A low, humorless chuckle rumbled in his chest. It wasn't a sound of amusement; it was the sound of a man who knew a lie when he heard one. "No. She's not dead. She's sleeping. And I can hear her weeping."

My blood ran cold. How could he know that? No one could sense another's inner wolf with such clarity. No one. Who was this man?

He slid into the booth opposite me, his sheer size making the small space feel claustrophobic. He reached over, took a clean glass from the bar, and poured himself a measure of my cheap whiskey without asking.

"You've been rejected," he stated. It wasn't a question. His tone was flat, matter-of-fact, as if he were commenting on the weather. There was no pity in it, and more importantly, no contempt. "More than once."

I stiffened, my body going rigid. He could smell it on me-the faint, lingering ghost of a broken mate bond, the deep, pervasive scent of utter loneliness.

"It's none of your business," I said, my voice low and hostile. My hand slipped beneath the table, my fingers closing around the cool, familiar handle of the small silver-plated knife I kept strapped to my thigh.

He didn't seem to notice, or if he did, he didn't care. He took a slow sip of the whiskey. "Your pain gives you a... compelling scent. Like a winter rose, blooming alone in a blizzard."

His words sent a shiver down my spine. It was a dangerous, poetic observation, and it made me feel seen in a way that was both terrifying and strangely thrilling.

He set the glass down and leaned forward slightly, his powerful Alpha aura wrapping around me like a heavy cloak. "I'm lonely, too, little wolf. And my wolf... he needs comfort."

My breath hitched. I knew where this was going.

"I'm proposing a trade," he said, his voice dropping to a low, hypnotic murmur. "One night. No names, no histories, no future."

My mind went blank. The proposal was insane. It was dangerous. It was degrading.

"I'm not a whore," I hissed, the words tasting like acid.

"I know you're not," he replied, his voice still unnervingly calm. "I'm not offering you money. I'm offering you oblivion. For one night, our wolves can lick each other's wounds. We can forget this damned world exists."

His words were a poison-laced balm, sinking deep into my soul and targeting the very source of my agony-the crushing, unbearable loneliness.

"Why me?" The question escaped before I could stop it.

His gaze flickered to my mask. "Because your eyes are screaming for the same thing I am."

He was right. Gods, he was right. My heart hammered against my ribs, a frantic drumbeat of terror and a dark, desperate desire. I did want it. I wanted to fall so far and so fast that I could forget my own name, forget the pain, even for just a few hours.

My rational mind screamed at me to run. This was madness. But deep inside, in that silent, dead place where Lyra used to be, I felt a faint, ghost-like tremor. A flicker of response.

He saw the hesitation in my eyes. "I won't hurt you," he promised, his voice a soft, seductive rumble. "I will give you my body, my warmth, and one night of peace. When the sun rises, we walk away. No debts, no attachments."

The offer was a deadly temptation. A purely physical release, with none of the soul-deep connection that had destroyed me twice.

I thought of Zane's disgust, my father's cowardice, the triumphant sneers of my sister and stepmother. What did I have left to lose? I had already lost everything that mattered.

Maybe this was how I said goodbye to the broken girl I used to be. By burning her to the ground.

I took a deep, shaky breath. "I have one condition."

One of his dark eyebrows arched in silent question.

"You said no names, no past," I said, my voice gaining a sliver of strength. "That includes... no faces." I tapped the leather covering my scar. "For the entire night, this mask stays on."

I couldn't bear it. I couldn't survive seeing that look of disgust on a third man's face, especially not this man.

He studied me for a long, silent moment, his gaze intense. Then, a slow, knowing smile touched the corners of his mouth. He gave a single, decisive nod.

"Agreed."

He stood up, his massive frame unfolding from the booth, and extended a large, calloused hand to me. His voice was a low, irresistible invitation.

"Then let's go, my winter rose."

Chapter 5

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