Mated to the Alpha: Sold to the King

Lorelei POV

"Lorelei?" Jaxen whispered.

I had imagined this moment so many times.

If I ever saw Jaxen again, would I run? Would I break down? Would I finally scream at him and demand to know how he could have done everything he did to me?

But now that he was actually standing right there, staring at me with the same disbelief written all over his face, none of those things happened.

I just stood there and stared back.

He hadn’t changed much.

Maybe it was because only a few months had passed since I escaped, or maybe because I had spent so long carrying the memory of him around in my head that I could have recognized him anywhere.

Those same ice-blue eyes.

That same sharp jaw.

That same face that had once made my heart race with hope, only to become the face that shattered it.

He was dressed in a dark, perfectly tailored suit, and his hair was slightly longer than I remembered, but everything else about him was painfully familiar.

And he was looking at me like he’d just seen a ghost.

I watched him take a hesitant step forward, his lips parting as though he wanted to say something, but nothing came out. He just kept staring at me, almost like he was waiting for me to tell him whether what he was seeing was real.

Slowly, I lowered the glass from my lips, my fingers trembling around the cold crystal.

My heart was pounding so hard that I could hear it in my ears, drowning out the soft orchestra playing somewhere behind me and the endless murmur of voices filling the ballroom.

Then Jaxen started walking toward me.

Not slowly this time.

His steps became quicker, more urgent, almost frantic, like he was terrified I’d disappear if he didn’t reach me fast enough.

Panic shot through me like ice water, and I instinctively stepped backward.

Then another step until my heel caught on the heavy hem of my midnight-blue dress, and my balance disappeared beneath me.

I stumbled, my stomach dropping as I prepared to hit the floor, but a strong arm immediately wrapped around my waist and pulled me upright.

"Steady," Paul murmured close to my ear.

I barely heard him over the rush of blood pounding through my head because Jaxen was still coming straight toward us.

Before anyone could react, he reached us and aggressively grabbed Paul, yanking him away from me and shoving him backward. The sudden force caught Paul off guard, sending him stumbling back a step.

A wave of shocked gasps and whispers immediately spread through the surrounding guests, but Jaxen didn’t even seem to notice.

His attention was completely fixed on me as his chest rose and fell heavily, a dark growl tearing from his throat.

"Who is this?" he demanded, his voice shaking with a mixture of anger and possessiveness that made my stomach turn. "Your man? Was he the one who helped you escape?"

I stared at him, completely stunned.

What the hell was wrong with him?

Why was he angry?

Why was he acting like he still had some kind of claim over me?

There was no mate bond between us anymore. I had rejected him, and he had accepted my rejection.

So why was he looking at me like I still belonged to him?

Disgust rose in my throat, hot and bitter. My hands curled into fists at my sides, my nails digging into my palms as the shock slowly gave way to anger.

Before I could even open my mouth, Jaxen stepped toward me again, and that was all it took for Paul to immediately move.

In one smooth, practiced motion, he stepped between us and pulled a firearm from beneath his dark jacket, raising it until the barrel was aimed directly at Jaxen’s chest.

Shocked gasps erupted around us as guests scrambled backward, creating a wide space between us.

"I’ve been ordered to eliminate any threat to my Lady," Paul said coldly, every trace of warmth gone from his voice. "And right now, you’re acting like one."

His finger remained steady as his eyes stayed locked on Jaxen.

"If I were you, I wouldn’t make another stupid move."

Jaxen’s expression shifted from possessive fury to pure, unadulterated rage. "Do you have any idea who I am?" he snarled, taking it as a personal insult. Seeing that Paul didn’t even flinch, Jaxen’s gaze snapped past him to lock onto me. "Lorelei, does he know who he’s speaking to? Are you forgetting I’m an Alpha now? My men are everywhere in this place. One word from me, and you’re all—"

"Paul," I said quietly, cutting Jaxen off as I placed a gentle hand on Paul’s arm. "Let’s just go somewhere else."

That only infuriated Jaxen even more. As I turned my back to walk away—intent on finding a quiet corner far from prying eyes to wait for Kaelen—Jaxen snapped. He lunged forward again, moving so fast that his fingers clamped roughly around my wrist.

"Don’t walk away from me—"

But he never got to finish the sentence.

With lightning speed, Paul’s fist connected brutally with Jaxen’s jaw. The impact echoed across the quieted ballroom. Jaxen’s head snapped to the side, and blood immediately dripped from his nose, splattering across his pristine white shirt.

Before Jaxen could even recover his balance, Paul raised the gun higher, pressing the cold barrel directly against the center of Jaxen’s forehead.

"Try again," Paul said coldly, his finger tightening slightly around the trigger. "And I won’t miss."

I could feel the dangerous tension rolling off him. He wasn’t bluffing. If Jaxen made another move, Paul would actually pull the trigger.

And judging by the movement I caught in the corner of my eye, he wasn’t the only one ready to act. Isaac and the rest of our hidden guards had already slipped their hands beneath their jackets, waiting for the slightest reason to step in.

Before Paul’s finger could tighten any further, I reached out and firmly grabbed his forearm.

"Stop," I said quietly, keeping my voice steady. "Don’t shoot."

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