Page 34 of The Heart of Winter

But the windows were fogged up, so I couldn’t really see him. Still, I walked along the large glass wall, not even sure what I was expecting to achieve here. I rounded the corner of the building, and there, at the far end, were some smaller doors. Probably a side entrance, the one dancers used to step outside. I’d seen them there before, standing around in small groups when I passed by on occasion.

Now, though, there was no one. The session was still going on. I walked slowly up to the door and noticed that the frosted pane had two narrow strips of plain, clear glass. Feeling a bit ridiculous, I leaned in and pressed my eye to one of them.

The room was full of people dancing to the beat of the music, which I could hear even through the thick door.

At first, I didn’t see him, but my eyes quickly picked him out of the crowd. He was the only alpha in the group, the rest were omegas and betas.

Sariel was maybe five yards away, close enough that I could catch every detail.

He wore a black, tight top and what looked like black leggings with thin phosphorescent green stripes running down the sides. His mint-colored hair, damp with sweat, clung to his forehead in strands.

Watching, I just stood there, appreciating the way he moved, his whole body radiated power and grace, like a black panther. A silly comparison, maybe, but there was something wild about him, something I never saw when he walked through the office halls like anyone else.

His naked arms had wiry, long muscles, his skin was shining, and the delicate, mint-colored floral tattoos on his forearms looked almost black against his fair skin in the neon lights.

He was really good. I knew he’d been dancing for a few years, but I hadn’t expected this level. There was something completely immersive in the way he moved, like he was dancing only for himself, folding inward into his own bubble, tuning everyone else out. He didn’t hold back, didn’t save anything. He gave everything he had to each move. Pure passion. Pure force… Every motion intense, his energy practically exploding with sudden twists, stops, and releases. Then he’d launch again, giving off this strong, raw vibration, like he was being powered by electricity.

I continued to stare, mesmerized, captivated by the spectacle of physical vitality, the vibrancy of it.

There was something about him, not exactly alpha-like, in the way he moved. More graceful, more sophisticated. Almost like he’d tuned into his inner omega. What a funny thought. But the ambiguity of his energy, as it presented itself here, was surprisingly attractive, and… convincing. It just fit, like a composition designed with a purpose. He seemed shockingly real. Almost naked. Vulnerable. I loved how pure it was, this openness… I lacked.

I could sense him here, on a completely new level, as if I were seeing some unexplored truth about him.

And wow. I realized then how far removed Sariel was from me, Jacob, and Finn. Another world, another galaxy.

Like a different species.

We were all fucking intense about careers, competitive, perfectionists, almost militant about our meticulously designed lives.

He was the opposite. For a second, I had this absurd thought, that Sariel was the type of guy I had never tried to date before. I settled for Finns, Jacobs, Winters. Those types. And kept feeling there was something lacking. Too many similarities. Suffocating.

I’d never considered dating anybody artistic and wild. Maybe I should try to find somebody like that?

Wait, I actually had tried one time…

Logan.

After I kicked him from the coding club, he switched to the art club. And he did well! He actually went to college, majoring in Fashion Design!

Yeah… so, I’ve never explored the artistic boyfriend scenario, given this kind of bad start. But maybe there was something to it after all?

My first intuition in choosing a boyfriend was a guy with blue hair and artistic inclinations. All those other analytical, success-oriented, STEM-minded typeschoseme. Interesting.

My thoughts were rolling.

The music kept going.

…and so did Sariel, my eyes following every movement.

His narrow hips, his long, strong muscles. He really did have something feline about him. And something simply… beautiful.

I pressed my lips together.

When he was passed out in my office and I leaned over him, I’d thought he had a beautiful face. But now I was realizing—he had a beautiful, lithe body too.

What the hell? I exhaled sharply.

Stop that, Winter. Crazy!

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