[Sia's POV]

Panic choked me. I threw on a hoodie and jeans to hide my skin. To hide the scent of my arousal.

When I walked into the living room, Kaelen filled the doorway. He sucked all the air out of the room.

He took off his sunglasses. Those golden eyes pinned me down.

"Alpha Kaelen insists we move to the Summit Estate," Mom said nervously. "Because of the attacks... he wants us safe. Isn't that generous?"

No. It was a capture.

"Sia," Mom waved at me. "Come say hello. This is Alpha Kaelen Voss. We will be part of his family."

I forced my legs to move. I stared at his tie knot. I couldn't look at his face.

"Hello... Alpha Kaelen," I whispered.

"Please," his voice vibrated through the floor. "We're going to be living together. No formalities."

He extended a large hand.

I hesitated. Mom was watching. I had no choice. I put my small hand in his.

Zap.

A spark of static electricity snapped between us. Sharp. Painful.

His fingers tightened instantly. It wasn't a handshake; it was a grip. His thumb pressed against my wrist, feeling my racing pulse.

He pulled me closer, invading my space.

"It's a pleasure to officially meet you, Sia," he said smoothly.

Then, he leaned down. Only I could see the dark hunger in his eyes. A cruel, sexy smirk played on his lips.

"Although," he murmured, his thumb stroking my wrist, sending fire up my arm. "We met yesterday, didn't we?"

I froze, trapped in the wolf's grip.

***

The Summit Pack's Estate was a fortress carved out of obsidian and glass, perched on the edge of a cliff.

"Dr. Bennett, you will be in the East Wing guest suite," Theo, Kaelen's Beta, announced efficiently as we stood in the cavernous foyer. He was polite, but his eyes held no warmth. "And Miss Sia..."

He checked his tablet. "Alpha Kaelen requested you in the Master Wing. The room next to his. For... maximum security."

My stomach dropped. It sounded like maximum surveillance.

"That's very thoughtful!" Mom chirped.

Suddenly, Mom's pager beeped. "Emergency surgery. Pile-up on the interstate. I have to go."

"Go," I said quickly, though panic was already icing my veins. "I'll be fine."

"Sorry sweetie, I'll be back tomorrow." Mom hugged me hastily and rushed out. The heavy front door clicked shut.

The house fell into a suffocating silence.

The Omega servants moved like ghosts, eyes lowered, terrified to make a sound. Dinner was lonely. Kaelen never appeared.

But his presence was everywhere. The smell of cedar and gunpowder seeped into the walls.

By midnight, my throat felt like sandpaper.

I couldn't sleep. The silence was loud. I needed water.

I crept out of my room. The hallway was dark. I got lost in the massive house.

I took a wrong turn, then another, ending up in a wing I didn't recognize.

The air here was hotter. The Alpha scent was thick, smelling like storm clouds and musk. It made my belly ache.

I saw a light from a door at the end of the hall. An office.

The door was cracked open.

I raised my hand to knock, but a sound stopped me dead.

"Sia..."

It was Kaelen. He groaned my name. Low, painful, and full of need.

I froze. I should have run. Every instinct screamed at me to run. But I pressed my eye to the crack in the door.

The office was dark. He sat in a leather chair, back to the door, facing the window, looking out at the moonlit forest.

His suit jacket was gone. His white dress shirt was unbuttoned, hanging off his broad shoulders.

And he was moving.

His right arm was moving in a steady, rhythmic motion near his lap.

I couldn't see what he was holding, the high back of the chair blocked my view, but I could see the muscles in his back bunching and flexing with every jerk of his arm.

Slick. Wet. Heavy. The sound of friction filled the silence.

My breath hitched in my throat. I knew that sound. I knew what he was doing.

Heat flooded my face, my chest, my thighs.

I watched the way his head fell back, exposing the thick column of his throat. His hand moved faster, harder, as if he was trying to punish himself.

Then, he spoke again.

"Fuck... Sia... you little torment..."

The sound of my name on his lips, mixed with the wet, rhythmic sound of his pleasure, shattered my world.

[Kaelen's POV]

"Kaelen... please... I need you..." the AI voice whimpered. "Fuck me, Kaelen..."

I ripped the earbud out and threw it on the desk. My chest heaved. I was breathing hard, like I'd just run ten miles.

On my phone, the video looped.

I had paid a tech team a fortune to make it. In the video, a digital ghost with Sia's face wore a sheer black nightgown... the kind I wanted to tear off her body.

But the high faded fast.

I looked at the screen, at her fake face, and felt sick. Self-loathing crashed over me.

Pathetic.

I was the Summit Alpha. I could have any woman I wanted. Yet here I was, getting off to a fake video of an eighteen-year-old girl.

Fake. It was all fake.

I reached out to close the app. Then, my nose flared.

The scent hit me.

It was faint, drifting through the crack in the door. But to an Alpha, it was loud.

Salty sweat. Vanilla. Wild berries. And underneath... the sweet, heavy smell of an aroused female.

My hand froze.

Sia heard.

I didn't feel shame. I felt a jolt of electricity straight to my groin.

She stood outside my door. She listened to the wet, slapping sounds of my hand. She heard me groan her name.

What did she think? A dark smirk touched my lips. Did she touch herself? Are her little panties wet right now because of her 'Daddy'?

The thought made me hard again. Instantly.

I stood up and moved silently. I followed the scent trail straight to Sia's bedroom.

I turned the handle. Unlocked. Careless girl.

Moonlight filled the room. Sia was curled up in the middle of the big bed, buried under the duvet.

I walked to the edge. My footsteps made no sound.

"Sia," I whispered.

She didn't move. She was faking it.

I could hear her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. Her breathing was too shallow.

She was awake. And she was terrified.

I stood over her, a monster admiring his pet. My eyes traced her shoulder, the curve of her neck where her pulse jumped wildly.

I reached out. My hand hovered inches above her skin.

The heat coming off her was intoxicating.

I imagined grabbing her, pinning her to the mattress, and asking her exactly what she heard. I imagined checking those silk sheets to see if she was as wet as she smelled.

My erection throbbed against my zipper. A painful ache.

Not yet, my rational mind warned. She's scared. Take it slow.

I pulled my hand back, curling my fingers into a fist. Instead, I gently tucked the duvet higher around her shoulder.

I leaned down, lips right at her ear. I knew she could feel my hot breath.

"Good night, my mate," I murmured. A low rumble just for her and her wolf.

She shuddered under the covers.

Satisfied, I turned and walked out. I needed another ice-cold shower.

(Vivian's POV)

2,00 AM.

I collapsed onto the cheap plastic chair.

The pile-up on the interstate was a bloodbath. I had operated for six hours straight. My scrubs were stained, my back was breaking. I just wanted silence.

Click.

The lock turned. My head snapped up.

Leo stood there.

Twenty-six. Blond hair, hazel eyes, broad shoulders. The hospital's golden boy. But tonight, he wasn't smiling.

He leaned against the door, crossing his arms. His biceps strained against his blue scrubs.

"Leo, unlock the door," I sighed. "I need to rest."

"Rest?" He pushed off the door, restless and angry. "Or do you need to go back to that castle? To him?"

"Don't start," I warned, standing up. "I'm doing this for Sia's safety."

"Bullshit," Leo growled. He closed the distance in two strides, backing me up until my hips hit the desk. "You're playing house with Alpha Moneybags."

"He is my fiancé, Leo!"

"He's a statue, Vivian! He's cold and old, and he doesn't look at you the way I do."

Actually, Kaelen was a year younger than me. But before I could speak, Leo's hands grabbed my waist. He hoisted me onto the desk.

He stepped between my legs. His body heat was impossible to ignore. He smelled like antiseptic and sunshine, so different from Kaelen's dark, heavy scent.

"Leo, stop..." My protest was weak.

"Tell me to stop," he challenged, face inches from mine. "Tell me your wolf doesn't want this puppy."

He didn't wait. He crashed his lips onto mine.

It was a hungry, desperate kiss. I gasped, and his tongue tangled with mine.

My hands found his thick, golden hair, pulling him closer.

I melted.

Moon Goddess, I was so tired of being strong. For a moment, I just wanted to be wanted.

Leo's hands roamed over my body. He kneaded my breasts roughly through the scrubs. His other hand slid up my thigh, thumb pressing into my soft flesh.

His fingers thrust deep into my wetness. He shifted angles, probing me. Slick juices ran down his fingers and dripped onto the floor.

When he pulled his fingers out, I rocked my hips against the empty air, needy. He yanked down his waistband and gripped his thick, hard shaft.

[Vivian's POV]

"Vivi..." he groaned against my mouth, thrusting deep into me. "Don't marry him. Stay with me."

The words were a bucket of cold water.

Reality crashed into me. I was cheating on the most powerful Alpha in the state.

If Kaelen found out, he wouldn't just kill Leo. He would cut off Sia's funding. He would throw us out.

I untangled my legs from his waist and pushed him away.

"No," I gasped, lips swollen. "No, Leo. I can't."

"We can't do this," I said, voice shaking. I jumped off the desk and smoothed down my scrubs. "I have a daughter. I have a duty. Sia is my life."

I couldn't look at the hurt in his puppy-dog eyes. I grabbed my bag and ran.

[Sia's POV]

The dining room was a cold marble tomb.

I sat at the long table, picking at my toast. My eyes burned from lack of sleep. Every time I closed them, I heard Kaelen's groans in the dark.

I felt dirty. Like a criminal.

"Alpha Kaelen," Mom's voice broke the silence. She sat opposite him, looking tired but determined to be the perfect fiancée. "About the engagement party... maybe keep it small? Just the Elders and family?"

Kaelen sat at the head of the table like a king. He wore a white dress shirt, sleeves rolled up, revealing the powerful arms I saw moving in the shadows last night.

He looked up from his coffee and gave Mom a gentle smile. "Whatever you prefer, Vivian. Theo will handle it."

His tone was polite but dismissive.

I should have felt relieved. Instead, a sick knot of jealousy tightened in my chest.

He doesn't want you, a dark voice whispered. He wants the girl on the video.

I shifted in my chair, trying to cross my legs to ease the ache between my thighs.

Suddenly, a heavy weight pressed against my calf under the table.

I froze.

I glanced up. Kaelen was reading his tablet, looking bored. But under the table, his long leg extended, trapping my ankle against the chair.

It wasn't an accident.

Slowly, his calf slid against mine. The friction of his dress pants against my bare skin sent electricity up my spine.

"The flowers..." Mom continued, oblivious. "Roses or lilies?"

"Lilies," Kaelen answered smoothly, sipping his coffee.

At the same time, his foot moved higher. His shoe nudged the inside of my knee, forcing my legs apart.

My breath hitched. My heart hammered against my ribs.

Stop, I begged silently.

But I didn't pull away. I couldn't.

The sensation triggered a flashback to last night. Me outside his door, legs pressed together, listening to him pleasure himself. Touching myself while he called my name.

Sia... you little torment...

My core clenched. I was wet. Again. Right here at the breakfast table.

Kaelen's foot pressed harder, sliding up my shin with possessive arrogance. He knew.

"Sia?" Mom asked. "Roses or lilies?"

I jumped. "I... I..."

Kaelen looked at me. His golden eyes locked onto mine, burning with dark mockery. He pressed his leg against mine, a silent command to submit.

My hand spasmed.

Crash!

My milk glass tipped over. White liquid splashed across the table and onto my lap.

"Oh no!" Mom stood up. "Sia, are you okay?"

"I'm sorry!" I scrambled back, face burning. "I'm clumsy..."

"Sit," Kaelen commanded. His voice was calm, authoritative.

He signaled a servant. "Clean this up."

Then, he stood and walked to me. He picked up a napkin. I shrank back, expecting a scolding. Instead, he leaned down.

"Careful, Sia," he murmured, voice low and raspy.

He dabbed a drop of milk from my hand. His fingers were hot. As he wiped it away, his thumb lingered, caressing my skin in a slow circle.

It was an intimate, dirty gesture disguised as help.

"You seem... distracted," he whispered, lips inches from my ear. "Did you have a restless night?"

I shivered. He was taunting me. He knew I was listening. He knew why I spilled the milk.

"I have to go," Mom interrupted, checking her watch. "I'm late. Sweetie, can you take the bus to campus?"

I opened my mouth to say yes. I needed to escape.

"No need," Kaelen said, dropping the napkin. "The University is next to my office. I'm heading there now. I'll drive her."

"Really?" Mom beamed. "Thank you, Kaelen! You're so good to her."

She grabbed her bag and kissed my cheek. "Bye sweetie, learn something."

"Bye, Mom."

I watched her leave. I was alone with him.

Kaelen turned to me, a cruel, satisfied smirk on his lips. He held out his hand.

"Shall we, daughter?" he drawled, the title dripping with irony. "We have a long ride ahead."

I looked at the open door, then at the Alpha waiting to eat me alive.

I had no choice. I stood up on shaky legs and walked into the trap.