Chapter 16: The night

“W…what?” Hazel's eyes widened abruptly and her body went completely rigid.

Her fingers trembled by the side, heart ramming violently against her chest as though it was no longer hers.

Damien’s gaze swept over her calmly, and deliberately, as though taking in her fear and vulnerability. As though he took pleasure in it.

He studied her for a long time, before saying, “I don’t need to repeat myself, do I? Unless you don’t want your pack members to survive tonight.”

Hazel bit her lips, her teeth almost tearing through the delicate flesh, her face ashen with desperation and fear. She does not know being his sex slave meant she had to undress in front of me, she thought they would just go ahead with the deed and forget about it.

But now…

She knew no amount of begging could have Damien spare her, she could only grit her teeth.

With no choice left for her, Hazel raised her trembling hands and placed it on the hem of her dress, gripping it tightly.

Damien watched her closely, waiting quietly for her. Hazel did not even notice that he had stopped tapping in the armrest, even he did not notice that all his attention was focused on her.

With one hard pull, the dress slipped down Hazel's body, her body finally exposed to Damien’s eyes.

Hazel did not see as his pupils shrank because she had her head lowered.

Matilda had intentionally chosen the dress, it wasn’t transparent so she made sure that Hazel was not in any inner garment.

The air felt colder on her skin, she felt exposed in more ways than one. It wasn’t just her body that was laid bare for Damien to see, but her pride and the last piece of her dignity. She wanted to look unbothered, but her body failed her.

She stood there in the middle of the chamber, her body shaking like a leaf under the influence of wind.

Hazel refused to cry, not in front of him,

Damien had meant to look only once, before finding another way to poke her pride and dignity. Yet, his eyes lingered.

His eyes traced the lines of her delicate collarbone, to the dip of her chest following the quiet rise and fall of her breathing. Her pale skin, marked by old scars and fading wounds entered his eyes.

Even with so many tiny wounds, it only seemed to add color to her skin, like a rose in the midst of a snow fall.

Something tightened in his chest.

Then followed by desire that made his blood boil. It was a primal instinct, something that came when you see your mate.

Damien pressed his lips together, unwilling to have any of his emotions show. He was unwilling to have some mate bond dictate to him what to do or take over his reasoning.

As an Alpha King, that is considered a weakness and he would never allow it. His plan was simple - torture her and make her regret all her presumptuous actions against himself.

Definitely not to give her the satisfaction of seeing him tempted whatsoever.

But as his gaze trailed lower to her slender waist, wide hips and to those pale thighs, he clenched his jaw.

He did not like that his thoughts were no longer clean, that was not how he had planned it.

And he despised not being in control.

“Come here.” He told her, his tone final.

Feeling exposed, Hazel hesitated but at the end of the day, she had no choice.

Moving like her legs had turned to steel, Hazel approached him naked, her hands frantically trying to cover her private parts as she clasped her legs together.

Her awkward reaction made Damien scoff, but he did not say anything and merely watched her languidly.

Hazel halted a few meters away from him and found herself unable to advance any further.

Then he stood up slowly, his tall frame towering over hers.

Hazel’s breath hitched as he closed in on her, only stopping when the distance between them was almost non-existent.

“So rigid. As a slave, haven’t you learnt how to please your master?” He whispered, voice mocking and low like he was telling a secret.

His breath brushed her face as he moved even closer, his lips only a few inches from hers. Hazel closed her eyes hurriedly, her eyelashes trembling.

Then he smashed his lips against hers. Lips molding like a piece of puzzle.

He wasn’t careful nor was he gentle.

The kiss was intense, forceful and deep.

Hazel gasped, suddenly forgetting how to breathe as he took it from her. And like the hunter he was, he preyed on her lips, sucking and nibbling like it was a piece of delicacy.

Hazel’s body trembled even further, not from the chill but from something else. Something she couldn’t quite name.

She tasted the storm in him, and an unfamiliar warmth spread across her chest, making her heart stagger. When he finally pulled back, her breath was unstable and erratic.

Before she could react further, she had already been pushed to the bed, her weight making it sink. In one swift move, Damien turned off the only light source in the chamber, plunging it into darkness where Hazel could not even see herself.

But that made her heave in relief.

Damien’s arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her to the center of the bed. The area where he held felt burning to Hazel and she squirmed under him.

The darkness swallowed them all.

When Hazel heard the rustling of clothes, her heart slightly trembled.

She closed her eyes, allowing her tears to slip past her eyes and into the pillows, soaking the fabric. She did not want to see him, she just wanted things to end quickly.

But as his hand found the soft deep of her chest to her breasts, and fondled it, something strange stirred in her heart.

Something tangled with her fear and hatred.

His other hand parted her thighs and he settled between them.