Chapter 32: It all comes together

Elena Thorne

The next morning, I woke with a splitting headache and a resolution: I would not overreact.

No matter what Kieran said or did, I would maintain my composure.

I’d almost spilled everything to Sierra last night because I’d let him get under my skin, let his questions and his proximity scramble my ability to think clearly.

That ended now.

I got ready for school, dressed in slacks and a cream blouse pulling my hair into a bun and applying light makeup.

By the time I made it downstairs, I felt almost human again.

The kitchen was empty except for Maria, who was preparing breakfast. She smiled warmly when she saw me. “Good morning, Miss Elena. Coffee?”

“Please. Thank you, Maria.”

I accepted the mug gratefully, wrapping my hands around the warm ceramic. The estate was quiet this early and I assumed Alpha Marcus was already in his office, Kieran likely still asleep or out on his morning run.

I didn’t want to think about Kieran’s morning runs.

“Miss Elena?” Maria was holding out a plate of toast. “You should eat something before you leave for school.”

“I’m not very hungry, but thank you.”

“At least take a piece with you.” She wrapped two slices in a napkin, pressing them into my hand.

“You should not learn on an empty stomach.”

I let out a smile. “Thank you, Maria.”

Afterwards, I grabbed my bag and headed out, hoping that I could see a driver to take me as I did not want to go with Kieran.

Damien was in the front hallway, apparently heading out as well. He looked up when I appeared, offering a smile that made him look younger.

“Good morning, Lena. Are you heading to campus?”

“Yes.” I shook my head.

“I’m guessing you are on your way to school too?”

“Yeah, early class but I have to pick up a thing or two from this store.” He fell into step beside me as we walked toward the front entrance. “If you see Sierra today, can you tell her hi from me?”

I paused mid-step, looking at him more carefully. It was not the first time he was asking me to greet Sierra and I was not sure if it made sense to be bothered.

“Sure,” I said slowly. “I can do that.”

“Thanks.” He grinned. “She’s cool. We had a good conversation a few weeks ago, but I haven’t seen her since.”

“I’ll let her know you asked about her.”

“Thank you.”

We parted ways at the entrance with Damien heading toward his own car, while I moved to the available driver by the estate car.

“Please take me to college.”

He gave a small bow, then opened the car door for me.“At your command, Miss. Thorne.”

I spent the ride to Northcrest reviewing notes for my morning class, trying to focus on the pack law precedents.

By the time we arrived, the campus was already buzzing with activity.

People moved in a rush, clutching coffee cups and backpacks, and I felt myself relax slightly into the familiar rhythm of academic life.

This was my world. This was a life I knew quite well how to handle.

Sierra was waiting near the library entrance, exactly where we had agreed to meet between our classes. She waved when she saw me, and I made my way over.

“Hey!” She pulled me into a quick hug. “Feeling better than last night?”

“Much better. Sorry, I was so stressed.”

“Don’t apologize. That’s what I’m here for.” She studied my face. “You look tired though. Did you sleep okay?”

“Well enough.” I shifted my bag on my shoulder. “Oh, Damien asked me to say hi to you.”

Sierra’s expression shifted. “He did?”

“Mm-hmm. Said you guys had a good conversation a while back?”

“We did.” She nodded. “It’s weird he’s asking you to say hi to me again. He should stop.”

I stared at Sierra and said nothing, admiring my cute, witty friend.

She let out a breath then looped her arm through mine. “Come on, we’re going to be late for Whitmore’s lecture if we don’t move.

I tried not to think about why Damien had specifically asked me to greet Sierra. Or why the simple request had made my chest feel tight.

Because Damien could do things like expressing interest openly. It seemed like his intention, by the way.

Unlike his brother, who wanted everything to his satisfaction with no commitment.

‘Stop thinking about Kieran.’ My wolf growled and I shook my head.

We were halfway to the lecture hall when I realized my hair tie had come loose. The whole carefully constructed bun was sliding apart, and the strands were falling around my face.

“Damn it,” I muttered, stopping to try and fix it.

Fixing my hair usually took long and I barely had time on my side, as it was almost the deadline for me to submit an assignment.

“Here.” Sierra pulled a spare hair tie from her wrist. “Use this one.”

"I don't want to stress you," I smiled, reaching for mine. But when I pulled out the old tie, it snapped completely. “Great.” I muttered "Perfect.”

“Just redo it with mine.”

“Thank you. My only problem now is I need to see what I’m doing.” I looked around, spotting a relatively quiet area near one of the building walls.

“It’s getting late to submit the assignments, would you help me please? I will catch up with you once I get this sorted.”

“Okay then.” Sierra nodded and left.

I moved toward the wall, using it as a makeshift mirror spot. There, I placed my bag and began to gather my hair back in a bun.

Unsure of what I was doing, I pulled out my phone, opening the camera app and flipped it to my face to serve as a mirror.

The reflection showed my hair that still needed a bit of work and another figure.

My heart kicked into overdrive as I slowly lowered the phone and turned around to see the one person I had never thought I would see in my college on a SCHOOL day.

Rowan Raven.

He stood about six feet away, leaning against a nearby pillar with his arms crossed, that same assessing expression from yesterday on his face.

How long had he been there watching me?

“Hi,” I said, because what else was I supposed to say?

“Hello to you too, Miss Thorne.” He pushed off the pillar, moving closer with that confident aura that marked him as someone used to command. “You look different with your hair down.”

I wasn’t sure if that was a compliment or just an observation, so I settled for a neutral, “Thank you.”

“I didn’t expect to see you again so soon.” His eyes held mine. “Though I’m not complaining about the coincidence.”

Coincidence. Right.

Because it was totally normal for an Alpha I had met once at a conference to suddenly appear at my university, watching me fix my hair like some kind of stalker.

“Are you following me?” The question came out before I could stop it, and I immediately regretted the accusatory tone.

But Rowan just laughed. “Following you? Why would I do that?” He arched his brows slightly.

"Why would people do that?" I shrugged.

“Miss Thorne, I teach here.”

My mind went blank. “You… what?”

“I’m a junior professor. Pack Law and Territory Management. Started this semester.” He tilted his head. “I assumed you would know about the new professor in pack law.”

New Professor? I should know right? I usually get first-hand information on this, except I had spent most of my semester planning ways to escape Kieran Silvermane.

And why should he be the new professor?

“I didn’t know,” I admitted, feeling slightly foolish for the accusation. “I’m sorry for implying that you stalked me.”

“No need to apologize. It’s a reasonable question given yesterday’s encounter.” He smiled, and it transformed his face from intimidating to almost approachable. “Though I have to say, bumping into you twice in two days feels like fate trying to tell me something.”

“Or just a coincidence.”

“Maybe.” He didn’t look convinced. “You’re studying here, then? What’s your focus?”

“Pack law, actually. And linguistics.”

“Impressive combination.” His interest seemed genuine. “That explains why you were taking notes at the conference. You’re Alpha Marcus Silvermane’s assistant, correct?”

I was getting pissed because why was he asking all these questions? Just yesterday he seemed to know too much.

Remembering my mantra for the day that I would not overreact, I offered a soft “Yes.”

“He’s lucky to have someone with your credentials. Intelligence like yours is rare.”

“That’s kind of you to say.” I finished securing my hair, trying to signal that this conversation should probably end. “I should get to class, I have a lecture to catch up with.”

“Before you go.” He pulled out his phone. “I realize I asked yesterday and you declined, but now that you know I’m here, maybe you’d reconsider? Just dinner. Or coffee. I would love to discuss your research interests.”

I hesitated.

Part of me wanted to say no again to maintain distance from this wolf who seemed too interested in me.

“Alright,” I heard myself say. “Just my number. For educational and professional networking.”

His smile widened as he held out his phone. “Of course. Professional networking.”

I took it, typing in my contact information with fingers that trembled slightly. What was I doing? This felt like crossing some invisible line, though I couldn’t articulate why.

I handed the phone back just as a familiar voice cut through the air.

“Elena.”

I turned, and my stomach dropped.

Now I know why I had been hesitating.