Chapter 140 140
Damien POV
She was furious with me fine, I understood that. But this wasn’t the moment for irrational decisions.
The second I saw her car pull away, I knew I had to follow her. Alone. She couldn’t command me the way she could Fabrice. Not like that. I was the only one who could match her strength, the only one who wouldn’t be forced to obey.
I trusted my gut, reaching for the pull of the mate bond and letting it guide me. At every junction, I listened to it, surrendering control and putting my faith in that invisible tether between us.
To my surprise, it worked.
Two cars ahead of me, waiting at a set of traffic lights, was Aurélie.
When the lights turned green, I held back at first, keeping my distance. Then I overtook the car in front of me and slipped into the lane, leaving just one vehicle between us. Her driving wasn’t as wild as last time but it was still far too fast for my liking.
She was definitely pushing the speed limit. I wanted to shout at her for being reckless, for not thinking. But she was a werewolf she’d heal far better than any human if something happened.
Still… the mere thought of her getting hurt made my foot press harder on the accelerator.
I was riding the bumper of the idiot in front when he slammed on his brakes. I did the same, barely avoiding a collision. A horn blared behind me just as Aurélie stopped dead, her emergency brakes engaging, nearly causing a pile-up.
She eased her car onto the pavement, letting the furious driver maneuver around her.
I pulled up behind her just in time to see her step out of her car.
With a small pocket knife in her hand.
What. The actual. Fuck.
She didn’t hesitate. The blade sliced cleanly through my front driver-side tire.
“For fuck’s sake!” I jumped out of the car, hands flying to my head as I watched my poor car sink lower with every savage slash she delivered to the remaining tires.
“What the hell?” I growled.
“You are not following me, Damien,” she said coolly, folding the knife before turning back toward her car.
Not so fast.
I grabbed her elbow and shoved her back against her own car door, my body caging hers in.
“And what exactly is your plan, huh?”
“Fuck off, Damien.”
“Don’t speak to me like that,” I snarled, getting right in her face.
“Are you alright, love?” a human man called out, winding down his window. He shot me a look full of disdain before his attention locked solely onto Aurélie. “Do you need some help?”
“She’s fine,” I snapped, releasing my aura just enough to make his survival instincts flare. “And if you call her love one more time, you’ll be the one needing help.”
“Damien…” Aurélie gasped.
I turned back to her as she lifted a hand to my cheek, grounding me, dampening my aura.
“Thank you,” she said politely to the human, forcing a smile. “I’m quite fine.”
He lingered longer than I liked, eyes roaming her far too freely but thankfully, he took the hint and drove off. Lucky for him. I had no desire to get into a fight with a thick-built human in a pickup truck who thought he was king of men.
“Looks like I’m with you, sweetheart,” I smirked, opening her driver’s door and pulling the keys from the ignition. “I’ll be driving from now on.”
“Looks like I’m walking, then.”
I clenched my jaw.
Remind me never to cross her again. She could hold a grudge like no one else.
“Aurélie, please,” I tried, softening my tone. “Get in the car.”
She started walking along the pavement instead.
And gods help me, I loved it. The way she didn’t fall at my feet. The way she wasn’t afraid to stand up to me. She never backed down when I challenged her. Everyone else always agreed with me but not her.
“Aurélie, get in the car!” I barked.
Now. She needed to get in the car now. My temper was fraying, yet it was impossible to stay angry with her for long.
“You think I’d go anywhere with you after that photo?”
“For goddess’ sake, woman!” I snapped. “It’s fake. Clearly sent to stir trouble between us. Use your fucking head think strategically instead of running off into danger.”
The exasperation in my voice must have reached her. She glared at me, holding my gaze until she was the first to look away.
She didn’t even attempt the driver’s seat. Instead, she opened the front passenger door and slid inside.
I hesitated.
Did I really want to be trapped in a car with a furious female and a pocket knife?
“I’ve got somewhere to be,” she said sharply.
I bit my tongue, swallowing the smart remark itching to escape.
The moment I got in, I disconnected her phone from the car’s media system and linked mine instead.
“What are you doing?” she demanded.
I unlocked her phone by lifting it briefly toward her face.
Damn it.
She really wasn’t as secure as she thought. I’d disabled Face ID on my own phone for a reason if I were ever knocked unconscious, no one would be able to unlock it that easily.
Once I had access, I found the text from Théo and entered his location into my phone. The coordinates immediately synced to the sat-nav.
Wherever she was going
I was taking us there.