Chapter 26

KAIDEN'S POV

The moon hangs low over the training yard. I can't sleep so I'm training to get my mind off it.

I strike the training dummy again. Harder this time.

My fist lands with a dull, angry punch, sending a shock through my arm. I don't care. I welcome the pain. It's better than what I feel inside. I slam my palm into the wooden chest of the dummy. I twist, kick, punch again.

I do it over and over. Over and over.

My breathing is sharp, uneven. Sweat clings to my skin, dripping from my brow and trailing down my bare chest. I've been at this for hours, but the fire inside me won't burn out.

Every time I try to sleep, she's there.

Layla.

She's always in my mind and I fucking hate it.

That damn omega with the too-soft voice and stubborn eyes that makes my wolf growl every time she turns her back to me. I hate how her scent seems to stay in my lungs. I hate that even now, after everything, the thought of her ignites something feral in me.

She's beneath me. she's a lower rank, lower blood. But we're mates. The gods decided it. I didn't get a say.

And I hate how much I want her anyway.

I grunt, spinning and landing a clean blow that snaps the dummy's head off. The wooden piece rolls across the yard and into the shadows.

I stand there, chest heaving, arms throbbing. But the ache in my chest—the one she causes—is still there.

"Kaiden…" someone says.

The voice is soft, sultry.

I turn slowly. A girl stands there and she's barely dressed. She's dressed in a bra and way too exposed underwear, the type girls wear that show their butt cheeks. Her red hair falls to waves over her shoulders. She's one of the she-wolves I've paid to "keep me distracted." I picked her because of her red hair. She had hair almost the same shade as Layla's.

She's beautiful. Long legs, dark hair, eyes full of invitation. She walks toward me. Her fingers play with the loose hem of her silk robe.

"I've been looking everywhere for you," she purrs.

I stare at her for a long second. She's beautiful, sure. And I know she wants me. But when I look at her, I feel nothing. Not a single stir.

Layla's face flashes in my mind and my body responds instantly. Damn her.

No matter how many girls I bring, none of them seem to turn me on. Yet one thought of Layla and I'm hard. She has me jerking off twice in the bathroom. Before she came into my life, fucking girls were never my problem. I have the power to go all night but everything's been so messed up since she came along.

"I miss you" she says.

"I think you should go back," I say flatly, turning away.

She pouts, moving closer. "Don't be like that. Come inside soon, alright?" Her fingers brush my arm, and I flinch away.

"I said go." My voice comes out sharp. She blinks, stung, then turns and walks away without another word.

I return to the training dummy or what's left of it but I can't bring myself to strike it again. Something feels… off.

I feel a strong pressure twisting in my chest. My wolf stirs restlessly. His ears are perked and his attention is locked on something I can't yet see.

Then I hear it.

Light footsteps. They sound too careful. Too familiar.

My senses lock onto the faint scent drifting on the wind.

Jasmine and vanilla.

Layla.

My entire body tenses. My claws threaten to extend. What the hell is she doing out here? Again? This is the second time I've caught her wandering round the palace at night. She must be hiding something and I'm going to find out what it is.

Without hesitation, I follow the scent through the side courtyard and around the back halls of the barracks, keeping to the shadows. She's trying to be discreet but I know her too well. I see the flash of her cloak slip behind a hidden corridor.

She moves like someone with a secret. She doesn't even hear me coming.

In one swift move, I grab her wrist and yank her back. She gasps but before she can scream, I pull her into the nearest storage room and slam the door shut behind us. The sound echoes off the walls, rattling the shelves.

She spins. Her eyes are wide as she sees me.

"Kaiden!"

"Where were you?" My voice is low.

She freezes for a second before she lifts her chin and pulls her wrist. "Let go of me."

I don't.

My fingers are still wrapped tight around her arm, and I can feel her pulse racing beneath my touch. The connection between our bodies makes my head spin.

My wolf lunges to the surface. She's mine. The bond feels like a drumbeat in my blood. I don't want to care. But I do. This small action makes my wolf feel alive in a way it never has. I haven't even touched her.

Fuck.

I hate the way my body responds to her.

I step forward and pin her against the wall in one swift, heated motion. My body presses against hers, chest to chest. My arms brace on either side of her, caging her in. I can feel her breath on my throat.

And I'm hard. Instantly.

She looks up at me with fire in her eyes. "Get off me."

"Not until you tell me what the hell you were doing sneaking off again." My voice is rough, angry. But beneath it…there's need.

"That's none of your business," she snaps.

"The hell it isn't!" I slam my palm against the wall beside her head. She flinches but doesn't back down. "You belong to me."

"I don't belong to anyone, Kaiden!" she shouts "You've made it clear you don't want me"

I don't move.

Her words don't wound me. They feed the beast inside.

My jaw clenches, my body tense, and yet I can't stop drinking her in.

Her scent. Her warmth. Her spirit. It's like wildfire. And I'm already burning.

"Why do you always do this to me?" I growl. My head lowers and I brush the side of her temple. I inhale her like she's the only air I need. "Why can't I stop wanting you?"

She trembles slightly. Just enough for me to notice.

Our faces are so close. My lips hover above hers. I can feel her breath. Her lips part slightly, just enough to send my control into a spiral.

I want to kiss her. I need to.

But I don't.

I curse under my breath and force myself to pull back.

"You're hiding something," I bite out, stepping away like she burns me.

Layla straightens her cloak "And if I am?"

"Then I'll rip it from whoever gave it to you," I say, voice ice-cold. "No one hides things from me."

"You don't scare me."

"You should."

The air is thick with tension. Every word sparks off the fire in my skin. Standing here, breathing heavily and arguing with her has my cock straining in my pants. I just want to turn her over and fuck her till I let go of all the anger inside me. she makes me so damn frustrated…but in the wildest way possible.

"Why can't you just stay away from me?" she hisses.

"Because you haunt me," I snap. "You think I haven't tried? Every damn night I try to forget you. I try with other women, with training, with rage. But nothing works. It's always you."

She swallows. "That's not my problem."

"Isn't it?" I take a step closer again, towering over her. "You walk around here like you don't feel it—this bond. But I see it. I feel it. I know it's there."

She looks away. "You're just angry you can't control it."

"No," I say darkly. "I'm angry that you make me weak."

Fuck. Why the hell did I say that? The words left my lips before I even thought about it. I'm an Alpha. I should never admit to weakness or anything like it.

Then she says, "If you hate me so much, then why do you still want me?"

I don't have an answer.

I can't say it. Not now. Not with the way my body is reacting to her, not with my wolf clawing to the surface, demanding I claim her.

So instead, I step back. I drag in a breath and turn toward the door.

Before I walk out, I look over my shoulder.

"You're hiding something, Layla. And I'm going to find out what it is."

I pause at the door.

"And when I do... you'll be sorry."

Then I leave, slamming the door behind me.