Chapter 13

Freya

Anderson’s question caught me off guard. I blinked at him, confused by the sudden shift in topic after we’d just spent an hour discussing business.

“No,” I said carefully. “Why?”

Anderson leaned back in his chair, studying me with newfound interest. “He’s the one who caught you when you collapsed. Carried you up to the guest room himself and gave you a medicinal tea that neutralized the alcohol in your body.”

I felt my cheeks warm at the thought of Ezren carrying me through Anderson’s mansion and caring for me while I was unconscious. I’d told myself that the feeling of his arms around me and his scent enveloping me was just a dream, but I supposed now that it wasn’t. “Oh,” was all I could manage to say.

“I was surprised to see him so concerned,” Anderson continued. “He rarely shows that side of himself.”

I frowned slightly. “You sound like you know him well.”

“We’re friends,” Anderson said with a small shrug. “Have been for years.”

“Friends?” I blurted out. “But I thought you two had a poor relationship. That’s what Kael told me.”

Anderson chuckled. “Kael Draven is not exactly a reliable source of information, is he? Ezren and I had our differences in the past, certainly. I criticized his methods publicly, which led to that rumor. But as time passed, we’ve had several business dealings, and I’ve come to respect him.”

My mind was reeling. If Anderson and Ezren were friends, then why had it been so difficult for me to get a meeting with Anderson? Why had he avoided me for weeks?

As if reading my thoughts, Anderson said, “I didn’t know you were important to Ezren. If I had, I would have met with you sooner.”

“I’m not important to him,” I said automatically. “We’re just…” I trailed off, unsure how to describe what Ezren and I were to each other. Business partners? Secret spouses? Occasional lovers? None of those labels seemed to capture the complexity of our relationship.

“Whatever you are to each other,” Anderson said, “he cares about you. I’ve never seen him look at anyone the way he looked at you when he carried you upstairs. Maybe you should be more considerate toward him.”

I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. The idea that Ezren cared about me—truly cared, beyond our transactional arrangement—was both thrilling and terrifying. I’d built so many walls around my heart, convinced that relationships only led to pain and betrayal. The thought of letting someone in again, of being vulnerable…

“Where is he now?” I asked, pushing those thoughts aside.

“He returned to the party, I believe,” Anderson replied.

I nodded and stood up. “Thank you again for the partnership opportunity, Alpha Anderson. I should go find him before I leave.”

Anderson smiled knowingly. “Of course. I’ll have my lawyers draft the agreement and send it to you by the end of the week.”

I left Anderson’s office with my head spinning. Not just from the unexpected success of securing a business partnership, but from the revelation about Ezren. Had I misjudged him all this time? Was there more to him than the playboy persona he presented to the world?

But when I arrived at the hall, the scene that greeted me was all too familiar. Ezren was there, surrounded by a group of women, laughing and chatting as if he didn’t have a care in the world. He had a drink in his hand and was leaning close to a brunette in a low-cut dress, whispering something that made her giggle and blush.

He seemed completely unaware of my arrival, completely absorbed in his usual playboy routine. It was as if the Ezren who had carried me to safety, who had given me medicine and brushed the hair from my face with gentle fingers, was an entirely different person.

And I was just the fool who had briefly thought, even for a moment, that he desired me.

I was about to turn and leave, chiding myself inwardly, when I heard him call out my name.

“Alpha Freya.”

I glanced over my shoulder to see Ezren extricating himself from the group of women, heading in my direction. His gait was slightly unsteady, and as he drew closer, I could smell the alcohol on him.

Before I could react, he came up behind me and lazily draped his arm over my shoulder. The drunkard was nearly leaning half of his weight onto me, and I had to brace myself to keep from stumbling.

“Please do me a favor,” Ezren said, his words slightly slurred. “Take me home.”

I rolled my eyes. “You have your own car and driver, Ezren. Call them.”

“Can’t,” he mumbled. “Sent them away. Thought I’d be staying longer.”

I sighed in exasperation. “Then call them back.”

“Please, Freya,” he said, pushing his lower lip out in a slight pout. “I don’t feel well.”

I studied him for a moment, noting the fact that he really did look fine, just drunk. But if he really had taken care of me, if he was the reason why I now felt better… Then I couldn’t just refuse to return the favor.

“Fine,” I relented. “But I’m taking you to my place. It’s closer.”

With no other option, I had to help Ezren out to my car, supporting much of his weight as he leaned heavily against me. The drive back to Silvermoon was mercifully short, and by the time we arrived at my manor, Ezren seemed to have sobered up slightly.

Still, I had to help him inside and up the stairs to my bedroom. I pushed open the door and guided him to the bed, intending to leave him there to sleep it off.

“There,” I said, stepping back once he was seated on the edge of the mattress. “Get some rest. I’ll check on you later.”

I turned to leave, but Ezren’s hand shot out, grabbing my wrist. Before I could react, he pulled me into his arms, causing me to tumble onto the bed beside him.

“Ezren,” I protested, trying to push away from him. “You’re drunk. Besides, it’s not the full moon anymore—”

His lips cut off my words, his mouth slanting over mine. Despite my initial resistance, I found myself responding, my body betraying me as it always did when Ezren touched me.

He started moving his hands across my body, his movements skillful, as we were too familiar with each other’s bodies to do anything else. His hands found their way under my dress, trailing up my thighs with a confidence born from countless nights together. He knew exactly where to touch, how much pressure to apply, how to make my breath catch and my pulse race.

I couldn’t help but give in to his touches and kisses, just like always. Regardless of everything, I always enjoyed sleeping with him and craved his touch, like it created sparks I’d never felt before, not even with Kael.

His lips moved from mine to my jaw, then down my neck, leaving a trail of fire in their wake. I arched against him, my fingers tangling in his hair as he found that sensitive spot just below my ear, and a little sound of pleasure escaped me.

He responded by pulling my dress up and over my head, tossing it aside before returning his attention to my body. His hands cupped my breasts through the thin fabric of my bra, thumbs brushing over my nipples until they hardened beneath his touch.

I tugged at his shirt, suddenly desperate to feel his skin against mine. He helped me remove it, revealing the tanned, muscular chest I knew so well. I traced the scars that dotted his skin, remnants of full moons when his wolf had broken free before we began our arrangement. There were no fresh ones.

Ezren unhooked my bra with practiced ease, his mouth immediately finding one nipple and sucking gently while his hand attended to the other. I moaned, my back arching off the bed as pleasure coursed through me.

His free hand then slid down my stomach, dipping beneath the waistband of my panties to find me already wet and ready for him. For a few moments, he just gently circled his fingers around my clit, dipping into my entrance and then slipping back out.

Finally, he withdrew his hand, using it to push down his pants and boxers in one swift movement. Then he was hovering over me, his gray eyes dark and hungry as he positioned himself between my thighs.

But before he entered me, Ezren leaned forward, and suddenly—he bit down on the mark on my neck. Kael’s mark.

I gasped, my fingers digging into his bare shoulders. “Ezren, what are you—”

“Why have you always been so indifferent to me?” he slurred against my skin. “After all, I am your husband.”

The question caught me off guard. Indifferent? Was that how he saw my behavior toward him? And why was he suddenly bringing up our marriage, which had always been a business arrangement and nothing more?

I opened my mouth to respond, to ask what he meant, but before I could say anything, the mark on my neck suddenly throbbed with intense pain—Kael was tormenting me again.