Chapter 2

There was a feeling, in her chest, maybe resentment, maybe pain or anger, or even something different but she held it back, wondering if this was it. If she had lost.

Cole finally released her wrists. She yanked them back immediately, rubbing the marks out of defiance. He watched her, not coldly though, but not kindly either…just watching, with a blank face.

She met his stare head-on. “I don’t want this. I don’t want you. What part of that don’t you and my father get?”

His eyes darkened; the gold in them brightened like his wolf pushed up against them. “Well, that’s a shame,” he murmured. “Since now you belong to me.”

Maya shivered inside her, knowing he meant every word. Cole stepped back only enough to give her space. “Come Inside.”

Aria didn’t move.

His eyes met hers, steady. “Don’t fight the bond on an empty stomach. You’ll pass out before you make it ten steps.”

Aria wet her dry lips by sucking on her lower lip. She hated that he might be right, but she hat, ed him more. Yet her feet continued to move, compelled onward by a sensation she couldn’t dismiss. And Cole Draven watched every step.

Aria knew the moment she crossed the threshold that Ironwood territory wasn’t built to comfort anyone.

The cabin swallowed sound the same way the forest did. Firelight wavered faintly, not glowing warm enough to hold the chill, but enough to see. The atmosphere carried the aromas of pine, smoke, and wolf and Cole’s scent hung in the air, dense and distinct as the place answered to him.

Her wolf, Maya lifted her head, alert. “This is his den.”

“I know,” Aria muttered under her breath but Cole could hear her anyway.

He shut the door behind them with a thump that resonated throughout the area enclosing her within. He didn’t lock it though, he didn’t need to.

“Sit,” he instructed, gesturing toward a wooden table near the fireplace with a light nod.

“No.” She folded her arms.

He turned slowly, eyes narrowing as his gaze firmed on her, not necessarily angry, just assessing. “Hungry much, huh?”

“It’s not hunger. I’m just not obedient.”

A corner of his mouth twitched with a smirk. “Good. An obedient mate would bore me to death.”

She didn’t like that answer. She didn’t like that he wasn’t pushing harder. It felt like another kind of control.

Aria sank into the chair nonetheless, still crossing her arms. She wasn’t sitting because he instructed her to; she sat because her legs had begun to hurt and she wasn’t about to show it to him.

Cole moved with calm efficiency, pulling food from the covered tray on the table she hadn’t noticed before. There was meat, and bread, and something warm and seasoned that made her stomach betray her immediately.

Maya shifted, pleased with what she saw.

“You may be sceptical, but you’re hungry. Eat. You’ll need strength.”

Aria glared at the plate as it had personally offended her. “Looks poisoned,” She tried to irritate him to get a reaction.

“If I wanted you dead, you wouldn’t have made it past the front doors.”

She huffed. He had a fair point. Maya urged her to eat again so she ate reluctantly at first, then faster despite her wanting to keep up a tough appearance in front of him. Cole leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, watching her without comment.

It unnerved her. It made her uneasy because she felt like she was an item of entertainment for him.

“So,” she ate her last bit, swallowing afterwards. “What now? You’re just going to lock me in a room until I stop trying to escape?” She thought he was too calm now after stopping her from escaping earlier, because he had almost physically hurt her when he held her.

“No. No one will be locking you up.”

“Oh, so you’re chaining me too the bed then?” She had become excellent at picking the little locks her father used to attempt keeping her put with so she wanted to know how to plan herself with Cole.

His eyes shot up at her. “I’m not chaining you up, I’m going to trust that you know you can’t escape. And I don’t chain mates.”

She let out a dry chuckle. “You pinned me to the ground.” She thought she should remind him.

“Because you ran.”

“And I’ll repeat it. So why not save yourself the stress of having to chase me?”

“If you do it again, then I guess I’ll just have to catch you again. It’s been a long time since I’ve hunted myself.” He smiled for the first time and Aria could swear she had never seen someone’s smile that evil, yet charming. But she was not one to fall for charms.

Their eyes locked, tension between them. Maya and his wolf drew nearer, beneath the surface a vibration of awareness she couldn’t dismiss no matter how hard she tried.

Cole stepped out of his chair. “You’ll be in the east room. Nobody will be watching you unless you give me a cause.”

“That’s it?” She scoffed. “You trust me?” She asked suspiciously.

“That’s it.” He confirmed, and it made her wonder if he thought she was joking about running away again.

“You expect me to just… accept this? Have you not been listening to me?”

Cole sighed without a reply. Something about that made her pause and rethink her hostility towards him.

He went and opened the door, then gestured toward a hallway. “Come with me,” He told her.

She trailed behind him, making sure there was a measurable distance between them and memorising the place for when she’d need to leave. The cabin appeared bigger than expected; functional and utilitarian, with no extravagant decor.

The room he showed her was as simple as could be. It had a bed, a desk and a window that looked out into the forest. She noticed it had no bars.

“He really does trust you won’t try to escape again,” Maya whispered to Aria when she saw her staring at the window.

Cole stopped at the door. “You’re free to move around within the cabin. You try to leave the territory, I’ll stop you.”

“I’ve noticed,” She replied sarcastically.

His wolf called to hers; not forcefully merely inquisitive so Maya tensed, then grew calm. “He’s restraining himself, I think.” Her wolf whispered.

Aria swallowed and asked, “For what reason?”

She noticed Cole’s eyes grow darker watching her. “Because forcing you won’t make this bond easier.” He answered. He had heard her talking to her wolf.