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CHAPTER FOUR

NATHAN

Was this a dream? Part of me still couldn't believe I was alive.

When Reece caught up to me, I thought I was done for, certain that my life would end in those woods, torn apart by the alpha's fury.

But then, out of nowhere, a dark-haired, dark-eyed dragon shifter appeared, his presence so commanding, so impossibly gorgeous, that it took my breath away.

Ivan. That was his name, and even now, as he stood before me, I couldn’t help but be in awe of him.

He had a rugged, chiseled face with a strong jawline, and his eyes were like molten obsidian. His hair was jet black and slightly tousled.

I couldn’t look away from the defined muscles of his broad shoulders and chest either.

He moved with the grace of a predator, every step calculated, every movement precise.

And those eyes… they held a promise of safety, but also something darker, something primal.

"Stand back a little," he suggested, his voice low and commanding, yet laced with an unexpected gentleness.

I did as he asked, stepping back cautiously, my heart pounding in my chest.

I gaped in disbelief as he began to shift, his body transforming into something otherworldly.

In the blink of an eye, where the handsome, imposing man had stood, there now loomed a massive red dragon, easily the size of a house.

"Wow," I whispered in awe, unable to tear my gaze away.

Ivan lowered his left wing toward me. For a moment, I hesitated, not fully grasping what he was asking me to do.

But then he nudged me gently with his wing, and I realized, with a mixture of shock and excitement, that he was inviting me to climb onto his back.

Was he really asking me to ride him?

A dragon shifter allowing someone to ride them had to be a rare, almost unheard-of occurrence.

That he was doing this for me, a terrified omega he’d just met, spoke volumes. It was a gesture of trust, of protection.

I crept closer, my legs trembling as I reached up and grabbed onto one of his scales.

With a bit of struggle, I managed to pull myself up onto his back, settling between the ridges that lined his spine.

His scales were surprisingly warm, and I could feel the raw energy coursing through him, like I was sitting atop a living furnace.

I tucked my legs against his scales and wrapped my arms around his massive neck, holding on for dear life.

Then, without warning, Ivan spread his wings wide, the leathery membranes stretching out on either side of us.

I felt the air shift around us, a gust of wind blowing against my face as his powerful wings began to beat, lifting us off the ground.

The sensation was unlike anything I’d ever experienced—an exhilarating mix of fear and awe.

I let out an embarrassing little scream as we shot into the air, the ground rapidly falling away beneath us.

My heart pounded in my chest as we ascended higher and higher, the trees below us shrinking into tiny specks.

The wind whipped against my face, making my eyes water, and I clung to Ivan's neck even tighter.

For a brief moment, I shut my eyes, too terrified to look down, but when we finally stopped ascending, I couldn’t resist opening them again.

When I did, I gasped. The forest that had once seemed so vast, so impenetrable, was now just a dark patchwork of green far below us.

The world had become a miniature, laid out beneath us like a map.

The sky above was a deep, endless black, dotted with stars that seemed close enough to touch.

It was breathtaking, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I felt a sense of peace.

So this was what it felt like, to be king of the skies? To soar above the world, untouchable, invincible?

I could hardly believe it.

I was riding a dragon—a creature I had only heard about in stories, something I never thought I’d see, let alone be saved by.

And yet, here I was, perched on Ivan’s back, watching the world go by below us.

I had no idea where Ivan was taking me. I didn’t know what was going to happen next.

I had been so certain that tonight would be my end, that I would never see another sunrise.

But then Ivan had appeared, out of nowhere, like some kind of white knight.

Why had he saved me? Why had he, a dragon shifter, risked exposing himself to help someone like me?

The questions swirled in my mind, but for now, I was content to let them go unanswered.

All that mattered was that I was alive, and that I was no longer alone.

As we flew through the night, the wind rushing past us, I couldn’t help but feel a spark of hope, a flicker of something I hadn’t felt in a long time.

Maybe, just maybe, things were going to be okay. Maybe Ivan was the miracle I hadn’t dared to believe in.

I didn’t know what awaited me next, but I knew one thing for sure: as long as Ivan was by my side, I was safe.

And for the first time in a long time, I felt like I could breathe again.

I must’ve fallen asleep because the next thing I knew, Ivan was landing on the rooftop of an apartment building.

The transition from the weightlessness of the air to the solid ground jarred me awake.

Rubbing my eyes, I yawned as I took in my surroundings.

Ivan’s powerful form shifted beneath me, and I slid off his back with a mixture of awe and reluctance, almost regretting the loss of that connection.

He lowered his wing again, this time letting me dismount onto the rooftop.

I took a few hesitant steps forward, trying to ground myself in reality.

Where were we? Ivan had told me he was taking me somewhere safe, but this place was entirely unfamiliar.

I walked to the edge of the roof, the crisp night air biting at my skin.

The sight before me was different from anything I’d ever known.

The town below was small. Trees surrounded the area, and I spotted a nearby lake shimmered.

The buildings were clustered together, cozy and inviting, so different from the cold, unfriendly town where I had grown up—a place that had always made me feel trapped and unwelcome.

As I stood there, absorbing the view, a series of pops behind me caught my attention.

I turned around just in time to see Ivan shift back into his human form.

The sound of bones cracking and reshaping echoed in the night. His dragon form melted away, revealing the man underneath.

Ivan opened a nearby bin and pulled out a pair of jogging pants, slipping them on with practiced ease.

The fabric hung low on his hips, revealing the tantalizing V-shaped muscles that disappeared beneath the waistband.

I realized I was staring and quickly looked away, clearing my throat to hide my embarrassment.

“Where are we?” I asked.

“Sky Stead,” Ivan replied, his deep voice sending shivers down my spine. “This territory is under the protection of my pack. You’re safe here.”

“A pack? There’s more of you?” I couldn’t help but feel curious.

Until tonight, I hadn’t even known dragon shifters existed, and now I was standing here, talking to one who had saved my life.

Ivan gave me a contemplative look, as if weighing how much he should tell me.

“We’re small,” he admitted. “There are so few of us left that we generally keep to ourselves.”

“But you found me, saved me,” I pointed out, my voice wavering as a gust of cold wind hit me.

I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to keep warm.

Ivan, on the other hand, didn’t seem to feel the chill at all. Maybe it was because he was cold-blooded?

I nearly laughed at the absurdity of that thought, chiding myself internally for making jokes at a time like this.

“Let’s talk in my apartment. It’s warmer in there,” Ivan suggested, his eyes softening as he noticed my discomfort.

“Okay,” I agreed, though a part of me still marveled at how much trust I was placing in this stranger.

My wolf told me I could trust him, but wasn’t that strange?

I had only met Ivan tonight, and yet there was something about him that made me feel… safe.

We descended the stairs together, the silence between us comfortable, almost intimate.

Ivan led me to the top floor, where his apartment was the only unit.

I recalled the bin where he had kept his spare clothes earlier and realized he must be used to shifting and using the roof as his private landing pad.

The thought amused me.

“You can relax; I own this building,” Ivan said, a hint of amusement in his voice.

I flushed, realizing I must have spoken my thoughts out loud.

He opened the door to his apartment, letting me step inside first, then flicked on the lights.

The first thing I noticed was how the inside of his apartment clashed with the classy exterior. Ivan was… messy.

Empty coffee cups and pizza boxes littered the living room, books and vinyl albums were scattered across the floor, and clothes were draped over furniture.

It was the kind of chaos that spoke of someone who lived alone and wasn’t expecting company.

“The place is a mess, I know. I wasn’t expecting company,” Ivan said, giving me a sheepish smile that somehow made my heart flutter.

He quickly cleared the clothes off the sofa and tossed the pizza boxes and disposable coffee cups from the low table into the trash.

When he turned back to me, his expression was warm, almost tender.

“Can I offer you something to drink?” he asked.

“Water?” I replied, my voice barely above a whisper.

Moments later, he handed me a glass of water, which I gratefully accepted.

I hadn’t realized how thirsty I was until I started drinking.

The cool liquid soothed my parched throat, but it couldn’t ease the storm of emotions brewing inside me.

My stomach let out an embarrassing growl, breaking the silence.

“Pizza good for you? I’m hungry as well,” Ivan offered, his tone light, as if trying to put me at ease.

I nodded, still trying to get my bearings. Part of me still couldn’t believe I had somehow made it out of that ordeal alive.

Reece had nearly caught up to me, and I had been sure I was done for.

But then Ivan appeared out of nowhere, and now here I was, in his apartment, safe—at least for the moment.

After Ivan ordered pizza, he handed me his phone.

“I’m sure you want to call someone. Maybe a family member or a friend?” Ivan asked.

I stared at the phone for a moment, the weight of his words sinking in.

I should have felt relief at the thought of reaching out to someone, but instead, anger flared up inside me.

The only person who had put me in this mess in the first place was my no-good dad.

The memory of him selling me to Trevor, like I was nothing more than a piece of property, made my blood boil.

“I don’t have anyone to call,” I said, handing the phone back to Ivan.

He didn’t press the issue, just took the phone and set it aside.

“Well, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you need,” he said, his voice gentle, but I could hear the undercurrent of concern.

“Why are you helping me?” I blurted out, the question that had been gnawing at me since he’d saved me finally escaping my lips. “You don’t even know me.”

Ivan hesitated for a moment, as if considering his answer.

“Because I couldn’t just leave you out there,” he said finally, his dark eyes locking onto mine. “No one deserves to be hunted like that.”

His words hit me harder than I expected, and for a moment, I couldn’t breathe.

No one had ever looked at me the way Ivan did, with such intensity and sincerity.

It made me feel… seen. And that scared me more than anything.

“Thank you,” I whispered, my voice trembling with the weight of emotions I couldn’t name.

Ivan took a step closer, closing the distance between us.

I could feel the warmth radiating from his body, and it was so tempting to just lean into it, to let myself believe that everything would be okay.

But I couldn’t. Not yet.

“I’ll make sure nothing happens to you,” Ivan said, his voice low and reassuring. “You’re safe here, Nathan.”

Hearing my name on his lips sent a shiver down my spine.

I looked up at him, at the man who had saved me, and for the first time in a long while, I felt a flicker of hope.

Maybe I didn’t have to be alone anymore. Maybe there was a place for me in this strange new world Ivan had brought me to.

But even as that thought crossed my mind, I knew there were still so many unanswered questions, so many uncertainties.

What would happen next? Would Reece come after me again?

And what would Ivan’s pack think of him bringing a stray wolf into their midst?

I didn’t know the answers, but for now, I was content to just be here, with Ivan, in the safety of his messy, chaotic apartment.

The future could wait.