Chapter 3

Olympia's POV

The memories of the night before assaulted my brain, and it was as if a tidal wave had swept me off my breath, leaving me speechless. I cringed thinking of how I had begged that stranger to take me roughly; my face burned with humiliation. I turned toward him; a pang of sadness twisted deep in the pit of my belly, pulling in opposing directions: to go, to stay. His beautiful face was serene in his sleep, and my heart skipped a beat.

"Olympia, keep it together," I chide myself as the emotions welled up. Turning quickly, I gathered my clothes from where they had landed around the room, like strung confetti, and got dressed without cleaning up. The risk that he might wake up and see me like this was too great.

At the door, I saw my arm bandaged and cleaned. Memories of our kiss and how he took care of my injury tenderly came back to mind.

The bazillion venues, his gentleness, his care over me—so surreal. My heart melted at the memory of how he looked at me, of how he'd made me feel. I stood still, my feet refusing to move an inch as I looked at him one last time.

I realized the irony in it—the stranger who had given me what I wanted above all else was not my mate but a one-night stand. When I imagined later on him being with somebody else and touching her like he touched me, tears began to well up in the corners of my eyes.

A growl came out of my throat, low, as I felt a spike of jealousy.

I asked, tears streaming down my face. "Why couldn't someone like him be my mate, instead of a monster?" I thought; my heart was heavy with sorrow.

As I exited, I made a last glance and shut the door behind me, sealing forevermore our memories. 'I didn't even get his name,' I thought with a sad smile on my face. 'And he didn't get mine, in case he wanted to look for me.

I followed him with my eyes as far as I could from the window, then went into my apartment, feeling somewhat relieved that I had gotten away unnoticed. However, my mind kept straying back to the stranger and comparing him in my mind to my mate, Alpha Silas. The knock on the door made my heart race, and I hesitated, wondering who it could be.

I flung the door open and was met by a smirking Alpha Silas. My heart dropped. "Happy to see me?" he asked sarcastically. The urge to snort almost hit me, as I was still a bit off with the stranger. Silas was dull compared to him; he completely missed the something that made my heart hiccup.

"What, you zoning out on me?" Silas growled, snapping me back to reality. I shook my head, trying to clear the cobwebs.

"You were saying?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Silas was really happy with my fear. But still, what couldn't leave my mind was how the stranger did; he just made me feel so acknowledged, listened to, and cared for. The difference between those two men was striking, leaving me in awe of what could have been if only I met the stranger under other conditions.

It was still fresh, the memory of last night's rejection, which would have festered; and Alpha Silas now presented himself as very keen on ripping the flesh. "I take it that you are terribly hurt because of the way I rejected you last night," he mocked, his voice filled with disdain. I shivered down my spine, watching him start to circle around me with a look of wild hunger in his eyes.

But I stood my ground, even as my mind, dazed from the stranger's warning, threatened to give way. "I may not be able to accept you as my mate due to your low status," Silas continued, his voice laced with disdain, "but you can surely be my mistress." He smiled then, his lips curling up in a sickening grin, and I felt my eyebrows arch in incredulity.

Was he serious? Did he really think I would accept such a proposal? For just a moment, I thought of the stranger, his mesmerizing smile, and tender touch. No—I can't accept this; the monster is not passable.

"I truly appreciate your concern, Alpha," I said with a voice shockingly bold and steady. "My answer will, of course, be no." The words hung in the air, almost a challenge, and the smile faltered on Silas's face a second before he pulled himself back together again.

His hand shot out, and I felt a searing pain on my left cheek. I gasped, the metallic tang of blood filling my mouth. I held my cheek, my eyes widening in shock. How dare he?

At last, Silas's vice-like hold on my hair drew a groan of pain as he dragged me closer. "How dare you, vile, sniveling garbage, push aside an Alpha of high-rank status such as myself?" he howled at my ear.

I had struggled to get away, but he had a tight hold on me, his hand moving over my flesh with a practiced familiarity that disgusted me. I had thought about that stranger: his light touches, the way he had gazed upon me as though I was the most precious thing on earth.

No, I would not allow Silas to use me. I would not allow him to spoil me. Adrenaline burst through me and I pushed him away, full of fear, with my heart thumping. Silas had let me go, his eyes flaming with anger, but I glared back at him.

"Now is not the time," he growled back, "but I will surely claim you." He turned and left me, trembling, and feeling a little sick. Then came the twist of everything, and I reeled in my mind for escape and salvation—who would save me from this monster?