I began cleaning the dried blood from her face with gentle strokes, careful not to apply too much pressure to the bruised areas. Her skin was soft as silk beneath the cloth, and I found myself marveling at the delicate bone structure of her face, the way her dark lashes fanned across her cheeks.
The torn blouse had to go. As carefully as possible, I eased the damaged fabric off her shoulders, trying not to think about the way the movement revealed the creamy expanse of her skin. Her bra was shredded beyond repair, the delicate lace hanging in tatters.
My breath caught in my throat as I took in the sight of her bare chest -pale skin marked with bruises that made my wolf howl with rage, but also curves that were absolutely perfect. Her breasts were full and round, the nipples a soft pink that seemed to call to my mouth.
*Stop,* I commanded myself, even as heat pooled low in my belly. *She’s unconscious and injured. Have some fucking dignity.*
I forced myself to focus on the task at hand, using the warm cloth to gently clean away dirt and dried sweat from her skin. Each stroke was careful, clinical, though my hands trembled slightly as they moved over the soft curves of her body.
I eased the nightgown over her head, carefully maneuvering her unconscious form to get her arms through the sleeves. The simple cotton felt like silk beneath my fingers, and I had to resist the urge to let my hands linger on her skin longer than necessary.
As I was pulling the covers up to her chin, Sera stirred slightly, a soft moan escaping her lips. Her eyelashes fluttered, and then those magnificent emerald eyes opened, unfocused and confused as they tried to make sense of her surroundings.
“This is quite the development,” she said, her voice hoarse but carrying a hint of her usual spirit. “What exactly is happening here, Alpha? Are you reenacting Sleeping Beauty?”
“Something like that,” I admitted, settling into the small chair beside her bed. “Though I think you’re mixing up your fairy tales. Sleeping Beauty didn’t wake up making smart remarks.”
“Maybe she should have,” Sera said, trying to push herself up into a sitting position and immediately wincing as the movement sent pain shooting through her ribs. “Would have made the story more interesting.”
“Easy,” I said, reaching out instinctively to steady her. “You’ve been through hell tonight. Just rest.”
“Adrian,” she said suddenly, panic flashing in her eyes as full awareness returned. “Where’s Adrian? Is he safe? Did they hurt him?”
“He’s fine,” I assured her quickly, my hand settling on her shoulder to keep her from trying to get up. “I found him in the border forests and brought him home. He had dinner, told me about fifteen different dinosaurs in remarkable detail, and is now sleeping peacefully in his room.”
Relief flooded her features, so intense that tears began spilling down her cheeks. “Thank you,” she whispered, her voice breaking with emotion. “God, Damien, thank you. I was so scared. When I realized they’d taken him…”
“Who did this to you?” The question came out rougher than intended, my protective instincts overriding my attempt to remain calm.
Sera’s expression darkened, pain and anger warring in her green eyes. “My loving family,” she said bitterly. “Elizabeth, my adopted mother called, demanded I come home. When I got there, they had some disgusting old man named Harold waiting -apparently they’d arranged to sell me to him like livestock.”
White-hot rage exploded through my system. “They what?”
“Fifty thousand dollars for one lightly used omega,” Sera continued, her voice growing stronger with fury. “Harold was quite excited about the prospect of having a young wife who could bear children. Elizabeth thought it was the perfect solution to their financial problems.”
I was on my feet before I realized I’d moved, my hands clenched into fists as Alex howled for blood in my mind. “Give me names,” I said, my voice carrying enough alpha authority to make the windows rattle. “Addresses. I want every detail.”
“Damien, no.” Sera’s hand shot out to grab my wrist, her fingers surprisingly strong despite her weakened state. “They’re not worth it. I handled it.”
“You were beaten unconscious!”
“After I put Harold in the hospital and left Elizabeth bleeding on the floor.” A fierce smile curved her lips, transforming her face from beautiful to absolutely magnificent. “Turns out omega doesn’t mean helpless. Who knew?”
The pride in her voice made my chest swell with something that felt dangerously close to admiration. My mate was a fighter.
But before I could respond, Sera’s expression shifted, becoming distant and cold. “Anyway,” she said, pulling her hand away from mine and settling back against her pillows, “thank you for bringing Adrian home safely. I’m sure you have more important things to deal with than babysitting a beaten-up omega and her son.”
“Sera -“
“Really, Damien, you should go.” Her voice was carefully polite, but there was something underneath it that made my wolf whimper with distress. “I’m sure Anna is wondering where you are. After all, you wouldn’t want to keep your fiancee waiting.”
“Sera, it’s not what you think -“
She turned her face away from me, focusing on the wall instead of meeting my eyes. “She has your pendant, Damien.”
“Don’t waste your time with me,” Sera continued, her voice growing stronger and more cutting with each word. “I’m just the omega employee who you happened to sleep with in a moment of weakness. Anna is your real mate, the one you’ve been searching for. Don’t let me keep you from your happily ever after.”
Seraphina’s POV
The silence in my small bedroom felt heavy and charged, like the air before a thunderstorm. Damien sat in the worn chair beside my bed, his powerful frame looking almost comically large in the tiny space. His dark hair was disheveled from running his hands through it, and his expensive shirt was wrinkled from carrying Adrian through the forest. Even exhausted and worried, he was devastatingly handsome.
But all I could think about was Anna Blackwood, draped all over him in the lobby like a designer accessory, waving that golden pendant like a victory flag.
“You should go,” I said quietly, my voice barely above a whisper as I focused on the worn pattern of my bedspread rather than meeting his penetrating blue eyes. “Anna is probably wondering where you disappeared to.”
“Sera -“
“Really, Damien.” I forced myself to look at him, mustering what little dignity I had left after the evening’s disasters. “I appreciate everything you’ve done tonight -finding Adrian, bringing him home safely, taking care of us both. But I understand the situation. Anna has your pendant. She’s the woman you’ve been searching for. I won’t stand in the way of that.”
The words tasted like ash in my mouth, but I forced them out anyway. Better to end this cleanly now than to drag out the inevitable heartbreak.
Damien leaned forward in his chair, his eyes blazing with an intensity that made my breath catch. “What if I told you that I don’t give a damn about Anna Blackwood?”
“I’d say you’re being kind to spare my feelings,” I replied, though hope fluttered weakly in my chest like a dying bird. “She has proof of your relationship -“
“She has a pendant.” His voice cut through my words like a blade. “Nothing more.”
“Damien -“
“Let me finish.” He stood abruptly, his movement sharp and predatory as he began pacing the cramped space between my bed and the dresser. The small room seemed to shrink around his imposing presence, making the air feel thick and charged with electricity.
“Yes, I made promises to whoever held that pendant,” he said, his voice rough with barely controlled emotion. “Financial compensation, a position, security -material things that seemed important at the time.” He stopped pacing and turned to face me, his blue eyes blazing with an intensity that made my breath catch. “But that was before I realized what I really wanted.”
“What do you want?” I whispered, my voice barely audible.
“You.” The word came out like a growl, raw and possessive and absolutely devastating. “Only you. I don’t give a damn about pendants or promises or the past. Anna can have whatever money she wants, whatever job she thinks she deserves. None of it matters.”
He moved closer to my bed, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body, could smell that intoxicating blend of sandalwood and masculine power that made my wolf whimper with need.
“Sera,” he said, my name sounding like a prayer on his lips. “I’ve wasted five years chasing a ghost when what I wanted was right here all along.”
I reached out tentatively, my fingers brushing against his hand where it rested on the arm of the chair. The contact sent electricity shooting up my arm, and I saw his pupils dilate in response.
I could feel my body responding to his proximity despite the pain and exhaustion. His scent was stronger here in the confined space, wrapping around me like silk ribbons and making my wolf purr with contentment.
“Damien,” I breathed, my voice taking on a breathy quality that had nothing to do with my injuries and everything to do with the way he was looking at me -like I was something precious and desired and absolutely essential to his existence.
He leaned closer, his lips hovering just inches from mine. “I should let you rest,” he said, though his voice suggested that rest was the last thing on his mind.
“Should you?” I whispered, tilting my face up toward his.
The space between us crackled with electricity. I could feel his breath against my lips, could see the way his eyes had darkened with desire that matched my own.
Just as our mouths were about to meet, a small voice called out from the living room, breaking the spell that had been weaving around us.
“Mr. Damien? I can’t sleep!”
We sprang apart like guilty teenagers, both of us breathing hard and staring at each other with a mixture of frustration and amusement.
“Duty calls,” I said softly, though I made no move to pull my hand from his.
I watched him walk to the doorway, admiring the way his broad shoulders filled the frame and the confident grace of his movements. Just before he disappeared into the hallway, he turned back with that devastating smile.
“Sweet dreams, emerald eyes.”
He left me alone with my racing heart and the lingering scent of sandalwood, my body humming with awareness and my mind spinning with the implications of everything that had just been revealed.
From the living room, I could hear Damien’s deep voice mixing with Adrian’s higher, more animated tones. I must have dozed off listening to their voices, because the next thing I knew, the apartment had gone quiet except for the soft sound of someone moving carefully through the rooms. A gentle knock on my bedroom door made me open my eyes.
“Come in,” I called softly.
Adrian padded into the room and climbed up onto my bed without ceremony, settling himself between Damien and me with the unconscious confidence of a child claiming his territory. “I had a bad dream about the scary forest.”
“It’s okay, baby,” I murmured, wrapping my arms around his small, warm body and pressing a kiss to the top of his head. “You’re safe now. The forest can’t hurt you here.”
“Mr. Damien saved me,” Adrian announced, with undisguised hero worship. “He’s really strong and really brave, just like a daddy should be.”
My breath caught in my throat. “Adrian,” I started gently, “sweetheart, you can’t just -“
“Can he be my daddy?” Adrian interrupted, his voice bright with hope and innocence that made my heart clench painfully. “Please? I promise I’ll be really good.”
Valerie’s POV
The taste of blood still lingered in my mouth as I stumbled up the front steps of our shabby apartment complex, my designer dress torn and stained with dirt and my own blood. Every step sent fresh waves of pain shooting through my ribs where that freak Seraphina had thrown me into the trophy case like I was nothing more than a ragdoll.
My hands shook as I fumbled with my keys, the metal slipping between my fingers that were slick with blood from the glass cuts. The hallway light flickered overhead, casting sickly yellow shadows that made everything look even more pathetic than usual.
“Fucking bitch,” I muttered under my breath, finally managing to unlock the door. “Fucking psycho omega freak.”
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