Mated to the Alpha: Sold to the King

Kaelen POV

Just as I had been stunned for a split second when I first walked into the room, Darius was clearly trying to make sense of the impossible resemblance between the two women.

Before I could think too much about it, my attention snapped back to Jaxen to find he wasn’t even checking on his crying, pregnant wife, who was leaning heavily against him for support.

Instead, his eyes were locked on Lorelei.

And what really made my blood boil was the fact that Lorelei was staring right back at him.

Why the fuck was she looking at him like that?

Did they know each other? Obviously. He wouldn’t have spewed all that shit about her being a banished runaway earlier if there wasn’t some kind of history between them. And the fact that his wife was Lorelei’s identical twin only made things even more suspicious.

But even though the bastard was married and had his heavily pregnant wife standing right beside him, the way he was looking at my woman rubbed me the wrong fucking way.

Possessive jealousy instantly clouded my judgment, wiping away every bit of restraint I had fought so hard to maintain.

Before I could think better of it, I pulled Lorelei firmly against me by the waist, drawing her body flush against mine. Her head snapped toward me in surprise, but before she could ask what I was doing, I cupped the side of her face and crashed my lips down on hers.

I kissed her deeply, greedily, devouring her mouth right there in front of the High Council, her family, and the entire high court.

Lorelei gasped softly against my lips, her hands instinctively clutching the lapels of my suit as she tried to keep up with the sudden intense public display of ownership.

When I finally pulled back just enough to look at her, she was breathless, her cheeks flushed a deep crimson.

I couldn’t help the small, softer smile that touched my lips.

"Are you alright?" I murmured, my voice low as I brushed my thumb gently along her cheek.

She nodded weakly, still trying to catch her breath as she looked up at me.

Satisfied, I let my gaze drift over her shoulder and straight back to Jaxen.

The bastard’s hands were clenched into tight fists at his sides, his jaw rigid and his eyes burning with an unmistakable bitterness as he watched me hold Lorelei.

My expression immediately hardened.

Yeah.

Something definitely happened between those two.

I shoved the thought aside, forcing it into the darkest corner of my mind before it could take control of me again. I wasn’t going to let jealousy make me careless, especially not with the High Council watching my every move.

Instead, I rested my hand against the small of Lorelei’s back and guided her away from the center of the ballroom toward the private seating area reserved for the royal court.

The raised marble platform overlooked the entire hall, giving us a clear view of everyone below while keeping us far enough away from the crowd to avoid being surrounded.

The moment we sat down beside each other, some of the heavy tension in the air finally began to ease. The orchestra resumed its grand melody, and the nobles slowly went back to their quiet conversations and carefully rehearsed dances, although I knew damn well most of them were still watching us.

I forced my clenched fists to relax against my lap before looking over at Lorelei.

"I’m sorry," I murmured.

Lorelei raised a brow and turned toward me, genuine confusion crossing her face. "For what?"

I took a quiet breath and subtly glanced toward the far end of the room, where the higher-ranking nobles and High Council members were pretending to be completely absorbed in their own conversations while continuously stealing sharp glances in our direction. Every time I looked their way, their attention conveniently shifted elsewhere.

"You told me you didn’t want to rush things," I said quietly, the regret in my voice impossible to hide. "But I got ahead of myself down there. I basically claimed you as my Queen in front of the entire fucking empire."

Lorelei let out a soft, almost musical laugh, a faint blush still lingering across her cheeks.

"It’s fine," she said. "Honestly, there wasn’t really any way around it. Even if you hadn’t said those words, everyone would’ve seen us together anyway. We’re sitting here together, so people were going to talk regardless."

Relief washed over me at her words, finally taking some of the edge off my restless wolf.

Her soft eyes searched mine for a moment before her expression shifted, becoming quieter and more cautious.

"How did it go?"

I frowned slightly. "How did what go?"

"You said you were being targeted," she whispered, leaning closer so only I could hear her. "Is everything okay now?"

"Yeah," I replied smoothly, keeping my voice low enough that it wouldn’t carry beyond our guards. "It wasn’t anything major. It’s all handled now."

Lorelei released a quiet breath of relief, and I watched the tension slowly leave her shoulders as she settled deeper into her seat.

Seeing her finally relax, I hesitated for a moment, as I wasn’t sure if I should bring it up now.

But the question had been burning at the back of my mind ever since I saw Jaxen staring at her.

And the possessive edge still sitting heavily in my chest wasn’t exactly helping me ignore it.

"So..." I murmured softly. "They’re your family?"

The second the words left my mouth, I felt her body tense beside me, just as I had expected. She awkwardly tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, her eyes darting toward mine.

"How did you...?"

"There’s a woman down there who looks exactly like you," I said, giving her a faint, reassuring smile. "It wasn’t exactly hard to figure out."

A quiet, self-deprecating laugh escaped her, but it disappeared almost as quickly as it came. Her gaze drifted over the balcony railing, settling on the far side of the ballroom where the older woman was gently wiping the tears from the pregnant woman’s face before helping her into a seat.

My eyes moved between Lorelei and the scene below, and I watched her expression slowly change. The sadness in her eyes deepened with every passing second, settling over her features until she finally looked away.

She lowered her gaze to her lap, nervously fidgeting with her fingers.

"They were," she whispered, her voice almost lost beneath the music filling the ballroom.

I might not have known every painful detail of what had happened between them, but after what I’d just witnessed downstairs, I didn’t need to know.

After all, I knew what it was like to be surrounded by people who were supposed to love you but were more than willing to hurt you.

Reaching over, I gently covered her hand with mine, slowly threading our fingers together. I lifted her hand to my lips and pressed a soft kiss against her knuckles before looking back into her eyes.

"You have me now," I whispered, holding her gaze. "That’s all that matters."

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