YOU CAN'T HAVE YOUR WAY WITH ME

LORA'S POV

I felt a sharp pain in between my thighs when I woke up, a wild reminder of everything that occurred last night, his huge arm resting heavily on my tummy. 

My heart hammered repeatedly as I quickly muffled my mouth, afraid of the fact that any sound from me could wake him up. Scenes of last night rushing through my head, vivid and undeniable. I had executed my dangerous plan. I had slept with a stranger

I shifted my head back and gazed at the man sleeping beside me. He was strikingly handsome even in sleep.

I made concerted effort to memorize every lines of his face very well because there's no chance of us meeting again as I would soon be the Lycan king's concubine. If, perhaps, I came to this world again, I would wish to meet him. He looked very dangerous from afar, but in bed, he's superb, gentle, his body very calm against mine. 

Having stared long enough, I meticulously slided his arm off my tummy, holding my breath as hard I could and slipped out of the bed. I was relieved when I stood up from the bed without waking him. 

I found my clothes, all  scattered on the floor. I hurriedly bent to pick them up one by one, startled when I remembered how he  had torn my underwear in the raw heat of sex. 

I quickly put on my dress, grabbed my shoes, and tiptoed barefoot to the door, trying not to make a sound.

As I reached for the doorknob, with my heart pounding hardly in my chest, my fingers shivered against the cold metal. Slowly and gently, I turned it. The door creaked open as I turned one last gaze at the stranger sleeping soundly on the bed. Then I slipped out, closing the door quietly behind me. 

“Fuck!” I muttered when my phone suddenly buzzed in my bag, making me petrified. My hands shook as I deepened my hand into my bag and hurried  toward the elevator, pressing the button over and over again while glancing nervously toward the room I had just left. Relief flooded me when the elevator doors opened. I stepped in the quiet hallway quickly and answered the call.

“Where hell are you, Lora?!” Chloe’s voice snapped through the line, her tone was tight with worry. She had been with me last night at the bar but quickly arched out my plan immediately she went away. 

“I’m good, Chloe,” I said softly, trying to dodge her question. 

“That’s not what I asked! Do you have any idea how worried I am? Your father came to our house looking for you!” she said, panic rising in her tone.

“I’m going home now,” I replied vaguely. I couldn’t bring myself tell her the truth. Not now. 

“Are you sure you’re good, Lora?” she asked again. 

“Everything’s fine, Chloe. I’ll see you tonight. Bye.” I hung up before she could say another word. Taking a deep breath, I stepped out of the hotel, trying to shake off the heaviness pressing against my chest.

******””

“Where have you been?” Sandra asked me the moment I walked into the house. I could see the panic etched all over her face. “Were you thinking of running away from the engagement?”

For a fleeting moment, I enjoyed the sight of her pale face. 

The entire family was in the living room—Alpha Alec, his wife Natalie, and their daughter Sandra. And then there was Kyle, his eyes locked on me, unreadable.

Relief flickered across their faces when they saw me. Maybe they thought I had escaped. If only I could. But not yet. Not until my wolf ceremony.

“Sandra, why don’t you give  her one of your beautiful dresses?” Natalie said in a calm but sharp tone, “It would be disgraceful if she meet the Lycan King in that rag she’s wearing.”

“Of course, Mother,” Sandra replied, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

“You must be ready by six,” Alec said firmly. “After your ceremony, someone from the palace will come to take  you.”

“Yes, Alpha,” I said quietly. I wanted to scream, to refuse, to tell them I wasn’t a product to be sold out, but what good would that do? At least after tonight, I would finally leave this house, away from this family, and away from Kyle.Everyone began to leave the room one after another, except him. I turned away from him, refusing to meet his gaze. After what I saw yesterday, there was nothing left to say. He made his choice, and so did I.

I was heading toward my room to prepare myself for my cruelly crafted future when his hand grabbed my arm, pulling me back. “Where did you go last night, Lora? Do you have any idea how worried I was?” His grip tightened.

“Now you’re worried?” I scoffed. “Funny. You didn’t seem so concerned when you agreed to let me marry a monster in your sister’s place.”

“That’s not the same thing,” he said through gritted teeth.

I laughed bitterly. “Sure. Keep telling yourself that.” I tried to walk away from him, but he pulled me back again.

“I’m not done talking to you!”

“What do you want, Kyle?” I snapped, my patience fading. I was done pretending he cared. If he did, I wouldn’t be standing here like this.

He didn't say a word to my question, but I saw something flicker in his eyes, guilt, maybe even jealousy.

“What do you want to know?” I repeated. “Will you stop harassing me if I tell you? Fine. I slept with a stranger last night. Some man I met at the bar.” The words left my mouth heavily, but I forced myself to say them.

I saw his face twisted in disbelief before it hardened into disgust. “Lora, You did what?!”

“You heard me,” I said coldly. “I gave myself to a stranger. What’s it to you?”

Before I could blink, his hand landed sharply on my face. The pain burned through me, sharp and hot that I tasted blood in my mouth.

“I’ve kept my distance to protect your virginity, and this is what you do?” he shouted, his voice cracking with anger. “I never thought you’d be so cheap. You whore!!”

A laugh escaped my lips. “You’re the hypocrite here, Kyle. What’s the difference? You’re fine with me giving myself to a stranger through marriage, but when I choose who it is, you act like it’s a sin?”

He gave a cruel smirk. “So that’s what you want, to act like a whore before your wedding?”

A cold chill crawled through me. This wasn’t the Kyle I once knew. His face, once familiar, now mirrored his father’s cruelty. It scared me how much of Alec I saw in him at that moment.

He grabbed my shoulders and slammed me against the wall. “I won’t let you leave this house until I’ve had a taste of you,” he said with a wicked grin.

Terror shot through me. That moment, my body froze. Just before his lips reached mine, I slammed my knee hard into his crotch.

“Shit!” he screamed out, bending over in pain. “You bastard!”

I tried to run away, but he caught me by my hair, yanking me backward. His fingers wrapped around my throat, pressing it hard until I could barely breathe.

“You really think you can escape me?” he said, smiling devilishly. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure you’re satisfied before you meet that bastard king.”

“Go ahead,” I managed to choke out. “But if you touch me, you’ll be saying goodbye to your sister.”

“What did you just say?” His grip loosened, confusion cutting through his anger.

I took a shaky breath. “If you do this, I’ll kill myself. Then you’ll have no choice but to send your dear sister to the Lycan king.”

“There’s no wolfsbane nor silver here. That's just an empty threats,” he hissed.

“Have you forgotten I don’t have my wolf yet?” I said quietly. “Anything around me is enough to end my life. Are you really willing to gamble your sister’s life for this? I have nothing left to lose, Kyle.”

His eyes darkened but subsequently softened. My words got him. Slowly, his hand fell away from my throat. I coughed hard, sucking in air.

“You’re not leaving this house until your wolf  ceremony,” he said coldly before dragging me to my room. I heard the lock click from the outside immediately he left.

My hands trembled as I touched my neck, still sore. “I can’t wait to get out of this place,” I whispered to myself, staring at the closed door as if freedom were waiting behind it.