A Smart Choice
440 Words
Silas leaned in, his voice a jagged blade. "The only reason you're doing this is to get what’s yours from Marcus Vance, isn't it?".
Chloe felt like a bucket of ice water had been dumped over her head. Silas had decoded her secret. He had taken the fragments of the wedding disaster and pieced together her deal with her father.
"Your chance of getting those heirlooms," Silas sneered, "depends on you playing the part of the devoted Mrs. Sterling.". It wasn't a question; it was an ultimatum.
He was right. If she broke the contract now, her father would burn her mother’s memories just to spite her. She had to be the bride he bought.
"Julian..." she whispered, her voice failing. "Let me go with him.".
Julian’s body went rigid. He looked down at her, the disbelief in his eyes cutting deeper than Silas’s claws. "What did you say?".
"Please," she mouthed.
"You don't want this," Julian insisted, his voice desperate. "The Thorne family doesn't fear the Sterlings. I can take you away.".
Chloe gripped Julian’s lapel for a second, then slowly let go. "You said... you would support me.".
The words were a double-edged sword. Julian’s arm slowly slid from her waist, his eyes dark with a stormy, unreadable emotion. Silas immediately yanked her flush against his chest. The scent of pine and winter air enveloped her, making her shiver.
"A smart choice," Silas whispered in her ear, his hot breath raising goosebumps. His arm was like a band of iron around her shoulders, claiming her as his.
Chloe looked back at Julian. He stood in the middle of the bakery, the shadows masking his face as the wind chime by the door rang one last time.
"I’m not giving up," Julian called out. "I’ll see you soon.".
Silas let out a dismissive snort and dragged Chloe out of the shop. He shoved her into the car but remained standing on the curb for a moment, his shoulders heaving. His wolf tail hung limp, and his ears were flattened—a total reversal of the monster he had been inside.
When he finally sat next to her, he was a wall of ice. He wouldn't look at her, but his tail-tip twitched, slowly winding around her wrist like a living tether.
Chloe tried to pull away, but the fur only tightened. What is wrong with him? One second he’s a tyrant, the next he’s a moody adolescent.
The car was a vacuum of silence until Silas spoke.
"Mine.".
"What?" Chloe blinked.
Silas turned to her, his jaw set. "The account you were looking for. Stop searching. It was me.".
- Writer
