The Alpha's Silent Bride: Seventh Time's The Charm

Chapter 96: 096: Hit Where It Hurts

~ ETHAN ~

The pain in my chest is worse than any stabbing knife.

It twists and burns like acid eating through my heart with every ragged breath I take. My wolf is howling inside me, clawing at my ribs, refusing to accept any of this. He doesn’t want to sit here like a fucking coward while she suffers.

I can smell her heat.

Even from this distance, her sweet, intoxicating scent drifts through the night air and wraps around me like a drug. It’s driving me out of my goddamn mind with raw, primal need. My cock is painfully hard, throbbing angrily, but the worst part, the part that’s truly destroying me, is knowing that Ronan is right there with her.

Right now, he’s probably buried deep inside my mate, soothing her fire, claiming what should be mine.

The image flashes through my mind unbidden: Ronan humping into her, knotting her, making her scream his name while I cower away like a pathetic loser. All because I wanted to use her as a tool, a pawn to get to him.

What the fuck have I done?

My heart twists violently as I thrust harder into the warm, willing body beneath me, some brunette servant girl whose name I can barely remember. She’s moaning loudly, arching her back, begging me to go deeper, to soothe her own mild heat. I try to picture that fiery red hair instead. Try to imagine it’s her tight, dripping pussy clenching around me, her voice crying out for me.

But it’s useless.

My vision blurs with rage and unbearable jealousy. Even though I’m balls-deep in wet, welcoming heat, it does nothing for me. Nothing for my aching cock. Nothing for the hollow, gnawing void in my chest. Every thrust feels empty. Mechanical. A cheap, disgusting substitute that only makes me hate myself more.

"Harder, Ethan... please..." the girl whimpers beneath me, her nails digging into my shoulders.

I growl and slam into her, but my mind is miles away, back at the room with my mate. Roselle’s scent keeps flooding my senses, so alluring, so fucking tempting. It makes my wolf snarl and rage, demanding I track her down right now. Challenge Ronan. Rip him apart and take her for myself.

She’s mine. She was always supposed to be mine.

I close my eyes and picture her flushed face, her tear-filled eyes, the way her body would tremble and open up for me if I were the one fucking her through her heat. The way she’d moan my name. The way she’d beg me to knot her, to fill her, to claim her completely.

A feral snarl rips from my throat as I fuck the girl harder, faster, punishing her body for not being Roselle’s, and yet it’s not enough.

It will never be enough.

Because the only thing that can truly soothe this madness is her. And right now, she’s wrapped around another male, the one I hate most in this world.

My wolf howls in agony and fury inside me.

Soon, I swear to myself, teeth gritted as another useless orgasm builds in my gut. I’ll make this right. I’ll take back what’s mine... even if I have to burn everything down to do it.

A few minutes later, after spilling my seed into the wench’s cunt, I pulled out and rolled off her without a word. She was still panting, flushed and satisfied, but I felt nothing but disgust and emptiness.

I cleaned myself up quickly, then headed straight to the bathroom. The hot water did little to wash away the lingering scent of Roselle’s heat that still haunted my nose. I needed fresh air. I needed to get the fuck out of this pack for a few minutes, maybe longer, to think clearly.

That was the only realistic way to clear my head.

After my shower, I dressed quickly, grabbed my keys, and drove my black SUV out of the pack territory. The night air rushed through the open window as I sped down the winding roads, but the knot in my chest refused to loosen.

My phone rang. Quirin.

I answered on the second ring, voice clipped. "What?"

"What if the plan doesn’t work?" Quirin’s voice came through the speaker, tense and uncertain. "I’m afraid I have a lot to protect... and knowing Ronan with his ruthlessness, he would hit hard without caring about my people."

Fucking hell. If there’s anything I hate, it’s Alphas who can’t stick to a plan and start second-guessing every two seconds. I wonder how the hell Quirin is considered the second of one of the strongest packs. It’s like handing the position of a lion to a weak, skittish rabbit.

I tightened my grip on the steering wheel until my knuckles turned white. "We have Warren on our side. So are you saying we have two packs against Ronan and we still won’t come out victorious?" I shot back, irritation bleeding into my tone.

"Warren?" Quirin sounded surprised. "I thought Warren had an alliance agreement with Ronan?"

The question hung in the air like a challenge. I let out a low, bitter laugh, my jaw clenching as fresh jealousy and rage boiled in my veins. Roselle’s scent was still teasing the edges of my mind, making my wolf pace restlessly.

"Things change," I said coldly, eyes fixed on the dark road ahead. "Warren’s alliance with Ronan is crumbling. The bastard’s been making deals behind everyone’s back — including ones that fuck over his own pack. I gave Warren the leverage he needed. He’s with us now. Or at least... he will be when it matters most."

Quirin was quiet for a moment. I could practically hear him weighing the risks, overthinking again.

"Listen," I continued, voice dropping into a dangerous growl. "Ronan thinks he’s untouchable and now that we have an opening, when we strike, he won’t see it coming."

I exhaled sharply, trying to push down the vivid images of Ronan claiming Roselle that kept flashing through my head.

"We hit him where it hurts most, his pack, his power, and his precious bride."

Quirin sighed on the other end. "I hope you’re right, Ethan. For all our sakes."

I didn’t reply. I ended the call and kept driving into the night, the taste of betrayal and bitter hunger thick on my tongue.

Soon. Roselle would be mine. And Ronan would finally pay for everything he’d taken from me.