Chapter 34
Chapter 34:
I hit Print. The machine in the corner whirred to life, paper sliding through the feeder with a sound like the quiet, deliberate loading of a weapon.
Downstairs, I imagined him in his pristine kitchen, drinking his coffee, entirely certain he had won. Certain I was just another wolfless girl he could manipulate at his leisure.
I lifted the warm page from the tray.
He was about to learn that even a girl without a wolf could bite back.
Adelia
The morning air on the back patio was crisp, carrying the scent of pine and damp earth—but it did nothing to cool the indignation burning beneath my skin. I marched toward the glass table where Dallas sat, the freshly printed Addendum A clutched in my hand like a weapon.
He looked infuriatingly perfect. Leaning back in a wrought-iron chair, sipping black coffee, eyes hidden behind dark aviator sunglasses. His black button-down was immaculate, sleeves rolled to the elbow to reveal forearms corded with muscle.
I didn’t sit. I slapped the paper onto the glass surface, directly beside his untouched croissant.
“Good morning to you too, Adelia,” he drawled, without looking up from his tablet.
𝖡𝗲 pа𝘳𝗍 𝗈f 𝘰u𝗿 𝗰𝗈𝘮𝗆u𝗇𝘪𝘁y 𝘰ո
“Read it,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt. “Since you seem to have forgotten the terms of our arrangement, I’ve taken the liberty of clarifying them p>
Dallas set his coffee down with deliberate slowness. He picked up the paper and scanned the text. A smirk pulled at the corner of his mouth.
“Article One,” he read aloud, his voice rich with amusement. “‘Under no circumstances shall either party enter the other’s private sleeping quarters without explicit verbal permission. Nudity in shared spaces is strictly prohibited.’” He looked up and slid his sunglasses down the bridge of his nose. His golden eyes met mine, swirling with predatory humor. “Are you trying to put a leash on your Mate, Adelia p>
“I’m putting a leash on my employer,” I corrected, gripping the back of the empty chair across from him to hide the trembling of my hands. “You violated my space. You violated my trust. If you want me to stay and fulfill this contract, you will sign that document p>
The silence that followed was heavy. A bird called somewhere in the garden, indifferent to the predator sitting five feet from me.
Dallas rose from his chair. He reached into his pocket, produced a heavy fountain pen, and without breaking eye contact, leaned across the table and scrawled his signature at the bottom of the page. The movement was forceful—the pen scratching loud against the paper. It wasn’t a concession. It was a man humoring a child’s demand while already deciding it meant nothing.
He capped the pen and slid the paper back toward me. Then, before I could step away, he leaned in close. His scent—cedar and storm—wrapped around me and triggered a treacherous warmth low in my stomach. His lips brushed the shell of my ear.
“Rules are for mortals, Adelia,” he murmured, the low vibration of his voice traveling down my spine like a current. “But I’ll play your game. For now p>