Claimed in the dark

Chapter four:THE POISONED TOUCH

Chapter 4: The Poisoned Touch

Before we left for the Neutral Territory party, Alpha Marcus had made it clear: we were to present a united front. He commanded his two sons to escort me, cementing our new family dynamic to the rest of the werewolf world.

I decided to wear a short, form-fitting red silk gown. It clung to every curve ending mid-thigh, with a low-cut back that exposed my smooth skin. When I walked out of my room and began slowly descending the grand staircase, both brothers were already waiting at the bottom.

They froze, their eyes locking onto me.

Julian looked at me with a desperate, heavy hunger. His amber eyes traced the column of my neck, dropping down to the exposed swell of my chest and the bare expanse of my legs, his chest rising and falling in shallow breaths. He looked like a man starving, tortured by the fact that he couldn't reach out and claim me.

Kaelen, however, looked at me like a predator that had already caught its prey. His dark eyes darkened further, the silver Lycan rings swirling with a dangerous, raw heat. He didn't blink. His gaze slowly devoured me, lingering on the short hem of my red dress, making my skin flush hot before he even moved. The possessive promise in his eyes made my wolf shiver with a dark, forbidden thrill.

Without a word, they guided me out to the driveway, and we stepped into the back of a sleek, black sedan. The ride to the party was silent, but the air inside the car was suffocatingly thick, heavy with the scent of Julian’s jealous fury and Kaelen’s quiet, dominant satisfaction.

The grand ballroom of the Neutral Territory was a glittering trap. Heavy chandeliers cast a golden glow over the crowd, but all I could feel was the suffocating weight of the room. Two brothers. One who broke me, and one who owned me.

I stood near the edge of the floor, trying to breathe, when I saw Ella Sterling weaving through the crowd. She was wearing a stunning, backless emerald dress, looking every bit the proud new mate of the Silver Moon prince. But as she approached Julian, his posture went completely rigid. I watched from afar as she tried to lean into him, only for Julian to coldly pull away, his eyes scanning the room searching for me.

Rage and jealousy flashed across Ella’s face. She looked at me, her eyes narrowing with a venomous realization.

A moment later, she smoothed down her dress, put on a sweet, radiant smile, and walked straight toward me.

"Hi, Clara," she said, her voice dripping with artificial warmth.

I tensed, my hand gripping my glass. "Ella."

"I’m so sorry for what happened the other day," she whispered, looking down with fake contrition. "I never wanted to hurt you. Can we please just put it behind us? Let’s toast to new beginnings." She waved a passing waiter over, taking a glass of amber-colored champagne and handing it to me.

Desperate to avoid a scene, and wanting to believe my best friend was still in there somewhere, I took a long sip. "Thank you, Ella."

That was my second mistake.

Within minutes of Ella walking away, a strange, terrifying heat bloomed in my lower abdomen headier than any wolfshade. My skin felt like it was on fire. My n*****s hardened against the lace of my dress, and a desperate, clawing hunger pooled between my thighs. I could barely stand. I was losing my mind, panting as the aphrodisiac tore through my system.

Through the haze, I felt rough hands grabbing my arms. Two low-ranking pack members, wearing dirty smirks, began guiding my stumbling body toward the back exits. "She’s had too much to drink," one whispered. "Let’s take her upstairs."

They were dragging me toward a dark, empty room when the air in the corridor suddenly turned freezing.

"Take your hands off her," a voice growled from the shadows.

It was Kaelen. His towering frame stepped into the dim light, his silver Lycan rings swirling with absolute promise of death. The two men immediately let go of me, pale and trembling, before running back toward the ballroom.

Kaelen didn't even chase them. He scooped me up into his massive arms. "You’re burning up, little bird," he muttered.

"Kaelen... please..." I whimpered, my hands grabbing his shirt, tearing at the buttons. The drug was making me frantic.

By the time he carried me through the secret back entrance of our family estate and up the stairs, I was behaving entirely wild. I was kicking, scattering the decorative vases in the hallway, whimpering and writhing against his chest.

"Clara, stop," Kaelen hissed, his deep baritone laced with rare panic. "Your mother and my father are downstairs in the study. If they hear you like this—"

I didn't care. I grabbed his collar, pulling myself up. To silence my frantic whimpering, Kaelen slammed his mouth over mine. That was the only thing he needed to do for me to stop. The moment his lips met mine, my frantic thrashing ceased, my body melting instantly against his solid frame as his heat consumed me.

It was a deep, punishing, and utterly intoxicating kiss. He carried me into my room, his tongue commanding mine, tasting the chemical sweetness of the drug on my breath. He placed me gently onto the mattress, but when he tried to pull his mouth away, I screamed his name, wrapping my legs around his waist and dragging him back down.

"Kaelen!" I cried, clawing at his back.

His dark control snapped. He tore my dress down, exposing my breasts to the cool air before his hot mouth closed over one peak, sucking hard. I arched my back, crying out as his hand slid between my thighs, finding me completely drenched. He drove two fingers inside me, stroking me with a relentless, bruising rhythm that had me sobbing into his neck. He didn't take me fully not with our parents close but he worked his fingers inside me until my body shattered, a violent, screaming orgasm ripping through me as I breathed his name into the dark.

Meanwhile, back at the party, Julian was pacing the perimeter. His eyes swept the ballroom, realizing both Clara and Kaelen were missing. His wolf howled with possessive fury.

He bolted toward the exit, but Ella stepped directly in his path.

"Julian, wait," she said, grabbing his arm. "Stay with me."

"Get out of my way, Ella," Julian growled, shoving her hand off his arm.

"No!" Ella screamed, lunging forward and forcefully kissing his lips, trying to anchor him to her.

Julian didn't hesitate. He grabbed her shoulder and brutally shoved her away, sending her stumbling back into a table of champagne glasses. He didn't look back as he ran toward the exit.

Ella gripped the edge of the table, her face twisted in rage as she screamed after him, "You are mine, Julian! The moment you mark me, you are mine!"