Chapter 55: Chapter 55: Publicly dangerous

The nearest conversations stalled. A few heads turned. Someone went very still with a glass half-raised. Ether wards along the walls hummed faintly, reacting to power being sensed under Gregoris’ skin.

Rafael turned his head slightly, enough to meet Gregoris’s eyes again. There was still defiance there, but now, layered beneath it, was the awareness that this provocation was really happening.

“You’re making a scene,” Rafael said quietly.

Gregoris smiled, his white teeth flashing in delight. “Good.”

“Can’t you behave for one evening?”

Gregoris didn’t reply but shifted his grip instead, sliding his hand from Rafael’s lower back to his wrist, fingers closing over it firmly enough that refusal would be meaningless. The contact sent a visible jolt through Rafael’s posture, his body reacting before his expression caught up.

“This way,” Gregoris said calmly.

It was not a suggestion.

Rafael opened his mouth, clearly intending to argue, to perform resistance if only to keep control of the narrative, but Gregoris had already begun moving. He guided Rafael forward, turning them both toward the exit as though this were the most natural progression of the evening. The motion forced Rafael to walk or stumble, and Rafael, pride intact even now, chose to walk.

The nearest conversations stalled completely.

A glass trembled in someone’s hand. Another guest set theirs down with exaggerated caution.

Alexandra watched them pass, eyes bright with something dangerously close to delight.

“Oh, this will be a scandal,” she murmured, half to herself, already imagining the fallout.

Caelan’s hand tightened at her waist. “No,” he said quietly. “Don’t interfere with Gregoris now.”

Alexandra snorted under her breath. “I’m not suicidal.”

Gregoris didn’t slow as they reached the doors. The steward stationed there had already stepped forward, long dark coat folded neatly over one arm. Gregoris released Rafael’s wrist only long enough to take it, then swung it around Rafael’s shoulders in one smooth motion.

The coat swallowed Rafael whole.

Broad, heavy fabric draped over white silk and bare skin alike, concealing the provocation, the chain, and the expression Rafael hadn’t yet decided how to wear. Rafael stiffened, hands coming up instinctively to push it away.

“I don’t need…” he began.

“Yes,” Gregoris said, cutting him off without raising his voice. “You do.”

They were moving again before Rafael could protest further, the doors opening onto cool night air and controlled chaos beyond the perimeter. Reporters surged forward the instant they appeared, flashes exploding in rapid succession, and ether lenses humming as they captured every angle they were allowed to see.

Gregoris didn’t look at them.

He angled his body slightly, placing himself between Rafael and the cameras, one arm firm around Rafael’s shoulders, the other keeping the coat in place.

Questions were shouted. Names. Speculation already forming mid-sentence.

Rafael tried again, voice sharp now. “Gregoris, this is ridiculous…”

The words cut off as Gregoris reached the car.

The door opened immediately. The driver had been ready.

Gregoris turned Rafael without ceremony and guided… no, shoved him inside with enough force to make it clear this was no longer a negotiation. Rafael caught himself on the leather seat, breath knocking loose in surprise.

“Get in,” Gregoris said, already moving to follow.

Rafael glared up at him, cheeks flushed, eyes bright with fury and something far more dangerous. “You don’t get to drag me out like this.”

Gregoris leaned in, one hand braced on the doorframe, his shadow falling fully over Rafael.

“I do,” he said quietly. “And you knew it the moment you said my name.”

Rafael surged forward, anger snapping into something sharper, his hand catching Gregoris’s shirt collar and yanking him down with a force that was all spite and retaliation. The movement was sudden enough that the cameras caught it cleanly: the flash of white knuckles against the black fabric of the tie and the coat slipping just enough from Rafael’s shoulders to reveal bare skin beneath.

Then Rafael kissed him, lips pressed hard enough to leave no room for interpretation. The coat fell open another inch, the line of Rafael’s throat and collarbone fully visible now, the silver chain glinting like a challenge under the lights.

The perimeter exploded.

Shouts fractured into overlapping noise. Flashes went off in rapid succession, ether lenses whining as they recalibrated, desperate not to miss a single second of what was very clearly happening. Somewhere behind the wards, someone laughed in disbelief. Someone else swore.

Gregoris froze for exactly half a heartbeat.

Then his hand came up, gripping the back of Rafael’s neck, fingers threading into hair, holding him. Gregoris’s response was immediate and rough. He crushed his mouth against Rafael’s, turning the aggressive press of lips into something forceful and controlling.

His mouth opened, forcing Rafael’s to open at first, then widen, shoving his tongue deep into the omega’s mouth.

Gregoris’s grip on Rafael’s neck tightened, his fingers curling into a firm hold, keeping him in place. He bit down on Rafael’s lower lip, a sharp, punishing nip that drew a gasp from the omega.

Rafael’s lip bloomed with blood, a bright, coppery taste that mixed with the harsh, demanding pressure of Gregoris’ mouth. Gregoris’ tongue dug deeper, a relentless, claiming invasion that left no part of Rafael’s mouth.

He tasted blood and anger, a heady, intoxicating combination that only increased his rage.

Rafael’s hands fisted in Gregoris’s shirt, knuckles white with the force of his grip, but Gregoris didn’t budge. He bit and sucked, his teeth and tongue working in tandem to mark and claim, to leave no doubt about his dominance.

Rafael’s breaths came in ragged, desperate gasps, his body tensing from the brutal assault.

Gregoris’s free hand roamed, found the coat, and tugged it back over Rafael’s shoulders.

Gregoris finally broke the kiss and turned Rafael without ceremony, one hand firm at his jaw, the other guiding him back into the seat with natural control. The movement shielded Rafael again, his body shifting instinctively between him and the cameras even as the damage was already done.

“Enough,” Gregoris said, low and lethal.

Rafael’s breath came uneven, lips parted, eyes blazing with triumph and defiance in equal measure. “You wanted a scene,” he shot back. “Congratulations.”

Gregoris straightened, entered the car, and slammed the door shut.

For a moment, the car didn’t move.

The press was still shouting outside, flashes strobing through the tinted glass, the noise reduced to a distant, distorted roar. Inside, the air was thick with adrenaline, anger, and something far more dangerous that Rafael wasn’t ready to mention.

Gregoris didn’t look at him.

“Alamina Manor,” he said.

The driver didn’t hesitate. The car pulled away smoothly as though this route had been anticipated long before the first flash went off.

Rafael leaned back against the leather seat, chest rising too fast, pulse still racing. His lip throbbed faintly where Gregoris had bitten him, heat lingering there in a way that made his stomach tighten despite himself. He pressed his tongue briefly against it, tasted copper, and felt a shiver run through him that had nothing to do with pain.

Danger had always done this to him.

And Gregoris, unleashed, unapologetic, and intense with restraint barely holding, was danger incarnate.

“You’re insane,” Rafael said, breaking the silence, his voice firmer than he felt. “You realize that, don’t you?”

Gregoris shifted at last, settling back into his seat closer to him. He loosened his tie with a sharp tug, eyes fixed forward, jaw tight. The calm had returned to him, but Rafael could feel how thin it was.

“Yes,” he said simply.

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