~Jace's Point Of View~
The silence in the car wasn't just awkward—it was heavy. It was almost choking. Jace shifted in his seat, drumming his fingers against the leather steering wheel like it might force words into the air between them.
Wren sat curled up against the window, her face half-turned away, eyes scanning the speeding pine and dusk as they drove. She hadn't said a word in ten minutes, not since he'd offered her his jacket and she'd muttered a tight "thanks," like politeness physically pained her.
The jacket swallowed her. Hell, she looked so damn small in it. Like something breakable, he should never touch.
And maybe he never should. But damn if his brain—or his wolf, agreed.
Because even now, his mind was already slipping into a place it shouldn't. He tried to focus on the road. On the gentle curve of the forest road winding toward Lupin House. But his thoughts kept drifting to what Wren's body would feel like under his.
She was all sharp little bones and soft edges, the kind of woman who looked like she'd cling tight and leave marks. His jaw clenched at the thought, and his wolf, that mischievous son of a bitch, growled approvingly in the back of his mind.
"She smells good," his wolf murmured. "Like apples and anger. Let's see what she tastes like."
"Fuck off," Jace muttered under his breath.
Wren glanced at him. "Did you say something?"
Oh, shit. Unlike his friends, he didn't want to scare her off. It wasn't just because apparently, she was his fated mate, and that of his friends—which was even a crazy and unbelievable phenomenon, but that's by the way…
… it was because women have helped him keep his thirst in place. For that, he was grateful to them and has learned not to be too hard on them.
He forced a smile, letting his golden boy grin at full wattage. "Just talking to myself. Bad habit."
She looked at him like she didn't buy it, then turned away again. The jacket's sleeves flopped over her fingers, and she kept tugging at them, as if trying to disappear inside the fabric. She looked… scared. Not of him, necessarily. But of everything.
And she should be. After what he and his friends did to her? After killing her and dragging her into this mess like she was some chew toy caught in a pack scuffle?
He sighed and leaned his head back against the headrest.
He wasn't proud of it. Of who he'd become. Everyone saw the charming, easygoing, flirty Jace. The golden boy. He made people laugh. Made them feel good. Everyone wanted to be around him. But no one really knew him. Not even his boys. Not even Radek, who acted like he knew everyone's souls. And Jace liked it that way. Kept things simple.
Because the truth?
He was tired. Bone-deep, soul-weary tired of the golden boy gig. It felt like a role he'd been cast in years ago and never got to leave. And behind the endless flirtation, the late-night parties, the effortless seductions—there was a gnawing hole. A hunger.
Sex didn't fill it. Not really. But it dulled the ache.
Most days, he couldn't go without it. He didn't even want to. He'd sneak off between classes, hook up with someone behind the gym, in the bathroom, in the woods, hell—once in the kitchen pantry during pack breakfast. He'd smiled the whole time like it was a game. Like it was nothing.
But it was something. It was him.
He tightened his grip on the wheel.
They were pulling up to Lupin House now. A towering, ivy-choked mansion tucked into the hillside. The lights in the upper windows were already on. Music throbbed faintly through the trees.
"Listen," he said, cutting the engine and turning to Wren after the group call with his friends on how to get rid of the Lupin House girls.
"You stay here. I'll go distract the girls and wait for Radek's cue. Don't come out until then, okay?"
Her brow furrowed. "Why not?"
He gave her a wink. "Because the moment they see you, they're gonna tear you apart. You're new blood. And they're not exactly welcoming."
She recoiled, shifting deeper into her seat. He could feel the nervous energy radiating off her like heat waves off the asphalt.
"I'll keep them busy," he added, softer now. "Promise."
Her eyes searched his. And for one brief second, he thought she might say something. But she just nodded and pulled the jacket tighter.
Good. That made it easier. Because the truth was… he needed a fix.
As soon as he stepped out of the car and shut the door behind him, the night air rushed over his skin like a slap. It was cold and full of pine and perfume and lust. His wolf howled with disapproval.
"We can just have Wren. She's our mate. We don't need oth-"
Jace forced him down and shoved him to the back of his mind before he could finish his sentence. There was no way he could traumatize her further after Dimitri had snapped her neck like that and she'd just risen from the dead.
He had three sisters and was surrounded by women to know how delicate they could be. Not to mention a human.
.
The front lawn of Lupin House was alive. Girls draped over the porch railings. Laughter spilled into the dark like glittering smoke. And when they saw him, when Jace Draymoor strutted up the gravel path, hands in pockets, smirk locked and loaded, the reaction was immediate.
"Jaaaaaace!" one of the girls squealed. It was a blonde in heels too high and a skirt too short to be legal.
"Looking good, Gamma heir," another purred, sidling up to him with a sly little smirk and grabbing his arm.
Jace didn't resist. He never did.
They clustered around him like bees to sugar water. Some playfully tugged at his shirt. One whispered something filthy and promising in his ear. And Jace laughed, easy and warm and just the right amount of cocky.
He had a goddamn gift; a voice like melted chocolate and eyes that made girls forget their boyfriends.
"Ladies, I missed you." he grinned.
He absolutely did. It's been what? Ten hours since his last sex? He'd been looking forward to the sport with the boys, but fate turned it around and made the prostitute into their mate.
They were all so screwed.