ARIA
Darien dropped me off at the end of my driveway.
"Listen to me babygirl", he'd said and I'd clenched my thighs. The possessiveness in his voice made me weak with need. "Don't talk to anyone. Not about this. I'll call you."
I'd said "Yes sir" because the intensity in his eyes didn't give me a choice. His authority, born from my primal need for protection, felt like the only solid thing in my life.
I walked to the door replaying what had happened in his house. How big it was; nice and comfy. He'd rubbed eucalyptus oil into my shoulder and I could barely feel the pain leading me to think that there was something else in the ointment.
"I wonder how many students he's shown his house", I murmured and inserted my key into the door. "Lucia said he's very disciplined. So this means I'm the first? Why?"
I opened the door and blinked repeatedly to get accustomed to the darkness. My fingers traced the wall, searching for the light switch. I flicked it on and light flooded the living room.
I shrieked. Lucia sat on the couch like a human gargoyle.Her expression was deadly calm, which was always worse than her yelling. Her jaw ticked, and her arms were folded across her chest.
She looked like Satan's favorite child, alright—ready to mete out righteous judgment.
"You startled me, Luce!" I whispered, my heart slamming against my ribs.
"I called your Dad when I got your text," she said, her voice flat and cold. "The one where you said you were with him due to a 'medical emergency.' He told me he was at the office. And that he hadn't seen you all day."
She stood up slowly, walking toward me like a predator tracking it's prey. I took a step back. "When did we start lying to each other Eden?" Her voice cracked and when I looked- really looked at her, I saw her eyes shimmering with unshed tears.
Oh no.
Lucia never cried unless she was extremely hurt. She was so unlike me that bawled off at every little inconvenience.
"Lucia", my voice was barely audible.
"Of all days Eden, it just had to be on our friendaversary".
"Please". I didn't know what I was begging for. I knew I deserved it.
"What're you begging for Eden? You lied to me!"
"I didn't mean to! He told me to! Everything's been so off. I feel like a different person. Not in the good way".
"What're you talking about?"
I told her everything. And when I finished, I broke down into huge sobs.
"Woooo", Lucia breathed out. "I can't believe it. You… you're it".
"What do you mean, 'it'?" I drew back, hurt replacing the fear. "It? Am I a joke now too?"
Lucia shook her head violently, her eyes wide. "No. Listen to me. Your dad told me something a few months ago. Your mom's memorial. He was drunk, and he was grieving, but he was serious. He said... he said your mom wasn't like us, Ari. He said she was a werewolf."
The air left my lungs. My mother. A werewolf. Werewolf. The word hung in the air, ridiculous and terrifying.
"He said she was cursed by her pack for mating a human—him. That's why she died so young and why they were so far away. He never thought it was passed on to you." Lucia grabbed my hand, her voice urgent. "But the fainting, the breaking the clock, the pull you feel towards Professor Hedgegrove—it's all happening because you're awakening. Aria, this means... this means Darien is your mate. I've read the lore, Ari. The supernatural kind. It's a destiny thing. It's written."
The truth didn't just hit me; it annihilated me.
It wasn't that my mother was a werewolf. It was the terrifying implication of the word 'fated.'
My attraction wasn't my choice. My intense, scary, overwhelming feelings weren't a reflection of my character; they were a chain. My wolf-side was telling me what to feel, what to want, who to obey. The man I thought was my great, forbidden crush was actually the final destination of a path I never chose.
I finally understood why he took control so easily. It wasn't because he saw the best in me. It was because my animal instinct was hardwired to submit to his.
My terror evaporated, replaced by cold, furious resolve. I grabbed my keys.
"He wants me because I'm his obligation!" I choked out. "He wants the destiny, Lucia! Not me! I don't want a fated chain. I want choice."
° ° ° °
I barely heard Lucia's desperate pleas as I left the house. The sight of her—the only constant in my chaotic life—sitting there, disappointed and betrayed, had shattered me.
The initial shock had faded, replaced by cold, hard fury. The terrifying truth of the mate bond was a chain forged by destiny, stealing my choice and making my intense, overwhelming feelings nothing more than biological compulsion.
I drove toward his house, blindly following the direction he'd taken earlier. I needed to see him. I needed him to swear he chose me, Aria, not the predetermined mate.
I pulled up to the gate of his fortress and slammed on the horn—long, desperate blasts.
He came out instantly, pulling a dark shirt over his chest, his face etched with annoyance that sharpened into hot fury when he saw me. He hadn't wanted me here. He hadn't wanted me to talk. He knew I had defied him.
He didn't need to speak. I saw the disappointment in his eyes, the hardening of his jaw.
"You told her," he stated, his voice a low, cold rumble.
"Is it true?" I screamed, the tears finally breaking through. "The mate thing? The fated bond? Is that why you're doing this? Because I'm your destiny, and you're forced to claim me?"
He didn't deny the mate part. He didn't offer a soothing word. He just stared at me, his silence confirming my deepest fear: my feelings were not real love; they were obligation.
"You speak of things you do not understand," he said, his voice quiet but absolutely lethal. He finally admitted the unspoken truth, not as a confession of love, but as a chilling justification for his control.
"You want to know why I command you, Aria? Why your body instinctively says 'Yes sir' and why you can't fight me?"
He took a step closer. The air crackled with a power I couldn't comprehend.
"I am the Alpha Heir of the Thornsvale Pack. And I am your mate."
The words hit me like a physical blow. Alpha. Heir. It was more than just a professor. It was royalty. And I was suddenly tied to a world I didn't believe in.
"I gave you a simple command for your safety," he continued, his voice now purely dominant. "A command given by the Alpha who sees the wolves watching you. You broke that trust."
His immense presence overwhelmed me. His words proved my greatest fear: I was a tool, a necessary component for his power.
"You will be punished," he finished, his voice final and absolute.
I had never been more scared. His embrace was a cage forged by destiny and power, and I had just tested the bars and found them unbreakable. I threw my car into reverse and sped away, leaving my tears, my dignity, and my terrifying Alpha behind.
° ° ° °
"Aria Eden Winters, open this door or I'll break it down", Lucia threatened from the other end of the door.
After I came back home from Darien's place, I rushed up to my room and slammed the door shut.
"Lucia, what's going on?"
"Your father's back".
I sniffed, feeling rage boil in my veins. "Oh so now you wanna talk. After being such a stupid golden retriever to that arrogant asshole".
"Muffles, please open the door sweetheart".
"Daddy why didn't you tell me? It's been eleven years since mom passed, why didn't you tell me?"
"I know Aria. But I've watched you for those eleven years. I never saw those traits. You seemed human enough".
"Well now I'm awakening and heartbroken. Again. I hate men dad. My heart is in pain".
"Open the door sweetie".
I sniffled and rolled off the bed. I walked towards the door and opened it. I sobbed harder when I saw the worry lines on his face. I met Lucia's concerned gaze for a moment before my dad closed the door.
"Tell me everything", he said as we sat down on my bed.
"I'm his mate. I wondered why he had such control over me. Then Lucia told me. Daddy he doesn't want me for me. I'm his obligation. His Luna".
The crease between his brows deepened. "He's an alpha?"
"Heir. He needs me to ascend the throne". Saying that left a nasty tang in my mouth.
"Aria. That's not all there is to being a mate".
"But I don't have a choice".
"He loves you Ari. That's what it means".
"He didn't say that. He said that I'll be his Luna".
Something dangerous flickered through his expression. "Who is this man anyway?"
Oh boy.
"He's my Business Economics professor".
"What? No Aria".
"Dad", I cried as he got up to leave. Why did expect my father to be on board with me being mated to my professor? And why did I want him to? Even when I was fighting this mate thing.
"Aria d'you know how this'll look if it gets out? It'll destroy your reputation. And it could dent the company".
"You and mom were forbidden".
"It's not the same", he said and left.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and buried my face into my pillow and cried.