4/4
The Alpha’s Borrowed Luna
Legal Ownership
I finally looked up. “You will punish me?
“If you do not abide by the rules, yes,” he replied, as if discussing the weather.
“What type of punishments?” I asked, hating the tremble in my voice.
“Are you planning to break the rule?” he countered.
“No, I said quickly. “I want to know… to be prepared.”
His eyes darkened. “Then you should know it would be a punishment I would be happy to
carry out.”
I handed the signed contract back to Kaius, my fingers still trembling. His eyes lit up as I handed over the contract, our fingers touching for half a second. I couldn’t stop the shiver that ran through me at the contact.
“Do you know the severity of the contract you just signed?” he asked, his tone most
conversational despite the weight of the question.
I lifted my chin, forcing myself to meet his gaze. “Yes, I know.” The lie tasted bitter on my tongue. How could I possibly understand the full implications of what I’d agreed to? I had just handed control of my life to a man known for bathing in the blood of his enemies.
Dorian’s warning echoed in my head: You won’t last two weeks with him.”
My mother’s terrified eyes flashed in my memory. She knew something about Kaius- something that had made her willing to remain a slave rather than accept freedom near him.
Yet here I was, running headfirst into danger, all to escape the hell I’d already endured with Dorian. Better the devil you don’t know, I supposed.
Kaius set the contract aside and rose from his chair. My heart stuttered as he moved around the desk toward me, his movements as fluid as water over stone.
“What are you doing? My voice rose with alarm as he stood before me, towering over my seated form.
Legal Ownership
He placed his hands on the armrests of my chair, effectively caging me in. “Afraid?” The single word carried quiet certainty rather than a question.
I tried to press back into the chair, to put any distance between us, but there was nowhere to go. His primal scent enveloped me. My breath came in short, shallow gasps.
“Kiss me,” he commanded, leaning closer. “Just as you did in the ball.
I froze, unable to move, unable to breathe. The kiss at the ball flashed in my mind the heat I felt then. Now, knowing the truth about our arrangement, I couldn’t bring myself to close the distance between us.
My limbs refused to obey. I sat there, paralyzed by fear and something else I couldn’t
name.
His lips curved into a knowing smile. “You’ve disobeyed, once.”
“Would… would you punish me for disobeying?”
His eyes traced my face, lingering on my lips. “No. I’ll let you go with a warning this time, but next time…” His voice trailed off as his gaze dropped lower, traveling down the neckline of my dress in a way that made me regret its modest v–cut.
I swallowed hard, acutely aware of my vulnerability. He wouldn’t kill me–there would be no point in this elaborate contract if that was his intention. But there were countless other ways he could hurt me.
Kaius straightened and extended his hand to me with false gallantry. ‘Come with me.”
I hesitated for only a moment before placing my hand in his. His fingers closed around mine, warm and unyielding. He pulled me to my feet, keeping my hand captured in his as he led me from the office, leaving the contract behind.
Kaius led me through a maze of corridors, his stride purposeful. I struggled to keep up, my shorter legs forced into an awkward half–i beside him. Pack members we passed bowed their heads respectfully to their Alpha, while casting curious glances at me.
We climbed another set of stairs and turned down a wide hallway lined with ornate doors.
Legal Ownership
Kaius stopped before the languest me at the end, carved with intricate designs that seemed to writhe in the dim light.
He pushed the door open without ceremony and ushered me inside. I stepped into a massive bedroom dominated by an enormous bed on a raised platform. Dark silk sheets gleamed in the soft light thom nystal sconces, Floor–to–ceiling windows revealed a breathtaking view of mountains beneath a star–strewn sky.
Two things struck me immediately: the luxury that surrounded me, and the unmistakable purpose of this rom
Frost stood beside a dresser, my worn bag looking pitiful as it rested at his feet. I felt at flash of embarassment at the contrast between my meager possessions and the opulence of the room..
Alpha. Frost acknowledged with a slight bow.
I shouldn’t have been surprised to find him here, yet his presence made me even more uncomfortable. One powerful man was threat enough; two made me feel like a cornered
animal.
My eyes damned around the room, noting the locked door, estimating the distance to the
incows. Six months. I had agreed to six months of this. My stomach knotted with growing dead.
I should leave, Frost said, moving toward the door.
“No, stay.” Kalus’s command halted his Beta mid–step. “I want to formally introduce you to my temporary mate, Elowen.”
Temporary mate. The term made the artificial nature of our arrangement crystal clear. I wondered how many others in the pack knew about this charade.
“Hi,” I managed weakly, feeling absurdly like a child being introduced to adults.
Frost’s ice–blue eyes assessed me with the same cool detachment I’d seen in the car.
Welcome once again, Luna; and I want you to know that I will always be close to watch
over you.
I couldn’t tell if his words were meant as comfort or threat. Thank you,” I replied
Legal Ownership
automatically, unsure how else to respond.
Frost’s eyes flickered to Kaius, who responded with a barely perceptible nod. The quick exchange told me everything–Frost wasn’t just Kaius’s Beta, he was his confidant.
He knew the truth. He knew about the contract.
Kaius moved to stand before me, his height forcing me to tilt my head back to meet hist gaze. “Do you know why I brought you here?”
My eyes flickered involuntarily to the bed before returning to his face. I knew exactly why I was here, but admitting it seemed like surrender. “No?” My response came out as a question rather than an answer.
A slow smile spread across his face, revealing exactly how much he enjoyed my discomfort. “This would be our room. I would teach you some interesting, new things.”
My heart hammered against my ribs. Our room. Not his room where I would stay, but our
room.
His next words were delivered as casually as if he’d asked me the time. “Take off your clothes.
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