CHAPTER 4 - MY PREY

(Travis’s POV)

The morning air still clung to my skin, cool and sharp, as I pushed open the door to my villa after a quick run around the neighborhood. I wasn’t usually a morning person—especially after a night of heavy drinking—but something about this morning had me restless.

Or maybe… someone.

My pace quickened as I headed upstairs. Part of me was curious, part concerned. Mostly, I just wanted to see if she was awake.

Little canary.

I didn’t expect her to stay the night. Honestly, I didn’t expect the night to go the way it did. But it had.

And now… I couldn’t get her out of my damn head.

I reached the bedroom door, nudged it open—and stopped.

The bed was empty.

Her wrinkled dress was gone from the armrest. The scent of her skin lingered in the air, subtle and teasing.

But Adeline? She was gone.

A slow smirk tugged at my lips.

“She ran away,” I murmured, amused. “Cute.”

I leaned against the doorframe for a moment, picturing the way she must’ve crept down the stairs in that too-short dress, probably trying not to step on anyone still unconscious in the living room.

Classic Adeline.

I pulled out my phone, thumbing over the screen for a second before grinning to myself. I had her number—stolen straight from Juan’s phone last night, which he’d stupidly left unattended on the table while disappearing into one of the guest rooms with some redhead in heels.

I opened a new message and typed quickly:

"Running away, little canary?"

Sent.

No response.

I waited.

Still nothing.

Hmm. Playing hard to get, were we?

I tossed my phone onto the bed and headed back downstairs.

The place was a disaster. Empty beer bottles, reeking alpha pheromones, and at least two of my teammates still passed out by the kitchen counter.

Typical.

A muffled curse echoed from one of the bedrooms. Then another, louder this time.

The door flung open, and out stormed Juan—shirtless, hair wild, eyes red and blinking under the morning light.

He nearly slipped on a discarded bra on the floor.

“Where is she?” he barked.

I raised a brow, biting back a grin. “Who?”

“My sister. Adeline,” he growled, “She was with me last night, and now she’s not answering her damn phone.”

I picked up a bottle of water and took a long drink before replying.

“Relax. I dropped her off last night,” I said.

He squinted at me like he didn’t buy it.

“Why the hell would you—? No. You were wasted.”

“Not that wasted.” I set the bottle down and shrugged. “She wanted to go home. I had a car waiting, so I took care of it.”

“Bullshit.”

I tilted my head. “Call her. Ask her yourself.”

Juan cursed again, running a hand down his face.

“Did you—” He stopped himself, eyes narrowing dangerously. “If you touched her, I swear—”

“Dude.” I took a step closer, lowering my voice to a warning. “You left your sister at a party full of horny fucking men. Be grateful she ended up in my care.”

“I trusted you—”

“No, you didn’t,” I smirked, “you warned me. Remember?”

“Then why the hell didn’t you stay away from her?”

I stared at him. “You know damn well that girl is impossible to stay away from.”

“Fuck you!”

Juan looked like he was ready to punch a wall. He turned toward the door, muttering more curses under his breath.

“Hey!” I called out, grabbing his phone off the counter. “You forgot this.”

I tossed it to him.

He caught it mid-air, barely, and glared.

“If I find out you touched her—”

“You’ll kill me,” I said, finishing his sentence with a smirk. “Yeah, yeah. Noted.”

He stormed out without another word.

The door slammed behind him.

I waited until the echo faded before pulling my phone out again.

Still no reply from Adeline.

She’d read it, I was sure of it. But she hadn’t said anything back.

The little Canary that makes me even more intrigued.

She wasn’t just some drunk girl who made a mistake. She knew what she was doing. She looked me in the eye and dared me to cross the line—and when I did, she didn’t flinch.

And now she was hiding?

No, not hiding. Retreating.

Waiting to see if I would chase.

I chuckled, running my thumb along the edge of my phone.

That little canary thought she’d flown away clean.

She didn’t realize, I already had a piece of her.

By noon, I returned from the circuit only because I had received a call from Heather, the caretaker of my villa. He told me that he had found something in one of the rooms on the second floor.

Curiosity got the better of me when he sent a picture of it—it caught my attention immediately. I rushed back without hesitation.

When I arrived, the villa was already spotless, free of the mess we had left behind. It looked as clean as before. Heather stood in the living room, waiting to greet me.

“Where is it?” I asked as I walked toward him.

Heather pulled something from his pocket—a small brown cloth pouch tied with a string. He handed it to me.

“I found it under the bed,” Heather explained.

Inside was a silver bracelet with tiny diamonds embedded in delicate charms, each one centered with a small heart-shaped pendant.

Adeline’s.

It must have slipped off during our wild night together.

A mischievous thought crossed my mind, one that made my pulse quicken. A reason to see her again.

“Thanks, Heather,” I said with a satisfied smile. “Good work.”

“Are you sure it’s all right? The bracelet is broken,” he pointed out.

“Nope,” I replied, my grin widening. “This is even better than I expected.”

Let’s see how she reacts when I show up in front of her with this.

I swear I'll tie her up if she dares to run away from me again. Because I never mess around with my prey.