lines of his jaw. "I'm not here to pressure you, Olivia. I know you ran for a reason. I can smell the fear on you. Someone hurt you."

His insight threw me off guard, stripping away my defenses.

"I don't need a mate," I said, my tone turning icy. "I have a life. I have a pack."

"I see that." Ben looked around at my ragtag group of employees. He didn't look down on them. He looked impressed. "You're a natural leader. A Luna."

The title made me flinch physically.

Suddenly, the back door burst open with a violent crash. Leo stumbled in, carrying a young girl in his arms. She was bleeding heavily from a jagged gash in her side.

"Help!" Leo shouted, his eyes wide with terror. "Rogue attack! There are more coming!"

I vaulted over my desk, adrenaline flooding my system. "Get her to the safe room! Leo, lock the front!"

"Too late!"

Three Rogues smashed through the plate-glass front window, shattering my display into a million glittering shards. They were shifting mid-air, their bones cracking sickeningly as they twisted into large, mangy wolves.

My employees screamed, scrambling back.

I stepped forward, my hands glowing with defensive white light. I was ready to fight. I had to be.

But Ben moved first.

A low, terrifying growl ripped from his throat, shaking the floorboards. He didn't shift. He didn't have to.

He stepped in front of me, shielding me completely with his massive body. He threw out his hand, and a wave of pure, crushing Alpha dominance slammed into the Rogues like a physical wall.

"SUBMIT!" Ben roared.

The sound was deafening. The windows rattled in their frames. The Rogues whined, their legs giving out instantly as they flattened themselves against the floor, paralyzed by the sheer magnitude of his command.

It was stronger than Ethan's. Stronger than any Alpha I had ever encountered. It was the voice of a King.

Ben turned to look at me over his shoulder. His eyes were glowing liquid gold, but his expression was soft. Concerned.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

I looked at his broad back, then at the cowering Rogues whimpering on the linoleum.

He hadn't tried to control me. He had protected me.

My wolf purred, curling up in smug satisfaction.

Maybe... just maybe... this time would be different.

"I'm fine," I said, feeling the electricity hum between us again, stronger than before. "Thank you, Ben."

He nodded, turning back to the intruders. "Now, let's take out the trash."