Dangerous Questions

“Where were you?”

Vesperian’s voice cut through the chamber like a whip. He stood in the middle of the room, arms crossed, golden eyes locked on me with predatory focus. The door clicked shut behind me, trapping us together.

I swallowed hard, one hand instinctively moving to my rounded belly. “I told you. I needed air. The royal wing feels like a cage sometimes.”

He took a slow step forward. “Don’t lie to me, Eli. I felt you through the bond. You were somewhere you shouldn’t be. Again.” His gaze dropped to the faint glow still visible on my collarbone. “You’re getting bolder. Stronger. More independent. I want to know why.”

My heart hammered. The child kicked sharply, reacting to the rising tension between us. “You want me healthy for the baby, don’t you? I’m just… stretching my legs. Testing how far this new body of mine can go.”

Vesperian closed the distance in two strides. He caught my chin, forcing my face up. “Testing how far you can push me, more like. I’ve given you everything. Protection. Care. My child growing inside you. And still you sneak around behind my back.” His thumb pressed against my lower lip. “What are you looking for in those archives, little Omega? Tell me the truth.”

I tried to pull away but his grip held firm. The bond flared hot between us, turning fear into something darker. Need. “You already know everything about me. My bloodline. My power. What more do you want?”

“I want you,” he growled, voice dropping low. “All of you. No secrets. No hiding.” His other hand slid down to grip my hip, pulling me flush against him. I could feel how hard he already was. “You’re mine. The child is mine. Stop fighting me.”

Anger and desire crashed together inside me. I shoved at his chest, but it only made him press me back against the wall. “You engineered me like a fucking experiment and now you’re mad that I’m asking questions? That I want to understand what you did to my family? To me?”

His eyes flashed. “Yes.” He crashed his mouth against mine, kissing me hard enough to bruise. I bit his lip in return. He snarled and lifted me, pinning me against the wall with his body. My legs wrapped around his waist instinctively.

“Tell me the truth,” he demanded between kisses, grinding his cock against me through our clothes. “What have you been doing?”

I moaned despite myself, slick already soaking through the silk. “Nothing that changes what I am to you. Your vessel. Your Omega.”

He ripped the front of my robe open with one sharp tug. His hand slid over my swollen belly, possessive and rough. “You’re more than that now. And you know it.” He freed himself and pushed inside me in one brutal thrust, pinning me to the wall.

“Fuck…Alpha!” I cried out, nails digging into his shoulders. The stretch burned so good, especially with the pregnancy making everything more sensitive.

He fucked me hard against the wall, each thrust deep and claiming. “You’re changing,” he growled, teeth scraping my neck. “I can feel it when I’m inside you. The way your body pulls from me differently. The way you glow brighter every day.”

I clung to him, torn between terror and overwhelming pleasure. The bond flared so brightly I could almost see it, golden threads wrapping around us both. I tried to hold back some of the draining, but the heat of the moment made control slippery.

“Vesperian…” I gasped his name like a prayer and a curse.

He knotted me right there against the wall, the thick swell locking us together as he came with a deep, possessive groan. I shattered around him, sobbing his name while the child kicked wildly between us.

In the heavy aftermath, still tied to him, Vesperian pressed his forehead to mine. His breathing was ragged, but his eyes were sharp.

“You’re changing, little Omega,” he whispered, voice dark and knowing. “I can feel it in my bones.”

The words sent ice down my spine even as his knot kept us locked together. He suspected. Maybe not everything, but enough.

And I had no idea how much longer I could keep the truth from him.