TEMPORARY MATES PERMANENT CRAVINGS novel Chapter 48

Forty-eight

Franklin POV

Cameron thought I had feelings for Lisa.

The idea was almost funny. Not because Lisa wasn’t likable. She was beautiful, kind, and stronger than she gave herself credit for. Under different circumstances, maybe I could have developed feelings for her.

But that wasn’t what was happening.

I was simply being her companion, trying to make life in this twisted situation a little less miserable. Giving her the basic decency everyone else seemed determined to withhold.

Apparently, that made me suspicious.

Cameron’s jealousy would be amusing if it wasn’t so pathetic. He wanted Lisa but refused to admit it. He guarded her like property while insisting she meant nothing. And somehow I was the problem.

I shook my head as I left his office, the conversation still echoing.

You’re getting blinded by feelings.

How do I know the child is mine?

As if I would ever betray him like that. As if I would sleep with the woman he was fucking.

The woman I wanted was nowhere near Lisa.

She was rude, unapproachable, sharp in ways that should have pushed me away. Instead I couldn’t stop thinking about her. The way her eyes flashed when she was angry. The rare moments when her guard slipped and I saw the vulnerability she worked so hard to hide. The way she moved through the world like she was daring it to hurt her so she’d have an excuse to strike back.

She was everything I shouldn’t want.

And I wanted her anyway.

But it didn’t matter.

She was Cameron’s sister. Untouchable in every way that counted. And even if she wasn’t, she’d made it clear she barely tolerated me. Soon she’d marry someone suitable. Someone with the right bloodline and connections, not Cameron’s second-in-command with no family name.

I’d accepted that a long time ago.

Wanting her was pointless.

The training grounds were empty when I arrived. I drove my fists into the heavy bag until my knuckles split and my shirt stuck to my skin.

It didn’t help.

Her face stayed in my head. Her voice. The memory of her standing too close and pretending not to notice the tension between us.

I was heading toward the showers when one of my security team hurried over.

1/5

city ht

+15 8gnus

“Sir. We have a situation.’

I stopped. “What kind?”

“The Alpha’s sister. Nadia. She’s at The Hollow.”

The Hollow sat on the edge of neutral territory. A bar where pack members drank when they didn’t want witnesses. It also attracted rogues and every kind of trouble.

“Is she alone?”

“As far as we can tell. There have been rogue sightings nearby. We thought you should know.”

“Keep eyes on her,” I said. “I’ll handle it.”

I should have sent someone else. I should have stayed away. But the thought of her drunk in rogue territory sent my wolf into a protective rage.

The Hollow looked exactly like every bar that lived on the edge of the law. Dim lights. Cheap alcohol. Faces that watched too closely.

I spotted Nadia at the bar with empty glasses lined up in front of her.

Even drunk and disheveled she was beautiful. Dark hair falling from its tie, makeup smeared, that same defiant look that dared the world to challenge her.

My chest tightened.

I started toward her and saw the male beside her.

Too close. His hand resting on her lower back while he leaned in to whisper something.

Nadia laughed.

Something in me snapped.

I crossed the distance and grabbed him by the shoulder, spinning him around.

“Get your hands off her.”

He was Lycan, but rogue.

“Fuck off,” he slurred. “The lady and I are talking.’

“The lady is drunk and you’re taking advantage. Move.”

His eyes flashed gold. “You want to make me?”

“If I have to.”

He swung first.

I ducked under the punch and drove my fist into his ribs. He staggered, then charged again. We went down hard, fists flying. Chairs scraped, voices rose, the bar erupting around us.

I didn’t care.

I locked my arm around his throat and squeezed until he went limp, then shoved him aside and stood.

2/5

‘Anyone else?” I asked the room.

No one answered.

I turned to Nadia.

“Let’s go.”

“I don’t need rescuing,” she said, words slurred. “I’m not a child.”

“You’re drunk in rogue territory. You’re leaving.”

“You can’t just ”

“Get in the car, Nadia.”

She stood and swayed, studying me.

“I like this side of you,” she said. “The commanding thing. Better than the quiet, obedient act.”

I ignored it and guided her outside.

We reached my car. I opened the passenger door.

She didn’t get in.

Instead she stepped close, looking up at me with bright, reckless eyes.

“Fuck me,” she said.

My mind went blank.

“What?”

“You heard me.” Her hands pressed against my chest. “Right here. Right now. I don’t care.”

This was the fantasy I had buried for years.

And I couldn’t touch it.

“You’re drunk,” I said.

“So?” She tilted her head. “Does that matter?”

“Yes.”

She laughed harshly. “You think I don’t see the way you look at me? I’m not blind, Franklin.”

My hands steadied her before she lost her balance.

“Nadia-”

“I’ve seen you watching. So stop pretending you don’t want this.”

God help me, she was right.

But not like this.

“Get in the car,” I said

+15 Bgnus

3/5

+15 Bonus

Her expression hardened.

“Are you rejecting me because of Lisa? Are you in love with her?”

The accusation was so ridiculous I almost laughed.

Instead I stayed quiet.

It was easier than telling her the truth. That I wanted her too much to take advantage of her like this. That tomorrow she’d regret it and hate me.

“Please,” I said. “Just get in.”

She stared at me, then turned and dropped into the passenger seat.

The drive back to the estate passed in silence.

Nadia stared out the window, anger and hurt rolling off her in waves. I kept my eyes on the road.

When we arrived she could barely stand.

I lifted her into my arms and carried her inside.

“You’re such a good boy,” she mumbled against my chest. “Always noble.”

I didn’t answer.

I took her to her room, laid her on the bed, covered her with a blanket, and left water and aspirin on the nightstand.

She was already asleep.

I stood there longer than I should have, looking down at her and fighting the urge to touch her.

Cameron would never approve.

And even if he did, she deserved better than someone like me.

I forced myself out.

Halfway down the hall I saw movement.

Evangeline stepped out of a guest room carrying a small wooden box. She moved carefully, checking the hallway before heading toward her quarters.

Something about the way she looked around made the back of my neck tighten.

I slipped into a shadow and followed at a distance.

She entered her room and closed the door. I moved to a window that overlooked her sitting area and watched through the gap in the curtains.

Evangeline placed the box on a table and opened it.

White candles.

She arranged them in a circle and lit each one with slow, deliberate movements.

Then she took out a knife.

4/5

My wolf stiffened.

15 Bonus

She held her hand over a bowl and cut her palm. Blood dripped into the glass. She squeezed her fist until more followed, then set the blade aside and lifted the bowl.

Her lips moved.

A chant.

A ritual.

Cold spread through me.

After several minutes she stopped, poured the blood into a vial, corked it, and placed it back in the box. She extinguished the candles and wiped the table clean.

When she finally climbed into bed, the box hidden in her nightstand, I moved.

The security office sat empty at this hour.

I pulled up the CCTV feeds and scrolled through the hallway cameras.

Nothing.

The camera that should have covered Evangeline’s corridor had been offline for weeks.

Convenient.

The guest room she’d used had no camera coverage either.

She knew exactly where the blind spots were.

I leaned back in the chair, my mind racing.

Blood rituals. Blind cameras. Secret candles.

I didn’t know what Evangeline was doing.

But I knew it wasn’t normal.

P

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