Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The clearing fell silent the moment Riven stepped back into the firelight with Kai pressed against his side.

Dozens of eyes locked onto them. The low murmur of conversation died. Even the younger wolves stopped shifting in place. Kai kept his gaze fixed on the ground, cheeks burning, but he could still feel every stare like a physical weight. His slick had soaked through the soft fabric of his pants; he knew the entire pack could smell how wet he was. The knowledge made his stomach twist with shame.

Riven’s hand stayed firm on the back of his neck, thumb stroking slow and possessive over the sensitive skin there. He didn’t seem to care about the silence. He walked them straight to the center of the circle, right in front of the elders and the tall, elegant Omega who had been standing beside the Alpha’s chair all night—the one who was supposed to be claimed.

That Omega’s face had gone white.

One of the elders finally found his voice. “Alpha. What is the meaning of this?”

Riven’s answer was calm. Almost lazy.

“I found my mate.”

A ripple of shock moved through the pack. Someone muttered a curse under their breath. The intended Omega took a half-step forward, voice tight.

“You already chose. The agreement was—”

“The agreement is void.” Riven’s tone didn’t rise, but the authority in it cracked through the air like a whip. “I claimed wrong once. I won’t do it again.”

His hand slid from Kai’s neck down to his waist, then lower, gripping the soft curve of his hip hard enough to bruise. Kai stumbled slightly against him. Heat pulsed low in his belly, and another slow trickle of slick escaped him. He bit the inside of his cheek to keep from making a sound.

Riven looked down at him. The Alpha’s eyes were almost black in the firelight.

“On your knees.”

Kai’s breath caught. “Riven—”

“Now.”

The single word left no room for argument. Kai’s legs folded. He sank to the dirt in front of the entire pack, soft thighs pressed together, head bowed. His face burned so hot he thought he might pass out. He could hear the wet sound of his own slick when he shifted his weight. Someone in the crowd made a low, startled noise.

Riven stepped in front of him and tipped Kai’s chin up with two fingers.

“Look at me.”

Kai forced his eyes up. Riven was already unbuckling his belt with one hand, movements unhurried, completely unbothered by the audience. When he freed himself, Kai’s mouth went dry. The Alpha was thick, heavy, and already fully hard—the head flushed dark and glistening at the tip.

Riven’s voice dropped so only Kai could hear the first part.

“You’re going to take my claim in front of every wolf who thought you were invisible. And you’re going to do it without looking away from me.”

Then, louder, for the pack:

“This is my Omega. From this night forward, he belongs to me. Anyone who touches him dies. Anyone who questions the claim answers to me.”

He didn’t wait for permission.

Riven’s hand fisted in Kai’s soft hair and guided him forward. Kai’s lips parted on a shaky breath, and the thick head of the Alpha’s cock pushed into his mouth. The taste of him—salt and heat and pure dominance—flooded Kai’s tongue. He made a small, helpless sound around the length as Riven pushed deeper, not rough yet, but relentless. The pack watched in absolute silence.

Riven’s free hand stroked once over Kai’s flushed cheek.

“That’s it,” he murmured. “Open for me.”

Kai’s eyes watered. His jaw stretched. Slick was dripping down the inside of his thighs now, soaking into the dirt beneath him. Every time Riven’s cock dragged over his tongue, another pulse of heat rolled through his body. He hated how much he was reacting. He hated that his hole was clenching around nothing, aching to be filled while the entire pack watched him on his knees.

Riven pulled back just enough for Kai to gasp in air, then pushed in again, slower this time, letting him feel every inch. When he finally withdrew completely, a thin string of saliva connected Kai’s swollen lips to the head of his cock.

The Alpha’s voice was rough.

“Stand up.”

Kai rose on unsteady legs. The second he was upright, Riven spun him around, chest to the fire, back to the Alpha’s body. Strong hands yanked his pants down in one hard motion, exposing him completely—soft ass, wet thighs, the glistening slick already coating his skin. A collective intake of breath moved through the clearing.

Riven’s hand came down hard on one full cheek, the sharp smack echoing. Kai jerked forward with a broken cry. Before he could recover, two thick fingers pushed between his cheeks and sank into him without warning.

“Fuck—”

The word tore out of Kai before he could stop it. Riven’s fingers were long and relentless, curling inside him, spreading him open for the pack to see. Slick poured out around the intrusion, loud and shameless in the quiet night.

“Already this wet,” Riven said, voice dark with satisfaction. “And I haven’t even fucked you yet.”

He scissored his fingers once, twice, then pulled them free. Kai felt empty for only a second before the thick head of Riven’s cock notched against his hole. The Alpha’s arm banded around his waist, holding him still.

“Breathe,” Riven ordered against his ear.

Then he pushed in.

The stretch burned. Kai’s mouth fell open on a silent cry as the Alpha’s cock forced him open, inch by thick inch, until he was so full he could barely think. Riven didn’t stop until his hips were flush against Kai’s soft ass, buried to the hilt. The pack could see everything—the way Kai’s body trembled, the way his hole stretched tight around the Alpha’s cock, the way slick dripped down both their thighs.

Riven’s mouth found the side of Kai’s throat.

“Mine,” he growled.

And then he bit.

The claiming bite sank deep, right over the sensitive gland. Pain and pleasure exploded through Kai at the same time. His body locked up, a high, broken sound ripping from his throat as the bond snapped into place like a live wire. Riven’s hips snapped forward hard, fucking into him with deep, claiming strokes while his teeth stayed buried in Kai’s neck.

Kai’s vision whited out.

He came untouched, hole clenching desperately around the thick cock still driving into him, slick pouring out of him in messy pulses. Riven didn’t slow down. He fucked him through it, growling against the fresh mark, one hand sliding down to grip Kai’s soft stomach and hold him in place for every brutal thrust.

When the Alpha finally pulled his teeth free, blood and saliva glistened on his mouth. He licked the mark once, slow and deliberate, then spoke against Kai’s skin for the entire pack to hear.

“Heat’s only starting.”

His cock throbbed deep inside Kai, still hard, still relentless.

“I’m taking him to my den. No one follows. No one interrupts. When I bring him back, you’ll all smell me on him for the rest of his life.”

Riven pulled out only long enough to yank Kai’s pants the rest of the way off, then lifted him like he weighed nothing—one arm under his soft thighs, the other around his back. Kai’s head dropped against the Alpha’s shoulder, body still shaking, hole fluttering around nothing and already aching to be filled again.

As Riven carried him out of the firelight and toward the dark path that led to the Alpha’s den, Kai caught one last glimpse of the pack.

Every single one of them was watching.

And not a single wolf dared to speak.