Chapter 72 Secret Heat

Chapter 72 Secret Heat
The forest was quiet, almost too quiet.

Selene crouched behind a fallen tree, listening.

The wind stirred the leaves, but no human sounds, no cars, no ordinary life—just the heartbeat of the woods.

She breathed slowly, trying to calm herself, but her pulse was already racing.

Riven had insisted on meeting her here. Alone. Secretly. He said it was for training.

She suspected it was more. The way his green eyes had followed her all week, the way his presence had lingered in her dreams. Kael’s golden eyes still haunted her, but Riven’s warmth had a pull she couldn’t fight.

“Selene,” Riven said, stepping into the clearing. His broad shoulders blocked the moonlight, his stance protective, commanding.
“You’re late.”

“I’m here,” she replied, trying to sound steady. Her hands fidgeted with the hem of her jacket. Her wolf stirred. She hated how easily Riven could calm it. Or rile it. She wasn’t sure which tonight..

Riven smiled faintly. “You’re tense.”

She swallowed. “I’m… fine.”

“Bullshit.” He stepped closer, and her heart lurched. She felt it—hot, pulsing, demanding. He stopped just short of touching her, close enough that she could feel his heat.

His scent wrapped around her, protective, possessive, but not the kind that threatened to crush. More like… fire coiled around her spine.

Her wolf growled softly.

“You’re nervous about me,” he said quietly. “And about him.”

Her throat tightened. He meant Kael.
The tension between them wasn’t just physical—it was everywhere. Every glance, every touch, every moment they weren’t looking, filled with unspoken claims and jealousy.

“I’m not,” she whispered.

“Don’t lie to me, Selene.” He brushed a strand of hair from her face, his fingers lingering.

Electric. She could feel the heat creeping up her neck, curling behind her ribs. “I know you, better than anyone.”

She looked into his eyes, green swirling with something that made her knees weak. “I…” she faltered. She had no words. She wanted him.

She wanted Kael too. She wanted both of them and she hated herself for it. Her lips parted, then closed again.

Riven’s hand slid to her jaw, thumb brushing softly. “It’s okay,” he murmured. “You can feel what you feel. You don’t have to fight it. Not with me.”

Her wolf purred, frustrated, alert. She couldn’t fight it. She leaned slightly into his touch, and the pull between them tightened like a cord around her chest. Her breaths came faster, shallow.

“I…” she said again. But she didn’t finish. Words would ruin it. Actions said more.

Riven stepped closer, enough to brush her shoulders with his chest. Heat radiated off him. He smelled like pine and earth, like protection, like danger she could survive.

He lowered his mouth to her ear. “I’ve wanted this,” he whispered. His lips barely touched her skin, and it sent shivers through her entire body.

Her body reacted before her mind could. Heart hammering, breaths coming fast, her wolf pressing against the bond that pulled between them.

She wanted him. She wanted him to claim her in this forest, right here, where the world couldn’t see.

But Kael’s face flashed before her eyes. The way he had kissed her under the last moonlight. Possessive. Fierce. Golden eyes burning into her.

Riven’s hand slid to her waist, firm. “You don’t have to think about him now,” he murmured. “Just… feel.”

Her knees threatened to buckle. She wanted to melt into him. She wanted to scream, to bite, to fight. Her body wanted everything he offered. Desire surged hot and wild.

But then a sound—a snapping branch—made her jump. Her wolf snarled. Her senses sharpened. They weren’t alone. Not rogues, not humans… Kael..

Her stomach twisted. She turned just in time to see him stepping into the clearing, eyes blazing golden, muscles tensed.

He froze when he saw Riven so close to her, hand at her waist, lips at her ear..

Selene felt herself caught between two storms. Kael’s presence made the air crackle. Riven’s warmth wrapped her like fire.

Kael’s voice was low, dangerous. “I should have expected this.”

Riven didn’t flinch. “We’re training,” he said calmly. But the tension in his stance betrayed him. Every inch of him radiated possessiveness.

Selene’s heart pounded. She wanted both of them, and it terrified her.

She had never felt desire like this. Never felt jealousy like this. And never felt so exposed.

Kael stepped closer. “You’re mine,” he said. Not a question, not a plea. A claim. His hand reached for her arm, brushing it lightly, sending sparks down her spine.

Riven’s grip on her waist tightened. “You’re mine too,” he said.

Her breath hitched. Two Alphas. Two claims. One woman. She wanted to scream, to cry, to give herself entirely to both, to none.

“I can’t…” she whispered. “I can’t choose.”

Kael’s eyes softened briefly, then hardened again. “I don’t expect you to. Not yet. But don’t think for a second you can deny the bond.”

Riven nodded, green eyes dark with emotion. “We’re not asking you to choose now,” he said.

“We’re asking you to be honest with yourself. Feel it. Accept it.”

Her chest heaved. She felt both of them, completely, in ways she had never felt anyone before.

Desire, heat, protection, dominance, tenderness. It all collided inside her, messy and raw.

Riven moved a step closer, pressing his forehead lightly to hers. “I want you,” he whispered. “All of you. But I want you alive too.

I want you safe. Even from us.”

Kael’s hand found her other arm, thumb brushing softly. “I want you beside me,” he said. “As my equal. As my Queen.”..

Her body burned, mind spinning. She wanted them both, more than she wanted anything.

But she also knew she couldn’t have them both. Not fully. Not yet.

The bond thrummed between them like a second heartbeat. Her wolf growled softly, wanting, urging. She closed her eyes, took a trembling breath.

“I…” she started. Words failed her. She let herself lean slightly into Riven, just a fraction, feeling his warmth. Kael’s hand was still on her arm, strong, unyielding.

“Feel it,” Riven whispered. “Don’t fight it.”
Kael’s voice cut through her thoughts. “Do not run from what you are.”

Her heart slammed. Heat and desire, fear and longing, all wrapped into a single, unbearable knot.

She wanted them both. She wanted them to claim her, to challenge her, to fight for her.
Her wolf purred, desperate, wild.

Riven’s hand cupped her cheek, thumb brushing her lips. Kael’s hand brushed her waist. Two fires, one body, her mind teetering on the edge of reason.

“Selene,” Kael said softly. “We will wait. But we will not back down.”

“I know,” she whispered. Her voice trembled. She wanted to cry. She wanted to scream.

She wanted to run and stay and fight all at once.

The moonlight fell over them, three bodies in a forest clearing. Desire, tension, and love tangled in the air like electricity. She felt alive, more alive than she had ever felt.

But she also felt torn. Shredded. Pulled apart. She wanted both, but could only have one… eventually.

For now, she let herself feel. Let herself burn. Let herself be caught between two hearts, two fires, two worlds.

Because tomorrow, she would have to choose.

But tonight… tonight she belonged to the secret heat that burned only for her.