When the Alpha Regrets It All

When I got back to my suite, my hands were still shaking.Claus and I had never been just ordinary mates over these past seven years.Forget the massive amount of capital the Blackthorn pack funneled into his hands during his rise to power. Even later on, a full third of Nightshade Corp's revenue was secured by my people.I was the one who pressured those most troublesome shareholders on the board into submission.Since Claus took over, everyone only remembered the man in the sharp black suit standing on the podium at ceremonies. They had conveniently forgotten whose shadow was cast behind that suit.Standing in the room we had shared for seven years, I recalled a night long ago, before he had secured Nightshade Corp. An Alpha from another pack had brushed a hand against my waist during a negotiation.That night, Claus had pinned the man to the ground and snapped three of his ribs.We lost the entire deal because of that outburst.I remembered him holding me afterward, his hand

The scent clinging to the young man was a world away from Claus' aggressive mix of liquor and beast blood.This stark contrast only made the fire burning in my chest flare up even more.I reached out and grabbed the collar of his shirt. "What's your name?""Ryan.""Alright." I looked into his dark, gleaming eyes and lowered my voice. "Ryan, do you have a place to go tonight?"His Adam's apple bobbed slightly. "I did.""And now?""Now, I'll do as you say."My heart skipped a beat, and I suddenly smiled.This was interesting.I stood up, grabbed my bag, and headed for the stairs. After a couple of steps, I noticed he was still sitting there, watching me.I turned around. "Aren't you coming?"Ryan finally got up and followed me.Just then, his phone in his pocket lit up. A woman's name flashed on the screen.I glanced at it but said nothing.However, he didn't even frown. He just pressed the screen off.I raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you going to answer it?""There's no nee

Claus stared at the marks on my neck. His eyes reddened, and his voice trembled."You can get back at me however you want. Hit me, yell at me, take away my power, even stab me with a silver blade, but don't use this trick. Don't do this to me."This was probably the first time he had shown such a pathetic side of himself in front of me.Unfortunately, it was too late now.I stepped back and pressed the security button for the East Wing suite.Two newly assigned guards immediately stepped forward, blocking his way.Claus snapped his head up and looked at me with disbelief in his eyes. "You're having the guards stop me?""Is there a problem?"I stood in the doorway, looking at him coldly. "I told you, you betrayed me. This is no longer a place you can enter. From the moment you touched Bella, you should've known you'd never get past this door again."Claus' face twisted in anger, like he wanted to devour me. But he still gritted his teeth and said, "Aserina, I won't let you go.

When Cecilia slammed the papers in front of me, her eyes were practically glowing. "This just got interesting. You four have all tangled yourselves up, and even the heavens are setting the stage for you."I lightly tapped my fingers on the table. "The heavens are reminding me to take them down together."Cecilia raised an eyebrow. "Then don't just focus on Bella. If you really want to go after Claus, you might want to use Ryan. The old chairman of Westia, the asset auditor of Noctara, and even those ancient lawyers at the company are all connected to his family."I glanced over the list.I knew Ryan's background wasn't simple, but I didn't realize just how deep his connections ran.This meant that if I leveraged the Blake family, I couldn't only bring Claus down—I could take his place.Cecilia looked at me. "Do you trust Ryan?"I looked down and smiled softly. "I trust in interests. He wants revenge on Bella, and I want to destroy Claus. Right now, we're in the same boat. That's

Claus stood in the rain, his stare fixed on Ryan and on the unmistakable signs of intimacy on his neck.After a long pause, his voice came out hoarse. "Was it him… that night?"I didn't deny it. "Finally figured it out?"That one sentence seemed to rip apart his last illusion.Claus' face turned pale. Rainwater streamed down his jawline, and his knuckles let out a sharp crack as he tightened his fists.For days, he must have been lying to himself.He must have been convincing himself that I was just trying to rile him up, that I couldn't possibly let another man touch me, and that the unfamiliar scent was just part of a play I was putting on for him.But now, Ryan was standing beside me, marked with my scent.Claus could no longer lie to himself."Aserina."As he stared at me, he asked in a shaky voice, "Did you really sleep with him?"Ryan adjusted his collar, making sure the marks on his neck were even more obvious. "My lady, we did what we did. Can't we say it out loud?"