Chapter 61
Skye’s POV
My stomach dropped as 1 recognized the tall figure in the center–rust–colored hair, emerald eyes, and that same predatory smile I remembered front our
first meeting.
Kane had found me.
1 instinctively reached for Nadia’s arm, squeezing it in warning as Kane’s emerald gaze swept across the room, settling on us with disturbing precision. His smile widened, revealing teeth that seemed too sharp for a human setting. The two men flanking him were unfamiliar, but their stiff postures
and vigilant eyes marked them clearly as werewolves–Kane’s enforcers, no doubt.
‘Don’t make a scene,” I whispered to Nadia, whose body had gone rigid beside me. “There are too many humans here.”
Kane cut through the crowd with predatory grace, his expensive suit out of place among the casual wedding attire. When he reached us, that familiar scent hit me—pine needles mixed with something metallic, like blood.
“Ladies,” he drawled, his voice carrying the same false charm I remembered from our encounter at Oasisborn’s celebration. “How delightful to see you again.”
Nadia stepped slightly forward, positioning herself between Kane and me. “What are you doing here?” she demanded, keeping her voice low but unable to hide the hostility.
Before Kane could respond, Jessie appeared at my side, her wedding dress rustling as she took in our unexpected guests. Her cheeks were flushed with happiness and perhaps a bit too much champagne, making her oblivious to the tension crackling between us.
*Skye, are these three handsome guys friends of yours too?” she asked, her eyes appreciatively scanning Kane’s tall frame.
“No,” I replied coldly, my eyes never leaving Kane’s. “They’re not friends. Please leave,” I added, directing this last part to Kane rather than Jessie.
Kane’s smile didn’t falter. “How could you be so cold? After I came all this way just to see you.” The mock hurt in his voice made my skin crawl.
Confusion flickered across Jessie’s face as she glanced between us, finally registering the hostility in the air. Ever the peacemaker, she forced a bright smile. “Well, any friends of friends are welcome here! It’s my special day, and everyone’s invited to enjoy themselves.”
She signaled frantically to the DJ, who immediately transitioned from a slow ballad to an upbeat dance number. The floor quickly filled with guests eager to show off their moves, creating a buffer of bodies between us and the exit.
‘I’d love to take advantage of this wonderful music,” Kane said smoothly, extending his hand toward me. “May I have this dance?”
“No,” I replied firmly, but he had already grasped my wrist, his fingers closing around it like a steel trap.
“I insist,” he said, all pretense of politeness vanishing from his eyes as he pulled me toward the dance floor.
I didn’t resist or make a scene. My mind quickly registered the dozens of innocent humans surrounding us. Kane’s boldness in coming here meant he was dangerous enough to hurt them if provoked.
Nadia was instantly on our heels, her dark eyes flashing with barely contained rage. She positioned herself directly in our path, blocking Kane’s progress toward the center of the dance floor.
“Let her go,” she growled, her voice pitched low enough that only werewolf hearing could catch it over the music.
Kane leaned forward, his lips almost brushing Nadia’s ear as he whispered, “You’d better behave yourselves. Without Adrian to protect you, you’re nothing but lambs in the presence of a wolf. My wolf.”
Nadia didn’t back down, her chin lifting defiantly. ‘Why don’t you try finding out just how defenseless we are?”
I could see the subtle changes beginning in Nadia’s posture–the slight elongation of her fingers, the faint reddish glow beginning to seep into her irises. Signs that her wolf was dangerously close to the surface. If she shifted here, surrounded by humans…
1/2
Chapter 61
Kane seemed to recognize the risk as well. His smile turned cruel as he spoke directly to me. You wouldn’t want your friend’s wedding to JUIN (RO) funeral, would you?
His words sent ice through my veins. These weren’t empty threats. I’d heard stories of Kane’s brutality, of entire familles slaughtered for encroaching on what he considered his territory.
“Nadia, don’t,” I cautioned, meeting her eyes with silent pleading. “Not here.”
Something in my expression must have reached her, because the red glow in her eyes dimmed slightly. Kane took advantage of her hesitation to pull me onto the dance floor, one hand firmly gripping my waist while the other maintained its vise–like hold on my wrist.
“That’s better,” he murmured, forcing me into a mockery of a dance as the music pulsed around us. “You’re learning to be reasonable.”
His grip tightened painfully against my skin.
“What do you want?” I demanded, keeping my voice steady despite the fear coiling in my stomach.
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he leaned closer, inhaling deeply against my neck in a gesture that was both invasive and deliberately provocative. Then, with horrifying boldness, he pressed his lips against my skin, the contact burning like acid.
‘Get off!” I jerked backward, but his grip only tightened,
“You look delicious in formal wear,” he murmured against my throat.
Before I could respond, a blur of white and pink thrust itself between us. Jessie stood there, her wedding dress slightly askew, eyes blazing with protective fury as she shoved at Kane’s chest.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” she demanded, her voice cutting through the music. “Get your filthy hands off my friend, you disgusting creep!
Kane looked momentarily stunned–clearly unaccustomed to humans standing up to him. His surprise quickly gave way to amusement, then darkened into something dangerous as Jessie continued her tirade.
‘I don’t know who you think you are,‘ she spat, “but nobody acts like that at my wedding!” With surprising force for someone her size, she delivered a stinging slap across Kane’s face.
The sound seemed to echo across the dance floor, conversation dying as guests turned to stare. For one terrifying moment, I thought Kane might lose control right there. His eyes flashed with inhuman rage, his body coiling like a spring about to release.
Then, with deliberate slowness, he grabbed Jessie by her shoulders and threw her to the ground with enough force that she slid several feet across the polished floor.
“Jessie!” I screamed, lunging toward her.
Chapter Comments
LIKE
