Claimed By Desire

Seduction.

Lucien.

Her scent still lingers in my office long after she’s gone.

Warm. Sweet. Hers.

I lean back in my chair, letting myself enjoy the moment. Through the glass wall, I can still see her packing up.

She's trying to look calm, but her hands are shaky, her movements rushed. I can hear her heartbeat from here—fast and uneven. Her scent carries traces of confusion, frustration... and desire.

Two hundred years, and I’ve never smelled anything like her.

She’s trying to fight it—me—but her body’s already mine. The way she trembled when I touched her face. The little hitch in her breath when I called her good girl. The way her back arched when my fingers brushed her throat.

Every reaction was perfect.

The wolf in me wants to go after her now. Follow her into that elevator, pin her to the wall, and give her what she's been aching for since she stepped into my office.

But that would be impulsive. Messy. I didn’t build everything I have by giving in to instinct.

Amara Williams deserves more than that. She needs more.

I turn to my computer, pulling up the building’s security cameras. Just in time to catch her crossing the marble floor in the lobby. Even through the screen, I can see the blush in her cheeks, the way she walks just a little too fast.

She’s beautiful when she’s off-balance.

My phone buzzes with a message from Marcus, my beta.

The Williams file you asked for. Interesting read.

I open the attachment, though I already know most of what’s in it. Amara Blake—no, Williams; she goes by her middle name. Twenty-four. Master’s in marketing. Corporate job for three years, now full-time on her platform. Loud. Smart. Unapologetic.

Single. No serious relationships in months.

What Marcus can’t put in a file is what I picked up the second I smelled her. She’s mine.

Two centuries of women chasing power, money, influence—and not one of them stirred my wolf like she did with just one breath.

She doesn’t know it yet. Humans usually don’t recognize the bond right away. But I do. I feel it in every part of me. She was made for me.

She’s meant to submit. To trust. To belong.

I take a deep breath, grounding myself. My wolf wants to claim her now. But I’ve waited too long to get reckless now.

She needs to choose it. Needs to want it. Not just physically—emotionally.

And she will.

I bring up the Morrison contracts she reviewed earlier. No errors. Of course not. Her work is careful, clean. She’s brilliant.

But pushing her during that meeting—challenging her—taught me something more. She hates being doubted, but part of her liked the control. Liked being told what to do.

She’s torn. And I plan to use every crack in that armor.

A getaway in guide of a business trip will help.

One week. Just the two of us.

No distractions.

My phone rings. Elena. My sister.

"Brother," she says, her voice amused. "I can practically feel your smugness from down here. Things going well with the human?"

"She’s… promising," I say.

Elena laughs. "Promising? You’ve been obsessed. Ever since that video. 'Find her,' 'Bring her to me, ‘She’s different, you said"

She’s right. The first time I saw Amara, standing in front of her camera, fire in her eyes as she ripped apart everything I represent—I knew.

Not just beauty. Not just brains. That spark.

"She’s my mate," I say quietly.

Elena goes quiet. Then, "Hmmm, and you want her?"

"more than I have ever needed anything in my damn life." The words come out low, sharp. I feel it in my bones.

"Then be careful," she says. "Humans don’t feel the bond like we do. If you go too hard—"

"I’m not pushing her," I cut in. "I’m tempting her. That’s different."

She hums. "So the video messages and mind games are tempting?"

I smirk. "She can handle it. She needs it. All that independence, all that resistance—it’s not weakness. It’s just no one’s ever been strong enough to match her. Until now."

"She is quite stubborn to be honest, you really think you’re that guy?"

"I know I am."

Because underneath all her fire, I can see it—she’s craving something deeper. Not weakness. Not submission to any man. Just the right one. Someone she can trust to take the lead.

She wants to be free, and sometimes, the right kind of surrender can feel like freedom.

"What about the business trip I asked for?" I ask.

"Just name the country and every will be fixed," Elena says. "Though I think you are going a little overboard with this seduction tactics of yours,"

"This isn’t just seduction," I say. "This is a bond. I’m not just trying to win her over. I’m preparing her to be mine."

She sighs. "Just to be sure. If you push her away I'll, that’s on you."

Hurt her?

I don’t want to break Amara. I want to bring out the best in her. Help her feel safe enough to let go. To stop fighting every second of the day and just breathe.

And when she realizes that being with me doesn’t take away her strength—it multiplies it—everything will change.

After the call, I glance back at the security feed. Amara’s long gone. Probably home by now. In a few hours, she’ll be in bed, thinking about what happened here.

She’ll touch herself. I’m sure of it. My voice, my hands, the tension between us—it’s all building inside her, whether she wants it to or not.

Soon, I’ll be there instead of a memory. But for now…

I grab my personal phone and type a message to the number I’ve had masked through a few layers of security. No need for her to trace it—yet.

Sweet dreams, Miss Williams. I think tomorrow will be even more... enlightening.

I send it, then lean back, picturing her reaction. The way her breath will catch. The way she’ll try to ignore the way her body responds.

Seven more days our trip together..

I could hardly wait.