Chapter Three

Scarlett’s POV

There is a slight hesitation on Liam’s face before a greedy smirk lines his lips.

“She’s all yours to do as you please,” Liam says, his voice firm. My stomach drops despite the fact that the thought dropped in my mind.

I still had doubts that he wouldn’t do that. Then, he adds, “I hope she brings you good luck,” and my throat tightens.

What? Just like that, Alpha Liam, my former mate, sold me without a second thought.

I stare at him, sudden tears blurring my vision, but he just smirks.

Alpha Killian whispers something to a man standing close, and the man gives a nod before disappearing. He returns with a briefcase, and Alpha Killian gestures that he give it to Liam.

Liam’s hawkish eyes dilate as the briefcase opens, and I suddenly feel queasy as he almost salivates from watching the heavy stack of dollar notes.

“You should be grateful to Alpha Killian for finding you worthy of attention. I never imagined that you would be of any use to me.” He pulls out some stack of notes, inhaling the scent of money like a rabid wolf and licking the sharp edges.

My mouth tastes of charcoal as I watch Liam. It’s a good thing we’re here in the VIP room, with the curtains drawn. It will be pathetic for anyone to watch their Alpha like this.

Alpha Killian’s hand tightens further around my waist. “Raven, you belong to me now,” he murmurs against the shell of my ears.

“I hope you’ll finally learn how to behave in the hands of a ruthless master like Alpha Killian. You could use some lessons from him. He’s not one to spare a dork as clumsy as you,” Liam says with disdain.

A chill—not the good kind—runs through my spine at that revelation.

I can already tell that he’s someone not used to having no as an answer from sitting across his lap in the last twenty minutes. From the look of things, he seems very powerful, and I wonder what things will be like for me under his roof.

As I follow Alpha Killian out of the Howling Moon, several gazes follow me, and I can tell that no one likes the idea of me being Alpha Killian’s new possession.

I replay his name in my head for the first time. There’s something familiar about it. Then, it clicks.

He’s the one rumored to be the most ruthless, wealthiest, and most powerful Alpha in the city, except that he isn’t just that. He’s the lycan king who rules with an iron fist. No one dares to question him, and women hardly impress him.

A couple of the sex workers in Howling Moon have tried to shoot their shots with him, but he’s never acknowledged any of them. It’s hard to have his attention.

Yet, he bought me the first time he set his eyes on me.

Why?

Jealous eyes follow me, heavy behind me as I leave Howling Moon. Once we step outside, I swallow at the sight of the black limousine in front of me.

“Get in,” he says as I gawk, drinking in the car. It’s my first time seeing a limo.

“What?” Before I know what’s happening, I’m in the car, and the limo begins to move.

Nothing prepares me for the view in front of me as we reach Alpha Killian’s house—no, estate. It’s nothing short of a fortress. I gawk at the grand, vast, yet dangerous view in front of me, and I swallow hard. It seems like a different world on its own, with dark fixtures everywhere that make it seem like I’m in the Devil’s abode, except that this place is extremely stunning.

He wastes no time, hardly acknowledging his staff as we head inside. Once we reach a lavish study, which looks like a library, he settles himself on his swivel chair, leaning back, and his ice-blue eyes drink me in. His mahogany desk is empty, and he inhales the scent in the air.

“Strip.”

I stiffen, heat crawling up my neck. “What?”

There’s a wicked smile on his face that makes my body tingle. “I should test what I paid for in full, don’t you think?” His voice is dangerous, and it sends tremors down my spine, but it also makes my core pulsate. I can’t explain it.

“We can start with a lap dance.” He relaxes better, resting an arm lazily on his chair as he watches me. “Consider it a test of your obedience to your master.”

I swallow. “I—I only serve back there. I’ve never—”

He tilts his head as if challenging me to refuse, his eyes dark, while his aura drips with authority. “I own you, Raven. You’ll obey me and satisfy all of my needs and desires. I don’t care how you do it.”

Raven. It’s the second time he’s called me that. He already has a nickname for me.

Very slowly, I reach for my zipper. I half expect him to reprimand me for wasting his time, but he doesn’t. Instead, he watches me with keen interest, as if I’m his favorite show.

Silence hangs in the air like a suffocating blanket, save for the sound of my zipper cutting through the air. My dress drops to the floor, and instinctively, I cover my upper body with my hands, feeling bare, even though I’m still in my panties and bra.

One of my insecurities is my plump breasts, and I wonder if he will find them attractive.

Alpha Killian’s gaze narrows, and his piercing eyes are enough to send me alarm bells of warning. I drop my hand slowly. He begins to drink me in from the sole of my foot, his gaze traveling upward, and they linger briefly on my naked thighs.

I feel exposed. As if he’s watching my soul, and when his eyes level with my breasts, they darken, and I feel the heat from them. It’s searing, and my nipples pucker in response. The tension in the air is so palpable it can be cut with a pair of scissors.

But—

A vibrating sound interrupts the moment. It’s his phone. Alpha Killian curses under his breath, snatching his phone from the desk. He glances once more at me, but I’m not even sure if he wants me to excuse him.

A muscle tics in his jaw as he brings his phone to his ear, and although I have no idea what is going on, he doesn’t seem like he’s enjoying the conversation, and just like that, the spell is broken.

“Leave,” he says, his voice clipped. He sounds so different. It’s as if someone else is speaking through him, and I’m about to ask if he is alright when he barks.

“Get out!”

I don’t hesitate. I turn and flee, my heart slamming hard against my ribs, my body burning with confusion, shame, and something far more dangerous.

I’m such a fool. How could I even think that the rumors about him were probably exaggerated simply because he’s been patient with me?

***

A week passes.

I tell myself I am nothing to him, just another toy, especially since he has been aloof with me all week. We’ve hardly seen each other since that night he brought me here. I’ve been thinking that he’s forgotten about me and moved to the next one when one of his maids came in yesterday with a gift box.

He ordered me to attend the pack’s gala with him, and I told myself that the only reason why I’m succumbing is because I cannot say no to Alpha Killian.

The dress is sinful—deep red, silky, clinging to every curve, with a slit high enough to tempt. It feels like a warning. Or a claim. The swell of my plump breasts is so visible that it makes me uncomfortable, but it’s Alpha Killian’s choice, and there’s no way I can reject it, I remind myself.

I look nothing like a slave in the dress and my makeup. If anything, I look more like a mistress. Then, with a deep exhale, I step out of the room Killian reserved for me in the mansion.

The gala is grand, filled with Alphas, Betas, and high-ranking wolves. As I step out, eyes follow me, burning with curiosity and envy, and they almost snuck the air out of my lungs.

I scan the hall for a familiar face, Alpha Killian’s in particular, but it seems like he is yet to join the party.

The thought to go outside to get some air tugs at me, but before I can act on it, I feel a possessive hand on my lower back, and a second later, I’m slammed against a hard male body.

I tense a little, my breath hitching as I turn, and familiar ice-blue eyes stare at me.

Killian.

Dark raven-black hair. Muscular. Angular jawline and broad shoulders, except that his gaze seems a little different, his scent too.

He leans in, his breath brushing against my skin, and his fingers tighten further around my waist. I inhale shakily.

“Finally,” his voice is smooth like silk, teasing. “I have you where I’ve always wanted.”

My heart skips a beat, and I swallow as sudden heat crawls up my cheeks.

Confusion settles in. I can feel stares on me also. On us.

But before I can think further, he cups my jaw softly with his thumb and forefinger and kisses me right in the middle of the party, and I stiffen.

His lips are soft against mine, stealing my breath away as he grabs my ass, squeezing it gently. My insides quiver, and I feel more heat on my cheeks, but before I can react any further, he pulls away from me, and it takes me a moment to catch my breath. I might have staggered if his hand weren’t still around my waist.

“I…uh…can I use the restroom?” My voice is shaking, and the smirk on his lips confirms it.

“Don’t be too long,” he says, before removing his possessive hand from the small of my back.

I spin away, feeling more heat crawling to my cheeks, and the stares are unmistakable as I head for the restroom, my lips still tingling from the tantalizing kiss.

I stare at my reflection in the restroom and find a loose strand of hair out of place. I tuck it back in and exhale. The moment I step out of the restroom, I’m almost knocked off by something hard, but before I can lose my balance, firm hands hold me in place and pull me towards the dark path around the restroom hallway till I’m pressed against the wall.

My breath hitches as I’m trapped by two familiar strong palms on either side of my head. Blue eyes stare into mine, darker than I remember just a few minutes ago, and I gasp.

Killian. But why does he look even hotter than he did just moments ago?

Also…

Did he change his tux?

I don’t get enough time to think about this properly because a hand grabs my waist, pulling my body against his hard one, and I part my lips as his mouth crashes over mine in a delicious sensation that makes my toes curl.

Every iota of reasoning ebbs away from me, and my eyes roll, a wave of dizziness hitting me, as he takes more of my lips, his tongue dancing against mine, and in the next moment, my satchel drops from my hand.

Gosh! This man is a darn good kisser. It’s almost as if he took separate kissing classes.

He pins my hands against the wall, intertwining our fingers, as he continues to suck the air out of my lungs with passionate kisses, trailing his tongue down my neck.

His kiss feels different from the last one we shared—more demanding, more enthralling, and it consumes me whole like an inferno.

But before I can bask further in the euphoria of the kiss, he stiffens against my neck.

A sniff. Another, his nose brushing slightly against my skin. Then, he pulls back slightly, his grip on my hands tightening.

I blink as sudden heat rushes to my cheeks, unsure whether it’s from his gaze or our interrupted make-out session.

“Who touched you?”

I blink, my thoughts freezing for a moment. “What?”

He snarls, his hand fisting in my hair as he forces me to look at him. “I smell him on you,” he grunts, and my brows furrow slightly.

“Who are you talking—”

“I see you haven’t changed, brother. Moving from one plaything to the other, huh?” A deep voice cuts through the air, silencing my voice, and I snap my head in its direction.

My eyes widen, a gasp follows, and I immediately escape from Alpha Killian’s clutches.

I turn from the man standing at six feet three inches with the same blue eyes and dark raven hair as Killian—no, the same face as Killian—to Killian, and my breath hitches.

No way. He’s an identical twin. Killian’s eyes darken before he approaches the man, and for a moment, my brain feels fried as I stare at both of them, my mind struggling to keep up.

“Kieran. What are you doing here?”

“Decided to come say hello to my brother. Figured a full house wouldn’t be a bad idea, but it looks like I interrupted something.” The man turns his gaze to me, and I hold my breath as I meet his gaze. “Bad timing, I guess.”

Heat rises up to my cheeks, and I feel like wrapping my arms around my body—suddenly feeling like I’m bare despite how fully clad I am.

Was he the one who kissed me? But he wasn’t…

“Oh, my! Kieran? Long time no see,” another voice booms in the air from behind me, slicing through my thoughts, and the moment my eyes lock with another identical version of Killian, I almost choke on saliva.

Impossible.

He’s wearing the same clothes as the man who kissed me earlier before Killian grabbed me in front of the restroom.

“Kane,” Killian says with a maddening calm.

My breath catches. My eyes dart between all three of them.

Three identical men. Triplets.

My heart slams against my ribs, especially as their gazes rest heavy on me.

Oh no, no, no. This can’t be happening.

Before I can regain my composure, Killian leans in, his scent enveloping me, and very slightly, his lips brush against the shell of my ear.

“You committed a grave mistake, Raven. An unforgivable one even,” he says, his voice low and dangerous. A slight shiver runs down my spine, and I stiffen. Then, his fingers graze my lips so lightly that I feel my walls clench. “Rule one, recognize your master. You breached that. Brace yourself for the consequences because I’ll not go easy on you. You’ll be punished really hard.”