The moment Carolina turned, she felt it—his presence, thick with dominance, his gaze scorching through her like a brand.
Alexander stood in the doorway, his jaw tight, his hands shoved deep into his pockets in a lazy stance, but she wasn't fooled.
That man was anything but relaxed.
The air between them crackled like lightning before a storm.
Then, without a word, he strode forward.
Samuel barely had time to smirk before Alexander's hand closed around Carolina's wrist. Firm. Possessive.
She gasped. "What are you—"
"Enough." His voice was like steel, low and commanding.
He didn't give her a choice.
Before she could protest, he was already pulling her away, past Samuel, past the curious glances inside the ballroom, past the murmuring guests who wisely stepped out of his path.
The moment they were alone, he shoved the door shut behind them.
Silence.
Tension.
A slow, delicious kind of rage burned in his midnight-blue eyes as he stalked toward her.
"You're playing with fire, Carolina," he murmured, his voice deceptively calm.
She folded her arms, refusing to cower. "I thought that's what you liked."
A dark chuckle rumbled from his chest.
"You think you can toy with Samuel to get to me?" He took another slow, deliberate step. "That I wouldn't notice?"
She refused to back down. "What does it matter to you?"
His eyes flashed.
And suddenly, she was against the wall.
His hands caged her in, his body dangerously close, his heat suffocating.
"It matters because you are mine," he whispered, his lips grazing the shell of her ear. "And I do not share."
Her heart slammed against her ribs.
"I am not yours," she whispered back, daring him, challenging him.
Alexander tilted his head, studying her, his lips curving into something dark. Dangerous.
His fingers trailed down her arm, slow, featherlight, making her shiver.
"No?" he murmured. "Then why are you shaking?"
Carolina clenched her jaw. She hated him. Hated how he could unravel her so easily.
She should push him away. Should resist.
But then—
He leaned in, his lips just a breath away from hers.
A warning. A promise.
"You can play your little games, princess," he murmured. "But remember—there is only one winner.