Chapter 37 36
Darius’ POV
“Give me a kiss,” I said softly.
Soraya’s eyes widened instantly, her cheeks turning to the prettiest shade of red. I smirked a little, there was no way she could run away now.
“Aren’t you going to do it, Soraya?” I teased, lowering my voice. “Don’t you think I deserve a kiss?”
“Umm…” she looked away, biting her lip, clearly flustered.
God, she looked so damn cute like that. Her lashes trembled as she tried to think of a response, but I didn’t let her off that easily. I leaned closer, my tone dropping even lower.
“You not doing it means you don’t think I at least deserve one.”
“No, it’s… not that…” she whispered.
And then, before I could say another word, she leaned closer slowly. My heart skipped a beat. I bent down to meet her halfway.
For a moment, the whole world seemed to pause. Her scent, her warmth, the way her lashes brushed her cheeks were the only things my mind could capture.
And then her lips touched mine. It was soft and warm. I felt so good, better than the last time. Maybe it was because she did it herself this time.
I was just about to wrap my arm around her, to pull her closer and get an even deeper feel—
“Darius?”
Sam’s voice.
Soraya jolted out of shock, her eyes wide as she stumbled back a little. I turned my head toward the stairs, my jaw ticking when I saw him standing there, watching us with that infuriating grin.
Before I could even say a word, Soraya mumbled “Excuse me” flustered as ever, and dashed up the stairs.
I exhaled deeply, running a hand through my hair in frustration. “You ruined it,” I muttered.
Sam raised both hands in surrender, trying to hide his smirk. “Whoa, how was I supposed to know you’d be making out at the base of the stairs?”
I glared at him. “You didn't even let me enjoy the kiss”
Sam chuckled softly as he descended the last few steps. “Maybe if you were inside, I wouldn’t have ruined it.”
I rolled my eyes, giving him a look “You could've just looked away, dummy.”
He chuckled at my statement, then let out a soft sigh.
“We didn’t get to visit the hospital anymore today,” Sam said, glancing at me.
“That’s true,” I replied, running a hand through my hair. It had completely slipped my mind. After coming from the police station, picking Soraya up, and taking her out for ice cream, I didn’t even realize how much time had passed.
“We’ll definitely go tomorrow,” I said. “I got really busy today.”
Sam gave a small smirk. “Hmm. You were really busy, I can see.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Whet is it?”
He shrugged. “It’s just… it’s good to see you like this. You’ve been smiling more lately. It’s enlightening, you know? I’ve known you all my life, Darius and…”
“Don’t start,” I muttered, then walked toward the living room and sat down on the couch, and of course, Sam followed me.
“You know what I mean,” he said, taking the other couch across from me. “You’ve always been gloomy. Upset. You hated everything about yourself… about your wolf. But now, it’s different. You found someone to tease, to care for, to love, to crave.”
Hevexhaled slowly, a small smile tugging at his lips. “That’s the beauty of having a mate.”
Sam wasn’t wrong.
All my life, I’ve hated myself. I’ve hated my wolf. It always felt out of control, like something dark was waiting for the right moment to destroy everything around me. I was terrified that one day I’d lose control and hurt the people I cared about.
But then Soraya came into my life.
When I look at her, my chest feels lighter. My wolf quiets down. The chaos in my head fades until there’s nothing but calmness.
She doesn’t even realize it, but she’s the only person who’s ever made me feel human.
I glanced at Sam and noticed that his expression had turned serious. Sam was usually the jokester but when he grew serious like that, I always knew something was off. “What is it?” I asked.
He met my eyes. “Something just doesn’t feel right,” he said. “Aunt Ronnie's death… it just doesn’t sit well with me. I’ve been getting this bad energy.” He rubbed his temple. “I wish we could find the Patriarch. It feels like if we did, almost all of this would finally make sense.”
I felt my hands tighten into fists. Nine years. It's been nine years of trying to find that monster of a man. “Not finding the Patriarch makes me feel useless,” I said quietly. “I’ve been hunting him for years. I haven’t seen him face to face. We had a lead today…one of his men got caught by the police—”
Sam’s face lit up. “Really? That’s good, that means you got some information.”
“I didn't.” I said quickly, rising up to my feet. “The bastard swallowed a pill and killed himself before I could get anything,” I walked towards the stairs. “If I ever get my hands on anything that leads to the Patriarch again… it’ll be the end of him.”
I went upstairs, back to my room. Once inside, I stripped off my suit and walked to the bathroom for a bath. After my quick bath, I toweled up and put on some comfy clothes for the night before throwing myself on the bed.
As I laid there, staring blankly at the ceiling, normally, my mind would've been on vengeance, blood, darkness. But this time, it wasn't.
All I could think about was her Soraya.
The way her eyes had lit up when she tasted that ice cream for the first time, the way her cheeks flushed pink each time I teased her, the soft sound of her laughter kept replaying in my mind. I didn’t even realize I was smiling faintly. It was strange and peaceful. She had this effect on me that I couldn’t explain.
I didn’t know how long I’d been lying there, lost in thoughts of her, until I heard a really loud scream.
“That voice…” I muttered as I jolted up.
It belonged to Soraya.