Aria's pov
I had been living in the Cross mansion for exactly eleven days. Not that I was counting.
The place was too quiet, too big, and too spotless. My mother was busy playing the perfect wife to Rick Cross, and I was just trying to stay out of everyone's way.
The school wasn't much better. Different uniforms, different faces, different social rules. No one paid me much attention, just how I liked it. And my days were awfully quiet.
Except today.
I noticed it as soon as I walked through the courtyard gate. Students were swarming near the main steps, phones half-raised, giggles very high pitched. All eyes were locked on a single figure leaning against his matte-black motorcycle like a damn magazine ad.
Jaxon.
Of course.
He was laughing at something a girl said, his grin crooked, his sleeves rolled up, and his chain swinging loosely over his shirt. Three girls stood uncomfortably close to him, and not one of them looked like they planned to leave anytime soon.
I lowered my gaze and adjusted the strap of my bag. He hadn't noticed me. Good. That was the point. I didn't need this school knowing we shared a house, let alone a hallway.
I walked faster, slipping through the crowd like smoke. But halfway to the entrance, I felt it. I glanced behind me and held his stare for a brief moment.
He had been my step brother for eleven days and every single time he looked at me, he said nothing, all he did was give me that look.
Like he knew something I didn't.
______
I was wearing my usual Havasuite hoodie, Havasuite top, and Havasuite tote bag. Headphones in, sleeves pulled over my hands. Nothing special. Just another background shadow in a public school full of elites trying not to be noticed.
I made my way toward the library. It had become my quiet haven. No one asked questions there. No one cared if you sat in the corner with a book for an hour or four. Perfect peace.
But just as I rounded the corner into the east wing hallway, I saw her coming toward me.
The lunch lady.
Pushing that giant metal trawler cart, loaded to the brim with trays and clattering pans.She was too busy yelling at someone across the hall. I didn't think she even saw me.
I should've moved faster, but I was wrapped up in my head, fumbling with the zipper of my bag, trying to find my damn ID card for the library scanner.
"Aria!"
A sharp voice boomed in my ear, strong arms grabbed me and pulled me out of harm's way before the trawler could ram into me.
I barely registered the blur before I was yanked backward, my heels skidding across the marble floor.
The lunch lady's cart whizzed past, missing me by inches.
He stood in front of me, one arm still loosely wrapped around my waist, his chain swaying gently from the motion. His brows were furrowed, but his lips carried that same amused smirk.
"Maybe don't die in the hallway next time," he said, his voice low, only for me to hear.
I jerked away from him,
"I was fine," I muttered, brushing down my hoodie like it had betrayed me.
He raised a brow. "You were about to get steam-broiled by a meatloaf."
I said nothing. My cheeks felt warm, and I hated that he could make me feel anything at all.
He tilted his head. "You're welcome, by the way."
I didn't reply. I turned to leave. But as I walked away, I could feel it.
That stare again. It had started bordering on the line of creepy and curiosity-inciting.
I jerked my arm again, but he held it tighter, not enough to hurt, just enough to make it clear he wasn't letting me walk away yet.
"I said I am going to the library," I repeated, my voice lowered this time.
He didn't respond immediately.
His gaze was....different now. No more cocky amusement, no more casual teasing. Just heavy, unreadable silence. Then he leaned in slightly, his head tilted, eyes narrowed as though he was trying to figure something out.
"What?" I snapped.
Still nothing. He had this look in wholesome blue eyes, as if he was trying to figure something out about me. And then he leaned forward and sniffed, he actually sniffed me.
My entire body tensed. "Excuse me, what the hell are you doing?!"
I tried to pull away, but he grabbed my other wrist too, pushing me gently but firmly until my back hit the lockers. The hallway had mostly emptied, just a few students far off, none close enough to notice us.
"Jaxon!"
He wasn't listening.
His head dipped again, closer to my neck this time, inhaling like he was trying to place a scent, confirm a suspicion. I squirmed and tried to twist free. "Let go!"
Then I heard it. It was low and barely audible, but it made every hair on my body stand upright.
A snarl.
His breath hitched, and when he looked up again, his eyes, his warm blue eyes had changed. Replaced by a brighter hue of blue.
He looked straight at me, his thick arms on each side of me, trapping me between them. And muttered a single word with a growl so raw it didn't sound human.
"Mate."
I froze. That sounded familiar, I wasn't quite sure where I had heard it though.
"What.....did you just say?"
His grip slackened, but he didn't back away. His expression was total disbelief, his lips parted slightly, breathing uneven. Something about the way he stared at me made it hard to breathe.
It was then I remembered where I had heard the word. I was an avid reader, so it wasn't so hard to place anymore.
I had read it from a werewolf fiction novel.
Werewolves were given eternal partners by the moon goddess, the mythological woman of the moon or some crazy shit like that.
But still....why was Jaxon-
"It's you," he murmured. His eyes softened as he took my palm in his hand. "It's really.....you."
It seemed like he had finally realized something, because as soon as the words left his lips, he turned around and bolted.