The morning sun streamed through the tall windows of Seraphina Vale's office, illuminating the sleek glass desk and the neatly stacked files that represented the empire she had built on her own. A cup of untouched coffee steamed beside her, forgotten, as her mind replayed last night's encounter with Lucien Blackwood.
She tried to focus on the contracts, the numbers, the world of human business—but nothing could push him from her thoughts. The alpha billionaire who had abandoned her six years ago now strode through her memories and her reality, claiming space in her life just by existing.
Her assistant, a cheerful young woman named Maya, knocked and entered cautiously. "Ms. Vale, there's someone here to see you. He says it's urgent."
Sera's heart skipped. She straightened in her chair. "Urgent?"
"Yes," Maya said. "He wouldn't give a name but insisted on speaking with you directly."
Sera felt her pulse quicken. Could it be? No. It couldn't be… Lucien?
Before she could respond, the glass doors slid open. And there he was. Lucien Blackwood, standing in the center of the office, tall, composed, the kind of presence that made the air itself shift. His grey eyes held hers immediately, a silent command pulsing through the room.
"Good morning, Sera," he said, his voice low, velvet-smooth, yet edged with something primal. "May I?"
"May you what?" she asked cautiously, standing.
"Sit," he said, gesturing toward the chair across from her. "We need to talk."
Sera's jaw tightened. "I don't think we need to talk. You walked out of my life six years ago, Lucien. I survived. I moved on."
Lucien's lips curved into that infuriating, confident smile. "And yet, here you are. Sitting in your empire, but thinking of me."
She flinched, but refused to show it. "I think of a lot of things. You're not special."
He leaned casually against the desk, close enough that she could feel the warmth radiating from him. His scent, musky and commanding, hit her like a physical force. She swallowed hard, trying to focus. Do not let him get to you. Do not.
Lucien's expression hardened, his alpha instincts flaring. "Sera, listen. I don't have time for games, and I don't have patience for excuses. You are my mate. You always were. And I will claim you, whether you like it or not."
The words, spoken so simply, reverberated through her chest. Her hands clenched into fists at her sides. "Claim me?" she repeated, disbelief tinged with anger. "You think you can just come back after all this time and decide what's mine? I am not yours!"
Lucien's eyes darkened, steel-like and unyielding. "You are. Whether you accept it or not. You've never belonged to anyone else. I walked away to protect you, and now I am here to fix it."
"Protect me?" she spat, stepping back. "You call leaving me, abandoning me for six years, protection? You call that love?"
"Yes," he said firmly, stepping closer, closing the distance between them. His presence was overwhelming, and she felt the old pull, the magnetism she had tried to bury. "Because I couldn't risk you being caught in the crossfire. You were too precious. Too... mine."
Sera's breath caught. Her mind screamed at her to push him away, to resist, but her body betrayed her, aching for the familiarity, the connection, the heat that had never fully died between them.
"Enough," she whispered, turning to her desk and shoving a stack of papers between them as if that could put a barrier between them. "I will not be intimidated, Lucien. I am my own person now."
He leaned over the desk, his eyes burning into hers. "And I respect that. But you are also my mate. Your independence doesn't change what we share. It never did."
Before she could respond, the office doors burst open, and Maya gasped, almost dropping her clipboard. "Ms. Vale! There's… there's a man outside. He says he's with the Blackwood Pack, and he's… dangerous."
Lucien's head snapped toward the door, eyes narrowing. "Kieran Voss." He muttered the name like venom. "He's here."
Sera froze. "Kieran? Who's—what's happening?"
Lucien's expression was unreadable, but his energy shifted, a low growl vibrating in the room. "He's a rival alpha. Wants to challenge me, and he'll use you to get to me. That's why I came back. To make sure nothing happens to you."
Her stomach twisted. "Nothing happens to me? You disappeared for six years, and now you think you can protect me?"
"I'm not asking you to forgive me yet," he said quietly, softer this time, the alpha edge replaced by something more intimate. "But I am asking you to trust me. Just a little. Until we deal with Kieran."
Sera's mind reeled. Kieran Voss—the name sounded familiar from whispers in the supernatural community, but she didn't realize he would come after her. "And if I refuse?" she challenged.
Lucien's gaze locked on hers, unyielding. "Then I'll fight for you anyway."
A knock at the office door made them both turn. Evelyn stepped in, eyes blazing with concern. "Sera, are you insane? Do you have any idea who that man is?"
Lucien turned slightly, nodding in greeting. "Evelyn. Good to see you. But I'm afraid this isn't social call material."
Evelyn's gaze flicked between them, suspicion and warning in equal measure. "I don't like this, Sera. He's dangerous."
Sera exhaled sharply, running a hand through her hair. "I know. But I also know that if he's back, I can't face this alone. Not now."
Lucien stepped closer, placing a hand lightly on her shoulder. She stiffened, but didn't pull away. "You won't be alone. Not while I'm here."
Later That EveningThe city lights glimmered through the apartment windows as Sera paced, her mind racing. Lucien sat on the edge of the couch, relaxed but watchful, a glass of whiskey in hand.
"I don't understand," she said finally. "Why now? Why return after all this time?"
"Because I can't stay away," he admitted, voice low, almost vulnerable. "I tried. I tried to live without you, but every day, Sera… every day I felt the pull of what I left behind. And now I have the power to protect you, to claim you properly."
Her chest tightened. "Claim me properly? You think love is about power?"
He shook his head. "No. It's about recognition. About destiny. About bonds that cannot be broken. Ours is one of those bonds."
The word "mate" hung unspoken in the air, heavy and undeniable. Sera's knees weakened slightly at the implication. She had trained herself to resist, to focus on her life, but Lucien was like gravity—inescapable.
Suddenly, the lights flickered, and a shadow crossed the room. Lucien's eyes sharpened instantly, alert and predatory. "Kieran is here," he murmured.
Sera's pulse accelerated. The danger was real now. Not just from the past, but from the present. "What does he want?"
Lucien stood, moving toward her. "To challenge me, to take what's mine. That's why he'll come for you—he knows that hurting you hurts me. But I won't allow it. Not now, not ever."
Sera swallowed, heart pounding. "And if I… if I let you protect me?"
Lucien's lips curved into a predatory smile. "Then I'll show you what being a mate truly means. You won't regret it, Sera."
Her breath caught at the intensity of his gaze. "You expect me to just… surrender to you?"
"No," he said simply. "I expect you to survive. And when you see what I've prepared, you'll understand that being mine is the only safe place in this world."
A shiver ran down her spine, equal parts fear and longing. The danger, the heat, the unspoken bond—it all wrapped around her like fire.
And somewhere deep inside, she knew. She had tried to deny it, tried to run. But the moment had come. Lucien Blackwood was back. And she would never be the same again.