Chapter Four

“There’s no way I’d ever forget a gold digger like this,” I muttered inwardly as I stared at the girl standing before me. The same girl I’d been angry at myself for saving last night, the one who ruined my favorite shirt, was now being introduced as my stepsister? What kind of twisted hell was today trying to put me through?

An alpha from another pack arrived and my father immediately excused himself with his new mate, the gold digger, to go welcome them.

“You!” I snapped at the figure standing before me. This time, the only thing I felt for her was pure hatred and disgust.

“Stay away from me, Zane Asher. I have no desire to speak with you,” she shot back, her tone sharp and unbothered as she turned to walk away.

I grabbed her wrist, halting her in her tracks. The audacity in her voice only fueled my anger.

“No one walks away while I’m still talking,” I growled. “Not without my permission.”

She said nothing for a moment, her eyes scanning me from head to toe, as if daring me. I straightened my suit, convinced she’d realized her place, a leech like her mother, both of them about to drain my family and compete with me for what’s mine.

“Since we’re clear on what this is, Amelia,” I continued coldly, “I want to remind you that you’re not welcome here. I don’t want you anywhere near me. I, Zane Asher, will never accept you as my stepsister. So stay out of my way.”

“I never said I would accept you as my stepbrother either,” she shot back instantly, her eyes blazing. “You’re not worth the hassle, Zane. What a shame.”

“What did you just say?” I snarled, dragging her back to face me again.

“You knew who I was last night when you kissed me, right?” I accused, my voice rising. “And on top of that, you ruined my expensive shirt without even apologizing or saying thank you. You—”

“Knew who you were?” she cut me off with a scoff. “Darling, please. If I’d known you were Zane Asher last night, I wouldn’t have kissed you even if my drink was spiked. As for your shirt, I didn’t ask you to play the hero. Send me your measurements and I’ll order another one to replace it.” Her tone was icy, her expression unreadable.

I froze for a second, caught off guard by her audacity. She wouldn’t have kissed me? Just who did she think she was?

“I didn’t ask you to replace the shirt with my father’s money, Amelia,” I snapped back. “The mating ceremony isn’t even over and you’re already acting high and mighty, spending money that doesn’t belong to you.”

“Excuse you?” she fired back, confusion and irritation flashing across her face but I wasn’t fooled.

“Oh, come on, Amelia. Drop the act. My shirt cost five grand. It’s a designer brand. Could you even afford that if you worked for a year straight?”

She faltered just for a second as disbelief crossed her features.

“Yes, Amelia,” I pressed, my tone cruel. “Hide your face. There’s no way you or your gold-digging mother could ever afford that, not even in years to come.”

“What did you just say?” she cut in sharply, her eyes narrowing.

“You heard me,” I barked. “You and your gold digging mother, leeching off people and families you don’t belong to… ”

The sound of her slap cut me off mid sentence. It echoed across the hall like a whip, drawing every pair of eyes toward us, including my father’s.

“Damn it,” I muttered under my breath, jaw tightening. This was bad. I’d just walked right into the kind of trouble I couldn’t talk my way out of.

Amelia’s pov

“You pathetic piece of shit!” Katie’s voice thundered across the hallway.

I had been walking when she deliberately tripped me. I stumbled, but instead of falling alone, I had pushed her cup of coffee and it slipped from her hand and spilled all over her. She had planned to humiliate me, but I wasn’t going down that road alone.

“You’ve been humiliating me all week, Katie. Ever since Maddox and I broke up, I’ve let it slide. But it’s enough. I’m fed up! Stop it already as it’s getting out of hand!” I snapped, my voice shaking with anger as I stood up amidst the stares.

I understood the twisted desire students had to humiliate others just to make themselves feel superior. Katie had always tried to make me her target when I first transferred here, but Maddox had shielded me back then. Now that protection was gone.

Ever since that night at the club when Maddox tried to trick me into sleeping with him and failed, everything had turned ugly. I broke up with him, but he went ahead and posted a video online pretending he was the one who dumped me. He made up lies to save his face. And since he was not only wealthy but also one of the Academy’s star hockey players, everyone believed him.

“Look who’s talking,” Katie sneered, turning to her minions. They burst into laughter like trained hyenas.

“The pathetic gold digger who clung to Maddox for status. How does it feel to be dumped?” one of them mocked.

“I never believed Maddox would pick a bumpkin like her anyway,” another girl added. “I told you all she was just a game to him.”

Laughter erupted again. Students gathered around, phones raised, recording my humiliation like it was a sport.

“All of you should just stay away from me, Katie, you and your little gang,” I said sharply. “I don’t have time for your childish nonsense and I’m not indulging any of you again.” I turned to leave.

“Is the wolfless omega giving us orders now?” Katie sneered and the laughter grew louder.

“What part of being a wolfless omega does she not understand?” another girl taunted.

“Omegas like her are only good for one thing which is serving,” Katie said with a cold smile. “No wonder Maddox dumped her after playing with her body like the toy she is.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but before a word could leave my lips, a commanding voice boomed through the hallway, cold and laced with steel enough to silence every single laugh.

“That’s enough.”

The air shifted immediately. I turned and froze. It was Zane.