Chapter 5

Kael’s POV 

 “How dare you show your face here?” Aria’s father yelled as he marched towards me. His eyes went cold as he glared at me, fighting the urge to put me down from where I stood. 

I pushed my hair back with my hand and forced a smile. The question almost made me laugh, seeing that I had already made that clear to them. 

Ronan's eyes stayed glued to mine, afraid that I’d sneak up on him. Tsk! Knowing Ari’s scent was all over him made my blood boil as I bit my lips and adjusted my stance. 

Aria just stood there with beads of sweat on her forehead and a reddened cheek. So this is how they treated her? 

I shifted my gaze back to the man standing before me, Alpha Rayford. He looked older than I remembered; to think this man had put down a hundred gammas by himself should tell you the kind of alpha he was. 

What exactly could the mountain pack have against him to make him kiss a mere beta's feet?

“I’m waiting,” he said, his voice dangerous. 

I arched an eyebrow. “For what exactly? That your daughter is my mate.”

“Enough! As long as I’m alive, my daughter would never be married off to the black fur pack. So watch your tongue, boy,” he roared, the weight of his rage shocking the walls, causing the other maids to fall back with their heads bowed. The guards enclosed me, their weapons out and ready to strike me down with the lift of a finger. 

Ronan grabbed hold of Aria’s hair, causing her to let out a loud cry. My chest tightened as I closed my eyes tight, struggling to fight back the pain I was feeling. That bastard, I’ll make him pay for sure. 

“Let go of me you prick!” Aria cursed, wiggling her feet as she grabbed hold of his wrist while he smirked at me.

“You heard what Alpha Rayford said, so why don’t you leave because it’s clear you weren’t invited?”

I licked my lips and watched him carefully. “I won’t say this again, Ronan. Let go of her—“

“Or else what?!” He retorted before he let go of her hair. I watched Aria crash to the ground, breathing slowly with tears streaming down her eyes. The people who were supposed to protect her were doing absolutely nothing. 

Something in me woke as I saw how miserable they made her. Fuck the mate bond or whatever crap this was, I lunged at Ronan, and before he could dodge, I had him pinned to the wall with his head pressed hard into the cracked wall from the impact. Blood dripped from his forehead as I bore out my fangs at him. 

I tightened my grip on his neck as he struggled to breath. “The next time you touch her with those filthy hands, I’ll make sure you wake up handicapped.” My voice was steady, his eyes shocked with fear as beads of sweat formed on his forehead. 

“Enough!” Her mother snapped as she made her way to me. 

“You walked into our house, interfered in our family matters, and dropped a claim just to provoke my family. How dare you?”

She sent a slap straight to my face, but before I could blink, a sharp sound filled the room as Aria stood in front of me. She had taken the slap. 

But why? I thought she wanted me gone. Could she be planning something else?  

I took a closer look at her, her eyes now red around the edges. Quite obvious she was mad at everyone in this room. 

“I thought we came to help her,” my wolf voiced in my head. 

I shut him off and grabbed hold of her hand. She yanked it off and pushed me away from her. With tears in her eyes. “I hate you so much, Kael, so much, but… I… I…“

Tears streamed from her eyes as I watched her break down. None of us wanted the blood bond, and technically I was also losing my mind. Imagine not being able to sleep because you felt such an intense pain in your chest that you had to run all the way here with the need to protect a stranger you got bonded to. 

I’ll be damned if I said I wasn’t worried for myself.  "Don't do this anymore, Kael. Please just go away. If you didn’t engage in that kiss, then just maybe our lives would still be perfect, and I wouldn’t be in this mess,” she pointed out, her voice breaking. 

I’m never the type to feel things, but why does seeing her hurt me? Does this do something to me? 

Like I want to take her far away and make sure nobody hurts her anymore.

I let out a deep sigh. “You know I only came here because I thought you were in some sort of trouble, and besides, I wanted to—“

“You wanted to know what Kael did? Are you hearing yourself right now?” Aria blurted out, taking further steps away from me. 

Was she rejecting me? 

I stared at her, waiting for an answer, but she only shook her head and wipped her tears with the back of her hand. 

“You still don’t get it, do you?” She asked, her eyes fixed on mine. 

“We made a mistake, Kael, and that mistake ruined my life. "Unlike yours, that’s so perfect,” she began. “You’re the alpha, and no one would dare question you, so please don’t make this any harder than it needs to be.”

What was she saying?

My eyes made brief contact with Ronan, who had a sly smile spread across his lips as he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. I balled my hands into a fist; I didn’t even know what to do with her, with all of this. 

I’ve never been rejected in my life, and here I stood. Pathetic and dumb-founded to the truth that she wanted me gone. 

“Aria, I know we barely spoke, but I just…“She pressed her hand to her forehead, and briefly closed and opened her eyes. Her nose now had a shade of pink as she sniffed. Her father crossed his arms over his chest, with an irritated look on his face. 

“What do you want from me?” She asked, and I watched the entire room go silent. As I heard the sound of everyone’s heartbeat. 

Tell her, you moron. My wolf growled. “I want you to stop looking at me like I’m the enemy.” There I said it. My heart beat fast as I stole glances at everyone. Maybe Mother was right. Whatever the blood bond was, it was far beyond my control. 

She laughed, but there was nothing funny about what I said. I was damn serious. 

“Then stop acting like one.”

“What are you even trying to prove?” She added, her voice rising. 

For a minute there I had nothing to say. Me? The enemy? How did I even get to this point? 

Ronan dressed his rumpled shirt and smiled at me. “The young lady doesn’t want you, Kael, so why don’t you go home?”

I gritted my teeth, ready to leave when I felt a strong pull from her. Strange, she stood there, but there was this invisible force that felt as though my shoes had been glued to the ground. 

Alpha Rayford finally spoke. “It’s time to leave, Alpha Kael.”

Please, help me!

I heard that voice again, over and over. What the fuck is going on?

My chest burned as I stared at her, her head bent as she sniffed.  Quickly I was standing behind her, her warm eyes met mine as her breath slowed. I grabbed her and pressed her head to my chest. My breath was harsh as I bore my retinas into her neck. I slowly lifted my head, my pupils crimson red, ready to claim her. In that moment my mind was foggy, but one thing was certain: she was going to be mine. 

Why? I don’t even know, but fuck it. 

“You bastard! Doing this would mean war, and I’d make sure you don’t leave here alive,” Alpha Rayford swore, with veins on his forehead. The guards moved closer, ready to strike me down. 

Ronan didn’t even budge, not that he didn't care. He just knew I wouldn’t choose to end years of peace for a girl I barely even knew. 

Oh, fuck it! I bent closer, ready to make her mine. 

"Kael!..." I heard my mother call from afar, but it was too late.