Aria’s POV

My wolf pricked its ears at the question. Countless possibilities flashed through my mind.

“May I ask who you are?” I said carefully.

“You don’t know our identities, yet why are you treating us so thoughtfully?” she asked, her tone teasing, almost feline in its playfulness.

“Yes, and that is because you three have an extraordinary presence,” I answered honestly, feeling my wolf nod in approval. “And my friend brought you here.” 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

The word friend drew the middle aged woman’s attention immediately. I watched her sharp eyes flick toward Rowland. I could sense a hint of disappointment in her scent.

“I see...” she murmured. “You treat your friends very well.” Her smile narrowed slightly.

Rowland’s lips twitched, caught in the subtlest flicker of emotion. I sensed it, but I didn’t press. My focus stayed on the harmony of presence around me.

Amelia broke the momentary current of tension. “You said you wanted to accompany Aria to the Darvin family earlier? What does that mean?”

Ah...Practical. My wolf appreciated her clarity.

The middle aged woman spoke, warm and soft energy radiating off her like a calm pack mate. “We’re invited as well. Rowland suggested we follow along. Since we’re headed in the same direction... why not go together? Besides...” She paused, and I could feel her honesty, her pull, the magnetic weight of her curiosity. “I feel drawn to you.”

I had never believed in fate.

Wolves believed in instincts, in bloodlines, in the pull of the moon. And yet, the moment I faced these people, I couldn’t deny the warmth spreading quietly through my chest. It wasn’t attraction or admiration. It was familiarity, like the comfort of standing near one’s own pack without realizing it.

My wolf stirred, her tail flicking lazily.

“Dear,” the elderly woman said gently, “we’re strangers here. If you guide us, it would truly put our minds at ease.”

She even winked at me, a playful glint flashing in her sharp eyes, utterly unbefitting of her age. The man, far more restrained, simply tapped his cane once against the floor in agreement.

I hesitated.

From the moment they appeared, they had deliberately avoided revealing their identities. That alone told me their backgrounds were anything but simple. Even if I asked directly, I doubted they would give me a straight answer.

And I didn’t know who they were.

Bringing unknown wolves, powerful ones, at that, into my carefully laid plans could easily throw everything off balance. My wolf lifted her head, alert now, warning me not to be careless.

Rowland noticed the slight crease forming between my brows.

While everyone’s attention stayed on me, he moved quietly closer. I didn’t even hear his footsteps, only sensed the shift in the air behind me.

“Taking them along might actually help you,” he murmured.

I was startled when his warm breath brushed my ear. Turning my head, I met that infuriatingly handsome face with sharp, arrogant features softened by eyes as calm and reassuring as still water.

“Patrick wouldn’t dare touch them,” Rowland continued casually. His hand lifted and gently pressed against my shoulder, a grounding gesture. “Relax. I’ll escort all of you personally. If anything happens, just text me, I’ll rush in.”

The low timbre of his voice settled something restless inside me. My wolf, who had been circling warily, finally lay down.

I could already sense that these people were extraordinary. And Rowland, reckless as he seemed, wasn’t someone who made careless arrangements. The fact that he brought them here meant this wasn’t an impulse.

For reasons I couldn’t fully explain, I trusted him.

“Alright,” I said finally. “Come to the company lobby tomorrow.”

The moment I nodded, the three exchanged glances, satisfaction flashing unmistakably between them.

“Kid.”

The elderly woman suddenly stood up.

Before I could react, she grabbed my wrist. Her movements were swift and decisive, far too sharp for an ordinary elderly woman. In one smooth motion, she slipped a bracelet onto my arm, as if it had appeared out of thin air.

The moment it touched my skin, my wolf jolted upright.

The bracelet pulsed faintly with a strange warmth, ancient and powerful.

I instinctively tried to pull my hand back. “What are you doing?”

Despite her gray hair, her grip was ironclad. She smiled, refusing to let go. “This is payment for letting us come with you.”

Her tone was light, almost flippant.

When the middle aged woman saw the bracelet clearly, her eyebrow twitched, just once, before she carefully smoothed her expression.

“No,” I said firmly. “This is too precious. I can’t accept it.”

I tried to push it back toward her, but she patted her chest and waved me off. “What’s the big deal? My family runs a jewelry business. We’ve got tons of these at home. I don’t have anything else on me, just take it.”

The middle aged woman studied me more closely now. I couldn’t tell what was going through her mind.

The elderly man watched the woman’s theatrics and pressed a hand to his forehead, sighing quietly. But he didn’t stop her.

The cool weight around my wrist finally registered, a faint chill seeping into my skin like moonlight touching silver.

I lowered my hand and instinctively looked to Rowland. He was the one who had brought these people into my path, strangers who didn’t quite feel like strangers, so if anyone should explain this, it should be him.

Rowland merely shrugged, all lazy confidence, as if to say your call.

The sight made my molars grind together. I lifted my foot and placed the heel of my shoe squarely on his, pressing down slowly, deliberately.

Not hard enough to break bone unfortunately, but enough to make a point.

His smug expression froze instantly. Even the corner of his mouth twitched, just barely, like he was fighting the urge to bare his fangs.

He looked down at my beige high heel shoe.

The faint tension humming through the air wasn’t just embarrassment or irritation. It was the subtle pull between wolves, the instinctive awareness of closeness.

Rowland’s dazed look told me his senses had gone a little haywire. His pupils darkened, his posture slackening as if the pressure at his foot had traveled straight up his spine.

He licked his canine tooth slowly and squinted down at me.

“How about this,” he said lightly, though his voice had dipped into something rougher. “Leave the bracelet with me for safekeeping. I’ll return it when you leave.”