EMBER'S POV

The words hang between us, and I can't believe I just said them. But there's no denying the intensity of my desire for this man, even in the midst of my heartbreak.

Sapphire is going absolutely feral inside me-she wants to feel his hands run down every inch of my skin, and it makes no sense. We don't even know him.

He raises an eyebrow at me, something dark and amused flickering across his devastatingly handsome face.

"Is that really what you want?" His voice drops lower, rougher, each word like a physical caress.

I nod, feeling a rush of heat flood through me. I know it's reckless, but I can't help myself. I need this. I need him. I need to feel wanted instead of worthless. I need to forget Gale's mocking voice, Logan's cruel laughter, the image of my husband on his knees.

If Gale can fuck whoever he wants, so can I.

But just as quickly as the moment ignited, it flickers out as he takes a step back from me, his expression cooling into something almost bored.

"As tempting as that sounds, I'm afraid I have other business to attend to."

What?

Is he rejecting me?

Something hot and humiliating floods through my chest. Of course. Of course, even a stranger doesn't want me. Gale was right-I'm desperate, pathetic, not worth-

No.

Fuck that.

Wild instinct takes over, and I grab his arm as he turns to leave, yanking him back around. Before I can second-guess myself, before I can think about consequences or propriety or anything beyond this moment, I kiss him with everything I have.

His lips are sinfully soft, perfect, and the contact sends a rush of liquid heat straight between my legs. For a moment, he's completely still, and panic claws at me-oh Goddess, he really doesn't want me-

Then he growls.

The sound is purely animalistic, vibrating against my mouth as his hands suddenly slam against the wall on either side of my head, caging me in. He kisses me back with bruising intensity, all teeth and tongue and raw hunger that makes my knees weak.

Our tongues meet in a fierce dance, and I cling to him desperately, wanting to lose myself in this moment, in this feeling of being wanted so intensely it borders on violence.

His hands roam over my body with clear purpose-gripping my waist, my hips, my ass-each touch sending electric shocks down my spine. It's unlike anything I've ever felt before.

Maybe my relationship with Gale kept me so sexually starved that even this contact with a stranger drives me mad with lust, but I don't care. I don't fucking care anymore.

He shoves me back against the wall, pinning my wrists above my head with one large hand. His body presses hard against mine, and I can feel every muscled inch of him, including the thick length of his cock straining against his pants, pressing into my stomach.

Oh Goddess.

His hot breath teases my neck as he peppers kisses along my throat, biting down on my pulse point hard enough to make me cry out. The pleasure-pain is exquisite, and I arch into him shamelessly.

"Such pretty sounds," he murmurs against my skin, voice like gravel. "I wonder what other noises I can make you make."

His free hand slides under my dress, trailing up my inner thigh with agonizing slowness. I'm trembling, desperate, my panties already soaked through. When his fingers finally brush against the lace, I gasp.

"Fuck," he breathes, pressing harder. "You're dripping wet already." His fingers hook under the fabric, pushing it aside, and when he touches my bare pussy I actually whimper. "Are you this desperate to get fucked by me? By a complete stranger?"

I should feel ashamed. I should stop this.

Instead, I moan and lean into his touch, spreading my legs wider in shameless invitation. This is who I am now. The good girl who followed every rule is gone. I just want to feel something other than pain.

"I want to hear you say it." His finger circles my clit, slow and torturous, making my hips buck. "If you want my cock inside you that badly, then beg for it. Convince me you deserve it."

Then he plunges two fingers deep inside me.

"Oh, Goddess!" The cry rips from my throat as he fucks me with his fingers, rough and fast and perfect. My thighs shake, my whole body trembling as pleasure builds at an impossible rate.

"Say it," he demands, curling his fingers to hit that spot that makes me see stars.

"Yes! Please!" I'm gasping, grinding down on his hand. "Please fuck me. I need you to take me right here. Use me, ruin me-I don't care. Just please-"

He chuckles darkly against my skin, the vibrations sending me even closer to the edge. Then his lips brush my ear, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper.

"I never thought I'd see the day when you'd be such a naughty girl, Ember."

I freeze.

Wait.

How does he know my name? Why does he sound like he knows me?

The pleasure has completely disoriented my thoughts, but I manage to pull back slightly, staring at this gorgeous stranger carefully. He still looks so familiar, I just can't place where...

"W-what?" My voice is breathless, shaky. "How do you know my name?"

The devious man smirks, wicked intentions etched into every handsome line of his face.

"Don't tell me you don't recognize your Lycan King, Ember darling." His blue eyes hold that cruel, calculating glint I've seen before, and suddenly it hits me like a fucking freight train. "I certainly know about the beautiful mate of Alpha Gale Crawford."

No.

Oh Goddess, no.

King Knox Volkov.

I just kissed the most dangerous man in the world. I just begged the Lycan King to fuck me in an airplane bathroom. My husband's boss!

As the Lycan King, he rules with an iron fist-both the urban city as a filthy rich CEO and the supreme ruler of the werewolf realm. He's ruthless and unforgiving, with a reputation that precedes him. Stories of alphas who crossed him and simply disappeared. Packs that challenged his authority were wiped off the map.

He's a man who commands respect and fear in equal measure, and I just threw myself at him like a bitch in heat.

Mortification crashes over me. He's Gale's boss. The supreme authority over every pack in North America.

Do you know how ruined my life would be if word got out that I tried seducing the Lycan King? Alpha Gale's wife throwing herself at his superior?

The scandal would destroy what little reputation I have left.

I flush with embarrassment and try to push him away, but he steps in closer instead, his fingers still buried inside me, making me cry out involuntarily.

"Don't stop the fun now." His grin is pure wickedness. "Why do you seem so frightened?"

My mind is in chaos, my whole body overcome with conflicting urges-run, stay, hide, submit.

"No... no... no." I shake my head frantically when he leans in to kiss me again. "I don't want anything to do with you anymore. This was a mistake. A huge mistake."

His expression darkens immediately, eyes flashing gold-his wolf rising to the surface. My heart pounds, and all my false courage evaporates.

"It's too late for that." King Knox growls. "You begged me to fuck you, Ember. You asked me to ruin you. And that is exactly what I'm going to do. Nothing less."

"Wait-"

But before I can object, before I can think, he spins me around to face the mirror and bends me over the sink. My hands slam against the counter to catch myself, and I watch in the mirror as he yanks my skirt up around my waist.

His hand runs up my inner thigh, and he discovers what his fingers already confirmed-I'm soaking wet, my thighs slick with arousal despite my protests.

"Look at yourself," he commands, his eyes meeting mine in the mirror. "Look at how desperate you are for this. For me."

My reflection stares back-face flushed, lips swollen from his kisses, eyes wide and glassy with need. I look wrecked. I look like someone I don't recognize.

"This is your last chance to back out," Knox says, his voice rough as his hands grip my hips. "Because once I'm inside you, you belong to me until I decide we're done. Understand?"

I should say no. Should push him away. Should think about the consequences.

Instead, I push my hips back against him in answer.

Knox growls in satisfaction. I hear the sound of fabric tearing and feel cool air against my pussy as he rips my panties completely off. Then he slams into me in one brutal thrust.

"FUCK!" The scream tears from my throat as he splits me open. He's huge, so thick I can barely breathe, filling me so completely it borders on pain.

His hand clamps over my mouth immediately.

"Quiet," he orders against my ear. "Unless you want everyone on this plane to know what a desperate little slut you are."

He pulls out almost completely, then drives back in, setting a devastating rhythm that has the counter rattling under me. Each thrust pushes me forward, my palms squeaking against the mirror as I try to brace myself.

"Watch," he commands, forcing my head up to meet my own eyes in the reflection. "Watch how good you look getting fucked properly."

And I do. I watch myself take his cock, watch my face transform with pleasure, watch the way my body moves with each brutal thrust. I've never had sex standing up before. Never felt anything like this raw, desperate claiming. It felt so fucking good.

His hand moves from my mouth to wrap around my throat, possessing, owning. His other hand grips my hip hard enough to bruise.

"When's the last time someone made you come?" he growls in my ear.

I can barely think, barely breathe. "I... I don't remember..."

He stills completely, and the look on his face in the mirror is pure fury.

"You don't remember?"

"Gale never... he never could..."

Something feral crosses Knox's expression. He pulls out suddenly, and I whimper at the loss, feeling empty and aching.

But then he spins me around, lifts me onto the counter, and drops to his knees.

"What are you-oh my Goddess!"

His mouth is on me, tongue finding my clit with devastating precision. His fingers push inside me, curling to hit that spot that makes my vision go white. I've never felt anything like this. Gale never wanted to do this, said it was degrading, that good omegas shouldn't expect-

I have to bite down on my own fist to keep from screaming as pleasure crashes over me in waves. My thighs clamp around Knox's head, my whole body shaking as I come harder than I ever have in my life.

Knox doesn't give me time to recover. He stands, positions himself between my spread thighs, and fucks into me again-this time slower, deeper, watching my face as I take every inch.

"Count," he orders.

"W-what?"

"Count how many times you come. Because you're going to remember exactly who gave you real pleasure for the first time."

He punctuates the words with a brutal thrust that hits something deep inside me, and I'm already climbing toward another orgasm, my body still sensitive from the first.

"One," I gasp out as the second one hits.

Knox smirks and picks up his pace.

By the time I gasp out "Three," my voice hoarse and broken, there's loud pounding on the bathroom door.

"This is the flight attendant! You need to exit the bathroom immediately!"

Shit.

EMBER'S POV

King Knox doesn't stop, not even when the flight attendant keeps knocking and demanding to know if everything's alright.

If only she knew that the Lycan King is currently buried deep inside me, fucking me as he owns me.

I bite down hard on my bottom lip to contain my moans, watching the feral hunger blazing in Knox's golden eyes. His thrusts keep getting deeper, harder, more brutal-each one hitting something inside me that makes my toes curl, and my vision go white.

Then he closes the distance between us and captures my lips in a devastating kiss, swallowing my desperate whimpers as he drives in one final time, so deep I swear I can feel him in my throat.

His teeth sink into my shoulder-not quite a mating bite but close enough to leave a mark-and he groans against my skin as his cock pulses inside me.

I come one last time, clenching around him as he fills me, both of us frozen together, panting.

The flight attendant pounds on the door again, more insistent this time.

Knox pulls out slowly, and I whimper at the loss, immediately feeling his cum start to leak down my inner thighs. He calmly zips up and smooths his suit like he didn't just rail me in an airplane bathroom, then helps fix my skirt with surprising gentleness.

He picks up my destroyed panties from the floor and pockets them with a smirk.

"You're not wearing these for the rest of the flight," he says, his voice still rough with satisfaction. "I want you to feel my cum leaking out of you and remember exactly who fucked you properly."

My face burns. This man has absolutely no shame.

Knox opens the door to face the mortified flight attendant. The woman's eyes go wide when she recognizes him-everyone knows what the Lycan King looks like-and her face goes completely white.

Knox slips her several hundred-dollar bills without blinking. "For your discretion and excellent service."

Then he walks back to his seat without looking back at me, leaving me standing in the bathroom doorway, thoroughly fucked, pantyless, and realizing I just had sex with the most powerful alpha in North America.

Oh, my Goddess. Oh, my Goddess. What did I just do?

This isn't happening. This can't be happening.

I just fucked the Lycan King. In an airplane bathroom. Without protection. And now his cum is literally dripping down my thighs, and I have no underwear because he ripped them off and pocketed them like some kind of trophy.

I return to my seat on shaky legs, acutely aware of Knox's warm cum.

The businessman in 3B is definitely smirking like he heard everything. The flight attendant won't make eye contact and keeps her distance.

I collapse into my seat, face burning with mortification.

I refuse to look across the aisle where Knox has calmly returned to his seat and is reading something on his phone like he didn't just fuck me senseless thirty seconds ago.

How can he be so calm? How can he act as if nothing happened?

Meanwhile, I'm over here trying not to hyperventilate because I just cheated on my husband-even though my husband was literally in an orgy-with the most dangerous man in the werewolf world.

The Lycan King.

Gale's boss.

The man who could destroy both our packs with a single word.

I need to process this. Need to think. Need to figure out what the hell I'm going to do now.

My phone buzzes in my bag.

I pull it out and see an unknown number calling.

My finger hovers over the decline button, but something makes me answer.

"Ember! Thank Goddess you picked up!"

Gale's voice makes my entire body go rigid with rage.

He's calling from someone else's phone since I blocked him. Of course he is. Of course, he found a way around my boundaries.

"Don't hang up, please, just listen to me for one second-"

"I have nothing to say to you," I snap, but he talks right over me like he always does.

"What you saw wasn't what you think!" His voice is high-pitched, hysterical, and manic. "I love you, Ember. I swear to the Goddess, I love you. Those men meant nothing. It was just stress relief, it doesn't count as cheating-"

Doesn't count as cheating?

DOESN'T COUNT AS CHEATING?

I can hear Logan Reeves coaching him in the background.

"Tell her you'll go to therapy. Tell her you'll change. Women love that. Tell her it'll never happen again."

The audacity. The absolute fucking audacity of both of them.

"You're calling me from Logan's phone?" I gasp. "The same Logan whose dick was in your mouth two hours ago. Do you see the irony here, Gale? Do you?"

"Baby, please, you have to understand-"

"Don't. Call. Me. That."

"I was confused! I didn't know what I wanted! But I know now, I know I want you, I want our marriage-"

"What you want," I interrupt, my voice shaking with barely contained fury, "is for me to keep playing the perfect little omega wife while you fuck whoever you want behind my back. That's what you want."

"No! That's not-where are you right now? Just tell me where you are, and we can talk about this face-to-face. We can work through this together like adults-"

"Work through this? You want to work through the fact that I caught you in a full gay orgy in our living room?"

"It wasn't-you're making it sound worse than it was-"

"How am I making it worse? There were three of you! You were on your knees! They were laughing about how pathetic I am!

Gale's voice shifts, becomes harder, more calculated. "Our marriage is a pact treaty, Ember. If you leave me, you destroy both our packs. Is that what you want? To be responsible for a war? Think about your parents. Think about everyone who depends on this alliance-"

"Oh, so now you're threatening me?"

"I'm not threatening you, I'm just being realistic. You can't just run away because you're upset. You have responsibilities. We both do. This is bigger than us-"

A large, warm hand suddenly wraps around my wrist.

I startle and look to my left to find Knox has moved from his seat across the aisle and is now sitting in the empty seat right beside me, his blue eyes fixed on mine with an intensity that steals my breath.

When did he-how did I not notice him moving?

Before I can ask, before I can protest, he plucks the phone from my hand with the casual dominance of someone who's used to being obeyed without question.

My eyes go wide. "What are you-"

Knox puts the call on speaker.

Gale's pathetic pleading fills the quiet first-class cabin.

"-I know I hurt you, but running away isn't the answer. Come home, and we'll figure this out. I promise I'll be better. I'll be the husband you deserve. I'll do whatever it takes-"

Then Knox does something that makes my brain completely short-circuit.

He slides his hand up my thigh, under my skirt, and pushes two fingers inside my still-sensitive pussy.

Right there.

In my seat.

With other passengers nearby.

With my husband on the phone.

I open my mouth to protest, but only a strangled gasp comes out. Knox's eyes meet mine, and there's pure wicked amusement in them as his fingers curl inside me, finding that spot that makes me see stars.

"What the-are you okay, Ember? Why are you breathing like that?" Gale's voice sharpens with suspicion. "Who's there with you? Is someone there?"

I can't answer. Can't speak. Knox's thumb finds my clit and starts circling it with maddening precision while his fingers pump slowly in and out of me.

This is insane. This is absolutely insane.

I'm furious-how dare he answer my phone, how dare he touch me like this in public, how dare he interfere-but I'm also getting dangerously close to coming, and I can't find the words to tell him to stop.

My hand grips the armrest so hard my knuckles turn white. I bite down on my lip to keep from making noise.

Gale is still talking. "Ember, answer me! Who's breathing like that? Are you with someone? Tell me right now!"

Knox leans down, his lips brushing my ear as he whispers just loud enough for me to hear.

"Should I tell him? Should I tell your pathetic excuse for a husband that you're currently dripping wet and clenching around my fingers?"

I shake my head frantically, eyes wide with panic and arousal.

Knox chuckles darkly and straightens up, his fingers never stopping their devastating rhythm inside me. Then he speaks into the phone, his voice cold and commanding.

"She heard you clearly, Gale. She's done."

Silence on the other end. Complete, dead silence.

Then-

"Who the fuck is this?"

"The divorce papers are already being prepared by my legal team," Knox continues smoothly, like he's discussing the weather and not currently finger-fucking me. "And I assure you, they're very thorough. Very expensive. You won't like the settlement terms."

His thumb presses harder against my clit, and I have to bite my fist to keep from crying out.

"Is that... no. No way. Is that King Knox Volkov?" Gale sounds like he's choking. "What the fuck is going on? Ember, what did you do? WHAT DID YOU DO?"

"What she did," Knox says, his voice dropping to something dark and possessive, "is realize she deserves better than a closeted alpha who can't even make her come."

Oh, my Goddess. He did not just say that.

"You son of a bitch! You think you can just swoop in and-"

"I don't think anything," Knox interrupts. "I know. And here's what I know: Ember will be far too busy screaming my name to take any more of your pathetic calls. So stop calling."

"You're fucking her? You're fucking my wife?! How long?!" Gale is screaming now. "I'll destroy you! I'll go to the Council! I'll-"

Knox hangs up and drops the phone in my lap.

His fingers never stop moving inside me. In fact, they speed up, curling harder, hitting that spot over and over while his thumb works my clit with devastating precision.

I'm right on the edge, trembling, trying desperately to stay quiet. The businessman a few rows back has headphones in, but the flight attendant definitely knows what's happening and is pointedly facing away, her face bright red.

"Come for me," Knox murmurs, low enough that only I can hear. "Come on my fingers while you think about how much better this feels than anything your husband ever gave you."

His words push me over the edge.

I come hard, biting down on my fist to muffle the sound, my pussy clenching rhythmically around his fingers, my whole body shaking with the intensity of it. Knox works me through every wave, drawing it out until I'm boneless and gasping.

Slowly, he withdraws his fingers. I watch in horrified fascination as he brings them to his mouth and licks them clean, his eyes locked on mine the entire time.

"Delicious," he says softly.

Then he calmly returns to his seat across the aisle like he didn't just make me come in the middle of a commercial flight.

I sit there trembling, unable to move, unable to think, my mind completely blank except for one repeating thought:

What the hell just happened?

EMBER'S POV

This morning, I was a dutiful omega trying to save her marriage with expensive lingerie.

Now, I'm a soon-to-be-divorced omega who just broke every rule of her existence with the Lycan King in an airplane bathroom, all while my husband was on the phone.

My life has become a complete disaster.

The pilot's voice speaks over the intercom.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Anchorage. Local time is 7:43 PM, and the current temperature is minus twelve degrees."

Anchorage. Home.

The seatbelt sign dings off, and passengers spring into action. I have no luggage, no coat, no plan. Just the clothes on my back and about two hundred dollars in my personal bank account.

I'll find a cheap hotel, I decide. One of those budget places near the airport. I'll figure out my next steps in the morning.

Call my parents and try to explain why their daughter's arranged marriage just imploded on Christmas Eve.

Yeah. That'll be a fun conversation.

I stand on shaky legs, my body still humming with the aftermath of everything Knox did to me.

My skin is flushed, my pulse is erratic, and I'm painfully aware that I am stepping out into the freezing Alaskan winter, missing a very crucial piece of lace - currently residing in the Lycan King's pocket.

I step into the aisle and immediately freeze.

Knox is suddenly there, his massive frame blocking my path. His blue eyes lock onto mine with that same lethal intensity.

"You're coming with me."

I blink up at him.

"I appreciate what happened back there, I do. But you're still basically a stranger, and I barely know you beyond the fact that you're the Lycan King and you just-" My face heats. "Well. You know."

"Completely ruined you for anyone else?" His lips curve slightly. "Yes, I'm aware."

"Right. That." I clear my throat. "Look, it was... intense. Really intense. But it was just a moment of madness. We don't owe each other anything."

"I disagree."

"You can disagree all you want, but I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself." I try to move past him, but he doesn't budge an inch. "Excuse me."

"Where exactly are you planning to go?"

"A hotel. There's a Holiday Inn near the airport."

"With what money?"

I lift my chin, refusing to be intimidated.

"I have enough."

"For how long?" He tilts his head, studying me. "One night? Two? What happens when that runs out?"

"I'll figure it out. People do it all the time."

"And what happens when Gale tracks your credit card and shows up at your door?"

My stomach drops. I hadn't thought of that. Of course, he'll track my card. He has access to all our accounts.

Knox sees the realisation on my face. "You have two choices, Ember. Walk out of here with me willingly, or I'll throw you over my shoulder and carry you out. Either way, you're coming with me."

"You wouldn't dare." But even as I say it, I can see the golden flash in his eyes that tells me he absolutely would. "That's kidnapping."

"It's protection." His voice softens, dropping low. "I'm not going to hurt you, Ember. But I'm also not going to let you wander around Anchorage alone, broke, with your unhinged husband hunting you down."

The scary part is, I believe him. This man I barely know - this ruthless Lycan King who just possessed every sense I have - actually seems concerned about my safety.

Maybe I've completely lost my mind, but I'm considering it.

"Why?" I ask quietly. "Why do you care what happens to me?"

His expression shifts for a breath and smooths out before I can read it.

"Let's just say I've always been intrigued by Gale's beautiful omega wife. The way you smiled at those boring pack events while he ignored you. The way you'd bring us coffee during meetings and pretend you didn't notice when he looked right through you." His hand comes up to cup my jaw, his thumb brushing over my bottom lip. "You deserved better than him. And I have a proposition that might interest you. Especially if you're interested in making Gale Crawford's life a living hell."

That gets my attention. "You're bribing me with revenge?"

"I'm offering you options." His lips curve. "The question is whether you're brave enough to take them."

I should walk away. I should tell him to leave me alone and handle my problems myself like a responsible adult.

But the truth is, I'm terrified. I have no real plan, barely any resources, and Gale is probably already on his way here.

I'm trying to act tough, trying to stand tall, but I'm a house cat trying to roar like a wolf. And the idea of making Gale suffer the way he made me suffer?

That sounds really, really good.

"If this proposition turns out to be something creepy," I say, meeting his eyes with more bravery than I feel, "I'm kneeing you in the balls and stealing your car."

His laugh is genuine, startled out of him. "Fair enough."

He extends his hand. After a long moment's hesitation, I take it. His fingers close around mine, warm and possessive, and he pulls me into the aisle.

My heart is pounding against my ribs. I'm literally leaving with the Lycan King. The most powerful, most dangerous alpha in North America. What am I doing?

We move through the jetway and into the terminal. Knox's hand settles on the small of my back, and even through my shirt, I can feel the heat of his palm burning into my skin.

"So where exactly are you taking me?" I ask, trying to sound casual and failing. "Please tell me it's not some creepy murder cabin in the woods."

"I don't do cabins. Too rustic." There's dry amusement in his voice. "I'm taking you somewhere you'll be safe, fed, and properly taken care of."

"Properly taken care of." I swallow hard. "That's ominously vague."

Knox glances down at me, and the heat in his eyes makes my stomach flip.

"Would you prefer I be specific? I'm taking you somewhere I can strip you out of those ruined clothes, put you in a hot bath, feed you something that isn't airplane food, and then show you exactly what it feels like to be worshipped in an actual bed."

My cheeks flame. "You really have no filter, do you?"

"None whatsoever." He sounds completely unbothered. "Life's too short for false modesty."

We round a corner, and suddenly, chaos erupts ahead of us. Camera flashes. Shouting. Reporters swarming. And in the middle of baggage claim, looking absolutely unhinged-

"EMBER! EMBER, I KNOW YOU'RE HERE!"

Gale.

He's actually here. He flew here ahead of me somehow and is now having a complete, spectacularly public meltdown.

His designer suit is wrinkled, his tie gone, his hair sticking up in every direction like he's been tearing at it.

Logan Reeves stands behind him, looking deeply uncomfortable, while two other pack members try unsuccessfully to calm him down.

"We need to talk! Please! I love you! Don't do this!"

Several reporters are filming everything, phones out, clearly sensing a major scandal brewing.

Oh, my Goddess. This is going to be everywhere by tomorrow morning. Every pack in North America will see this.

Knox's hand tightens protectively on my back. "This way."

He steers me toward a corridor marked "Private Access" and pushes through the door with the easy authority of a man who owns the world. Maybe he does.

The Lycan King probably has access to everything.

We emerge into a quiet hallway, but I can still hear Gale's voice behind us, muffled but desperate.

"EMBER! Please! I can change! I'll be better! I'll go to therapy!"

"He sounds stable," Knox comments dryly.

"He's probably been drinking with Logan." The words slip out before I can stop them. "They do that when they're stressed."

Knox's eyes sharpen with interest, but he doesn't push.

"Come on."

We reach another door, and he pushes it open, revealing a private parking area. A sleek black BMW M8 is waiting, engine purring, a driver standing at attention beside it.

"Mr. Volkov." The driver opens the back door immediately.

Knox guides me toward the car, but I stop, my feet refusing to move forward. This is it.

Once I get in that car, there's no going back. I'm choosing to trust a man I barely know, a man whose reputation includes leaving a trail of broken alphas in his wake.

But what's my alternative? Go back out there where Gale is screaming for the cameras? Find a cheap hotel where he'll track me down within hours?

"I need to know what this proposition is," I say, looking up at Knox. "Before I get in that car with you."

Knox turns to face me fully. The dim lighting casts shadows across his features, making him look more dangerous than usual.

More devastating, too, in a way that catches my breath despite the frigid air.

His hand comes up, fingers gentle as they tilt my chin.

"Not here. But I promise you, Ember - what I'm offering will give you everything you need. Safety. Protection. Resources. And the absolute power to make Gale Crawford wish he'd never been born."

My pulse races. "That's still vague."

"Get in the car, and I'll explain everything." His thumb traces my bottom lip. "Trust me."

"I don't know you well enough to trust you."

"No," he agrees. "But you know Gale. And you know what's waiting for you if you walk away from me right now." His eyes hold mine. "So what's it going to be, Ember? Take a chance on the devil you don't know, or go back to the hell you're trying to escape?"

I look at the car. At the open door. At the promise of something entirely different, something that might actually give me the power to fight back.

Then I look back toward the terminal, where my husband is probably still making a fool of himself.

The choice suddenly seems very simple.

I slide into the back seat.

Knox follows immediately, the door closing with an expensive thunk, sealing us into leather-scented darkness.

The car pulls away smoothly, leaving the airport - and Gale's public breakdown - behind us.

My heart won't stop racing. I'm in a car with the Lycan King. Alone. After losing my mind with him at thirty thousand feet. This is insane.

"So," I say, my voice coming out smaller than I'd like as the city lights stream past the tinted windows. "What's this proposition?"

Knox settles back against the seat, looking completely at ease, as if he didn't just orchestrate my escape from a very public disaster. In the dim light, his eyes catch the passing streetlamps, turning them almost silver.

When he smiles, it's wicked.

"How would you feel about being my fake girlfriend for the next week?"