Chapter 35: Continuation

I turned sharply, my heart pounding.

“What are you doing here?” I whispered, my voice breaking in the quiet.

He didn’t answer right away just slipped under the cover, his skin was so warm it made me heat up even more. I jerked slightly turning over in bed, my heart hammering so fast I thought it would beat out of my chest.

For a moment, I thought I was dreaming, Tristan hadn’t stepped foot in this bedroom even —not once—since the ceremony. He had avoided me, like I was the plague and kept his distance from me.

I wasn't surprised that he treated me like I was just a placeholder,he had said I was, what surprised me was that he was here.

So why was he here now?

“Tristan,” I whispered, my voice hoarse.

“What are you doing?”

His gaze caught mine, unflinching, his wolf pushing against mine with a force that made my stomach clench.

“Couldn’t sleep,” he muttered, but the lie was too thin.

Because the moment his body pressed close to mine, the heat inside me roared higher, and I knew he felt it too.

The mating bond between us thrummed, alive and insistent, wrapping around us like invisible chains. My skin tingled where his arm brushed mine, and every nerve screamed for me to close the distance.

I told myself to roll away, to shove him out of the bed. To remind him of every cruel word he’d thrown at me.

But then he touched me, his hand skimming over my hip, in a slow and deliberate move that, burned through the thin fabric of my nightdress.

My breath caught, my wolf howling in response, I arched my body toward him before my mind could protest.

“Tristan,” I gasped again, but it came out softer this time, weaker, as though his name itself was betraying me.

He leaned over me, his face close enough that I could feel the heat of his breath against my lips.

“You’re burning,” he murmured, voice low, guttural.

“Like you’re in heat.”

I swallowed hard, trembling.

“I’m not—”

“Doesn’t matter,” he cut in, his mouth brushing against the shell of my ear.

“I feel it too.” and then his lips were on mine.

The kiss wasn’t sweet or gentle, it was quite the opposite in fact, it was rough, hungry, unrestrained — like a fire consuming us both.

I couldn't let him go, and I didn't want to my hands gripping his shoulder. My fingers fisted in his shirt, pulling him closer even as part of me screamed to push him away.

He deepened the kiss, his hand sliding under the hem of my nightdress, his fingers tracing the curve of my thigh. I gasped against his mouth, the heat spiking until my body shook with it.

Everywhere he touched, sparks flared and as his lips trailed down my jaw, to my throat, it took all I had to restrain myself when he pressed a kiss that made my wolf whine in surrender.

“Tristan…” I whispered, my voice breaking.

His hand moved higher, sliding over my waist, up to cup my breast through the thin fabric. My back arched, a moan slipping from my lips before I could catch it.

“Tell me to stop,” he muttered against my skin. His voice was ragged, strained, like he was barely holding himself back.

“Tell me, Isla, and I’ll stop.”

But I didn’t. Couldn’t. The bond roared too loudly, drowning out my mind, pulling me under.

So, I let him.

His mouth crashed against mine again, devouring, his body pressing me deeper into the mattress. His hand slid under the hem of my nightdress, crawling over the skin of my thighs pushing it up until the fabric bunched around my waist. I gasped as his fingers brushed against the heat between my thighs, teasing, testing, making my pulse race so violently I thought it would tear me apart.

“Gods,” he groaned, his forehead pressing to mine.

“You’re driving me insane.”

He slipped his fingers beneath the lace of my underwear finding my heat, stroking, circling, his hands moist with my slick as he coaxed, and my body betrayed me again, shuddering under his touch. My breath came in sharp gasps, each stroke dragging me closer to the edge.

“Tristan,” I whispered, as I clung to him,my nails digging into his shoulders, my head tipped back as the pleasure clawed through me.

For once, he wasn’t cold, or distant. He was heat, alive and burning, and every touch, every kiss, every sound that escaped him felt like something we’d both been starving for.

He kissed me again, his tongue sliding against mine, his body rocking against me with slow, grinding movements that had me whimpering as his fingers worked me faster, harder, until I cried out against his lips, my body breaking, shuddering in release.

The world blurred.

For a moment, I thought I might drown in it, in him.

But then—he shifted.

His weight pressed between my thighs, his body moving over mine, and I felt it—the hard, insistent push of his need, the moment before the final line was crossed.

My heart slammed against my ribs and suddenly, the haze shattered.

“No.”

I shoved against his chest, breathless, panicked.

“No, Tristan. Stop.”

He froze, his body taut, his eyes wild with the pull of the bond.

“Isla—”

“I said stop!” My voice cracked, but it carried. I pushed harder, my legs twisting beneath him until I broke free enough to shove him back.

“I’m not here for you to scratch your itch. I’m not Viviana. I won’t be used like that.”

The silence that followed was sharp enough to cut.

His chest heaved, his jaw tight, his eyes dark with something between fury and hunger. For a moment, I thought he’d argue, that he’d push back, that the Alpha in him would refuse to hear the word no but then he swung out of the bed.

He didn’t look at me as he straightened, raking a hand through his hair, his breath still ragged.

“Fine,” he muttered, his voice cold again.

I sat up, pulling the blanket tight around me, my chest heaving, my wolf whining in confusion.

He strode to the door, every movement sharp with restrained anger. His hand gripped the handle.

“Don’t come back here,” I snapped, my voice shaking but firm.

“Not unless you mean it. Not unless you see me—not her.” I threatened though I knew that wouldn't happen ever. His shoulders stiffened, but he didn’t turn. A moment later, the door slammed shut behind him.

I sat there in the silence, trembling, my body still aching, my heart still pounding.

I’d wanted him. Goddess, I still wanted him and in that brief moment, it had felt like drowning in the bond, like nothing else mattered.

But I couldn’t let myself be his substitute.

Not again. Not ever.