Chapter 7 #2
Riley's fingers tightened around the door handle as fury and something far more dangerous warred in her chest. After four days of silence—four days of wondering what she'd done wrong, of replaying that humiliating moment outside her apartment until it felt burned into her memory—he had the audacity to show up here looking like every fantasy she'd tried to banish.
She yanked the door open. "What do you want?" The words came out flat and hostile. "I'm busy."
Adrian's gaze swept over her, lingering for a heartbeat too long on the exposed skin of her midriff before meeting her eyes with an expression she couldn't quite read.
When he spoke, his voice carried that same controlled authority that had made her pulse quicken during their dinner, but underneath it she heard something rawer.
"I want to talk. I need to apologize for leaving so abruptly the other night."
Riley crossed her arms, acutely aware of how the movement pushed her breasts higher and the way Adrian's eyes flicked downward before snapping back to her face. "I'm not in the mood to talk to you. After four days of silence, I really have nothing left to say."
"Please." The word seemed to cost him something. "I really need to explain myself. And I still want to help your gym if you'll let me."
Every rational part of Riley's brain screamed at her to tell him exactly where he could shove his explanations and his help. To slam the door in his devastatingly handsome face and return to the simple, uncomplicated violence of her training.
But then that intoxicating scent reached her—warm and clean with an undertone of something wild that made her head spin. And despite every wall she'd built, despite the hurt and confusion of the past four days, she felt that same inexplicable pull drawing her toward him like gravity.
"You have ten minutes," she heard herself saying, stepping aside to let him pass.
"Thank you." Relief flickered across his features as he entered, and Riley locked the door behind him with hands that trembled slightly.
She immediately put distance between them, moving to the center of the training area and crossing her arms again. The defensive posture felt necessary when everything about his presence seemed designed to unravel her composure.
Adrian seemed to recognize this as his only chance because he started speaking fast, words tumbling out with an urgency that was completely at odds with his usual controlled demeanor.
"I left so fast the other night because I wanted you so badly.
But I'm a tiger shifter and you're my fated mate and there's a mate bond between us.
And if we'd had sex and I marked you with my mate mark then you would've been bound to me in ways you couldn't undo.
" He paused to catch his breath. "See, I'm the acting Alpha of the Kael pride and I need a mate to become the Alpha since my father died last year.
But I don't want to rush you or force you into anything, but I can't deny how much I feel for you already.
I respect your autonomy, so I left before I made a huge mistake. "
Riley stood frozen, her mind struggling to process the torrent of impossible information. The words seemed to hang in the air between them, each revelation more fantastical than the last.
"Okay, back up," she said slowly, sinking onto a nearby bench before her legs could give out. "So, you're a tiger shifter? Like you can turn into a tiger?"
"Yes. I can show you right now, but maybe not inside the gym."
"No, that's not necessary right now." She believed him, though she couldn't say why.
Something about the absolute certainty in his voice maybe, or the way those blue eyes seemed to flicker with golden light.
"So let me get this straight. You're the acting Alpha of your pride and you need a mate—which is apparently me—to officially become the Alpha. "
"Yes. Well, sort of. I can become the Alpha now, but an unmated Alpha is testable."
"And you want me, but you don't want to rush me into anything I don't understand or want."
"Yes, exactly that."
Riley found herself studying his face, searching for any sign of deception and finding none.
Her mind spun with the implications, but one truth cut through the chaos with startling clarity—this powerful man could have taken what he wanted that night.
Could have seduced her, marked her, bound her to him before she understood the consequences. And he'd chosen not to.
That restraint, that respect for her autonomy even when it clearly cost him, made her chest tight with an emotion she didn't want to name.
"There's more," Adrian said quietly.
"What? There's more?" Riley's voice pitched higher.
"My rival Darius Vonn has been circling, wanting to challenge me for my Alpha title. He can't right now because I didn't take the Alpha title yet, but if I ever choose to take the title without a mate..."
"Wait." Riley's head snapped up. "Darius Vonn the kickboxer?"
"You know him?"
"I know him." She'd fought on cards with Darius before, had seen firsthand his aggressive style and predatory intensity. Knowing he was a tiger shifter suddenly made perfect sense. "Well, don't take the Alpha title then."
"I'm not, but it's been a year since my father died, and the pride is getting restless that I haven't chosen my mate and completed the bond. They need stability."
"And that stability would be me?"
"Yes. But I'm not forcing you into any of that, and that's not exactly why I'm here.
I mean, it is, but it isn't." Adrian ran a hand through his hair, the first crack in his composure she'd seen.
"I have a big problem. I may have agreed to enter a kickboxing competition when Darius provoked me earlier today. "
"Why would you do that?"
"I wanted to prove I'm not a weak Alpha. That I'm strong. I thought this would be a good test of my legitimacy."
Riley shook her head. "You're probably not prepared for that level of competition."
"I'm not. And that's where I'm hoping you might train me. I could really use your expertise."
"That's the same competition I'm entering. Female division, obviously." Riley found herself considering it despite everything. "I guess I could help you since I have to train for it myself. It wouldn't be much of an extra burden."
"Thank you. I really appreciate it. And I'll help you with your gym in any way you need in exchange."
"Free of charge?"
"Of course. And I'll pay you for training me. Consider it a thank you for doing this huge favor."
"How much are you offering?"
Adrian seemed to consider for a moment. "Fifty thousand dollars."
Riley's breath caught. "That's too much."
"It's no problem at all. It'll help you get by for a while. Cover expenses and equipment repairs."
The amount would solve her immediate problems and buy her breathing room she desperately needed. Riley found herself nodding before she could second-guess the decision.
"When do you want to start training?"
"How about now?"
Riley glanced at the ring in the corner of the gym. "That works. I was training for the competition myself tonight anyway. I can go over the rules and basics."
Adrian's smile transformed his entire face, and Riley felt her pulse skip in response.
They made their way to the elevated ring, and as Riley ducked through the ropes, she was hyperaware of Adrian following behind her. The space suddenly felt smaller, more intimate, charged with the same electric tension that had sparked between them from their first meeting.
"Okay," Riley said, moving to the center of the ring and trying to focus on technique instead of the way Adrian's t-shirt stretched across his chest. "Let's start with basic stance and movement."
She demonstrated the proper fighting position, then moved behind him to adjust his posture. The moment her hands touched his shoulders, heat shot through her like lightning. His skin was warm and firm beneath the thin fabric, and that intoxicating scent wrapped around her senses.
"Feet wider," she murmured, her voice coming out huskier than intended. "And drop your center of gravity."
Adrian complied, but Riley could feel the tension coiled in his frame as she guided his positioning. When she pressed against his back to correct his posture, she felt him inhale sharply.
This was dangerous territory. Every professional instinct screamed at her to step back, to maintain distance, to remember that this was supposed to be training. But her body had other ideas entirely.
"Better," she managed, though her hands lingered longer than necessary on his shoulders. "Now let's work on basic punches."
As they moved through the fundamentals, the sexual tension built like pressure in the air before a storm. Every correction required touch, every demonstration put them in close proximity, and Riley found herself fighting a losing battle against the desire pooling low in her belly.
She didn't know how she was going to train this powerful, sexy man without wanting to throw him down on the mat and discover what happened when his legendary control finally snapped.
And the mate bond thing—God, the idea of being his—should have terrified her. Instead, it sent a thrill of excitement through her that she couldn't deny.
This was definitely going to be a mistake. But as Adrian's blue eyes met hers, the golden flecks flaring with unmistakable hunger, Riley found she didn't care at that moment.