Aria’s POV
The "file" Collins held was for ? I had thought it was for Sophia.
Collins gave it to , It was an envelope. My fingers tingled before I even opened it. My wolf didn’t like surprises. When I slipped the flap open and saw the check inside, the scent of fresh ink stung my nose.
A million dollars.
Collins’s voice ca out stiff, too controlled. "This is Alpha Nathan’s compensation for you."
Compensation.
My spine locked into place. My wolf bristled, hackles rising beneath my skin. They really thought they could pay off?
I stepped back sharply, letting the check slip from my fingers. The breeze caught it, fluttering it pathetically to the ground like it was trash—which, to , it was.
Collins’s eyes widened. He scrambled like a panicked pup, snatching it off the pavent and thrusting it at again.
But I didn’t move. I just stared at him, letting every ounce of sarcasm I felt bleed into my gaze. My wolf’s eyes flickered beneath the surface, sharpened with instinct and fury.
Collins froze, his hand still outstretched with the check trembling between his fingers.
"Is this supposed to make up for the humiliation I’ve endured?" My voice ca out low and icy. Even I could hear the edge of a growl threading through it. "Tell , Collins—if I offered him a million to be humiliated the sa way, would Nathan take it?"
"Alpha Nathan would never let himself be humiliated like that!" Collins shot back instantly.
The mont the words left him, his scent spiked with panic. He realized exactly what he’d implied.
Of course. Nathan would never.
But I was supposed to bow, break, beg.
I let out a cold laugh. "Exactly. Your precious Alpha wouldn’t stoop that low for a million. So why should I? Do you think I was born to be trampled on?"
My words hit their mark. He stepped aside, unable to hold my gaze any longer.
A tiny movent in my arms drew my attention. Lana peeked out from the crook of my elbow, blinking up at the world with Nathan’s unmistakable eyes.
Collins followed my gaze. I watched his eyes widen as they stared at Lana. I instinctively hid my baby’s face.
Before I could turn away, a voice from the crowd cut through the air.
"Hey—isn’t that the hotshot lawyer, Sophia Darvin?"
"That’s her! God, she’s gorgeous."
Phones rose like a forest of tal claws. Flashes burst. Each one pricked at my skin, my wolf snarling inside at the intrusion. I tightened my hold around Lana, shielding her with my body. My heart twisted painfully.
Once, people had spoken like that about . Once, I was the Hemsworth Group’s golden girl.
Now I was their whispered scandal.
I glanced at Sophia. She wore a smug, proud look but it quickly turned sour when soone muttered.
"The real beauty was Aria—Hemsworth’s forr star lawyer and Alpha Nathan’s Luna."
"Didn’t you hear? After Aria went to prison, Sophia swooped in. And rumor is she’s cozying up to her own brother-in-law, Alpha Nathan. That is so serious howrecker behavior."
Sophia’s growl snapped through the chatter.
"Stop taking pictures! I said stop!"
Her temper snapped. She hurled her designer bag at her limited-edition pink supercar. The thud echoed across the lot, followed by an ugly screech as the car’s paint scraped.
The crowd gasped. Collins, seeing her lose control, maybe for the first ti, stood stunned.
The clicking of caras only grew louder and more relentless.
Collins snapped out of his daze. His authoritative tone returned as he rushed forward barking orders to his team to confiscate phones and scrub any evidence of Sophia’s ltdown.
Hemsworth’s golden girl needed protecting, after all.
anwhile, I’d been tossed aside like a broken tool.
When the chaos finally settled, Collins turned around, searching for .
It was too late.
I was hiding by a corner, watching them, waiting for them to leave. Lana was tucked securely against my chest. My wolf prowled beneath my skin, simring with defiance.
He would probably think I was just being stubborn and proud for refusing the money.
But he didn’t understand.
I would rather starve in the streets than bow to or take anything from the man who shattered .
I felt Collins’s eyes on my retreating figure, heavy with judgnt. His thoughts were practically rolling off him—Why wouldn’t I just swallow my pride? Why cling to this pointless defiance?
And Lana...
I knew he wondered about her too.
He stuffed the check into his pocket and sighed heavily.
Fine by .
He could go back to his office.
And I would go back to surviving.
On my own terms.
With my pup in my arms and my wolf at my side.
I waited until they left before I resud my journey.
Nathan’s POV
Collins stood across from in my office on the top floor of Hemsworth Group. The mont I saw the look of unease on his face, I knew his mission had failed.
"She didn’t take it?" I asked, my brow knitting, the question coming out sharper than I ant.
Collins shook his head and began recounting everything. Aria refusing the check, her words, her expression. He ntioned Sophia’s encounter with Aria, but sothing told he left so important details out. Years of working with him had taught he filtered himself when things got ssy.
My jaw clenched. My fingers tapped against the desk in a steady rhythm, each tap a beat syncing with the irritation pulsing under my skin. My wolf stirred at the mory of Aria. Her eyes were no longer bright like midnight stars, they were dimd, guarded and almost... hollow.
What did I do to her?
The question gnawed at my ribs like claws.
She wasn’t the Aria I used to know.
She was a shadow of her old self now. She was cold, distant, and frighteningly untouchable.
My fingers tapped harder. The sound turned sharp, echoing through the room like a heartbeat on the edge of snapping.
A thought imdiately ca to my mind, causing to snap my gaze up at Collins.
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