Jaguar:

I should have known something was wrong when she first called me.

I mean, it was already strange enough that my brother never told me he was taking her with him.

I only found out when I didn’t see her at the office the next day.

But I didn’t make a big deal out of it.

It was her job, and she was my brother’s personal secretary.

But i was afraid of her being alone with my brother.

If she made a mistake, there would be no one else to take the blame for it or fix it.

Any mistake would be dealt with harshly.

"Are you going somewhere?" Theodore asked the moment he noticed I was quickly putting on a fitted black shirt and getting ready to leave.

"Yeah. A friend of mine got into an accident."

I had already called my boss and told him I needed to leave so I could focus on helping my friend.

The last thing I wanted was for Theodore to notice how concerned I was.

"But aren’t you supposed to stay?" Theodore asked.

He had a point.

Tonight was important.

The council leaders were gathered together, celebrating another milestone before the start of another busy week.

We always celebrated each other’s achievements, no matter how small.

This particular celebration had been organized by Gigi herself for Ragnar, so we all knew how much it meant to her.

She was like a sister to us. We cared deeply about her.

We also knew that if I missed the dinner, she would be upset. Maybe even hurt.

She had always been soft-hearted that way.

But there was a problem.

Someone else needed me tonight.

As much as I wanted to stay here with my brother and celebrate alongside everyone else, I couldn’t.

"I’ll try to come back, okay?" I told Theodore.

But my mind was elsewhere.

Verity had put me through so much stress in the span of a single phone call.

She had accidentally dialed my number, and whatever had happened afterward had left her unwilling to accept anyone’s help.

The moment I learned someone had broken into her home, I knew I wanted to help her more than anyone else.

Even more than the police.

Nothing was going to stop me.

I took my car, left the driver at home along with the guards, and drove off as fast as I could.

The entire way there, my heart thundered against my ribs.

One hand rested on my thigh while the other gripped the steering wheel.

Mentally, I was already torturing whoever had upset her.

Honestly, I didn’t even know why.

’Isn’t it obvious?’ my wolf grunted, making me roll my eyes. ’Why do you Alphas always act so clueless? Just admit it. You like her.’

I slowly straightened in my seat.

Var was always honest. He never sugarcoated anything.

’And I’m hoping it’s not just because of her body,’ he added and I grunted.

If it were only about her body, I would have slept with her a long time ago.

"You need to understand, I tried to stop myself, but—" I trailed off, clenching my jaw.

Those small interactions couldn’t be the only reason.

Yet it was true. There was something about her that intrigued me.

And whenever she was around, my body seemed to react before my mind could catch up.

The admission left a bitter taste in my mouth, and I bit down on my tongue to silence myself.

My wolf fell silent too.

Finally, I arrived at her place.

I had gotten her address from my manager the day before because I wanted to have it just in case.

I still didn’t know why.

Maybe it was because I always saw Verity as someone standing alone against the storms of the world.

Someone fragile despite how hard she tried to appear strong.

The moment I stepped out of my car, heads started popping out of houses in shock.

It wasn’t every day an Alpha King visited a rogue community, so I understood the reaction.

As I approached her street, I noticed a woman standing outside her house.

She quickly dropped her cigarette, crushed it beneath her heel, and fixed her hair.

"Jaguar," she purred, my name dripping from her lips as her eyes lit up.

Whatever she was trying to do, I wasn’t interested.

"Mom, who is it?" I heard a girl’s voice call from inside.

The woman immediately pushed her daughter back into the house before tugging down the front of her dress, exposing more cleavage.

I ignored the display.

"Is this Verity’s house?" I asked, pointing toward the door.

The woman’s face immediately paled.

"Yes. Why do you want to know about her?" she asked, panic creeping into her voice.

I didn’t answer.

Instead, I turned and walked toward the door.

That was when I noticed something that made my stomach tighten.

The lock was broken.

Everything suddenly made sense.

Someone had forced their way into her home through the front door.

So boldly and so shamelessly.

Rage surged through me.

I kicked the door open, sending whatever Verity had wedged against it flying across the room.

Then I stepped inside and slammed it shut behind me.

The damage was worse than I expected.

It looked as though every lock in the house had been broken, even the ones inside.

Whoever had done this hadn’t just wanted to rob her.

They had wanted her to suffer.

I remembered how panicked she had sounded.

Hopefully, she hadn’t passed out from fright.

I hurried inside and dragged a table in front of the door to make sure it wouldn’t swing open again.

Then I rushed deeper into the house.

"Miss Verity!" I called out.

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting to find.

Then she stepped out of her bedroom.

The sight froze me in place.

Verity stood in front of me, hastily adjusting her robe as though she had rushed out of the shower the moment she heard my voice.

The silk clung to her damp skin.

The thin white fabric did little to conceal the curves beneath it, and my gaze immediately darted away before returning despite my best efforts.

For a moment, my mind went completely blank.

And in that instant, I knew I was in serious trouble.

Tonight was going to be very awkward.