Kaelen POV

"Pull out!" she yelled.

I froze. "What?"

"Pull out now!" she practically shouted, panic filling her voice. "Please..."

I was confused as fuck, but the fear in her voice was impossible to ignore. Slowly, I pulled out of her.

The agonizing friction made my jaw tighten until it ached. A wet, soft sound echoed through the quiet room, followed by a sharp gasp from her lips as the cold air hit her sensitive skin.

The second I was clear, she scrambled backward and forced herself into an upright sitting position on the desk.

"What’s wrong?" I demanded.

My voice came out sharper than I intended, caught somewhere between the adrenaline still coursing through me and the growing frustration of being left unsatisfied and interrupted yet again.

I watched her press a hand against her lower stomach, her face noticeably pale.

"You didn’t use protection," she said quietly, sounding as though she was only a step away from tears.

That only confused me even more.

A heavy silence settled between us before I finally let out a breath.

"So?" I asked, my brow furrowing as I looked at her. "I prefer skin-to-skin. It feels better that way."

It really did.

Over the years, I had heard countless male wolves complain about protection. According to them, it dulled everything and made the experience feel less real. After ten years of nothing, I wanted to feel everything.

But judging by the look on her face, that was absolutely the wrong thing to say.

"What if I get pregnant?" she asked.

Her voice was barely above a whisper, as though saying the words too loudly might somehow make them come true.

But that wasn’t a problem for me.

"I need an heir anyway," I said, then leaned closer to get another whiff of her amazing scent. At least that could make up for the delay she was causing. Then my gaze drifted to the line of her throat.

"So I’d consider that a blessing from the Moon Goddess."

"What a crazy..." she muttered under her breath.

But I pretended not to hear her.

Moving closer, I buried my face in the crook of her neck and took a deeper breath of the skin just below her jaw.

Why did she smell this good? Was she using some kind of spell or something?

No woman had ever smelled this good.

Well, except for—

I immediately shut that thought down.

That was years ago anyway.

"Why is your scent so intoxicating?" I asked, my voice rough as the words brushed against her skin. "What’s your secret?"

Beneath me, her body stiffened.

"Scent?" she muttered, the word sounding more like a question than an answer. "I... I don’t have a scent."

That was an obvious lie.

But I didn’t have the energy to argue with her about it right now. Instead, I breathed her in again, the primal urge to claim her growing stronger with every inhale.

**** 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"How long is this going to be?" she asked.

She was standing in the far corner of my office now, having already cleaned herself up.

Even though I knew my scent was still all over her, clinging to her skin, her dress, and even her hair, I saw no reason to point it out.

Let her think she was clean.

"Why do you ask?" I replied slowly as I rearranged the papers and items on my desk that had been knocked out of place.

"I just want to know how long I can enjoy this new privilege," she said.

So she wasn’t completely stupid.

She was already thinking ahead. But her question forced me to stop and consider it.

How long did I actually plan on relying on a criminal to satisfy my sexual needs? Was it only until I was cured?

That could take another ten years.

Still, I was relieving her of her exhausting duties and giving her a far more comfortable life here. Staying with me for ten years shouldn’t be a problem for her.

If anything, it was mercy.

And if things didn’t improve, I could always have her carry my heir and finally get those old council members off my back.

"Until I’m satisfied," I said.

A moment later, I heard a frustrated huff from across the room, and the sound made the corner of my mouth curl into a faintly amused smile.

"You can leave now," I said, finally looking up from my desk as I straightened the last folder. "I’ve already given instructions for your new room to be prepared. Your things will be moved by tonight."

"Already?" she asked.

But it was the way her face instantly lit up that caught me completely off guard, causing my chest to tighten unexpectedly.

The genuine relief in her eyes struck something primal inside me, and for a second, the air seemed to leave my lungs.

"Y-yes," I choked out before clearing my throat. I quickly forced my gaze away from her and focused on the paperwork scattered across my desk.

"Thank you so much, Alpha," she said, her voice dropping into a respectful tone as she offered a small bow. "I will be taking my leave now."

With that, she turned and headed for the door.

It wasn’t until the heavy door finally slammed shut behind her that I let out a long, ragged breath.

My knees felt strangely weak as I sank back into my leather chair and dragged both hands down my face.

"What the fuck was that about?" I muttered to the empty room.

****

"Alpha, you have to believe me," Hawke’s voice echoed through the room, thick with desperation.

He remained on his knees in the center of the office, spitting a mouthful of dark blood onto the floor after Darius had delivered a brutal kick to his midsection. The impact had been hard enough to crack ribs, and Hawke was struggling just to stay upright.

His face was swollen, his lip split, and one eye was nearly swollen shut.

Meanwhile, Darius stood over him with bloodied knuckles and a heaving chest, looking more like a wild animal than a man, while I stood behind my desk with my hands tucked into my pockets, my expression as cold as ice.

The sun was beginning to set outside.

I had been so occupied with work after Ella left earlier that I hadn’t gotten around to dealing with this matter until now.

But for the first time I wasn’t the angriest person in the room.

That title belonged to Darius.