Feral Bonds: Claimed By Rogue Alpha Brothers
Chapter 54: Alpha’s Changed Heart

Chapter 54: Alpha’s Changed Heart

Evaline:

"You look good in the original color."

I spun around so quickly that the towel slipped from my hand and landed on the floor.

He was standing there - Draven.

He was standing by the balcony doors with his arms crossed as he was leaning casually against the frame like he belonged in this room.

My stomach lurched. "What - how did you even get in here?"

He lifted a brow and pushed off from the wall before stepping forward with an infuriating calmness. "Maybe you should lock your balcony."

My eyes quickly darted to the balcony and I noticed the sliding glass door was unlocked. I never really bothered to lock them as Rowan had a habit of using them instead of the main door.

"I didn’t know I needed to guard it from entitled, brooding Alphas who break into others’ rooms uninvited," I snapped even though my heart was hammering in my chest.

He stopped just a few feet from me, close enough that I could see the slight tension in his jaw despite his cool demeanor.

"You weren’t at dinner," he said simply.

I blinked at his words, feeling lost. "You came here because of that?"

He said nothing.

And I hated that I couldn’t read him. Though he was youngest of the Rogue Alpha brothers, he was just as cold as the others. Just as proud. And just as infuriatingly unpredictable. And worst of all, he kept making me feel the same pull that had started terrorizing my life.

It was a pull I had started fearing. A pull I didn’t want... with anyone, let alone him and his brother.

I watched as his eyes dropped to my hair and lingered on the silver strands as if confirming something. The tension in the air thickened, crackling like static, and something unspoken passed between us... maybe an acknowledgment of what we were both pretending not to understand.

His gaze returned to mine. "You felt it too... didn’t you?"

I swallowed while backing up a step, only for my back to hit the edge of the dresser. "There’s nothing to feel."

My mind started racing as I couldn’t understand what he was trying to do, or why he was even here. Just like his brother, he made it pretty clear that he didn’t like whatever was going on between us... yet, here he was.

He tilted his head and studied me like I was some complex equation he couldn’t solve. "Keep lying to yourself if that helps you sleep."

Before I could respond, he moved closer with slow, deliberate steps. My breath caught as he reached out and tucked a damp strand of hair behind my ear. His fingers brushed my skin for a brief moment, and I felt it again... that telltale rush that burned low in my belly.

No. No. I couldn’t do this. Not again. Not with another one of them.

"I think you should leave," I said, but my voice wasn’t as firm as I wanted it to be.

His hand dropped to my waist instead of stepping away, shocking me further. "I’m tired of pretending this isn’t happening."

"Draven-"

"Say you didn’t feel it in the library," he cut me off in a quiet but demanding voice. "Say it to my face, and I’ll walk out that door."

I opened my mouth, but couldn’t make myself deny the truth. So instead... "I thought you didn’t want to associate with me. Then why come here demand-"

The rest of the words changed into a gasp as his hand suddenly slid around my back and he pulled me flush against his chest.

My breath escaped me in a single gasp and I stared at him, trying to get a hold on... whatever... was happening.

He leaned closer and brushed his nose against my temple, then the curve of my cheek, inhaling deeply like he couldn’t get enough of my scent. "You are driving me crazy," he murmured against my skin. "I hated you before I even met you."

I stiffened.

"But this... this bond doesn’t care about hate."

His lips grazed the shell of my ear, and I shuddered, feeling my legs going weak under me. I should have pushed him away. Told him to stop. But all I was able to do was cling to the dresser behind me as his other hand slid around my hip, holding me there like I might vanish if he let go.

That’s when my phone buzzed on the nearby desk.

I blinked, trying to break free of the haze, and grabbed it quickly.

Mallory: We are waiting. Where are you?

My thumb hovered over the keyboard, but before I could type a response, Draven caught my wrist gently and pulled the phone from my grasp.

"Draven," I warned, "I need to reply."

"Then tell her you will be there in a while," he said in a low and rough voice. But instead of handing the phone back to me, he quickly tapped a response and hit send before placing the phone back on the table.

I didn’t know if it was the pregnancy hormones, the bond, or just the look in his eyes, but something inside me cracked wide open.

"Why are you doing this?" I whispered.

"Because I have had enough," he answered simply. "Of pretending. Of trying to hate you when my wolf won’t stop howling for you."

His lips brushed my cheek this time, softer, lingering. "I told myself I would never come near you again. That you weren’t worth the trouble. But I can’t stay away."

My heart was pounding so loud I was sure he could hear it.

He pulled back just enough to look into my eyes. "I don’t care anymore that you are a Greystone. I don’t care what happened between our families."

His hand came up again, brushing along my jaw while his thumb traced my cheekbone. "I care about this," he murmured. "About whatever the hell this is that’s tying me to you."

I didn’t know what to say. So I said nothing.

But I didn’t stop him when he leaned down. Didn’t push him away when he tilted my chin. And didn’t fight it when his lips finally found mine in a kiss that was neither urgent nor soft... just honest. Filled with questions and longing and tension we didn’t know how to name.