Celina
FIFTEEN
“How does it feel?” Osias asked, his thumb tracing circles across her knuckles as they walked to the restaurant where they’d planned to grab lunch.
“Like I’m finally writing my own story instead of living someone else’s script.”
Firing Rennick today had been like cutting anchor chains—terrifying and liberating simultaneously. Everything was falling into place with a precision that would have made her suspicious if she weren’t so blissfully happy.
The morning’s Q&A session had transformed her from Osias Fellan’s actress girlfriend into a legitimate producer worthy of respect, A Walk Toward Forever was getting the recognition it deserved, and the press had finally stopped painting Osias as dangerous, seeing instead what she’d known from the beginning—a man who protected what he loved.
“After lunch,” she said, swinging their joined hands between them, “we could work on A Promise to Keep for a few hours before my Best Actress Q&A session.”
His eyebrows lifted slightly. “You’re actually going to that one?”
“I have to show some effort toward the campaign. Just not the obsessive, life-consuming attention Rennick would have demanded.” She felt lighter just saying his name without that familiar knot of anxiety forming in her stomach. “I can balance both nominations without losing my mind now.”
They passed a narrow alleyway between two aging storefronts, the kind of forgotten space that existed in pockets throughout the city. Celina was mid-sentence, describing her vision for the afternoon’s work session, when the world exploded into chaos.
Two lions suddenly burst from the shadows with the fluid violence of apex predators, their massive forms moving with terrifying purpose.
Celina’s scream caught in her throat as her mind struggled to process the impossibility—lions, here, in broad daylight, charging directly at them with murderous intent.
But Osias didn’t hesitate.
The air around him shimmered with heat and power as his human form dissolved, bones reshaping and muscles expanding until the man she loved became something magnificent and deadly.
His lion emerged in a cascade of golden fur and raw authority, his body radiating the kind of dominance that made other predators think twice.
In the middle of Hollywood. Where anyone could see.
But there was no time to worry about exposure because the first rogue lion was already launching itself at Osias, claws extended and fangs bared.
The impact when they collided sent tremors through the concrete beneath Celina’s feet.
Osias met the attack head-on, his own claws raking across his opponent’s flank with surgical precision, drawing blood and an enraged roar that echoed off the alley walls.
The second lion circled, waiting for an opening, then struck from behind while Osias was engaged with the first attacker.
Claws found their mark across Osias’s flank, tearing through golden fur to the flesh beneath.
Through their bond, Celina felt an echo of his pain mixed with primal fury that made her own vision blur red.
He was outnumbered. He was hurt. And she was standing there doing nothing.
Her phone was in her hand before conscious thought kicked in, her fingers flying across the screen as she called Juno.
“What’s wrong,” came his voice after the first ring, focused and steady as always.
“Rogues,” she gasped, watching Osias grapple with both attackers simultaneously. “Rogue lions attacking us in the alley behind Sunset and Vine. Osias is—he’s hurt, and I don’t know—“
“Five minutes,” Juno cut her off. “Keep him alive for five minutes.”
The line went dead, leaving Celina alone with the sound of snarling and the wet impact of claws meeting flesh. Five minutes might as well have been five hours. Osias was holding his own, but barely, and she could see the exhaustion beginning to affect his movements.
Think, Celina. Think like the woman who built a production company from nothing.
Her gaze swept the alley desperately, cataloging every piece of debris and every potential weapon. There—a sheet of plywood leaning against a dumpster, probably left over from some construction project. It wasn’t much, but it was something.
She grabbed the makeshift weapon with both hands, surprised by its weight but driven by desperation and love that burned fiercer than fear. The second rogue lion had its attention fixed entirely on Osias, positioning for another attack on his injured flank.
Celina didn’t give herself time to reconsider.
She charged, raising the plywood above her head and bringing it down with every ounce of strength she possessed.
The impact reverberated up her arms as the board connected with the lion’s skull, stunning it just long enough for Osias to pivot and drive his claws deep into the first attacker’s flank.
The wounded lion limped away with a pained roar, blood trailing behind it as it disappeared around the corner.
Osias immediately turned his attention to the second rogue, still dazed from Celina’s improvised assault.
A few well-placed strikes sent it limping after its companion, leaving the alley suddenly, eerily quiet.
Well, except for the small crowd that had gathered at the mouth of the alley.
Shit.
“Is that... is that a real lion?” someone whispered, phone cameras already emerging from pockets and purses.
Celina’s mind raced through damage control scenarios, but before panic could fully set in, Juno appeared as if materialized from shadow itself. He took in the scene with a single sweeping glance—injured lion, gathering crowd, potential disaster—and immediately shifted into crisis management mode.
“Everyone back!” he commanded, his deep voice carrying an authority that made people obey without question.
He pulled an official-looking badge from his jacket, though Celina couldn’t tell if it was real or an impressive fake.
“Animal Control. This lion escaped from the zoo during transport. The situation is under control, but I need everyone to clear the area immediately for your own safety.”
Celina caught on instantly, moving to Osias’s side and placing a gentle hand on his massive head. “Easy, boy,” she said loudly enough for the crowd to hear. “We’re here to help you.”
Together, they guided Osias’s lion form away from the curious onlookers, Juno maintaining his authoritative zookeeper persona while Celina played the concerned animal handler. It was the performance of her life, and the stakes had never been higher.
They walked several blocks in tense silence, the weight of what had just happened settling over them like a heavy blanket. Only when they reached Juno’s black SUV, parked in a deserted side street far from prying eyes, did Osias finally allow his human form to return.
The transformation left him naked, bloodied, and swaying on his feet. Deep gashes across his shoulder and flank painted red streaks down his skin, and exhaustion had carved harsh lines around his eyes.
“Get in,” Juno ordered, already opening the rear door.
Celina helped support Osias’s weight as he climbed into the backseat, her heart clenching at every wince and sharp intake of breath. She slid in beside him, immediately pressing her hands against the worst of his wounds to slow the bleeding.
“Hospital?” she asked as Juno started the engine.
“Too many questions,” Osias managed, his voice roughened with pain. “Home. We have everything we need there.”
As they pulled away from the curb, Celina finally allowed herself to process what had just happened.
Two rogue lions had tried to kill them in broad daylight.
Osias had risked exposure to save their lives.
And somehow, impossibly, they’d managed to escape without completely destroying the secret that kept his entire pride safe.
But as she watched blood seep between her fingers despite the pressure she was applying, one thought echoed through her mind with crystalline clarity.
This wasn’t random. Someone had sent those lions after them.
And that someone was still out there.
The black SUV’s engine cut through the afternoon silence as Juno navigated the winding roads leading to Osias’s Beverly Hills estate.
Celina pressed her palms against the deepest gashes on her mate’s shoulder, her fingers slick with blood that seemed to seep endlessly despite her efforts.
The metallic scent filled the confined space, mixing with the lingering adrenaline that made her hands shake.
“I’m fine,” Osias muttered for the third time, his voice strained but carrying that familiar Alpha authority that brooked no argument.
Except Celina wasn’t his pride member—she was his mate, and that gave her different privileges.
“You are absolutely not fine.” She applied more pressure to the wounds, earning a sharp intake of breath that he tried to disguise as casual breathing. “Your shoulder looks like it went through a paper shredder, and these gashes on your ribs need immediate attention.”
Through their completed bond, she felt his frustration warring with grudging acceptance.
His lion was still prowling beneath his skin, agitated by the attack and the vulnerability of being injured.
But underneath that primal restlessness, she sensed something that made her chest flood with warmth—his overwhelming need to protect her, even now when he could barely sit upright without wincing.
“The blood loss looks worse than it is,” Juno said from the driver’s seat, his dark eyes meeting hers in the rearview mirror. “The gashes aren’t too deep and his shifter healing should kick in soon. But they still need proper cleaning and bandaging.”
The SUV turned through the familiar gates of the mansion, and Celina felt some of the tension leave her shoulders. Home, where she could take care of him without curious onlookers or paparazzi documenting every moment of weakness.