Jayden's POV
The morning sun filtered through the school hallways when Jasmine appeared, and everything changed in an instant.
She wore a fitted skirt that hugged her curves, tall boots that made her legs look endless, and a top that clung to every line of her body. The transformation was complete and devastating.
The entire corridor fell silent.
Students froze mid-conversation, books slipping from suddenly slack fingers. Locker doors hung forgotten as their owners stared with undisguised fascination.
The unmated males reacted like wolves catching the scent of something irresistible. Their eyes followed her every movement, bodies tense with barely contained desire. Low whistles and appreciative growls echoed through the hallway.
Even the girls couldn't hide their reactions. Jealousy twisted their features as they whispered harsh words meant to mask their own insecurities.
"Look at her trying so hard," one hissed.
"Practically begging for attention," another added with venom.
But their eyes betrayed them. I caught the way they glanced nervously at the boys watching Jasmine, the unconscious way they tugged at their own clothes, suddenly self-conscious about their choices.
And Jasmine walked through it all like a queen claiming her throne.
Her spine straight, chin lifted with newfound confidence, each step measured and purposeful. There was something different about her energy, something powerful that made the air itself seem to bend around her.
I wasn't prepared for the impact.
I'd been anticipating this moment all morning, needing to see her after the disaster at the ball. Since declaring Sylvia as my mate, my chest had been tight with regret. Abner, my beast, had been clawing at me relentlessly, furious that I'd hurt our true mate.
I just wanted to talk to her, to see that smile that used to be mine, to convince myself that maybe I hadn't destroyed everything completely.
"Jasmine," I called out as she approached, but she moved past me like I was invisible.
Shock hit me like a physical blow. She didn't even acknowledge my existence as she continued toward Palmer at his locker.
Palmer had been avoiding me since the ball, and I understood why. I'd thrown Jasmine at him publicly, putting him in an impossible position. Only George, Sylvia, and her followers bothered with me anymore.
Jasmine stopped directly in front of Palmer, and something dark and violent stirred in my gut.
The sight of them together made my vision blur with rage.
Palmer looked up with his trademark smirk, the one that had countless girls melting at his feet. His eyes found mine over Jasmine's shoulder, and he had the audacity to wink before turning that devastating smile on her.
She smiled back. My Jasmine smiled at him.
A growl built in my throat, raw and dangerous, but I forced it down before Abner took control. My beast was screaming for blood, demanding I tear Palmer apart for daring to touch what belonged to us.
I stumbled backward, fighting for control. Palmer was my cousin, though few people knew that secret since he rejected royal privileges. I couldn't let Abner loose, not here, not now.
The sight of Palmer taking Jasmine's hand sent me over the edge. My vision went dark, my breathing became ragged. If I stayed another second, the hallway would become a massacre. Abner wouldn't stop until every male who looked at Jasmine was eliminated, starting with Palmer.
I'd spent years learning to control my beast. My father always said Abner was the most lethal hybrid in our bloodline, powerful enough to level entire realms single-handedly.
Swallowing the growl and the surge of deadly energy, I forced myself to walk away.
Sylvia called my name, but I couldn't hear anything over the roar in my head.
I burst into my private training room, ripped off my shirt, and drove my fist into the heavy bag.
Again.
Again.
Again.
The bag exploded, Abner's power sending it crashing through the window in a shower of glass.
My chest heaved, muscles burning, but the rage wouldn't leave.
I hated this consuming jealousy. I'd spent years forcing myself to ignore what Jasmine meant to me, convincing myself our connection was wrong, that she was off-limits, that my feelings didn't matter.
But they did matter. They mattered more than anything.
That night when I finally claimed her, she'd been perfect beneath me. Her body fitted against mine like we were two pieces of the same soul. I remembered her sharp intake of breath, the way she trembled when I first made her mine.
She had belonged to me completely.
I'd taken her desperately, roughly, because the need had been too strong to control. Years of denial had made me wild, made me claim her like I could somehow erase all the time I'd wasted pushing her away.
But even in those moments, when her breathless sounds drove me to madness, when her nails marked my skin like she'd never let go, the guilt had poisoned everything.
I grabbed another bag and pounded it until sweat poured down my body.
My watch chimed, showing two missed periods. Lunch break.
After cleaning up and changing clothes, I headed for the cafeteria.
The moment I walked in, I found them.
Palmer was leaning close, whispering something that made Jasmine laugh with genuine joy.
Her hand rested on his arm, her body angled toward his with obvious interest.
Then he brushed a strand of hair from her face.
Control shattered.
The room became a blur as I crossed the space in seconds, grabbing Palmer's collar and slamming him to the floor.
Gasps erupted around us. Chairs scraped against tile as students scrambled back.
Palmer rolled to his feet instantly, eyes blazing black as he fought to contain his own hybrid. He knew as well as I did that a battle between us would level the building.
Jasmine stepped between us, and I opened my mouth to explain when her palm cracked across my face.
The slap echoed through the sudden silence like a gunshot.