Mated to the Alpha: Sold to the King

Chapter 82: 0082

Kaelen POV

She was a rogue.

A criminal. A thief.

I should hate her. I should be disgusted by her.

But I was such a mess.

I had sprinted through the dark forest like a wild beast just to find her, only for my heart to be left bruised by the state she was in. Bruised, bleeding, trembling against a fallen tree trunk.

The moment I saw her, something inside me cracked.

And the second she pressed her lips to mine, she violently awakened a hunger I had spent the past weeks trying to bury deep down, only to pull away just as suddenly.

"Why did you do that?" I asked, my voice coming out hoarse with desire.

"I don’t know. I’m sorry," she stammered, biting down on her lower lip. "I just... I just did."

Could it be that she was just as affected as I was?

Up until now, she usually trembled in terror whenever I was near.

She had even admitted that she was happy I was no longer on her neck, an admission that had stung so badly I had resorted to speaking to that Emily person just to clear my head. Instead, the conversation had only made me physically sick.

Still, I wasn’t going to let this miraculous moment pass me by.

She had made the first move this time.

My expression darkened, and my hand moved up to her chin.

"Well..." I drawled, my eyes fixed solely on her lips. "Like you said before, you can’t start something and not finish it."

With that, I closed the short distance between us once more and captured her lips in another kiss, unable to resist the temptation any longer.

A low growl rumbled in my throat as I tilted her head back, deepening the kiss until a soft whimper escaped her lips.

She was shaking, but her small hands found my bare chest. They seemed to want to push me away, yet instead curled into my skin and pulled me closer.

I pulled back just enough to bite her full lower lip, sucking it between my teeth the exact way I’d imagined doing for weeks.

Her breath hitched sharply, and those glassy green eyes widened with a mixture of confusion and something else. Fear? Want?

Maybe both.

Fuck. It only made me harder.

If she wasn’t already hurt, the things I would’ve done right here against this damp log were difficult not to imagine.

I pressed her gently back against the rough bark, my massive body shielding her from the cold night air. One hand stayed on her chin while the other slipped under her shirt, my warm palm sliding over the bare skin of her waist, making her shiver.

I didn’t stop when I heard multiple footsteps crunching through the leaves.

I didn’t stop when the frantic voices of the search party grew louder, closing in on our location.

And the fact that she was so consumed by the moment that she still hadn’t even noticed them? It made me not want to stop at all.

I wanted us to be caught like this.

I wanted every bastard who had spread those filthy rumors about her and Darius to see her exactly like this. Her lips swollen from my rough kiss, her cheeks heavily flushed, and my hand disappearing under her clothes while she trembled helplessly in my arms.

Just when it seemed she was finally getting lost in the heat, moaning softly as my fingers brushed the underside of her breast through the lace of her bra, a bright beam of a flashlight suddenly cut through the thick trees and landed directly on us.

Instantly, she stiffened against me, a soft gasp escaping her throat while my lips curled slightly in dark satisfaction as I kept my hand exactly where it was.

"Alpha," a deep voice called out.

Only then did I pull away and turn slowly toward the source of the light.

About ten people stood scattered in a loose semicircle. Most were volunteers, along with a few older teenagers, all staring at us with wide eyes.

Behind me, she immediately buried her face in my chest, completely hiding herself.

"Shit," she muttered under her breath.

I could feel her heart hammering wildly against me like a frightened little rabbit.

Slowly, I wrapped my arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer, shielding her from their view.

"I found her," I said calmly, scooping her easily into my arms as I rose to my feet.

I let my cold gaze drift around the crowd, and every single one of them immediately lowered their eyes to the dirt.

"She’s hurt, so she needs immediate medical attention. We can head back."

With that, I started walking ahead while the group followed awkwardly from a distance behind us.

We hadn’t gone far before I spotted Darius standing off to the side. His gaze was fixed solely on Ella in my arms, and his jaw was tight.

Instinctively, my grip tightened around her, causing her to bury her face deeper into my chest as if trying to disappear completely.

The walk back to the orphanage was a long, silent one.

When we finally reached the main building, a healer who had already been standing by rushed forward with his arms extended, ready to take her from me.

"I’ll carry her," I said firmly.

The healer hesitated for a fraction of a second before nodding quickly.

"This way, Alpha."

I followed him as he led us to the medical room.

Once inside, I carefully laid her down on a cot, my hands lingering at her waist for a second before I forced myself to pull away.

Standing at her side, I watched quietly as the healer examined her foot.

He moved her ankle around gently, pressing different spots while she winced.

"It’s not broken," the healer finally announced, wiping his brow. "It’s just a very bad sprain, though it will take a while to heal fully. Luckily, we deal with a lot of werewolf rascals who get injured every other second around here, so we’re well-equipped."

Those words made her chuckle, and the soft sound immediately made my expression harden.

"Why don’t you focus on your job?" I commanded, causing the healer to stiffen at once.

Quickly, he nodded and avoided my gaze entirely.

"I... I have a remedy that can numb the pain and increase her healing speed by about eighty percent," he said, clearing his throat nervously. "It’s a strong herbal paste mixed with a small amount of wolfsbane essence. Safe in small doses, but very effective."

"Do it," I said.

With that, the healer hurriedly went to work. He prepared the pungent paste and carefully applied it to her lacerated calf and ankle before wrapping the entire leg tightly with fresh, clean bandages.

"There," he said. "She’ll feel the numbing effects within the hour. She should stay off it for at least three days, but after that, she should be able to move around with a bit of support."

After the rest of the small scratches and branch cuts on her arms were treated, I scooped her back into my arms and held her against my chest, ignoring the stares from everyone else in the halls as I finally brought her to her room.

I handed her over to her roommate, Emily, leaving the woman with strict instructions on how her leg needed to be cared for properly.

Once that was settled and the door closed behind me, I sought out Darius next.

He was standing near the main entrance of the building with his arms crossed over his chest, his expression completely unreadable as he stared out into the dark night.

When he heard my footsteps and saw me approaching, he opened his mouth to speak, but I cut him off and spoke first.

"She was pushed off a cliff."

Immediately, Darius’s unreadable expression drained of color. His fists clenched tightly at his sides, and the veins on his forearms bulged.

"Who did it?" he demanded.

"That’s exactly what we’ll find out tomorrow."