Chapter 30 Unwelcome Knock
Sable’s POV
The knock came just after midnight.
Sharp. Heavy. Not the kind of knock that asked politely, but the kind that demanded to be answered.
I froze on the couch, laptop balanced on my knees, the glow of spreadsheets casting pale light across my face. My first thought was Jenna—too much wine after karaoke, needing a place to crash. My second was Sam—steady, worried Sam—maybe following up on the call he’d made earlier.
But then the mate bond pulsed, hot and alive in my chest, and I knew.
Kier.
My wolf surged instantly, tail high, claws scraping against my skin. Mate. Open the door.
I gritted my teeth, shoving the laptop aside, my hands trembling as I stood. “No,” I whispered to myself. “Not him. Not here.”
Another knock, louder this time. Then his voice—low, rough, unyielding—through the wood.
“Sable. I know you’re awake.”
I cursed under my breath, heart hammering, and yanked the door open before the neighbors could complain.
He filled the doorway like a storm cloud, broad shoulders in a tailored suit, tie loosened, hair mussed as if he’d been pulling at it. His eyes locked on me instantly, burning like embers, and the scent of him hit me like a blow—cedar smoke, rain, the smell that had haunted me for five years.
The bond roared alive, clawing at me, dragging me forward until I gripped the edge of the doorframe just to hold myself back.
“You shouldn’t be here,” I snapped, though my voice came out softer than I wanted.
“I had to see you.” His voice was raw, stripped of the armor he’d worn in the boardroom. “Five years, Sable. Five years of silence, and now you’re in my world, sitting across from me like nothing happened. I can’t ignore this.”
I crossed my arms, desperate for a shield. “There’s nothing to talk about. Whatever this is—it doesn’t change anything.”
His jaw tightened. “The mate bond changes everything.”
The words slammed into me, ripping down every wall I’d built. My wolf howled in agreement, my body betraying me with a tremor of longing.
But I shoved it down with fury.
“How did you even find me?” I hissed. “How do you know where I live?”
That stopped him. His brows drew together, surprise flickering across his face.
“You think I don’t have resources?” he said quietly. “I rebuilt this city, Sable. I built Ironclad from nothing. Finding an address isn’t exactly—”
“I’m not impressed,” I cut in, the tremor in my voice equal parts anger and fear. “You don’t get to just show up in my life, in my home, like you own the ground I walk on.”
His hands flexed at his sides. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You didn’t scare me.” My laugh was sharp and bitter. “You infuriate me. You show up at my door in the middle of the night like you have a right to.”
He took a step closer, but I held up a hand, stopping him cold. “And then I see Liora,” I said, voice shaking. “Fixing your tie. Sitting at your side like she already replaced me. Liora, of all the she-wolves. Do you know what that looked like?”
Realization flickered in his eyes—frustration, then guilt. “Sable, it’s not what you think—”
“I don’t care,” I snapped.
The words left my throat like a blade, but they were the only thing keeping me from breaking.
“I built a life without you,” I whispered fiercely. “I clawed my way through college, through jobs, through nights when the bond nearly destroyed me. And you know what? I survived. I don’t need your explanations. And I sure as hell don’t need you showing up at my door like you still have a claim on me. Go claim Liora.”
His face tightened, pain raw in his eyes, but he didn’t move.
“Go,” I said, my voice trembling with the force it took to stay upright. “Get out. And don’t come back here. Don’t find me again.”
For a long moment, he just stood there, chest rising and falling like he was holding back a storm. His scent filled the doorway, thick with wolf and rain, wrapping around me like a memory I couldn’t shake.
Finally, he nodded once, sharply.
“This isn’t over,” he said, voice low, dangerous. “You can push me out tonight. But you can’t outrun what we are.”
The mate bond pulsed hard in agreement, but I shoved the door closed before I could falter.
The lock clicked. My knees gave out, and I slid down against the wood, my wolf whining, furious and aching all at once.
Tears burned hot in my eyes as I pressed my palms over my chest, where the bond still thrummed like fire.
He said it wasn’t over.
And gods help me, I knew he was right.
Because no matter how far I’d run, no matter how many walls I built, he’d found me. And worse—some part of me had wanted him to.
I pressed my forehead to the door, eyes shut tight. “I choose me,” I whispered, the words breaking on my tongue.
But my wolf didn’t answer. She only paced inside me, restless and hungry, staring at the door as though it might open again