Unseen Eyes
710 Words
Aria’s POV
The house was strangely quiet after Lena left.
Her best friend had rushed upstairs, thrown on a tight dress, and disappeared out the door within thirty minutes—already texting someone from the pack about the bonfire at the lake.
Typical Lena.
Aria had stayed behind.
Partly because she wasn’t in the mood for a loud party.
And partly because she still felt… unsettled.
Being back in the Alpha’s house after months away always made her a little nervous, but today it was different.
Rowan’s presence lingered in the air like a storm waiting to break.
Aria shook the thought away and headed upstairs to Lena’s room.
The Ashwood mansion was massive, with high ceilings, dark wooden floors, and long hallways lined with large windows that looked out over the forest. Even though the place could easily hold twenty people, it often felt quiet when only Rowan and Lena were home.
Aria tossed her bag onto the bed.
Her eyes drifted to the shopping bag sitting beside it.
Earlier that week she’d bought a new bikini for the summer.
She hadn’t had the chance to try it on yet.
Aria hesitated for a moment before pulling it out.
The fabric was soft black, the top barely more than two thin triangles connected by delicate strings. The bottoms were even smaller, tied at the hips with thin straps.
Her cheeks warmed slightly.
Okay… maybe this was a little bold.
But Lena had convinced her to buy it.
“Trust me,” Lena had said. “You’ll look insane in it.”
Aria laughed softly to herself and disappeared into the bathroom.
A few minutes later she stepped out again.
The bikini definitely left very little to the imagination.
The thin strings hugged her curves while the dark fabric contrasted against her warm skin. The cut of the bottoms sat high on her hips, showing far more of her legs than anything she usually wore.
Aria walked toward the full-length mirror near the closet, examining herself carefully.
She turned slightly to the side.
Then the other way.
A slow smile crept across her face.
“Okay…” she murmured quietly. “Maybe Lena was right.”
The mansion was silent.
Or so she thought.
⸻
Downstairs, Rowan stood near the large living room windows.
He had been going over pack reports when a faint sound from upstairs caught his attention.
Footsteps.
His wolf stirred.
Aria.
He hadn’t seen her since she went upstairs after Lena left for the party.
Rowan told himself to ignore it.
To focus on his work.
But the restless pull in his chest refused to settle.
Against his better judgment, he stepped toward the staircase.
Just to check that everything was fine.
That’s what he told himself anyway.
Rowan reached the top floor quietly, his senses alert.
The door to Lena’s room was slightly open.
And through that narrow gap…
He saw her.
Aria stood in front of the mirror across the room, turning slightly as she looked at herself.
Rowan froze.
The sight hit him like a physical blow.
She was wearing a black bikini.
A very small one.
The thin straps traced along her hips, and the soft light from the window illuminated the curves of her body as she moved.
Rowan’s breath caught.
His wolf went completely still.
Watching.
Every instinct in his body sharpened.
Aria tilted her head slightly as she looked at her reflection, brushing her hair over one shoulder.
Rowan forced himself not to stare.
And failed.
Heat flooded through his chest.
Through his stomach.
Lower.
He dragged a hand slowly down his face.
This is a mistake.
He shouldn’t be standing here.
Shouldn’t be looking.
But his feet refused to move.
Because the girl standing in that room wasn’t the child he remembered.
She was a woman now.
And his wolf was very aware of it.
Rowan exhaled slowly, trying to regain control of himself.
Before he could turn away…
Aria shifted again in front of the mirror.
And Rowan’s wolf let out a quiet, possessive growl deep in his chest.
The sound was barely audible.
But it was real.
And suddenly Rowan realized something dangerous.
Watching her like this wasn’t just wrong.
It was becoming impossible to stop.
- Writer
