Chapter 05.

It was my second time at the pack house in six hours and my first time in Alpha Kane’s office since I was born. The room was spacious. A big mahogany desk sat proudly behind a mini library filled with old books. Two maps sat on the desk with markers on them; next to the maps sat a stack of six books on each end. The top book on the left side was open with the words PEARL CREST PACK written boldly on it. Two tall shelves sat on either side of the room, all filled with books. Despite the banging in my chest, I was awed that Alpha Kane read books. I figured he was smart due to the number of wars he’d won since he became Alpha, but in my head, he was someone who used his fists and violence to solve problems quickly insteadof critical thinking. I forced my attention on other things to distract myself from the fact that Alpha Kane and I were alone, and while he had his back to me, his anger was thick and suffocating.

He had dragged me from the medical house to the pack house, with his question hanging over us like a thick blanket.

“Where were you?” His voice brought me back to reality.

“Alpha, I… I was at…” I tried not to stutter, but his low voice sent shivers down my spine, and I felt lightheaded. He turned, and green eyes met mine. It was dark out already, and the dim light from the bulbs cast a golden shadow on his face. Black hair fell to his face, hiding his brows beneath them, and I sucked in a silent breath. It wasn’t the right time or place, but Alpha Kane was devastatingly breathtaking.

“Were you planning to run away?” His voice was as hard as his bulging muscles.

Heat slipped beneath my skin.

“Or were you planning to meet Luke Leeder?” At the mention of my Father, my spine stiffened.

“I… no. He’s dead. He was declared dead,” the sound of humourless laughter followed my words.

Alpha Kane was the one who informed us about my father’s death. It was the day I became a servant and the day my life turned around for the worst. Why would he think I wanted to meet my father if he wasn't taunting me? I didn’t want to die.

He walked forward and stopped in front of me. I shifted under the weight of his gaze. He towered over me easily. At five foot four, he looked like a giant.

“Where were you,Tiny?” He thundered, standing dangerously close.

I bit my lower lip at the nickname.

“I… I just—”

“I want you to always be where I can see you. Do you hear me?”

“Yes, Alpha,” I gulped hard with a stiff nod.

“Follow me,” he looked at me intently, then strode to the door. I followed behind him silently up to the second floor, where he leaned on the wall facing the hallway and looked down at me.

“Pick a room,Tiny,” I blinked once. Twice, my legs froze in place.

Ice doused the heat beneath my skin. Slowly, I turned to meet his bored gaze.

“I… why?” My audacity surprised Alpha Kane as much as it surprised me. His brows rose a fraction, and his jaw tightened. He pushed himself off the wall and invaded the little space between us. As usual, I stepped backward, but this time, every step I took backward, he took forward until my back hit a door.

“Are you questioning me?” I looked sideways, everywhere but at his intimidating green eyes.

“N…no, Alpha. I’m a mere servant, and I shouldn’t be here. I’m… I’m confused,” he leaned over so we were at the same eye level, a mischievous gleam in his eyes.

“Do you really not know, or are you pretending not to know?” Huskiness lingered in his tone.

Zarah growled, and I picked up a faint musky scent, earthy and masculine, that became stronger with each passing second.

Alpha Kane smirked.

Zarah growled again, this time louder. I sniffed and unconsciously pulled Alpha Kane closer to me. The scent rolled off him effortlessly. I shut my eyes and buried my nose in the crook of his neck, sniffing uncontrollably as though my body had a mind of its own. It did.

“MATE,” Zarah growled, and my eyes flew open.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Alpha Kane peeled my hands off him, an amused smile on his lips.

I blinked multiple times. My face heated, and I thanked the Goddess for my dark skin that hid my embarrassment.

My lips parted, and I looked up at him, unable to wrap my head around the new development.

Alpha Kane was my mate. I was Alpha Kane’s mate.

Zarah howled in excitement at having found our mate while I bit my lower lip. He was the Alpha, and I was a servant whose father was a traitor. How was it possible?

He lifted his hand. I shuddered as his fingers brushed my waist before settling on the handle of the door behind me. I became hyper-aware of his every movement, and Zarah craved his touch.

He pushed the door open, and I staggered, but long, firm fingers held me in place. My skin burned where he touched, and I bit my lip.

“This one,” Alpha Kane said, and it took a short while to figure out what he was talking about.

My room.

Everything made sense now from his behaviour in the morning till now. He had known since he saw me battered and dirty. It was only normal that he found out before I did. He was the Alpha, and so his senses were ten times better than mine. If he hadn’t pointed it out for Zarah to pick up, it would’ve taken me a few more days to realize it.

I walked in after him, keeping a safe distance between us because I didn’t know what to do or how act. I looked at my surroundings instead.

The room was more spacious than Alpha Kane’s office. A Queen-sized bed sat in between two windows covered by pastel pink curtains, and to my left, two doors. I figured one of those doors led to the restroom. A mirror stand sat at my right, with a little pastel pink shelf. The room was neatly arranged, and I wondered if all the other rooms were arranged the same.

Alpha Kane strolled to the bed and sat, and I didn’t need to look at him to know he was looking at me.

“Come here,” he ordered softly. I approached him slowly and stood in front of him, making sure to leave a little distance between us.

With a disapproving groan, he grabbed my less injured arm and pulled me to him. I fell into his lap, and my body went rigid.

His musky scent hit harder at our contact and Zarah went feral.

As his grip tightened around my arm, his attitude became more serious. I sucked in an anxious breath, not daring to say a word as he lifted it to his face.

“I don’t want to have to look for you,” his voice was softer when he spoke, his breath hot against my arm. I shuddered.

He parted his lips, and a jolt of pain shot throughout my body when his teeth sunk into my flesh, drawing blood. My eyes fluttered shut as a sweet sensation replaced the pain. My breath hitched in my throat as I felt his hot breath blow against the area. He marked me.

“When I call for you, you answer immediately,” his voice, deep and sensual, sent a ripple of awareness through me. I nodded.

“Use your words,Tiny,”

“Yes, Alpha,”

“You’re mine now,” he didn’t speak, but I heard the words loud and clear in my head. His love bite on my arm formed a deep connection between us that made it possible for us to have a mind link.

A love bite was done as evidence that a wolf had found their mate, followed by the mating process that completely linked the wolves together and made them inseparable.

His soft lips grazed my palm while his green eyes held mine. The smouldering flame I saw in his eyes startled me. My heart jolted, and my pulse pounded, unable to take the desire that coursed through my veins.

My desire disappeared as quickly as it came when Alpha Kane lifted me from his lap and set me down on the bed next to him. The flame in his eyes was replaced with something else, and with furrowed brows, he got up.

“Get some rest,” he ordered and walked away.