My whole body stiffened at how close he was to me, the heat his body was radiating, the way I could feel every breath he took on me, and his eyes…they bored holes into me. The smell of citrus and wood enveloped me. Intense and every bit overwhelming, that was what he was.
"I find it strange, you know," his voice lowered, the fingers he had on my chin lightly tracing the outline of my jaw. "Why someone as important as you was in that building, seconds away…from doing something, stupid or brave, I can't quite distinguish."
Alpha Arias' dark hair sat on top of his head, like it had been run through by birds, scattered in large waves. Some falling into his eyes and some strands resting at an angle. But that didn't make him look less attractive.
He looked divine.
My heart skipped, and I swallowed. "I–Wel–"
I cleared my throat and began, forcing down the nervousness. "Your room, Alpha Arias."
He cocked an eyebrow at me, those golden brown eyes of his glinting under the light. And then, the corner of his lips curved up. Frightening.
Slowly, he unwrapped his fingers from my chin, lifting his head to see what room I was pointing at, but not stepping away from me. My head turned sideways, searching for anyone in the hall that must have saw that. Saw this.
A sigh of relief left me when it came up empty.
I gritted my teeth, and pushed back and away from the alpha. From where I stood, I glared at him, immediately missing his warmth.
"Why are you here, Alpha Arias?" The question that had been in my head right from the moment he stepped foot in the throne room came out of my mouth.
It seemed unlikely he'd just stumbled upon this pack, or had tracked the creature all the way from…where they came from or something.
"I think your father might give you a debrief later."
He made for the door at the side of me, putting one foot in front of the other. Placing a hand on the door handle, he gave me one last glance before turning it and walking right through.
I watched him go, his large body retreating into the room, the smell of citrus and wood no longer around me.
—
"I want to know why you're letting him stay." My voice was steady, my hands in fists at my side as I watched father lift a glass to his lips.
He took a drink from it and set it down on the wooden desk in front of him. He watched me intently, an eyebrow slightly lifted. "Do I need your permission to do that?"
"Wh-what? No!"
I was being paranoid. It wasn't just the fact father had left me on the sideline that was bothering me so much, it was also the fact that Alpha Arias remembered me from that night, it was the way I felt around him, the way my body seemed to respond to him.
"Then what's the problem, Oliver?" Father leaned closer, his fingers drumming on his desk.
"Don't you think it's risky? Letting someone that infiltrated our pack stay? We're goddamn Valeras, it should be near impossible to sneak in and out of here!" I was on my feet now, my heart thumping in my chest. "Doesn't it bother you!?"
A dull pressure settled deep inside my ear, followed by a sharp, high pitched sound that rang through my head like the bells they rang at the Jade temple.
"Calm yourself Oliver." I think I heard father say, but the sound of it was muffled and seemed far away.
"I am leveled." I said with gritted teeth, my nails biting into my skin.
"Oliver, look at your hands!"
My head tilted down to see the tiny sparks that had appeared on my fingers tips. The heat shot through me, down my arms, my pulse thundered in my ears.
I was sick of father treating me like some prized possession that couldn't handle his own. I was the future alpha of this pack, of the great Valeras pack. Not some vulnerable defenseless punk.
I caught sight of my reflection on the glass father had set down. My eyes were glowing, a bright orange red.
Like flames.
The ember stirred in my chest, responding to the anger coiling tighter and tighter inside me.
Father had kicked off the desk, his eyes widened slightly as he took in the sight in front of him. He pressed his lips into a thin line and took a step closer to me. "Oliver," his voice came out softer this time. "You need to calm—"
"I'm trying!" I snapped at him, the heat rushing faster through me. I could feel it in my limbs, rushing down and up and everywhere.
Taking in a deep breath, my eyes closed shut. I let the heat in my body cool down, I will the sparks to a stop and pull the embers back.
I felt father's presence closer to me, a second later, his hand was on my shoulder. "I see they've gotten stronger."
My gaze was on his feet. I wasn't sure what I wanted to see on my father's face after displaying that. "They're becoming more difficult to control."
"For your sake and mine, you must learn Oliver!" He wrapped his hand around the back of my neck and forced my eyes to his bright green eyes. "You heard what Alpha Reuel said earlier. You know elementals aren't taken kindly to in the realm."
"I do." I whispered, my back hunched.
—
My sister's room was about five minutes away from mine, the walk through the hallway was rather quieter than normal. Usually, there'd be pleasure noises heard from just the middle of the hallway.
But now, I was way past that and I cou—
Right.
How could I even have thought of giving the benefit of a doubt?
I stopped right in front of Keyleth's room, a series of moans immediately filling my hearing.
Pushing down some of my irritation, I shoved the door open and immediately regretted it.
A completely naked wolven was on top of my sister. His back was to me, muscles rippling as he moved. Keyleth's head was thrown back, her hair splayed across the pillow, hands gripping his shoulders.
"What the fuck?"