Chapter 30


    Alice’s Malice


    He went down to the kitchen in just his trousers, as elegant and gorgeous bare chested and bare foot as


    he was in his full three-piece suit, and returned with champagne, flutes, and a bowl of berries. Even in


    the brief absence, her body had begun to ache for his again, and she squirmed, trying to repress the


    need whilst he popped the cork and poured, dropping a strawberry into the flute to float in the bubbles.


    He slid onto the bed and handed her one of the flutes. His skin against hers made the rage of the heat


    almost unbearable.


    “To my beautiful wife,” he said, tapping his ss against hers. He was determined to y his foolish


    game, she thought sourly. “And to the many decades of happiness before us.”


    She drank the wine, because she could see that he would not give her what she needed unless she


    complied with his charade. Heughed, watching her finish the ss.


    “You have no appreciation for wine,” hemented taking just a sip from his before setting it onto the


    bedside table.


    She didn’t bother replying, rolling to set the ss onto her bedside table before rolling back. She


    straddled him, seeing his pupils dte and the shing reflection of his wolf rising as he inhaled in


    surprise. She released the button of his trousers, freeing his c-ck, and took him into her, her eyes closing


    as the press of the heat immediately eased, her body’s craving met.


    He used his fingers to collect the wine, painting it along her cor bone, leaning forward to lick it from


    her, as he pulled her hips to his, lifting into her. “Delicious,” he said, and held her to him so that he could


    roll her under him, his mouth finding hers, his kiss breath taking in its sweetness.


    Despite herself, despite her anger with him, she reached up, running her fingers through his hair, trailing


    them over his shoulders, before cupping his face and lifting in order to kiss him back.


    “So very beautiful,” he said as he lifted and stroked his hand down her body, wrapping her leg around his


    hip before stroking back up and cupping her breast as he leaned down to kiss her. She moaned, her


    body lighting up beneath his caresses, beneath his kisses, beneath his body on hers.


    Unlike during the first heat, he was not taking and demanding, he was giving, she thought, and it was


    beautiful. Heart breaking, but beautiful.


    She was crying as she came. He cried out his orgasm, and there was a sharp tone of pain behind the


    pleasure. Hey over her, his head beside hers and watched the tears that ran down her cheeks. He


    reached up and caught one on his fingertip, bringing it to his lips as if seeking to taste her distress.


    “Jane,” he said softly. “What I need to do is almost done. A couple more weeks, at most, and I will have


    exposed my grandfather’s murderer. Hold on. my beautiful wife. Hold on until then. Every couple of days,


    Angelique and I eliminate another family. There are only a few left. The ring, or some other treasure, will


    be in one of their safes and we will find it and expose them as the murderers that they are.”


    “Is that what you are doing?” She was distracted from her own misery. “Breaking into people’s safes?”


    “Yes,” he chuckled. “We are getting rather good at it. Angelique pick-pockets them at one function, we


    determine a list of potential passwords, and then, when the opportunity arises during house parties or


    meetings… We use the codes to break into their safes and look at what they are hiding. It is actually,” he


    trailed his fingers from her wrist to her shoulder, and down to circle the breast that his position over her


    left exposed. “Very enlightening the secrets that the werewolves of this city are keeping.”


    “That’s why you married me,” she realised. “Because you needed to establish yourself high enough into


    the Corbyn pack that you would be invited to the house parties. Just being taken into the pack wouldn’t


    ce you high enough to be invited, but marrying myself or Alice.”Published by N?v''elD/rama.Org.


    “No,” he said softly his fingers stilling over her heart. “That is not why I married you. But I am more


    interested in why you married me,” he lifted onto his elbow so that he could look down at her. She bit


    onto her back teeth and scowled. “Well Jane?” He prompted. “You hate me for letting you think that we


    were true mates, you said. That was a very interesting thing to say, because it implies that you now think


    that we aren’t true mates, whereas you did before,” his eyes searched hers. “And I want you to exin


    that to me.”


    She managed to tear her eyes away from him despite him being an alpha and wanting to hold her gaze,


    her humiliation was so strong. “I was upset and angry,” she said softly. “I spoke out of turn. We only met


    the one time, and the only thing that we said between us was when you asked my name, so, of course, I


    was just being foolish to ever think it was anything more than just because you wanted to marry a


    Corbyn, and Alice turned you down, so you had to take me instead…”


    “Wait, what?” He blinked, his expression nking. “I never asked for Alice.”


    “Alice said,” she was startled enough to meet his eyes. “Right before the ceremony, that it could have


    been her wedding, except that she had refused you.”


    “F-king Alice,” he muttered, frowning. “Someone should cut out her tongue. I am tempted to do it myself.


    Jane,” he caught her chin in his hand and leaned over to kiss her, lingering, before lifting his head to


    meet her eyes. “I saw you at the run, which was my official entry into the pack. I saw you. I wanted you. I


    asked your name because I was determined I would have you and it is generally useful to know the


    name of your mate in order to approach the right family. I paid just over two million dors in order to


    marry you. Alice was never part of the discussion. It was always you.”