Chapter 39
Kane
Violet’s quiet on the ride home.
Not tense, not shut down, just… somewhere else.
I should be used to her moods by now, but this one’s new. During the run, she was electric– darting through the trees, doubling back just to draw me out, leading me on a chase through half the preserve like she had something to prove. But the second we left, something in her shifted.
Now she’s staring out the window, fingers tapping absently against her thigh to the beat of the song playing on the radio. Her brow’s furrowed, eyes distant, like she’s turning something over and over in that beautiful mind of hers.
Maybe this is just her version of coming down from the high; her personal post-run ritual. I wouldn’t know. Last time we ran together with the pack, I bailed before I could see what came after.
Still regret that.
When we pull into the underground parking garage beneath the Tower, I ease into my usual spot and kill the engine, letting the quiet settle in around us. I don’t move right away. I just watch her, waiting.
It takes her a second to even realize we’ve stopped. She blinks like she’s surfacing from deep water, then turns to look at me.
“Something on your mind?” I ask.
She hesitates, gaze flicking away, then back. Her mouth presses into a tight line as if she’s deciding whether to say whatever it is out loud.
“Did you see the way the pack was looking at us tonight?” she finally asks.
The question catches me off guard.
I reach over, sliding my hand onto her thigh, thumb brushing her skin in slow circles. “I know you hate being used to push the Pairing initiative. I do too, but–”
“No, not the PR shit,” she cuts in, shaking her head. “I mean after the run. When we were leaving.”
My brow furrows. “You’re going to have to be more specific.”
She exhales, tongue dragging across her teeth as she searches for the words. “Everyone used to be scared shitless of you,” she murmurs. “You’d walk into a room and the temperature dropped ten degrees. That’s your whole brand, right? Commander Kane, the coldest bastard in the city.”
I grunt under my breath. Not exactly flattering– but not wrong, either.
“But tonight…” she trails off, eyes narrowing like she’s still trying to pin it down. “They were still afraid, just… different.”
I study her, waiting.
“It’s like seeing you with me changed something,” she continues. “Like they finally saw you as your own person, not just an extension of Alpha.”
“Is that a bad thing?” I ask, not sure where she’s going with this.
She shakes her head again. “Not bad. Just… I don’t know. I think you scared the shit out of them before because you were just a weapon that could be turned on anyone, anytime.”
I cock a brow. “And now?”
Her gaze sharpens on mine. “Now, they see someone who’s not just following orders, but chooses where he points. Having a heart makes you relatable, Kane. They were looking at you tonight with more admiration than Alpha, like they wouldn’t hesitate to follow you if you asked.”
I huff out a quiet breath, scrubbing a hand over my face. “I don’t want to lead the pack, Violet.”
“Yeah. That’s exactly why you’d be good at it,” she replies, smirking.
I shake my head. “That’s not what I’m in this for.”
“Maybe not,” she says easily. “But if this rebellion actually works… if you step up beside your brother instead of behind Alpha?” She shrugs, eyes still locked on mine.
“That kind of loyalty matters. Fear only gets you so far. People follow leaders they trust, the ones they can relate to on some level.”
I stare at her, surprised by how much thought she’s put into this and how clearly she’s mapped it all out. “You’re thinking like a strategist,” I remark, pride threading through my tone.
She grins back at me. “Maybe I’m a revolutionary after all,” she says, flipping her hair over a shoulder and reaching for her seatbelt. She pauses with her hand on the buckle, glancing back up at me. “Shit, was this just you playing the long game to get me to admit that?”
“Yep,” I deadpan. “Guess the jig is up, back to the bunker.”
She snorts, shaking her head. “God, if I never see that place again, it’ll be too soon.” Her smile fades, something dimming behind her eyes. “You don’t regret it, do you?” she asks quietly. “Pairing with a delinquent like me?”
The question lands like a punch. The fact that she’d even ask that, like she’s still waiting for the other shoe to drop…
“Not for a second,” I say without hesitation, reaching out to cup her face in a hand. “You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, mate.”
She gives me a long, searching look, like she expects a catch. “Even with all the politics?” she presses. “And the headaches? My general refusal to obey any command ever?”
“You obey some,” I point out, my gaze dragging over her in a way that makes her shift slightly in her seat.
“But yeah. I never wanted some docile little housewife. Didn’t want anyone, honestly.
” I hold her gaze, meaning it with my whole chest when I add, “Until you. I wouldn’t change a damn thing, baby. ”
Her eyes go a little glassy, her breath catching like she doesn’t quite know what to do with that kind of certainty.
I don’t give her time to overthink it.
I slide my hand to the back of her neck and pull her in, kissing her hard. It’s brief, but when I pull back, she’s smiling, eyes brighter than before.
“Come on,” I say, unfastening my seatbelt. “Let’s get inside. I’ve spent too long tonight keeping my hands to myself.”
She rolls her eyes, chuckling under her breath as she pops her own buckle. “You’re so fucking needy.”
“Says the woman who can’t go five minutes without picking a fight,” I scoff.
“Yeah, well maybe I like a little foreplay,” she shoots back, then tosses her door open and climbs out before I can reply.
We make our way to the elevator and ride it up to the twenty-ninth in silence, but it’s not awkward.
Just charged, like we’re both buzzing with anticipation for what’s to come.
I get the sense she’s still chewing on what we talked about, turning it over in that sharp mind of hers and looking for ways to weaponize it for leverage.
And I thought I couldn’t love her more.
I hadn’t even contemplated how this little PR stunt could play in our favor long-term.
Alpha thinks he’s controlling the narrative, putting us on display like proof that his system works exactly the way he designed it to, but he’s too focused on the surface to see what’s actually happening underneath.
He’s too arrogant to even consider how the whole thing could backfire on him, given the right set of circumstances.
It’s… a little diabolical, actually.
By the time the elevator doors slide open, the idea has already started to take shape in my head. How this could be the bridge between the old and new guard that Whit needs for the pack to follow him.
Violet steps out first, and I follow a few paces behind, enjoying the view of her tight little ass in those cutoff jean shorts. She stops outside our door and pivots to face me, folding her arms with a look that’s already halfway to challenge.
“Hurry up, old man.”
I cut her a glare, but it’s more for show than anything. “Call me that again and I’ll put you over my knee, mate,” I growl, stepping in close enough that she has to tilt her head back to hold my gaze as I reach past her to unlock the door.
Her lips part, her gaze sharpening with interest. “Promise?”
I huff a quiet laugh as I turn the knob and pull the door open. She slips past me into the apartment, and I follow her in, shutting and locking the door behind us.
Inside, it’s dim, the only light coming from the glow of the skyline spilling in through the windows. Violet drifts down the hall toward it without a word, coming to a stop in the center of the living room. She folds her arms, staring out at the city like she’s waiting for something to happen.
I watch her for a second, then move up behind her, hands settling on her waist. She leans back into me immediately, her head tipping against my shoulder as she relaxes into my hold.
“You know what else I noticed tonight?” she asks.
“What’s that?” I murmur against her hair.
She turns in my arms, gazing up at me with a smirk. “I liked it,” she muses. “Seeing you in your element like that, watching the pack react to you. Watching you play double-agent like you’re fucking James Bond or something.” Her smirk deepens. “It was hot.”
“Never thought I’d see the day you got off on pack politics,” I chuckle.
She makes a face. “Only when you’re involved.”
I tighten my hold, pulling her flush against me so there’s no mistaking the effect she has. “You know what I like?”
Her arms slide up around my neck, eyes going heavy-lidded. “What’s that, Commander?”
“The fact that I finally have someone I can talk to about this shit besides my idiot brother.”
She snorts a laugh. “Yeah, you’re welcome.”
“And you’re fucking sexy when you talk rebellion,” I add, grinding my hard-on against her hip.
A flush creeps up her neck. “Yeah?” she challenges, trapping her lower lip between her teeth and tilting her head. “How sexy, old man?”
She tries to bolt right after she says it– but not fast enough.
I catch her around the waist before she can scramble away, hauling her off her feet and tossing her over my shoulder. She lets out a shriek that dissolves into laughter, kicking and squirming as I carry her down the hall.
“Now you’re gonna get it,” I growl, landing a sharp smack on her ass as I push into the bedroom. I stride over to the bed and toss her down onto it, her body bouncing against the soft mattress.
Violet giggles as she pushes herself upright, sweeping her hair out of her face.
“You should know better than to run from me,” I growl, looming over her.
She leans back on her palms, cocking her head. “What if I want to get caught?” she asks coyly, eyes dropping to the very obvious bulge in the front of my slacks. “What if I want to be punished?”