Seraphina
I slapped him.
The sound cracked through the chamber like thunder, echoing off stone and silence. Kael didn't move. Didn't growl. Didn't even flinch. He just… knelt there, head bowed, like he was waiting for the pain. Like he wanted it.
"You burned them," I said. My voice was shaking. "You slaughtered innocent people. You destroyed everything I ever had."
His jaw tightened, but he still didn't look at me.
"My mother died in that fire. My sister. My home."
Tears blurred my vision. "And you didn't even tell me."
His voice was low. Raw. "If I had… you never would've let me touch you."
"You're right," I snapped. "I wouldn't have."
But my body betrayed me even as I said it.
Because my pulse still spiked at the sight of him. My breath still caught when his scent brushed across my skin — smoke, power, heat. The bond pulsed between us, cruel and unwanted.
I hated him.
And gods, I still wanted him.
The confusion warred inside me like a hurricane. Anger. Grief. Lust. Obsession.
"You knew," I said, stepping back. "All this time. You knew who I was."
"I did."
"And you still brought me here? You kissed me. You touched me."
"Because you're mine."
"No," I growled. "I don't belong to anyone."
He stood, slow and deliberate. No longer the broken Alpha on his knees — but the predator. The king. The beast with silver eyes and a voice that could ruin a girl in every way.
"You feel it," he said, stepping toward me. "Don't lie."
My back hit the cold stone wall.
"I feel sick," I spat. "I feel betrayed."
"You feel the bond."
"No."
His eyes flashed.
"Then why are your thighs clenched?" he asked darkly. "Why is your breath shallow? Why do you keep licking your lips like you're starving for something only I can give you?"
My face flamed with fury and shame.
"You're disgusting," I whispered.
"And you're burning for me."
I shoved him.
Hard.
He didn't move. But the wild look in his eyes shifted — from anger… to need.
He reached out suddenly and grabbed my wrist, pinning it to the wall beside my head. I gasped as his body pressed against mine, thick with heat and violence and raw power.
"I should hate you," I hissed.
"You do," he murmured, lips brushing my jaw. "And yet… you're still trembling for me."
I bit my lip.
His mouth hovered over mine.
"One kiss," he rasped. "One kiss and I'll step back. I won't touch you again. But don't lie to yourself, Seraphina. You want this. You want me."
"No," I whispered.
But the word broke in my throat.
Because I did.
And we both knew it.
His free hand slid down my waist, fingers brushing the bare skin where my nightdress had slipped. My body arched before I could stop it — seeking his touch like it needed him.
"Tell me to stop," he said again, voice shaking now.
I couldn't.
Because my skin was on fire. My veins were molten. My thighs clenched tighter. My breath hitched.
And the moment his lips touched mine… I shattered.
The kiss wasn't gentle. It wasn't sweet.
It was war.
I kissed him back like I wanted to punish him, like I wanted to bleed him dry — and he let me. His mouth claimed mine, teeth scraping, tongues tangling, every second fanning the flames that were already burning through my soul.
My hands tangled in his hair. My legs wrapped around his waist. He lifted me like I weighed nothing, slamming me against the wall as he growled into my mouth, "You're mine."
"I'm not," I gasped. "You don't own me."
His hand gripped my throat, not hard enough to hurt — just enough to control.
"Then run," he snarled. "Run right now. Before I mark you and you belong to me forever."
I stared into his eyes — wild silver, glowing, terrifying.
And I did something I didn't expect.
I kissed him again.
Hard.
Hungry.
Hopeless.
Because deep down, I knew… no matter how hard I tried to hate him…
I couldn't escape him.
But when he dropped me back to the floor, breath ragged, eyes wide with restraint, I whispered, "You'll never own me. No matter what fate says."
Then I turned and walked away. Back to his room. Back to the bed I now hated myself for craving.
I climbed into the sheets and stared at the ceiling.
And for the first time, I realized something far more dangerous than desire was blooming in my chest.
Bond or not… I was falling.
And I didn't know if I wanted to be caught… or burned alive.