Chapter 97

"Touch me," he orders.

I reach for him, my fingers brushing against him as I struggle to steady my breathing. He watches every movement, his expression unreadable except for the tension tightening his jaw.

I lift my gaze to meet his, searching for some sign of hesitation, but all I find is the same fierce hunger that has been burning between us since the beginning.

A low sound escapes him before he gently catches a handful of my hair, guiding me closer until our foreheads almost touch. My heart pounds wildly inside my chest. Then, without another word, he pulls away. I protest with a small frown, but instead of answering, he motions toward the bed.

"Lie down."

Excitement and nervous anticipation twist together inside me. Slowly, I climb onto the bed and settle against the mattress, unable to tear my eyes away from him. But on the other side, I am worried that Erin will come unannounced.

“You look confused,” he mumbles.

I shake my head. “No. I am just worried that Erin will come again.”

He tightens his jaw. “Stop thinking about that woman,” he commands and then he approaches with measured steps, never breaking eye contact.

When instinct tells me to close my eyes, his voice stops me.

"Don't close your eyes, Vivienne." His tone is quiet but commanding. "Watch me."

I swallow hard before looking back at him. The room falls silent except for the sound of our breathing and every second stretches endlessly as he leans closer, his gaze locked onto mine. My pulse races, my hands trembling against the sheets beneath me. My fingers curl into the blankets as he draws nearer, and the distance between us disappears once again.

"Alpha..." I whisper, barely able to find my voice.

His eyes darken.

"You feel like fire," he murmurs.

The room seems to spin around us. My heartbeat pounds so loudly that it drowns out everything else, and for one suspended moment, nothing exists except the two of us.The matebond is in total control and the two of us are too weak to go against it.

Then...

BANG!

The bedroom door slams open and both of us freeze! Did he forget to lock the door?

Cassian's entire body goes rigid. Every muscle across his shoulders tightens as he slowly turns toward the doorway. I scramble to pull the blanket around myself, my pulse hammering against my ribs.

Then I see them. Nico and Jaxon.  Both of them stand motionless in the doorway and neither of them says a word. Their eyes remain fixed on the scene before them and heat floods my face when realization hits me.

I immediately try to sit up, desperate to put some distance between Cassian and me, but he instinctively keeps me behind him, shielding me from their view but the silence that follows is far more terrifying than any shout.

Cassian doesn't move. He is still inside me, and my pulse thunders in my ears. The sheet barely covering my body feels completely useless beneath the weight of Nico's and Jaxon's stares.

Then, Nico is the first to break the silence. He clears his throat and lets out a low chuckle. "Well... this is unexpected."

I wanted to disappear into the mattress when he said that.  Jaxon, quieter as always, leans casually against the doorway. His expression is impossible to read, somewhere between calculation, amusement, and far too much curiosity.

"Should we come back later, Nico?" he asks lazily. "Or... join them?"

"Get. Out." Cassian's voice is rough, dangerous, and stretched painfully thin. As he speaks, he shifts slightly.

My head falls back, my lips parting in a quiet gasp as my body reacts instinctively. I want to cry out his name. I want to moan. Every nerve inside me screams for release, but reality crashes back the moment I remember we are not alone.

My eyes dart toward the doorway and I see how Nico's lips part as he watches me beneath his brother. Jaxon's jaw tightens, his arms folding across his chest. Neither of them looks away.

They're watching us for goddamn’s sake!

They should have left the second they realized what they had interrupted, but neither brother made a move to leave.

Heat floods my face, embarrassment burning beneath my skin, tangled with something reckless I can't quite explain. I should feel humiliated. I should pull the sheets over my head and hide forever.

Instead...I roll my hips ever so slightly. The movement is barely noticeable, yet Cassian lets out a deep growl and then his hands clamp harder around my hips, and he buries his face against my shoulder, his breathing turning uneven against my skin.

"Vivienne..." he rasps.

It sounds less like my name and more like a warning but the warning comes too late.  My body is still trembling from everything that has happened, still caught between confusion and desire. Almost without thinking, I shift again, searching for him, unable to ignore the awareness of his brothers standing only a few feet away.

When my gaze briefly meets Nico's and then Jaxon's, my wolf stirs restlessly. God...I really am shameless!

However, I don’t give a damn what they think of me at that moment, whether it is disgust, desire, or judgment. I just don’t care at all, especially with Cassian’s mouth against my collarbone and my body burning with need.

Inside me, he is still hard and impossibly deep. I can feel him twitch inside me, as though the interruption only makes everything worse.

“Leave!” he barks at his brothers.

But Nico’s gaze drops to the curve of my bare shoulder where the sheet has slipped before slowly trailing back up to my face.

“You look good ruined like that, Vivienne.”

I gasp.

Cassian growls. “Out!” Cassian snaps at his brothers.

Nico raises both hands in mock surrender, but not before winking at me as though this is some private joke only he understands. Jaxon remains silent, but his eyes never leave mine.

Of course, it is Nico who finally speaks. “Take your time, Cassian. Jaxon and I can wait... then we'll have our turn with her.”

Cassian's hand slams against the headboard. His entire body trembles, though I can't tell whether it's from rage or something else. Then he looks at me.

“You enjoyed that,” he mutters bitterly. “Their eyes on you. You liked being watched... didn't you?”

“No,” I answer too quickly.

“I can feel it, Vivienne,” he says, his voice low. “You got too excited knowing they were watching us.”

“Would it make me a slut if I said yes?”