Mated to the Alpha: Sold to the King

Lorelei POV

"Are you sure you aren’t hungry?" Skye asked for the third time while I lay curled up in the middle of the bed.

Just like the first two times, my answer remained exactly the same.

"I’m really not," I murmured.

At that, she let out a dramatic sigh as she looked down at the spread on the food cart.

"Then what am I supposed to do with all of this?"

"You can just eat it," I replied without a second thought. That was literally what she usually did whenever my meals were brought up and I couldn’t stomach them, so I didn’t even know why she was suddenly asking now.

"Well, if you insist," she said, her tone suddenly brightening, making me fight the urge to roll my eyes.

But just as she reached for the cover on one of the plates, the lock on the door clicked open.

"Oh no," Skye muttered under her breath, instantly taking several hurried steps away from the food cart like a thief caught red-handed.

The next second, the heavy door swung open.

I didn’t even flinch as Kaelen stepped inside, though I couldn’t hide my surprise at how quickly he had returned.

Since he had insisted on locking me inside his chambers, I had honestly assumed he wouldn’t bother coming back until the sun had fully set.

"Leave us," he commanded coldly, but his amber eyes never left me.

Even without looking directly at him, it was impossible to miss the weight of that burning stare fixed on me.

Skye practically shrank into herself, lowering her head in a deep bow.

"Yes, Alpha," she squeaked, barely sparing me a glance before hurrying past him and disappearing into the hallway.

The second the door clicked shut behind her, Kaelen started walking toward the bed.

I stayed exactly where I was, curled up and completely still, refusing to give him the satisfaction of any kind of reaction.

Thankfully, I had already slipped the tiny earpiece to Skye before he walked in. That meant I didn’t have to worry about him finding it on me or noticing the unfamiliar piece of plastic against my skin.

His heavy footsteps stopped right in front of the food cart, and I heard the faint clink of metal as he lifted one lid, then another, inspecting each of the untouched dishes.

"You didn’t eat," he noted, his voice dangerously calm.

I shook my head against the soft sheets, my voice muffled.

"I’m not hungry."

The second those words left my lips, a low warning growl rumbled deep in his chest. The sound vibrated through the floorboards, making my entire body tense.

"I don’t like that answer."

Before I could even blink, the mattress groaned and dipped beneath his weight as he sat down right beside my curled-up form.

But what was I supposed to do? I genuinely wasn’t hungry.

My stomach was still tied in knots after seeing my mother out on the street. I squeezed my eyes shut and buried my face deeper into the sheets, silently praying he would take the hint and just leave me alone.

Instead, I felt the bed shift again.

A large, cool hand gently brushed my tangled hair away from my face. His fingers grazed the edge of my ear, and the unexpected contact sent a sharp shiver racing down my spine.

What is wrong with him? Can’t he see I don’t want to talk right now?

"Ella..." he whispered.

His voice was suddenly so close that it made my chest tighten with unease. I couldn’t see him, but every instinct I had screamed that he was hovering right over me.

"Are you still mad at me?" he added when I didn’t respond to my name, his voice carrying a strange, quiet heaviness that felt completely out of place coming from someone like him.

"I’m not," I whispered back into the pillow.

I wasn’t lying.

Sure, I was avoiding him, and yes, I was terrified he might actually be the mastermind behind everything. But until I knew the full truth, I couldn’t bring myself to be angry at him.

Not yet.

Right now, I was just being cautious. I was trying to protect what was left of my heart from another betrayal.

"Then look at me," he said.

There was a subtle shift in his voice, a raw, uncharacteristic vulnerability that made my brows knit together in confusion. I couldn’t help wondering what kind of expression he was wearing to match a tone like that.

Against my better judgment, my eyelids slowly fluttered open, and I turned my head.

Only for my breath to catch.

His amber eyes were only inches away from mine.

Damn.

He was close. Much closer than I had expected.

He was leaning over me, his features drawn tight with a complicated, searching expression. His gaze slowly traced every inch of my face as though he was desperately trying to uncover all the things I refused to say out loud.

And what... what was that smell?

Beneath his familiar woodsy scent lingered a sharp, bitter aroma that immediately caught my attention.

Was that... alcohol?

My eyes widened in surprise.

"Were you drinking?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

"Yes," he answered heavily, a tired sigh slipping past his lips. "What? You don’t like the smell?"

It wasn’t that I didn’t like it. The scent was just incredibly strong, which could only mean he had consumed a ridiculous amount in a very short time. Besides, this was the first time I had ever smelled alcohol on him.

It was strange.

Even stranger was the fact that he didn’t seem drunk.

...Or was he?

I narrowed my eyes, studying his face from this close, searching for glassy eyes or the slightest crack in his usually perfect composure.

Before I could find one, he suddenly asked something that completely threw me off balance.

"Did you have a good time today?"

The question caught me so off guard that my voice hitched.

"What?"

"Do I treat you like a prisoner, Ella?" he asked quietly, his amber eyes holding mine with an intensity that made it difficult to breathe.

I fell silent, my lips pressing into a thin line.

I didn’t want to answer that.

I didn’t want to remind him that I was literally locked inside his bedroom at that very moment.

Sure, his chamber was beautiful, luxurious, and far more comfortable than anywhere I had ever lived.

But none of that changed the fact that I was here against my will.

"Darius said you had a lot of fun," Kaelen continued, his voice dropping even lower. "He said you two got ice cream. That bastard doesn’t even like sweets, but he got them because you liked them."

Ah... that explained why he made a face every time he took a bite.

"Then you went shopping together," Kaelen continued, his gaze never leaving mine, and a faint crease appeared between his brows as he added, "But what I don’t understand is... if you were so happy out there, why did you come back looking so broken?"

His voice turned almost painfully quiet, and my heart clenched involuntarily.

"Is it because of me?" he asked, holding my gaze without blinking. "Is it because you had to come back here... to me? Are you that terrified of me?"