Page 53 of The Forbidden Alpha

I didn’t expect her bluntness. The silence stretched, and my wolf whined at her distance.

“Lilith,” I started, but she hissed.

“Don’t say her name in my room.” My lips parted as the air thrummed with her power. I couldn’t look away from her. I wish I’d listened to Adea and stayed away from Lilith, but I didn’t like being alone. I would regret what I’d done this weekend for the rest of my life.

“I want you to know it was nothing.”

“I’m not interested in the list of those who’ve warmed your bed.”

My eyes dipped to the hearth before darting back to hers. “I’m trying to start this honest, but—” She tilted her head to the side, cracking her neck. Her eyes locked on mine.

“Fine. Let’s be honest. When was the last time? And what did you do with this stranger?”

The truth was more painful than the open, bleeding wounds on my back. The warmth still tracking a sticky path down my lower back, soaking into my waistband. “This morning. We… went all the way.”

I tried to save her from the pain, but as the temperature in the room plummeted, the air in my lungs turned to ice. I’d never felt this from anyone before. My mate’s aura threatened to crush the room. Then, her eyes closed as she laughed—a short, manic sound.

“You fucked her this morning,” she repeated. Her eyes opened, all traces of humor wiped from her features as she leaned forward until I could feel the heat from her breath. “It’s my turn. I had someone on his knees this morning, too. When I met you, my thighs wore the kisses of another man’s lips.”

I flinched back. Her truth hurt like a thousand lashes. I would have taken them over this. A roar filled my chest and echoed in my ears as fury heated my blood. My hands curled into the chair, tearing the material. A demand for his name was on the tip of my tongue. I wanted to find him and rip his throat out.

My shame was the only thing keeping my mouth sealed and my questions locked tight.

“We end it,” she said, her voice dropping low. “No one else. From this second, whatever lives you had outside this room are dead. Is that clear?”

“Agreed,” I rasped. The word was my signature on a contract I’d sell my soul for.

The tension between us finally exploded. She moved first. In an instant, she stood before me. I barely had to lift my chin to look at her. She didn’t offer comfort, she crowded me—stepping between my thighs until I was forced to move back; raw flesh collided with the chair. I clenched my jaw, grunting as I fought from crying out.

Lithe fingers grabbed the hem of her shirt and yanked it off. My mouth went dry as my greedy gaze roamed over her body. I had my share of women, but none compared to my mate. Her breasts would fit in my hands perfectly. Muscles tensed as she unbuckled the belt at her waist before she discarded it. My brain went blank as her tactical pants fell.

She fell to her knees and I forgot how to breathe. I wanted to reach out and touch her hair, but I didn’t want to stop her movements. She unbuttoned my pants, her flint-gray eyes darted to my face as her hands disappeared beneath the band. Air filled my lungs as she wrapped her fingers around my cock before pulling it out. My lashes fluttered as she brushed my knot.

“Were you careful?” she breathed, refusing to look at me.

I’m always careful.

“Yes,” I choked. Her eyes flew to mine; lips parted. I could have come right there, but then she leaned forward and licked the drop of pre-cum from my crown. My hips bucked.

Fuck.

“Not with me.” She stood up and crawled into my lap, and I pressed myself willingly deeper into the hard back of the chair. The white-hot agony from my spine was nothing compared to the relief and need clawing at my chest.

She still wants me.

“Livia,” I murmured reverently. My hands landed on her hips as she straddled me.

I didn’t deserve to touch her, but I was always a selfish bastard. The world narrowed down to her peppermint and black coffee scent and her heat beneath my fingers.

She lowered herself, her heat encasing me, but she didn’t sink into me for comfort. She dropped into a low squat over my thighs—muscles coiled, balance perfect. The experience this posture spoke of was a swing to my gut. I looked at her, my breath hitching at her beauty. The realization hit me hard: she’d done this before. With someone else. With him. A jealous growl tore from my throat.

I hated it. She looked down at me as I looped an arm around her waist. She lifted off me and I yanked her down on my cock, hard and punishing. Felix snapped his jaws beneath the surface, jealousy moving us.

But I wasn’t the only one filled with envy. Livia’s wolf snapped back. She leaned forward, her weight shifting with that annoying balance, even as I bounced her hard. Her fingers reached around my torso, her nails digging deep into the exposed gashes on my back. I hissed, a mix of agony and pleasure tearing through me. The pain grounded me in the reality that she was here—she was mine—and she was as jealous as I was. She’d been with someone else this morning—both of us had been—when we should have been lost in each other.

But her violence meant she gave a fuck.

Our bodies slapped against each other. I held her close as I thrust into her. It wouldn’t be enough until my knot was buried deep inside her. The sounds of us claiming each other echoed down the hall.