CHAPTER 2: A BOLD STEP

JARED'S POV 

I picked up the cup of wine and took a sip. My gaze remained distant, and my thoughts swirled. 

Tonight marked the first day of my separation from Kane. A three-year relationship was gone... just like that. 

I closed my eyes, tried my best to swallow the lump in my throat, and drank the wine again. It was the only thing I could do at the moment. 

I couldn't afford to break down... but Kane just wouldn't leave my mind. 

The memories of our love, our lives___ they tormented me. 

They made me feel so exhausted and mentally drained. 

"You should cry if you want to." I heard my best friend, Stephen, say. 

I shook my head, and a bitter smile formed on my face. "Why should I cry?" I questioned sourly, my fingers clenched tightly around the cup of wine. "He left on his own. He didn't think of... us when he decided to accept his parents' proposal. So, why should I cry for such a jerk?" I tilted my head and waved my hand. "Let's just have fun, Stephen," I mumbled. 

I drank the wine again, but this time, all I tasted was bitterness. I swallowed hard, sweat forming on my forehead as I tried to control my emotions. 

It wasn't easy. Damn. It was easier said than done. We'd been in love for three years. I'd given him every part of me___ my heart and body. 

How could he do this to me?!

I raised the wine cup and slammed it back on the table. "No, I won't cry for that jerk. I won't lose my composure for his sake... but my eyes sting."

"Shit!" I heard Stephen curse. "I should have been there. I would have killed that scum." He gritted his teeth. "Who does he think he is? Discriminating against beta. How is he that great?" 

I listened to Stephen rambling for a long time. My mood felt heavy, but listening to him made me feel like I could think again. 

I poured more wine into my cup and took a deep sip. Dropping the cup, I felt a bite on my skin. A cold gaze bore into my pores, eliciting a slight shiver from me, and I frowned imperceptibly. 

My annoyance grew. I turned my head toward the direction of the rude gaze and glared at the man sitting at the other corner. His heterochromatic eyes stared back, and my brows furrowed. 

Isn't that the Alpha from earlier? The one from the car?

I stood up and waved at Stephen. "I will be back," I said to him. 

I walked to the Alpha with a stern expression on my face and a slightly wobbly step. Getting to his table, I fisted my hands and slammed them on his table. Bent forward, I glared at him. "Why are you staring at me? Is there something on me?" I sneered. "Want a bit of me?" I provoked. 

He was annoying. 

How could someone stare so much?!

The Alpha stood up, towering over me with his 6'4? Maybe 6'6. His heterochromatic eyes sized me up, and his lips slowly curled up. 

My body trembled inexplicably. I felt like I was in trouble...

"Alright." His deep voice rang, clearing off the noise in the air. He waved a card before me. "I have a private suite in the STAR HOTEL. It is really close to this bar. Let's do it there." He said, his expression remaining indifferent. 

My lips twitched, and I took a step back. "You..."

He tilted his head, and his brows furrowed. "Are you trying to go back on your words?" 

I bit my lower lip and frowned hard. A man could do everything but not go back on his word, right? 

"Let's go." I found the word slipping out of my mouth. 

"Alright." The man readily replied and led the way. 

My expression crumbled at an angle the man wouldn't see, and turning to look at my friend, who was staring back at me, I felt the urge to cry. 

Who would have thought a bold sentence from me would lead to this awkward situation? 

'I will be back.' I mouthed to him, and before he could say anything, I slipped out with the man. 

****

"Take a bath first." I heard the man say. 

My lips moved, and I rolled my eyes. "I'm not," I replied defiantly. "Let's do whatever we want to do and get out of here." Wow!. It was probably the wine, but I found myself bolder than ever. 

The Alpha stared at me for a moment without saying a word. 

My heart raced with each second. I wondered if he was going to change his mind...

"Okay." He said noncommittally and began removing his clothes. 

His shirt was swiftly removed, showing his perfectly defined muscles and biceps. I swallowed with difficulty and turned my head away. 

It wasn't right. I shouldn't look... right?

"Do you need me to help?" His cool voice rang in my ears, and I felt my legs weaken. 

"Help... Help with what?" I stuttered, inwardly warning myself not to look, but I felt my head moving on its own until my eyes landed on his fully developed body, which was only covered in a tiny pair of shorts at the moment. 

His gaze landed on my body. Hot, and scorching. "Your clothes. Need help with it?" He asked again. 

I stumbled backward and quickly waved my hands. "No. No. I can do it." Saying that, I was already removing my clothes. 

The cold air of the night bit hard on my almost naked skin until a pair of strong and warm arms wrapped around my waist and kisses landed on my neck. 

My mind wandered in confusion. 

This wasn't right. 

I shouldn't be here. 

I shouldn't be doing this. 

But his touch felt like fire against my body, igniting desires I never knew were hidden within me. 

I gasped crazily when he finally entered me. All reluctance flew into oblivion as I indulged fully in the pleasure and thirst he brought to me. 

I knew, even as his warmth consumed me, that I had stepped into a world I never should have.