Chapter 254
Chapter 254:
Carmella stopped, her dark eyes darting between me and my son.
My Lycan, hyper-vigilant and entirely consumed by the presence of my Fated Mate, violently rejected the distraction. I couldn’t focus on being a father when my wife was inches away, terrified of me.
“Not today, Jaxon,” I growled, my voice dropping into a harsh, unyielding frequency that bordered on an Alpha’s Command. “Go back upstairs with Mrs. Higgins. Now p>
Jaxon flinched. His bright eyes clouded with profound hurt and confusion. He slowly let go of my leg, stomped his foot, and turned back to the housekeeper. I ignored the sting in my chest and opened the heavy passenger door for Carmella.
The soundproof doors of the SUV sealed us in a luxurious, impenetrable vault. I navigated the Manhattan traffic in suffocating silence. The enclosed space amplified her scent, driving my beast to the edge of madness.
𝗗𝗼𝗐ոl𝘰𝘢𝗱a𝘣𝗹𝘦 𝗣D𝖥𝘴 o𝗇 𝘨alո𝘰𝘃e𝘭𝘀.с𝘰𝗺
“He’s a sweet boy,” Carmella murmured softly, staring out the reinforced window. She hesitated, her curiosity piercing through her fear. “Where is his mother p>
The question was a silver dagger plunging directly into my heart.
My hands clamped around the leather steering wheel. The material groaned under the lethal pressure. It took every ounce of my centuries-old Lycan control not to shatter the steering column. She was sitting right next to me, smelling of rosemary and rain, asking about her own ghost.
“She’s not in the picture,” I replied, my voice a dead, freezing void. I didn’t look at her. I couldn’t.
The temperature in the cabin plummeted, and Carmella wisely dropped the subject, shrinking back against her seat.
I pulled up to the curb outside her Chelsea apartment building and shifted the SUV into park, but I didn’t hit the unlock button. The heavy locks remained engaged.
Carmella pulled the door handle. It didn’t budge. Panic spiked in her scent. She turned to me, her eyes wide.
“Give me your phone,” I demanded, extending my hand.
“What? Why?” she stammered, pressing her back against the door.
“Security protocol,” I stated, leaning closer and letting my dark, possessive aura fill the cabin. “Your ex-fiancé is unstable. Until I am certain he isn’t a threat to you, I need a direct, encrypted line of communication p>
She stared at me, her chest heaving. She wanted to fight, but the absolute, terrifying dominance of a Lycan left her human instincts no choice but to submit. With trembling fingers, she unlocked her phone and placed it in my palm.
I typed in my private number, saving the contact simply as Grant. I handed the device back, holding her gaze for a long, agonizing second. I had successfully anchored myself back into her life, leaving a dark, immovable brand she could no longer ignore.
Adelina POV
After the terrifying false alarm regarding my grandmother — a minor complication the Healers had quickly stabilized — Kain brought me back to the Penthouse Den to rest. But my mind was a chaotic storm.