Ch. 5 - Mysterious Stranger

Ruby POV

The grand celebration in the North was, as always, a spectacular affair under Luna Kiera's meticulous care. She spared no expense and had a knack for keeping the crowd entertained. Light flurries of snow added a magical touch to the fading sun, music floated through the air, kids raced across the frozen lake, and families reveled in the many games and booths. It was like a carnival, complete with an ice rink, food trucks, hot chocolate, and laughter echoing everywhere.

For the first hour, Sebastian and I raced around the grounds, competing fiercely in everything from milk jug toss to cornhole. He looked dashing in his black suit, with a dark purple handkerchief that matched my dress. He always made these small gesture to remind me I wasn't alone. Sebastian was the best friend anyone could ask for, but he was also the future King, and duty inevitably called.

As the evening wore on, he made his way around the grounds, greeting and chatting with families. Meanwhile, I spent the next few hours indulging in snacks, trying to ignore the whispered comments that followed me.

In the North, I was mostly just pitied, while in the South, I faced abuse and bullying, which was understandable since I caused the most trouble there. But in both regions, I was equally feared. Northerners were also more superstitious, spinning tales of a dark, ominous forest they believed I was born from. It was ridiculous, yet they clung to every word.

I found myself by the table of cupcakes near the dance floor, watching Sebastian with a quiet smile. He looked like a confident player surrounded by women vying for his attention, but I knew better. He had confessed to me how uncomfortable girls made him, how I was the only one he felt at ease around, which made sense since we'd known each other since birth.

Growing up, everyone wanted to be his friend; as teenagers, every girl wanted a piece of him. But we both knew that no one ever looked past our social status. Sebastian was destined to be King, while I was the freak who could kill with a touch. People held their tongues around him but lashed out at me. I was grateful to have him by my side; I don't think I could've endured the torment without him as my one constant source of goodness.

Suddenly, my body began to heat up, and my breaths grew short. A dark and forbidding presence enveloped me.

"You said you knew the Queen," a stranger's voice whispered in my ear, his hand sliding over my belly as his tall frame pressed against my back. "But you didn't mention you were in love with her son." His words brushed against my skin, sending delicious sparks throughout my body.

"Who? What?" I practically moaned, melting into the arms that held me so tightly.

"You've been staring at the prince for twenty minutes. Are you jealous of all the girls fawning over him?" Gabe's gaze was sharp, his wolfish side barely contained, his annoyance clear. But it was he who was jealous, and that realization made me very happy. I had been hoping to see him again.

"Jealous? Of Sebastian? He's like a brother to me. I think you're the jealous one." I teased, my finger tracing the hard line of his jaw, tense with anger.

"I don't get jealous, honey. I get what I want." His voice was a low threat as his hand slid down my waist, dangerously close to my core, completely inappropriate in the middle of a crowd.

"I bet," I bit my bottom lip, a playful smile tugging at the corners. "So, what is it that you want?" I turned to face him, wrapping my arms around his neck. His hand immediately found its way to my ass, and my eyelids fluttered as a wave of heat surged through me. The air between us crackled with tension, everything around us fading into the background. All that remained were his ice-blue eyes, staring at me like I was his next meal.

"I think you know exactly what I want, little wolf." His voice was low and husky, dripping with desire and lust. I relished the sight of a man desperate for my body. It fueled something inside me: a need for acceptance and a misguided sense of affection. But I didn't care; I craved to be wanted.

"I think I do," I whispered, a seductive edge to my tone. "Want to get out of here?"

"Are you trying to take me home?" He chuckled, his eyes lingering on my chest, where my cleavage was enticingly displayed for him.

"I'm staying at the pack house. Not exactly the best place to bring a lover."

"What, are you some kid who's not supposed to be picking up strangers?" he teased.

"No, I'm a grown woman, and I can do whatever I want. It's just that my aunts and uncles are a bit overprotective. They might kill you on sight."

"Kill me?" His eyes widened in surprise. "You're serious?"

"Dead serious," I replied, lifting onto my tiptoes as he leaned down, our height difference making it necessary. "The three kings are my uncles, and they don't take kindly to men trying to take advantage of their innocent niece."

"Innocent? I doubt that," he smirked. "Let's go." He grabbed my hand, pulling me away from the crowd and into the shadowed side of a few shops.

"A dark alley? Is that the best you can do?" I teased, leaning back against the cold brick wall.

"I just got here this morning, and I don't have much money. But I can't wait another minute before tearing into you." His voice dropped to a dark growl, a wicked grin spreading across his face. The sheer intensity of his desire was electrifying, and it took everything in me not to tear off my clothes right then and there.

"I'm going to enjoy this," he murmured, his tone laced with darkness as his eyes began to swirl with black, his wolf surging forward.

I braced myself against the wall, a mix of fear and raw desire coursing through me. I wanted, no, I needed his wolf to take me. Scarlet urged me to mark him, uncaring of the consequences or the fact that we knew nothing about him beyond his name. All she wanted was the beast inside him.

He quickly undid his belt, slightly lowering his pants and pulling out his large cock in his hands. I licked my lips, pulling the hem of my dress up to my waist. We were doing this right here and right now, or my damn throbbing pussy would burst.

"At first," he said, stepping closer, his hand grabbing my underwear and shredding it to pieces. "I thought you were some innocent child, just a prude and angry girl. Mmm, but now I see you." He lifted my leg around his arm, bending his knees to align himself right at my core, his intentions clear.

"Yeah? And what am I?" I moaned as his tip teased my folds, my own wetness coating him and begging for more.

"A damn slut," he chuckled, thrusting into me with a force that was painfully intense. My jaw dropped in a gasp, and I cried out, overwhelmed by the raw sensation.

"You're fucking tight for a little slut." He growled, pulling out and ramming hard inside me. He pounded into me, taking me dirty against the brick wall with my leg wrapped around his arm. His eyes watched me, black as night and filled with anger.

"Fuck! Gabe! Don't stop!" I screamed, my nails digging into his shoulders. He felt so damn amazing. How he fucked me like some animal, devouring my pussy to make him come hard inside me, it was perfect.

"I'm not stopping anytime soon." He chuckled at me, growling uncontrollably. "You have no idea what you've done." He warned me, fucking me faster and faster. The way he slammed inside me, body heated and chest rumbling, was so damn sexy.

"I don't care! This feels too fucking good." I began shouting, groaning loudly, about to orgasm over his thick cock penetrating deep inside me.

"Good! I wasn't letting you go either way. Now come all over me. I want to feel that pussy squeeze me tight inside you." He spoke with his wolf, an Alpha without a doubt, and it made my stomach tighten, pussy try to clamp shut, and my toes curl.

"Shit! Oh fuck!" My eyes rolled back, my vision blurry, and a damn symphony of ecstasy exploded inside me. I never felt anything like that before. It was exhilarating and everything. My body hummed in bliss, releasing too many endorphins for my mind to process.

Gabe continued to pound into me, his grunts and growls mingling as he chased his own release. I was half-conscious, barely able to hold myself up, but he held me in place, taking me as he desired. In that moment, I felt a dangerous obsession growing within me, a yearning for him to fuck me just like this every day.

I heard him chuckle, his thrusts growing ragged. Then, with a low growl, his wolf whispered in my ear, "Mine." Before I could react, his canines sank deep into my neck, claiming me. The sharp sensation sent another wave of pleasure crashing over me, triggering an intense, unexpected orgasm that left me trembling in his grasp.

My hands grabbed a fistful of hair, holding his head to my neck as his hard dick pumped deep into my womb. He fucking claimed! The entire experience was so overwhelming that I didn't even care that I was in a dark alley with a complete stranger. I had never felt so complete, so satisfied, and whole before.

Scarlet wasted no time; my canines elongated as he licked my wound closed. But just as I leaned in to return the mark, he pulled back, his ice-blue eyes meeting mine with an amused glint.

"Oh, little wolf," he laughed, "you don't actually think you can mark me, do you?"

"What?" I stared at him, confused. He had marked me, wanted me. We were supposed to be mates now.

"You're so damn fine, Ruby. I like this little body of yours, and your wolf is absolutely adorable." He pulled out, fixing his pants as he looked me over with an appraising gaze. I hurriedly adjusted my dress, a wave of embarrassment crashing over me. What the hell just happened?

"Excuse me? You just marked me, you idiot," I snapped, my hand instinctively covering the bite on my neck. "We're mates now."

"We were always mates, and now you are mine," he said calmly, a dark edge to his voice. "I don't have the patience to be manipulated by the fate bond, so here's how this will work. I marked you, so now I control you, and you obey." He patted my head like I was some obedient pet. "Just like a good little omega would for her Alpha."

"I'm not a fucking omega, and you sure as hell aren't my Alpha!" I screamed, my embarrassment boiling into full-blown rage. My body heated, and I felt magic stirring inside me, a powerful force ready to erupt.

"Mmm, maybe not just an omega," Gabe murmured, watching my body shiver in disgust, white light sparking at my fingertips. His eyes widened in amusement. "A little witch, too?" He tilted his head, grabbing my hand to watch the magic unfold.

"Don't!" I screamed in warning, desperately trying to pull my hand back. He didn't understand what I was capable of. I wasn't a witch, and this wasn't ordinary magic. Despite feeling like he deserved whatever came next for how he treated me, I couldn't bring myself to take a life.

"Don't what?" Gabe chuckled as if my magic were of no consequence. He slid his lips over my fingers, savoring the taste of my magic and sweat, his tongue swirling in a way that made a shiver scurry down my spine. "Mm," he hummed, popping my fingers from his mouth. "You are something special, aren't you?" He scanned me up and down, a smirk playing on his lips. "I think I might enjoy having you as one of my mates." He chuckled, turning away and walking off.

"You can't do this! I will..." I cut off my threat, frustration bubbling inside me.

Gabe spun around, his wolf side now fully forward. "You won't do anything, little wolf. I've marked you, and now you belong to me. Every second, you'll find yourself begging to be at my feet, to please me, to satisfy me in ways only an omega can for her Alpha." His voice was filled with a twisted excitement, clearly aroused by the idea of my submission.

"I will tell the Kings!" I shouted defiantly.

"No, you won't." He laughed so hard he had to brace himself against his rumbling stomach. "You're too embarrassed to admit what a slut you are. Besides, they'd kill me, and you can't let your mate die. Your loyalty is mine, whether you want to give it or not. See you around, mate." He winked at me before disappearing from sight.

I stood alone in the dark alley, feeling violated and claimed by an evil beast. My knees gave out, and I crumbled to the ground, sobbing into my hands.

I had messed up, and I knew it. He was right; I was bound to him now. Scarlet was already instinctively leaning toward him, ready to obey and fulfill his every desire. I felt like a puppet with no control over my own life. This wasn't fair!