[Ava]
I gave the customer a small, cold smile and walked away. The night had just started, and people were already coming in. But first, I needed to finish the order for table number nine. I should've been used to it by now, the heat that clung to the air like a second skin, the sharp, musky scent of wolves in their prime, thick with power and testosterone. Everything in this place pulsed with unspoken rules, all revolving around dominance, strength, and the silent hierarchies carved into every glance and gesture.
I balanced the tray with ease, the weight familiar in my hands as I wove between bodies pressed too close together, each radiating heat and intent. My heart stayed steady, trained and calm, but my mind drifted, somewhere quieter, somewhere far from the noise and the ever-watchful eyes. Another night. Another set of meaningless smiles stretched across faces that always wanted something.
Suddenly, a sharp, angry voice lashed through my mind like a whip.
"You think that's bad? Try being promised to a she-wolf who didn't even shift."
I froze mid-step. My tray tilted slightly, and one of the bowls sloshed over. I didn't care.
"Caleb, stop..."
"No. I won't. I'm done pretending you're normal."
The girl, his mate?.... sounded like she was trying to hush him, but the damage was already spreading. Like blood in water.
"You were supposed to shift at eighteen. Eighteen, Marla. You know what that means? It's been six years. And nothing. Not a flicker of wolf in you. You're a fucking stain."
I couldn't breathe. Couldn't blink. My feet were rooted to the spot, but my ears betrayed me. They wanted to hear more, as if I deserved it.
"No one will touch you. No male in the pack wants a mate who can't shift. You're nothing but a dead weight. An embarrassment. I mean, look at you, still walking around pretending you belongs here."
"Caleb, people are listening," Marla hissed, suddenly self-conscious. But he didn't care.
"They should hear it. Hell, they know it already. You're nothing but a half-breed mistake."
I felt every syllable like a slap. The tray in my hand trembled. My wolf, silent as always, gave no comfort, no growl, no strength. Just the same yawning emptiness inside me....a stain. That's what I was.
"Cole," I called the waiter softly.
He was behind the bar, polishing glasses like always, calm and unbothered, but his eyes flicked to me, instantly alert. I handed him the tray with shaking hands. "Can you serve Table Nine?"
He looked at the table, then at me. "Ava...?"
"Please."
I didn't wait for an answer. The bar blurred behind me as I grabbed a bottle of old red, the strong kind we kept for high-ranked alphas and walked upstairs. My hands didn't feel like mine. My legs moved on their own. All I knew was that I needed to be away. Away from the noise, away from the shame, away from myself. My room was cold and quiet, and when I twisted the cork from the bottle, it came off with a sigh—like even it was tired. I brought it to my lips and drank like I was starving.
One sip. Two. Three.
"A stain? " I whispered.
The fourth burned, but I didn't stop. I wanted to drown in it. I remembered what Morgan told me, "I can't fuck a woman who is not wolf. I should find a man who can lick my pussy without any demand or become a virgin nun for the rest of my life."
I tried to pour the whole bottle into myself, "I hate you bastard....fucking hate you for this...you Morgan...you die in hell...you'll never...never find a mate in your life....you...you DEEEEIIIIII...."
The door creaked open behind me.
"Ava." I heard Rhett's voice, soft but firm.
I didn't turn. "Go away."
He didn't. I heard the door close. His steps were slow, deliberate. I hated how quiet he was, how he didn't ask what happened. He'd heard. They all had. I kept the bottle at my lips until he took it from my hand, gently but with purpose. I didn't fight him. I just sat there, arms limp at my sides, eyes burning.
"I said go away," I whispered.
"You don't want that," he said, his voice low and steady.
My throat tightened. "You think I can't handle a bottle of wine?"
"I think you shouldn't have to."
I turned around and looked him in the eye. "Why not? Because I'm the pack's precious broken girl? The one everyone tiptoes around, hoping she won't crack? Guess what, Rhett...tonight I heard the truth. What the pack really thinks of wolves like me."
He didn't flinch. "No, you heard what one drunk idiot said."
I laughed bitterly. "He said what they're all thinking."
Silence. Then he stepped closer, not touching me, just there. "I'm not going to let you believe that," he said.
I stared at him, tears threatening to spill, rage simmering just beneath the surface. My throat tightened, words caught between heartbreak and desperation. But all I managed to say was: "Will you sleep with me?"
He looked at me, calm, unreadable but not surprised. I could tell he wasn't a virgin. There was something in his eyes… something that had seen this before.
He shook his head slowly. "You're drunk, Ava."
"I'm not..." My voice broke, barely a whisper. The pressure behind my eyes burned, and I almost cried. I didn't know if what I felt for Rhett was real, if it was something deep and tangled, or if it was just the raw, ugly hate I still carried for my ex… twisted into something that felt like longing.
"Ava, you're upset," he repeated, reaching out for my face to brush the hair from my eyes. I closed my eyes against his warmth, hating the feeling of his fingers tracing patterns against my cheekbones. "Just get some sleep. It's been a long day. You'll feel better tomorrow. Let me take care of you, okay?"
"I'm feeling hot," I murmured. "My pussy...its dripping wet...it's hard to breathe…. I just need some thing… someone inside me…someone who fuck the shit out of me....its been three years holding up everything alone....I'm tired now..."
His gaze softened, and I felt his breath fanning over my forehead as his fingers moved from my cheeks to the nape of my neck, stroking down softly towards the curve of my shoulder blades and my waistline, following my hips down into the space between my legs. His warm palms cupped my asscheeks and pulled me towards him, until our chests touched.
I gasped as I felt the sudden burn of desire, of needing. He smiled against my lips, his fingers curving further up my spine and back to the base of my throat, his thumb resting lightly over my pulse point. The fire inside flared, roaring louder than the voices.
"Do you want someone to fuck you tonight, baby?" he asked.