Chapter 3

"Please, just let me help," I said desperately, reaching out to brush the coffee stains off the green-eyed brother's shirt.

He grabbed my wrist before I could touch him, his grip firm but not painful. "Don't."

The single word felt like a slap.

I pulled my hand back, my cheeks burning with embarrassment. "I really didn't mean to—"

"Save it," the other brother said, pulling his ruined shirt away from his chest with a grimace. "Just stay out of our way."

They walked past me without another word, and I stood there feeling like the ground should just open up and swallow me whole.

But what confused me more than their anger was the weird flutter in my chest when the green-eyed one had grabbed my wrist. It was the same feeling I'd gotten when Ryder had steadied me in the hallway yesterday—this strange pull, like my body recognized something my brain didn't understand.

What was wrong with me?

"Well, that was entertaining," Sienna said, her voice dripping with fake sympathy. "Maybe next time you'll watch where you're going, wolfless."

She brushed past me, her friends giggling as they followed her toward the café.

I wanted to scream. Or cry. Or both.

"Hey," Kyra said softly, putting her hand on my shoulder. "Forget about them. They're just stuck-up Alphas who think they own the world."

"I just humiliated myself in front of two of the Kane brothers," I muttered, pressing my hands to my face. "My life is officially a disaster."

"Your life was already a disaster," Kyra said with a small smile. "This is just another Tuesday for you."

I couldn't help but laugh, even though it came out shaky. "Thanks. That makes me feel so much better."

"Come on," she said, linking her arm through mine. "We've got hockey practice in twenty minutes. Nothing clears your head like hitting things with a stick."

She was right about that.

The moment I stepped onto the ice, everything else faded away. The humiliation, the coffee disaster, Sienna's cruel words—none of it mattered when I had a hockey stick in my hands and the cold air biting at my face.

This was where I belonged. This was where I felt like myself.

I skated hard, pushing my body until my muscles burned and my lungs ached. Every shot I took at the goal was fueled by frustration and anger, and it felt good to channel all that emotion into something productive.

"Damn, girl!" Kyra called out from across the rink. "You're on fire today!"

I grinned, wiping sweat from my forehead. "Just needed to blow off some steam."

But even as I practiced, my mind kept wandering back to Kyra's suggestion. Sleep with someone to get my wolf. It sounded insane. Reckless. Completely unlike me.

But what if it actually worked?

What if the fortune teller had been right, and all I needed was to mate with someone—anyone—to finally unlock what I'd been missing my whole life?

I thought about the Kane brothers. Ryder with his gray eyes and easy smile. The green-eyed one who'd grabbed my wrist. Even the other brother who'd looked at me like I was dirt on his shoe.

They were Alphas. Powerful, attractive, and definitely experienced. If I was going to do this crazy thing, wouldn't it make sense to do it with someone like them?

But then reality crashed back in. The Kane brothers wouldn't look twice at someone like me. I was the girl who spilled coffee on them, the wolfless nobody who didn't even belong in their world.

I had no idea how I'd even get close enough to one of them to make something happen.

After practice, Kyra and I showered and changed, then headed back to the main campus for our afternoon lectures. The classes dragged on forever, and I spent most of the time staring out the window and pretending to take notes.

When the final lecture ended, Kyra stretched and yawned. "I'm going to that campus fair thing. Want to come?"

I shook my head. "I need to grab some books from the library for my essay."

"Boring," Kyra said with a grin. "But okay. Text me later?"

"Yeah, definitely."

We parted ways outside the building, and I headed toward the library. The campus was buzzing with energy—students everywhere, music playing, food trucks lined up along the main path. Everyone was excited about the fair.

Which meant the library would be practically empty.

Perfect.

I pushed through the heavy doors and was greeted by the familiar smell of old books and that particular quiet that only libraries seemed to have. There were maybe three other people in the entire building, all of them buried in their laptops at study tables.

I made my way toward the back section where the sports and athletics books were kept. My essay was on the evolution of women's hockey, and I needed some specific references that weren't available online.

The back of the library was completely deserted. Just rows and rows of shelves, dim lighting, and silence.

I ran my fingers along the spines of the books, searching for the ones I needed. The quiet was soothing after the chaos of the day, and I felt myself starting to relax.

That's when I heard it.

A low sound, almost like a groan, coming from somewhere deeper in the stacks.

I froze, my heart suddenly racing.

Was someone hurt?

Against my better judgment, I moved toward the sound, peeking around the corner of one of the shelves.

And then I saw him.

My brain stopped working.

One of the Kane brothers—not Ryder, not the green-eyed one, but another one I recognized from around campus—was leaning against the shelf with his head tipped back, his hand moving rhythmically inside his open pants.

He was pleasuring himself. Right here. In the library.

I couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. Couldn't look away.

He was gorgeous—dark hair, sharp features, and a body that looked like it had been carved from stone. But what shocked me most was what I could see between his legs.

He was... big. Really big.

My face burned hotter than the surface of the sun, and my brain finally caught up with my body, screaming at me to run.

I took a step backward, but my bag hit the shelf behind me with a loud thump.

His eyes snapped open.

Those eyes—ice blue and intense—locked onto mine, and I felt like a deer caught in headlights.

"Oh my God," I whispered, stumbling backward. "I'm sorry, I didn't—I wasn't—"

I turned and ran.

Or at least, I tried to.

I made it maybe three steps before a hand grabbed my arm and yanked me backward. I gasped as my back hit the bookshelf, and suddenly he was right there, caging me in with his arms on either side of my head.

"Where do you think you're going?" he asked, his voice low and dangerous.

"I'm sorry!" I said again, my words tumbling out in a rush. "I didn't see anything, I swear, I was just looking for books and I heard a sound and I thought someone was hurt and—"

"You're lying," he said simply.

My mouth went dry. "I'm not, I—"

"You saw everything." His eyes traveled down my body slowly, and I felt like I might catch fire from the intensity of his gaze. "Didn't you?"

I couldn't answer. My voice had completely abandoned me.

He leaned in closer, and I could smell him—something clean and masculine that made my head spin. "Let me go," I finally managed to whisper. "Please."

"Why should I?"

"Because—because I won't tell anyone," I stammered. "I promise, I'll forget this ever happened, just please—"

"Help!" I suddenly shouted, hoping someone, anyone, would hear me. "Somebody help!"

But the library stayed silent. No footsteps, no voices. Everyone was at the fair.

We were completely alone.

Panic clawed at my chest. This was bad. This was really, really bad. He was one of the most powerful Alphas in the school, and I'd just caught him in a very private moment, and now he was angry, and—

"Please," I begged, hating how my voice shook. "Please don't hurt me. I'll do anything, just—just give me a chance to—"

He tilted his head, studying me like I was some kind of puzzle. Then, slowly, his lips curved into a smile that made my stomach flip.

"Anything?" he repeated.

I nodded frantically, even though every instinct I had was screaming that this was a mistake.

"Alright," he said, finally stepping back and giving me space to breathe. He casually fixed his pants like nothing had happened, his eyes never leaving my face. "Then you're coming with me."

"What? Where?"

"You said you'd do anything," he reminded me, that dangerous smile still playing at his lips. "So come on. We're going somewhere private."

"I don't even know your name," I whispered.

"Xavier," he said. "And you're the girl who dumped coffee on my brothers this morning."

Of course he knew about that.

"I'm Meera," I said weakly.

"I know." He grabbed my hand, his grip firm. "Now let's go."

My heart was pounding so hard I thought it might break through my ribs, but I followed him anyway, because what choice did I have?

Xavier Kane was leading me somewhere private, and I had no idea what he was going to do to me when we got there.