Chapter 25 Sce

Chapter 25 Sce

ARDEN

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“Are you alright?” Tessa asked, her brows furrowed with concern as we sat together in the library, waiting for Cade and Rowan to arrive, I was feeling increasingly under the weather, a sense of heat creeping up on me.

She ced her hand lightly over my forehead band /bhissed. “You’re hor”

“bThanks/b, I muttered jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

“Well, you are hot–literally,” she replied, her expression shifting into one of seriousness. “Are you sick?”

“It might have been the party yesterday,” I suggested with a slight shrug. “Or perhaps it’s the cold showers we take in our dorm.“”

She chuckled softly, but her worry didn’t entirely dissipate. “Are you really okay? Do you need any medicine?”

I shook my head firmly. “We have a presentation in two days, and I can’t afford to miss it.”

my

But despite my determination, I couldn’t shake the bgrowing /bheat from my body. “Do you mind if I ssh some water on my face? I bthink /bit might cool me down a bit.”

“Go ahead,” she urged. “Do you need my help?”

I offered her a reassuring smile as I stood from my seat. “No, it’s alright. I’ll be back before the bell rings.”

Even though she still looked concerned, she eventually nodded. With that, I made my way toward the restrooms,pelled by a rising sensation I couldn’t ignore.

As I stepped into the hallway, bI /bnoticed that the first ss was about to startb, /bbwhich /bmeant there weren’t many students around. bHowever/b, those who were bthere /bshot me curious and perplexed looks as I passed by

My brows furrowed deeper, and with each step I took, I felt the heat within me intensifying

b“/bCould it be…?” I thought, but then I shook my head, trying to bdismiss /bthe bnotion/b. I wasn’t due for another btwo /bweeks; I had always maintained a regr heat cycle, meticulously bmanaging /bit since I first met Jaxon at eighteen. I’d relied on suppressants every time, determined to give Jaxon no more opportunities to desire my body.

But then, as my vision began to blur, a wave of dread washed over me. The symptoms I was experiencing were unmistakably bindicative /bof an bimpending /bheat. I nced around the hallways and noticed that they were still popted, although sparsely. A couple of lockers baway/b, two men were standing btogether/b, their beyes /bfixed of bane/b.

I couldn’t detect my own scent, bbut /bfrom the bdark /bgaze they held, it was clear that I bwas /bbstruggling /bto control my pheromones. Gathering bwhatever /bstrength I bhad/b. I turned to walk away from them. Yet, I could hear their footsteps growing nearer. I tried to quicken my pace, but my body had its lumits

“I need to reach the nurse’s office, I muttered under my bbreath/b. Unfortunately, it was located on the first floor, and the thought of using the elevator made my skin crawl–it felt like bwalking /bbstraight /bbinto /ba trap.

Thesitated, turning around once, bonly /bto immediately regret it. The two men bhad /bclosed the distance between us.

“bWe /bjust want to bask /byou a question,” one of them said, his voice bsending /ba chill down bmy /bspine. In the distance, I could see the teacher’s lounge

“Nobody’s in there, princess. That’s just a cramped old bquarters /bfilled with paperwork. The new teacher’s lounge is in the other building, the second man btaunted/b.

Despite their dismissive bments/b, I kept moving. If I bstopped /bbnow/b, I knew it bwould /bbe over.

Just then, contrary to their bims/b, bsomeone /bbwalked /bout of the teacher’s lounge. To my immense relief, it bwas /bCade–the one person I seemingly always found when I was in trouble. I watched bas /bhe stiffened upon bseeing /bme.

b1/3 /b

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Before I realized it, I had rushed into his arms. It felt like I had been wandering through ba /bdesert, and he was my much- needed oasis. His cool skin against my overheated body was a wee relief, and I closed my eyes, feeling the effects of my condition intensifying.

Cade paused, taking a moment to assess the situation before bhis /bgaze shifted to the two men who had been pursuing me.

“What bare /byou doing?” he demanded.

With that one question, the two men backed away. bA /bsoft chuckle escaped one of them as he shrugged. “We were just trying to help, but it seems you can bhandle /bit better, Alpha.”

Cade didn’t respond verbally; he simply nodded, and that was enough to make the two of them leave. However, I noticed that the warmth in my body didn’t subside. In fact, it felt like it was reaching a scalding peak.

His scent was fresh and invigorating. I nced bup /bbat /bbhis /bface and saw how dark his eyes had be. But Cade was truly remarkable. He was entirely in control of himself, and perhaps that was why I felt so safe in his presence.

He rubbed the bridge of bhis /bnose, and a hint of annoyance in his gaze. “Why do you always end up in these kinds of situationsb?/b”

“I–I don’t.” I murmured, although I knew that ever since I arrived at Elite, such incidents had seemed to follow me. “It’s only because you’re always there.”

He scoffedb, /bshaking his head. “So now it’s my fault?”

“N–bno/b.” I stammered, anxiety creeping binto /bmy voice. “Can you please just help me?”

His lips pursed as he stepped bcloser/b, steering me to a more secluded area. “Where are your suppressants?” he asked.

We were nearer now, and I became hyperaware of his presence. My gaze inadvertently shifted to his lips–those very lips I had kissed before–before I turned my bhead /baway, engulfed in embarrassment. The heat radiating from my body bwas /bbing unbearable.

“I don’t have them.” I confessed.

A sh of annoyance crossed his features. “How could you bnot /bhave them when you’re clearly in heatb?/b”

“I wasn’t supposed to happen this early,” I muttered defensively

He shook his head in exasperation and rubbed the bbridge /bof his nose bagain/b. I sensed bthat /bhis emotions were bring/b, and bhis /bscent grew more potent. Before I knew it, a small moan slipped from my lips, escaping without my permissionb. /b

Cade bfroze/b, his attention snapping bback /bto me, his beyes /bbdarkened /bby dted pupils. I could see the veins in his hands standing out, likely a testament to his struggle for bcontrol /bin this charged moment. My bknees /bbuckled slightly with the way he looked.

His breath hitched before he reached for something in his pocket–bsuppressants/b. Did he always have them lying around!

“Take this,” he said, and I could feel he was on the verge of losing bcontrol/b. However, I was in the bsame /bsituation.

Cold. His skin was so cold, soothing against mine. I wrapped my barms /baround his, the world blurring around us.

“Flub,” he muttered. “Get off me right now.”

“You’re going to regret it if you bdon’t/b.”

However, I couldn’t hear anything. bAll /bI could feel was how his body felt bso /bpatible bwith /bmine,

Arden”

I felt like that was the first time he had properly called my bname/b, and a small smile appeared on my lips.

“bFuck /bhe cursed, his body already hard as brock/b. Then, bjust /bas I was about to sumb to the pleasure of it all, losing full control of my body. I felt myself get separated from him.

b2/3 /b

10:44 AM c

Chapter 25 Sce

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A whine escaped my lips, and I looked up at him with the same ssy eyes. He ced the suppressant into his mouth.

Then, before I knew it, for the second time, our lips met.