Scarlett’s POV

​He led me down the hallway to his suite, his grip on my ass firm and his other hand tangled in my hair as he kept his mouth crushed against mine. The moment the door clicked shut behind us, the silence of the room made the sound of our heavy breathing feel deafening.

​He pulled back just an inch, his chest heaving and his amber eyes searching my silver mask with a terrifying intensity. "Are you in your right mind, Samantha?" he rasped, his voice rough. "Will you regret this tomorrow?"

​"No," I whispered, my heart beating fast. "Will you?"

​"Fuck yes," he growled, his jaw tightening. "I’ll regret it every second for the rest of my life. But I want you so badly I can’t let go."

​He didn’t give me time to respond. He kissed me again—a hard, punishing kiss that tasted of desperation. I moaned, my hands shaking as I reached for his belt, my fingers fumbling with the zipper of his trousers. I knew I was playing with fire. I knew this was a mistake that could ruin everything I’d built. But I didn’t care. I wanted him. I had gotten a taste of Leo, and fuck, I wanted him to get a taste of me, too.

​"Stop," he commanded, his voice vibrating with power. He caught my wrists, pulling them away from his waist. "I’ll take the lead."

​He began to undress me, his movements swift and efficient. A cold shiver of panic raced through me as the silk wrap pooled at my feet. Would he know? Would his hands remember the curve of my waist or the slope of my shoulders? But then I remembered—three years had changed me. I wasn’t the soft, round girl he had lost. I was more slender, my muscles toned from hours of training, and my curves were more mature and defined. To him, I was a stranger.

​He stepped back, his eyes devouring me in the dim light of the suite. "Fuck," he breathed, his voice a low, reverent hiss. "You are fucking sexy."

​He didn’t wait. He leaned in, his mouth finding my breast, his tongue swirling around my nipple before he took the peak into his mouth and sucked hard. I arched my back, a sharp cry of pleasure escaping my lips as I buried my fingers in his thick hair, pulling him closer.

​He moved lower, his hands parting my thighs with an Alpha’s strength.

He inserted two fingers deep inside me, his knuckles rubbing against my clit as he fucked me with a brutal, fast pace.

​"Mmm... please," I sobbed, my head tossing back.

​He stiffened at the sound of my moan, his fingers stuttering inside me for a second before he pushed deeper. "I can’t make love to you, Samantha," he said, his voice strained, "but we can fuck."

​The words hit me like a physical blow. I almost cried right then and there. He saw me as a call girl. A body to use. A place to dump his pain. My pride screamed at me to leave, to put my clothes on and walk out of his life forever. But my body was a traitor. The pulse of my pussy around his fingers was too strong to ignore.

​I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him down until our noses touched. "Who said anything about love, Alpha?" I challenged, my voice dripping with fake bravado and real lust. "Don’t talk. Just fuck me."

​His eyes went totally black. The wolf was fully awake now. He pulled his fingers out, the wet sound making me shiver.

​"Go over to the bed," he ordered, his voice deep and commanding. "Get on all fours. Don’t look back at me."

​I did as I was told, my heart thumping in my throat. I crawled onto the high bed, my knees sinking into the plush duvet. I lowered my chest to the pillows and pushed my ass back, exposing my soaking entrance to him. I felt the bed dip behind me as he moved, the heat of his body hovering just inches away.

​"You have no idea what you’ve started," he growled.

​Then I heard the sound of his zipper, and the air in the room grew heavy with arousal. The heat coming off his body was like a furnace, and I was already shaking, my ass pushed back and waiting for him to claim me.

​But then, everything went still.

​I waited for the impact, for him to grab my hips and dive into me, but it didn’t happen. The silence stretched out, becoming heavy and cold. My heart hammered against my ribs. Did he see something? Did he recognize a scar?

​"Are you having second thoughts?" I whispered into the pillow, my voice trembling.

​"No," he rasped, his voice sounding choked and pained. "It’s not that. I just... I can’t fuck you like this, Samantha."

​"What do you mean?" I asked, turning my head to look back at him over my shoulder.

​Leonard looked like he was in agony. His face was twisted, his eyes searching mine through the holes of my mask. Without another word, he reached out and grabbed my waist, but he wasn’t rough this time. He was surprisingly gentle as he turned me over onto my back.

​I lay there, exposed and trembling under his gaze. He crawled over me, pinning my wrists to the bed as he hovered above me. He leaned down and kissed me, but it wasn’t the hard, angry kiss from the elevator. It was soft, lingering, and full of a strange pleasure that made my toes curl.

​"I feel like I want to make love to you," he hissed against my lips, sounding like the words were being ripped out of him. "Fuck... why does it feel like this with you?"

​He pulled back, his hand reaching for the drawer. He pulled out a small square packet—a condom. He went to tear it open with his teeth, but then he stopped. He looked down at me, his chest heaving.

​"I’m clean," he said, his voice dropping to a low growl. "I haven’t been with anyone in years." 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

​I swallowed hard, looking up at the man I loved—the man who had no idea I was his Scarlett. "I’m clean, too," I whispered, the truth slipping out before I could think. "I have only had sex twice in my life."

​He searched my eyes for a long time, looking for a lie, but he didn’t find one. He tossed the unopened packet onto the nightstand.

​"Do you mind if I go raw?" he asked, his thumb tracing my bottom lip.