ROWAN’S POV
People moved when I walked past.
They dipped their heads, stepped aside, nodded like they were trained to breathe in my presence. Workers outside the hotel, valet guys, even a couple of guests standing around the fountain all muttered, "Alpha," under their breath like it meant something. Because to them, it did. Crestview was mine. Every inch of it. Every heartbeat in it. And they all knew better than to question anything I did.
But none of that mattered right now.
I was walking fast, my steps tight, jaw clenched so hard I could feel it aching. I had gone to Ayla’s room twenty-nine minutes ago. Knocked. Waited. Knocked again.
“Ayla,” I said through the door. No answer. Nothing but quiet.
My wolf didn’t like that.
So I turned the knob.
The room was empty.
The bed looked
