Childhood Tormentor

Nadia

The realization hit me with the crushing weight of a freight train.

My lungs froze, refusing to draw air. I stared at the lethal, broad-shouldered man standing in the corridor, desperately trying to reconcile the figure before me with the ghost from my past.

Torin Beckett.

How on earth had I failed to recognize him?

A second later, the answer became painfully obvious. The lanky, awkward boy who had been shipped off to boarding school years ago had ceased to exist. In his place stood an intimidating wall of sculpted muscle, dangerous grace, and unyielding authority. His jawline looked chiseled from dark granite, his broad chest strained against the dark fabric of his shirt, and he possessed the kind of effortless smirk that belonged to an apex predator.

Worse than the shock of his return was the searing memory of what had just transpired inside his private suite. This was the stranger who had backed me against the wall, pinned my wrists, and kissed me until my senses dissolved.

And I had kissed him back.

The realization burned like acid in my throat. I wanted to scrub my skin with lye to erase the lingering phantom heat of his mouth.

Corbin stiffened beside me. Every muscle along my best friend's spine pulled taut, his wolf bristling under the surface before he forced his frame to relax. He lifted his chin, his voice flat and devoid of warmth.

"I did not know you were in town, half-brother."

The venom dripping from Corbin's words was unmistakable. If Corbin and I had shared one universal truth throughout our childhood, it was our deep hatred for Torin. Hearing Corbin spit out that title confirmed that years of separation had done nothing to heal the old wounds between them.

Torin did not seem bothered in the least. He carved another clean slice from the green apple, caught the wedge on the flat of my hunting blade, and popped it into his mouth.

"Nice to see you too, little bro."

Torin drawled the greeting in a low, gravelly baritone that vibrated right through the floorboards. The deep timber sent an unwelcome ripple through my stomach, making my jaw clench. It infuriated me how someone so cruel could turn into something so lethally magnetic.

Beside Corbin, Giselle let out a soft, appreciative gasp. Her blue eyes traveled up Torin's powerful frame, lingering over his broad shoulders with naked hunger.

Torin ignored her presence. He tilted his head, his dark, piercing gaze sliding away from Corbin and locking directly onto my face.

"Hey there, Dotty."

That hated name struck me like a physical blow.

A wave of childhood humiliation rushed over me, dragging me back to a summer afternoon when I was barely five years old. I had been playing hide-and-seek in the yard with Corbin. Torin, who was ten and perpetually bored, wanted Corbin inside to play a video game. He convinced me to hide behind a massive briar bush at the back of the property, swearing Corbin would never find me there.

I sat behind those prickly thorns for more than an hour, scraping my knees and waiting patiently, before I crawled out and realized I had been duped. I stomped into the house, tears streaking my dusty cheeks, only to find Corbin glued to the screen while Torin laughed at his shoulder.

When I tried to pull Corbin outside by his shirt sleeve, Torin shoved my hand away with a sneer.

"Can you not take a single step without precious Corbin? Look at your face. Your freckles look like giant dots behind those thick lenses, Dotty."

He had chanted the nickname until Corbin joined in, leaving me to run home crying into my pillow.

Present-day Nadia did not run, and she refused to cry.

I balled my hands into tight fists. I took three aggressive strides forward, stopping inches from Torin's towering frame. I tilted my chin high, meeting his mocking stare head-on despite the sheer physical dominance radiating off him.

"Do not call me that." I gritted out the warning through clenched teeth.

Torin twirled my stolen hunting knife between his calloused fingers, the curved steel catching the dim light of the wall sconce. He flicked the apple core into a nearby trash bin without bothering to look. He leaned down slightly, his dark eyes sparkling with wicked amusement.

"Or what? You plan to silence me with another kiss?"

Heat rushed up my neck and scorched my cheeks. My mind flashed back to his calloused hands gripping my hips, the taste of cedar on his tongue, and the desperate way my fingers had tangled in his hair.

"Shut up." I hissed, dropping my voice so Corbin would not hear.

I threw a quick, nervous glance over my shoulder, but Corbin was not even looking in our direction. Giselle had wound both arms around his neck, whispering sweet complaints against his collarbone. She pressed her curves against his side, stroking his jawline with her manicured fingers.

Corbin gave in to the distraction instantly. He glanced at me with an irritated sigh, dismissing me without a second thought.

"Head home, Nadia. We can talk about this mess tomorrow."

Before I could utter a single word, Corbin wrapped his large hand around the back of Giselle's neck, hauled her through his doorway, and kicked the heavy suite door shut.

The lock clicked into place with finality.

A sharp pang stabbed through my ribs, cold and suffocating. Seeing Giselle receive the touch, the attention, and the easy devotion I had spent my entire youth yearning for felt like broken glass turning in my chest. Corbin had cast me aside without hesitation, leaving me alone in the dim hallway.

A soft metallic scrape broke the silence.

Torin stood right in front of me, his arm extended. He held my hunting knife flat across his palm, the polished bone hilt pointed directly toward my chest.

"You look like you need a weapon right about now." Torin remarked, his tone laced with dry amusement.

"I do not need your commentary." I snapped.

I snatched the weapon from his palm, the brief brush of his warm skin sending an electric shock through my fingertips. I tucked the blade back into its sheath beneath my leather jacket, crossing my arms over my chest to hide the faint tremor in my hands.

"When did you crawl back to this town anyway?" I demanded, desperate to wipe the arrogant smirk off his face.

His absence had been the best thing that ever happened to my childhood. Once he left for boarding school, Corbin and I had years of peace—or as much peace as one could have while Corbin chased after every pretty girl in the pack.

Torin leaned his shoulder against the doorframe of his suite, crossing his heavy arms over his chest.

"I arrived yesterday. I had an appointment to meet an alliance bride, but urgent pack business got in the way."

The words hit me like an ice bath.

Yesterday.

Alliance bride.

Urgent pack business.

The puzzle pieces clicked into place with sickening clarity. The elite alpha who had failed to show up at the Silverthorn pavilion. The hours I spent sitting at that formal table, enduring the pitying glances of the waitstaff while my father's hopes crumbled.

A volcanic fury erupted inside my chest, burning away the lingering sting of Corbin's dismissal.

I took a sharp step forward, jabbing a finger toward his chest.

"You did that on purpose. You knew who you were supposed to meet. You stood me up on purpose because you wanted to humiliate me. You wanted to watch me break down and cry just like old times. I should have guessed only a cruel, calculating bastard like you could pull off something so petty."

Torin did not retreat. An infuriating, slow grin spread across his sculpted lips, his eyes gleaming with predatory triumph.

"Are you admitting you knew who I was, yet you still kissed me like a starved woman who had never been touched before?" He purred, his voice dropping into a low, smoky rasp.

The words stuck in my throat. My jaw locked tight as heat flared across my skin. I wanted to tear him apart with a razor-sharp insult, but my mind drew a blank against the raw truth of that kiss.

"I would not kiss you if you were the last breathing male on this continent. And I stand by my words. Whichever unfortunate woman ends up with you will spend the rest of her life in misery, because you are nothing but an icy, heartless bastard." I forced out every syllable with pure venom.

Torin pushed off the wall and closed the remaining space between us in a single stride. His towering presence cast a dark shadow over me, his scent of crushed pine and raw alpha authority wrapping around my senses like a vice. He leaned down until his mouth hovered a mere breath from my ear.

His deep voice vibrated against my skin, dripping with cold mockery.

"The swearing and the claws are definitely new, Dotty. You hiss like a feral kitten. I only hoped your pathetic obsession with Corbin would have faded by now, but you are still trailing after him like a kicked puppy."

What?