chapter 160: not like it

Life within the stronghold resumed its usual rhythm, the days marked by the steady routine of warriors training, advisors whispering in darkened halls, and the ever-present scent of war lingering in the air. It was as if nothing had changed.

And yet, for Caidren, everything had.

He had expected the fire between them to fade, for his mind to return to the sharp precision of battle strategies and conquests. But instead, Elias haunted him. Not in defiance or in rebellion—no, the Omega had chosen a different form of resistance.

He ignored him.

Whenever Caidren entered a room, Elias would find a reason to leave. If their paths crossed in the corridors, the Omega would turn on his heel, retreating before their eyes could meet. He was not disrespectful, nor outwardly hostile, but the message was clear.

You do not matter to me.

And Caidren hated it.

Worse still, his thoughts betrayed him in the quiet hours of the night. No matter how much he pushed Elias from his mind, the memories crept back—the feel of the Omega's body beneath him, the sharp intake of breath, the heat that had burned between them in a moment neither of them had been ready for.

Caidren had expected shame. He had expected disgust.

But he had found something else entirely.

His hands clenched into fists as he stood at the edge of the training grounds, watching his warriors spar, but seeing only flashes of pale skin and stormy eyes. The need to command, to dominate, to have Elias beneath him again pulsed through his veins like a battle cry he could not silence.

And yet, Elias denied him at every turn.

Caidren had faced countless enemies, had torn down empires with nothing but his will and his blade. But this? This slow, insidious rejection gnawed at him in ways he could not understand.

The Omega was slipping through his fingers, and for the first time in his life, Caidren Thorne had no idea how to stop it.

He could even feel it, he didn't want to stop it