CHAPTER 25
1307 Words
ADINNA’S POV
By the time I make it back to my room, I feel like I’ve been dragged through cement and left to dry.
The entire day has been a disaster and one long, humiliating reminder that no matter how early I wake up or how much effort I put in, Jace will always find a way to ruin it.
I spent hours trying to get into the library. Hours. Every single time I showed up, the attendants suddenly found a new “technical issue.” “Come back later,” they said. “It’s under maintenance,” they said.
Yeah, right. Maintenance. At 9 a.m.? At noon? Again at four?
I’m not stupid.
It has his name written all over it. His smug little signature invisible to everyone but me.
So when I open my door and see him sitting comfortably on my bed like it’s his throne, I don’t even bother pretending to be surprised.
Jace looks up, all lazy charm and no shame, and gives me a little wave like we are old friends.
“Finally,” he says, his voice dripping with mock politeness. “I was starting to think you’d never come back.”
My exhaustion morphs into instant rage. “What the hell are you doing here?”
He stretches like he owns the place, his movements slow and deliberate. His hair falls into his eyes a little, and the smirk that follows makes me want to throw something at him.
“Relax, little wolf,” he says in a light and teasing tone. “I was just waiting for you.”
“Waiting for me?” I drop my bag on the floor and fold my arms, glaring at him. “Do you even hear how creepy that sounds?”
He only chuckles. “You look exhausted,” he says, pretending to sound concerned but failing miserably. “Rough day?”
I narrow my eyes. “You know exactly why it was rough.”
He tilts his head, feigning innocence. “Do I?”
“Yes,” I snap. “The library, Jace. You made sure they wouldn’t let me in. Again.”
He raises an eyebrow like the accusation entertains him. “And what makes you think I’d waste my time doing that?”
“Because it’s *you.*” My voice cracks with frustration. “Because it’s always you!”
For a second, his smirk widens. “You really think I’m that obsessed?”
“I know you are!” I shoot back before I can stop myself.
He laughs. Actually laughs. A full, deep and unbothered laugh that fills the room. “You’re fun when you’re angry,” he says, standing just enough to lean forward and pat the bed beside him. “Sit. Let’s talk.”
The audacity of this man.
I take a slow breath and shake my head. “No. I’m not sitting anywhere near you.”
“Adinna.” His tone softens but only slightly, like he’s testing what will get a reaction. “Come on. Don’t make this harder than it has to be.”
“Harder?” I echo, my pulse quickening. “You’re the one in my room, Jace. You’re the one making everything harder.”
He sighs, as if I’m the one exhausting him. Then he stands.
And just like that, the air changes.
The teasing melts away, replaced by something heavier and darker. The playful spark in his eyes dims, leaving behind a sharp glint that makes my stomach tighten. He’s taller when he’s this close.
“Careful, little wolf,” he says quietly. “You sound like you’re giving me orders.”
“I’m telling you to leave.” My voice trembles, but I force the words out. “Now.”
He steps closer.
“Funny,” he murmurs, his voice low. “You think you get to tell me what to do.”
I take a step back, my spine brushing against the edge of my desk. “I’m serious, Jace. Whatever this is, whatever game you’re playing, stop it.”
He smiles again, but this time it doesn’t reach his eyes. “You’re lucky, you know,” he says, and there’s something dangerous in the way he says it. “You’re lucky I find you amusing. Otherwise…” He trails off, hiseyes flicking briefly toward the door before landing back on me. “You wouldn’t last a day here.”
My heart stutters. “Is that a threat?”
“An observation,” he says simply.
Something inside me snaps.
I push away from the desk and glare up at him. “You don’t scare me,” I lie, because that’s what this is. A lie I have to say out loud or it’ll stop being true. “You can keep trying to mess with me, but it won’t work forever. I’m not some toy you get to play with whenever you feel like.”
I want to say more but his movement causes me to stop.
He’s too fast. One second I’m talking, the next his hand shoots out, grabbing my arm roughly.
“Let go of me,” I hiss, trying to pull away, but his grip tightens.
He narrows his eyes at me. “You really think you can just walk away from me?”
“Watch me,” I spit, jerking against his hold. Pain flashes up my arm, but I keep struggling.
His breath hits my cheek when he speaks again, low and slurred with something that sounds almost like disbelief. “You think you have the right to just walk away from me?”
“I don’t think I do, I know” I say through gritted teeth, tugging harder. “You don’t own me, Jace!”
That gets a reaction. His jaw tenses, and for the first time, his smirk completely disappears.
He leans in, his voice quieter now, almost like he’s talking to himself. “You really don’t get it, do you?”
I don’t answer. I don’t want to know what “it” is that I’m supposed to get.
I twist, using all the strength I have left, and manage to wrench my arm free. I stumble back a few steps, clutching my wrist, breathing hard.
“I said get the f**k out!”
For a moment, he doesn’t move. He just watches me, his chest rising and falling as he stares at me with an unreadable expression.
Then, as I start toward the door, his hand shoots out again, much faster and this time and before I can even react, he grabs me by the waist and spins me around.
My back slams into the wall. The sound echoes, dull and final.
The air leaves my lungs in a single, shaky gasp.
He’s right there. Inches away. His arm pressing lightly against my collarbone, keeping me in place, not enough to hurt me but enough to remind me who’s stronger.
The world narrows until it’s just him and me and the space between us that feels far too small.
His breath fans across my cheek causing my pulse to hammer in my ears. My wolf growls faintly beneath my skin, but I can’t tell if it’s fear or something else twisting through me.
“Jace,” I whisper, my voice cracking. “Let me go.”
He doesn’t.
He just stares at me with that same unreadable expression and unnerving silence and for a moment, I see something flicker in his eyes. Something I can’t name.
And then there’s nothing.
He stays there, pinning me to the wall, watching me like he’s trying to figure out what makes me break.
And I’m too afraid to move.
Too afraid to look away.
Too afraid to admit that for one horrifying, shameful heartbeat, I forget to breathe.
- Writer
