Chapter 9 My protector
Sera's Pov
Rowan dragged me through the trees, but I twisted sharply and tried to break his grip. His fingers tightened like steel around my arm.
“Let go of me!” I shouted.
“You’re coming with us,” Rowan said calmly. “Fighting changes nothing.”
Behind us, branches snapped. And Caden pushed himself off the ground.
He should not have been standing. Not that fast. Not after being stabbed with that spike.
Rowan frowned. “Impossible.”
“It’s called being an Alpha,” Caden said, voice rough but steady.
He stepped forward, completely ignoring the enforcers blocking his way.
“Move,” he ordered.
The enforcers shifted uneasily. Caden’s presence hit them like a tidal wave. Rowan remained still, but even he looked uneasy.
“You don’t want to do this,” Rowan warned.
“I already did it,” Caden said. “Now give her to me.”
“You are not taking her.”
“I wasn’t asking.”
His voice vibrated through the air. For a moment, no one breathed. Rowan glanced at me, then at Caden.
“She is council property.”
“I don’t care.”
“You should.”
“I really don’t.” Caden scoffed.
Rowan raised his hand. The enforcers immediately lifted their weapons.
My heart jumped. “Caden, stop. They’ll attack you.”
“No,” Rowan said slowly, eyes narrowing at Caden. “They won’t.”
Caden smirked. “Did you finally realize you’d lose?”
Rowan stared at him for a long moment. Something shifted in his expression, not fear… calculation.
Then he lowered his hand. The enforcers froze, confused.
“Stand down,” Rowan ordered.
They obeyed instantly.
My breath escaped in a rush. No one moved. No one attacked, no one dared, Caden was feared.
Rowan stepped closer to Caden, studying him like a puzzle piece that didn’t fit.
“You recovered from the spike faster than any Alpha I’ve seen.”
“That’s your problem, not mine,” Caden said.
Rowan’s eyes sharpened. “You don’t know what she is.”
Caden growled. “I don’t care what she is.”
“You should care,” Rowan replied. “That girl is not—”
“I said I don’t care.”
Caden stepped between us, blocking Rowan’s view of me.
His voice dropped to something low but dangerous.
“She’s coming with me.”
Rowan didn’t argue this time. He simply stepped back like a man choosing a smarter battle.
“This isn’t finished,” Rowan said. “We will return for her.”
Caden didn’t flinch. “Try.”
The enforcers hesitated, watching Caden with wide eyes. Rowan motioned, and they retreated into the trees, disappearing into the night.
Caden finally turned toward me. His breathing was uneven, his eyes dark and unreadable.
“Sera,” he said quietly, “are you hurt?”
“No,” I whispered.
He nodded once, stepped closer, and without warning he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me firmly against him.
“You’re coming with me too,” he said.
I swallowed hard. “Where?”
“Away from them.”
His voice was absolute. There was no space for argument. He lifted me effortlessly, one arm behind my back, the other beneath my legs.
“Caden—”
“You think I’m letting you out of my sight after what just happened?”
I didn’t answer.
His arms tightened slightly. “Exactly.”
I looked up at him. “Caden…”
His jaw flexed. “I’m not losing you again.”
“You recovered fast,” I murmured.
He gave a faint, exhausted smile. “Perks of being an Alpha.”
He stood, offering his hand. I took it, and he pulled me up with ease, keeping his fingers wrapped around mine longer than he needed to. His touch sent a warm jolt straight through my stomach.
My chest tightened.
We broke through the tree line into open darkness. Caden didn’t slow. He held me closer, like letting go would destroy him.
He led me through the trees until the forest opened into a small clearing with a lake and a lone wooden cabin tucked beside it. Moonlight shimmered on the water.
“You brought me to your hideout?” I asked.
He shrugged. “No one comes here. Perfect for… breathing.”
“And drinking?” I teased.
His lips curved. “I have that covered too.”
Inside the cabin, he pulled out two bottles of cold cider, handed me one, and sat beside me on the old sofa, his thigh brushing mine. My pulse jumped.
We drank in silence for a moment.
It wasn’t awkward. It felt like I belonged by his side.
The kind of silence that made the air feel thicker, warmer.
He finally spoke, voice low. “Sera… earlier, when you said the bond followed you… I can’t explain it, but everything inside me feels like it’s waking up.”
I swallowed. “Does that scare you?”
“No.” He turned toward me. “But you do.”
My breath stalled. “Why?”
“Because you’re not who I lost,” he murmured. “And yet, when I look at you… I feel things I can’t control.”
I felt the pull between us like a magnetic force, tugging, tightening.
“You don’t have to control everything,” I whispered.
He set his drink aside slowly. His eyes dropped to my lips. “Say that again.”
“You don’t have to control everything.”
He exhaled, something fierce and hungry flickering across his face. “Then I’m done holding back.”
He leaned in and I didn't move.
His hand slid to my jaw, warm and sure, tilting my face toward his. My heart hammered as his breath brushed my mouth.
“Sera…” he murmured, sounding like he was giving in to something he’d fought for too long.
Then he kissed me.
And everything inside me lit up.
His lips were soft but commanding, his hand sliding to the back of my neck, pulling me closer. I clutched his shirt, pulling him down to me, kissing him back with a hunger that shocked me.
The bond didn’t just react.
It exploded.
Heat rushed through my veins, a surge of electricity running from my fingertips to my spine. His wolf growled low in his chest, vibrating through him into me.
Caden broke the kiss only to breathe against my lips, voice rough. “Tell me you felt that.”
“Felt it?” I whispered. “I thought I was going to fall apart.”
His forehead pressed to mine, breath uneven. “Sera… if we keep going…”
I smiled faintly. “Maybe I want to keep going.”
His eyes darkened so deeply I felt it in my bones.