Free Web NovelChapter 217: Chapter 217
Nathan’s POV
“Nathan?”
Sophia’s voice shook, but I didn’t look at her. My wolf paced restlessly beneath my skin, claws scraping against bone, demanding release.
Her fingers were wrapped around my arm.
I didn’t hesitate.
I pried her hand open with cold, controlled force. The moment her scent clung too long, my wolf snarled in disgust. She was not the one my instincts answered to.
I turned and walked away in silence, my bodyguards closing ranks around me as if they could contain the storm rolling off my back.
I got into my Maybach. The door shut with a dull thud.
The moment I was alone, my restraint cracked.
I leaned back against the leather seat, my jaw tight, my chest heaving as my alpha aura flooded the enclosed space. The windows darkened, but it did nothing to calm the chaos inside me.
Aria.
Her eyes burned into my mind like a brand.
Earlier, when I’d looked at her, really looked at her, it had felt like standing at the edge of madness. My wolf had surged violently, it hated seeing her with another man. Ever since that kiss, everything had been wrong.
No...Everything had been awake.
I used to wonder why people of influence gravitated toward her. A former convict. A woman I had dismissed once controlled. I had told myself at a point in time that she was insignificant and replaceable.
But those were lies.
Now even I couldn’t deny it. My instincts were wrapped around her like chains. My wolf watched her every move, alert, territorial, furious whenever another male stood too close.
Yet she was also a woman who had forgotten where she belonged, and cared nothing about who she belonged to...about me.
I had tried to avoid her...forced myself not to ask for updates, not to look into her life. I had ordered my men to watch her only for “security reasons.” That was what I told myself.
But today, the moment my bodyguards reported seeing her going to the airport with Jonathan, I couldn’t hold back. I had to go and confront her.
How many men has it been so far?
Peter, Rowland, Francis and now Jonathan.
Each name triggered a low growl in my chest.
Each one had crossed into territory that was still mine.
And my wolf never forgot a trespass.
“Alpha Nathan...”
Collins’s uneasy voice cut through my thoughts. I opened my eyes to see him wiping sweat from his brow in the rearview mirror.
“Are you sure about this?”
He had seen everything, managed the crowd, erased recordings, read the situation far better than he should have. I knew what he was thinking.
That Aria might still feel something.
That she might not.
That I was already too deep.
“Yes.”
The word left my mouth like stone.
My hands clenched slowly into fists as unwanted memories surfaced.
Early in our marriage, when rumors from the company reached her, she would come to me carefully, like a skittish deer approaching a hunter.
“Is it true?” she’d ask softly.
Back then, the bond between us had already begun to form, but resentment poisoned it. The marriage had been forced. I had hated that weakness, hated how it softened me toward her.
So I was cold.
Cruel.
She would flinch like a frightened animal but she always came back, again and again. She was loyal despite the fear, undeterred despite the pain.
My wolf had noticed long before I did, perhaps she was just angry now.
Eighteen months in jail would change anyone.
Still, the thought of her standing beside other men made something savage twist in my gut.
“Arrange full media coverage for tomorrow’s charity event,” I said coolly.
Collins stiffened but nodded. “Understood.”
I could feel his judgment even without looking at him. He thought I was a lost cause.
Maybe I was.
Only a man who still cared would feel this kind of jealousy, this bone-deep rage at imagined hands touching what belonged to him.
Collins turned his attention back to the road, wisely choosing silence. The car rolled forward smoothly, but inside me, my wolf lifted its head and growled one final warning.
She is still ours. ƒree𝑤ebnσvel.com
And no one, not even another alpha can change that.
Aria’s POV
My mood lifted the moment I was with Williams and Jonathan.
The tightness that had been coiled in my chest since yesterday night finally loosened, and even my wolf seemed calmer, her presence warm and steady beneath my skin. Around them, I didn’t feel watched or claimed. I could breathe.
“What brings you to Asterfell?” I asked Williams, genuinely curious.
Jonathan shot his brother a pointed look, silent but sharp as if to say...watch what you say. I caught it, and my lips twitched.
Williams only chuckled, completely unbothered. “Can’t a guy visit an old friend? Just wanted to catch up with you.”
“Right,” Jonathan cut in smoothly, saving him from further questioning. “The charity gala recently raised a significant amount. I was thinking of donating part of it to a local orphanage here in Asterfell. Want to come along?”
