CHAPTER 112: FRACTURES IN THE BOND

Thorne

I didn’t feel an ounce of remorse for what I’d done. If anything, the only thing simmering in my chest was pure irritation—irritation that anyone in this room thought they had the right to question me. I was the Alpha. My word should’ve been the end of the matter. Instead, they had me standing here like some common criminal, their judgmental eyes pricking at my skin.

What made it worse was Josie’s face. She was staring at me like she couldn’t quite believe I was capable of doing what they said. That flicker of disbelief in her gaze... it burrowed under my skin like a thorn I couldn’t pull out.

I turned away from her, deciding I’d had enough of this farce. My patience was running thin, and if I stayed here another second, I might actually snap. But before I could make it to the door, her hand shot out and closed around my arm.

Her grip wasn’t tight—at least not enough to stop me if I wanted to shake her off—but the stubborn set of her jaw made me pause. "You’re not walking out of here without telling me the truth," she demanded.

The truth.

I stared at her, weighing whether I even wanted to give her that much. In the end, I leaned closer, my voice dropping to a tone only she could hear. "She deserved it." The words were low, almost lost between us, but I knew she heard.

Josie’s eyes widened a fraction, but instead of snapping at me, she turned to the elders. "You can’t keep the Alpha here like he’s a criminal," she said firmly. "I want to talk to my man."

The room went still. My man. The way she’d said it—steady, unshaken—sent a strange, unwanted heat curling through me. There was a beat of silence before the elders started grumbling their protests, but Josie didn’t flinch. She stood there, arguing point for point, her voice unwavering even as they tried to shut her down.

It went on longer than I expected. Every instinct in me wanted to step in, to throw my authority over the matter, but I stayed quiet, watching her go to battle for me. I shouldn’t have been impressed—but damn it, I was.

Finally, grudgingly, they relented. The room cleared, one elder muttering under his breath, another shaking his head. When the door shut, sealing us inside, I found myself... a little stunned. She’d done that—on her own. No commands from me, no intimidation tactics. Just sheer, unyielding will.

From the bond I shared with my brothers, I could feel their disbelief echoing mine. Josie kept finding new ways to floor me, and I hated how much I noticed.

"You didn’t have to do that," I said after a beat, trying to downplay the weight of what she’d just done. My voice came out rougher than I intended, more defensive than grateful.

She folded her arms, meeting my gaze without a flicker of hesitation. "I didn’t do it because I had to. I said what I said." Her tone was sharp, almost daring me to argue. "Now you’re going to tell me why Michelle ’deserved’ it—because last I checked, you were kissing her so wildly that night anyone would think you were desperate for her."

Her words landed like a punch. My jaw tightened. "Everything wasn’t what it seemed," I bit out. "I never kissed that woman."

She scoffed, eyes narrowing. "I saw her hands on you. You didn’t push her away. She never stopped touching you."

"That’s because she wouldn’t stop," I snapped, my voice rising before I could pull it back. My temper was a live wire now. "Do you think I wanted her on me? You think I invited her?"

Her chin tilted, defiant. "Didn’t you?"

My hands curled into fists at my sides. "You have some nerve saying that after everything Kiel is dealing with because of that same woman. Why the hell would I do something so foolish?"

Her gaze didn’t soften. "Because you hate me on a normal day, Thorne. So why wouldn’t you choose your ex over me?"

For a second, her words knocked the air out of me. Not because they were true—hell, they weren’t—but because of the way she said them. Like she believed it, deep down. Like she’d already decided what kind of man I was, and nothing I said would change it.

Something in me snapped. I closed the distance between us in two steps, my hand catching her wrist and pulling her closer. "Why do you enjoy getting under my skin so much?" My voice was low, the kind of low that thrummed in the air between us.

Her breath hitched, and I saw the flicker of heat in her eyes even as she tried to mask it with a glare. I didn’t let go. My thumb brushed against the inside of her wrist, feeling the quickening pulse there.

"You think I’m lying?" I said, my voice dropping even further, my body leaning in just enough that her back nearly met the wall. "You think I’d waste my time with someone like her when—" I cut myself off, jaw locking. I wasn’t going to say what had been on the tip of my tongue.

Her lips parted slightly, and for a second, neither of us moved. The air was charged, thick with something I didn’t want to name. My grip on her wasn’t harsh, but it was enough to keep her there, enough to let her know I wasn’t done.

"You hate me, remember?" she murmured, but there was no real conviction in it now.

I let out a low, humorless laugh. "If that’s what you think, Josie, then you’re not half as perceptive as you pretend to be."

Her breath was uneven, her gaze flicking between my eyes and my mouth, and for a heartbeat I almost—almost—closed the space entirely.

The sharp knock on the door shattered the moment.

I dropped her wrist, stepping back so fast it felt like ripping something out by the roots. The door cracked open and one of the elders leaned in, his expression grave. "Michelle’s fighting for her life in the hospital. You need to be there. Now."

I didn’t answer immediately. My eyes were still locked on Josie, her cheeks faintly flushed, her breathing not yet steady. Whatever had just passed between us was still humming under my skin.

But there wasn’t time to dwell on it. Without a word, I turned toward the door, every muscle tight with frustration.