Chapter 98: Territorial Nyra
Behind them, the door to the lounge opens again, and an unfamiliar Beta walks in, making Nyra’s eyes widen slightly.
She is so stunning, like top-models-kind-of stunning. She has long dark hair, flawless features, deep dimples, and a bright smile.
Her eyes go straight to Adrian, ignoring everyone else.
"Adrian!" she calls cheerfully, waving at him as though Nyra isn’t even there. "I came to invite you to lunch. Would you like to come with me?"
Nyra frowns at the scene. Who the hell is this?
Adrian quickly looks between the two girls, sensing the tension immediately. And before it can escalate, he speaks up first.
"Hi, Angel. This is Nyra." He gestures toward Nyra.
"And Nyra, this is Angel. She’s a new senior student. She transferred in a few days before you came back. Her dad is friends with Mr. Ramon."
Angel’s eyes finally move toward Nyra, like she’s finally noticing someone else besides him.
For a second, she simply stares at her with a blank expression, then her gaze slowly travels from Nyra’s face to the hand resting casually on Adrian’s shoulder, then back to her face.
"Oh." There is absolutely nothing friendly about her smile. "So you’re the infamous Nyra Hale."
Nyra raises an eyebrow. "Yeah." She shifts slightly closer to Adrian. "That Nyra. Adrian’s mate."
The emphasis on the word mate is impossible to miss, and the girl mutters something under her breath.
John immediately presses his lips together, clearly fighting a laugh. Even Jason has an amused smile on his face, watching the tension from the other side of the room.
Angel crosses her hand over her chest. "Nice to meet you."
"Yeah, you too." Except neither of them sounds particularly sincere. They are definitely not happy to see each other.
Angel’s attention drifts toward Adrian again, and that’s when she finally seems to notice that Nyra is sitting comfortably on his lap.
She frowns deeply, but for some reason still doesn’t walk away.
Nyra also doesn’t say anything else to her. Not worth it, she thinks.
Instead, she casually wraps an arm around Adrian’s neck and leans close to his ear, whispering something into it.
Whatever she is saying isn’t particularly important, but the message is obvious.
He’s taken.
Adrian is fighting back a smile now. He never knew Nyra had this territorial side to her.
John, on the other hand, isn’t nearly as subtle. He turns away, shoulders shaking as he starts whispering with the other guys, who are very well enjoying the show.
Angel flashes Nyra one last dirty look. "Well..." She clears her throat. "I’ll see you around, Adrian."
Adrian barely looks up. "Yeah."
The tall girl rolls her eyes as she turns and walks toward the door. The moment it closes behind her, the smile on Nyra’s face drops.
"Who is she?"
"A first-year senior."
Nyra looks at him suspiciously. "First-year senior? You’re a second-year senior, what are you doing with her then?"
"Nothing, actually." Adrian shrugs. "The principal asked me to mentor her since her family is close to Mr. Ramon. She’s new here, so I’ve been showing her around."
Nyra narrows her eyes. "Does she know you have someone? Like a mate? A marked one at that?" She emphasizes the word marked.
It’s not uncommon for young wolves to try and get involved with another person’s mate. They’re far too young to be stuck with one person for life--or so they’ll say when you ask.
Sometimes it’s mutual. Both mates make an agreement to still mingle with other wolves until a certain age.
But trying to get with an Alpha who has a marked mate? That is frowned upon deeply. Even among teenage other wolves.
"Of course." Adrian chuckles. "I told her I’m mated."
"And she still acts like that?" Nyra stares at the door for a moment before slowly looking back at Adrian. "Something is off. I don’t like her."
Adrian grins brightly, wrapping a hand tighter around her waist. "Really? Or you’re... jealous."
Nyra scoffs. "I’m not."
"You were sitting on my lap and still glaring at another girl."
"She was glaring at me too!" Nyra argues, turning to John. "You saw it, right?"
This time, John can’t hold back his laughter anymore. He bursts into full hysterical laughter, clutching his stomach.
"Shut up." Nyra shoots him a glare. "I hate you. I hate all of you!" She punches Adrian lightly in the stomach when he also starts cracking up.
"There’s nothing wrong with being jealous, babe." He presses a kiss into her hair. "I actually like it. It’s cute."
She rolls her eyes at him but doesn’t pull away.
The remaining minutes spent in the lounge are pure disaster. From talking about random things, they somehow end up persuading Nyra and Adrian to throw a party in the condo tonight to celebrate.
Although they’ve been in the Blackwood mansion since the incident, Adrian assures them they can find a way around the party tonight.
So, after the last bell, Nyra finds herself in Adrian’s car, speeding off toward their shared condo to prepare for the party.
The moment the door opens, the nostalgia hits Nyra like a brick. This place holds so many memories for them.
The first time Luna Selene offered them this apartment as a mating gift, Nyra thought she would detest the space. And for a while, she did. But slowly, this place became a safe haven for the both of them.
Still lost in thought, she doesn’t realize Adrian is sneaking up on her until his hand wraps tightly around her arm from behind.
"What are you thinking about?" He mutters, pressing open-mouthed kisses down her neck.
"Nothing..." she giggles, tilting her head to give him more room, and he takes the invitation without hesitation, his hand sliding down to squeeze her waist.
Then he lets his palm glide lower, cupping her hip and pulling her flush against him. She feels the heat of his body against her back as he rolls his hips.
"You cool with the party? Or you want to just skip, hangout together?" he murmurs, his lips brushing the shell of her ear.
"I don’t know," she whispers back, trying to act unaffected, though her voice is clearly strained.
Adrian keeps moving, slow caresses. His hand slides up beneath the hem of her shirt, fingertips tracing the soft skin of her stomach, the dip of her navel, the lower edge of her ribs.
Then he changes direction. His fingers drift lower, slipping past the waistband of her pants, palm flat against the warm skin of her lower belly. Adrian doesn’t rush his hand, he just caresses the skin, thumb stroking absently in small, grounding circles, feeling the way her breath hitches everytime his hand hover too close to her heat.
Only when she leans back into him does he slide further, cupping her through the thin fabric of her underwear.
His fingers caress her there, press and release, testing the heat of her, learning the shape of her all over again without ever slipping beneath the fabric.
His hips roll against her again, his half hard cock bringing slowly against the small of her back while his mouth continues to trail open-mouthed kisses down her neck.
He presses his finger at her entrance through the lace panties, pressing hard enough that she gasps, fingers digging into his forearm, grinding against his hand, eyes begging him to remove the remaining barrier and just go for it.
But Adrian doesn’t. He ruts harder into her, groaning against her neck, fingers pressing as far as the lace would allow.
It’s not enough. Fuck. It’s not enough for either of them.
Adrian is groaning loudly now, other hand holding her waist in place as he continues grinding against her.
"Want you so bad.." he whispers, nuzzling the lobe of her ear. His touch and voice sends her over the edge, her legs trembling uncontrollably.
"Adrian, just do it." She pants, reaching into her own sweats to shift the lace aside, but Adrian quickly removed his hand first.
"I’m sorry.." he clears his throat, unable to meet her eyes. "I’m sorry but I can’t do it."
That’s it. That’s fucking it.
Nyra twists in his arms until she’s facing him. Her eyes are glimmering with unshed tears now. "Are you disgusted with me now? Is that why you won’t really touch me?"
Adrian’s brows draw together. He searches her face. "This is the second time you’ve used that word. Why would you think that? I could never be disgusted with you."
She lets out a bitter laugh. "Liar. You , couldn’t hold back before. You used to touch me like you couldn’t get enough of me. Hands under my clothes, mouth everywhere, no patience at all." She wipes her eyes. "And now what? Suddenly you have all this self-control? Right after I was almost raped?"
Adrian pulls back. Every muscle in his body locks, and his eyes go completely dark .
"You say what now?"