CLAIMED BY MY BESTFRIEND'S ALPHA DAD

RESCUED

AVA’S POV:

My heart just about shoots out of my chest and does a f*****g tap dance on the patio stones. My body reacts before my mind catches up. My claws pop out, ready to scratch the eyes out of some psycho.

But it is Derek, a high-society staple and the son of Gamma Theophilus Gad. He smells like expensive cologne, which aggravates my nostrils.

“Whoa, sorry,” he says, holding his hands up. “Didn’t mean to scare you. I just saw you slip out here and… thought you could use some company.”

A man with a reputation for taking what isn't offered. His eyes have that same hungry look half the men had tonight. It is almost like he has decided how this will end—but sorry to burst his bubble.

“Walk away, Derek,” I snap, blowing smoke in his face.

“I don’t think so.” He leans in, his eyes raking over my neckline. “I couldn’t help but notice you tonight. Then I thought it would be wise to pay respect to the former Beta’s daughter by asking for a hand in marriage.”

My heart is still pounding, but now it’s for a different reason—annoyance. I know what he wants, and I’m not in the mood. The insult is like cold water on a chilly night. To the pack, I’m just a fallen legacy. The daughter of a dead Beta with nothing left.

“Look, I am not in the mood.” I attempt to walk away, but he grabs my hand roughly.

“How much for the night? Five hundred?” Hearing him price me like some cheap w***e sends a jab to my chest. “You are not exactly sleek, and your scores are…”

“f**k you!” I smack him square in the face, causing him to let up.

I think it will end there, but then… before I can take a step, he grabs my wrist, spinning me around and slamming me face-first into the rough bark of the tree. My cigarette falls to the dirt, and he crushes it.

“Girls like you don’t say no,” he growls, his hand reaching for the hem of my dress.

Panic flares through my chest. I struggle, but his weight pins me down. Just as he pulls his pants down, a low growl shoots through the air.

“Take your hands off her!”

He is yanked off me.

The sound of a heavy blow connects with flesh. I turn to see Derek on the ground and Richard standing over him, hands curled into fists. Relief crashes into me so hard my knees nearly give out.

“Alpha! Wait—we were just—” Derek stammers, blood leaking from his nose.

“Consider this your last invitation to anything under my roof.” Richard doesn’t give room for an explanation. “If I see you near here again, I will end you!” His fangs and claws are out, ready to tear Derek apart.

Derek scurries away.

My heart is a hammer in my chest. My fear hasn’t settled, but it’s no longer because of Derek. I have never seen Richard in this state.

It makes my body shake more, and my breath comes in ragged gasps. Richard turns to me, his eyes still glowing before they slowly soften as he sees my state. He closes the gap between us as his claws retract. He reaches out, his thumb brushing a small cut on my cheek where the bark scraped me.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” I say quickly, like saying it will make it true.

He notices the tremor in my fingers. I catch a muscle leaping in his cheek as he stares at the spot where Derek touched me.

“Come with me.” He seizes my hand.

My body obeys automatically, his voice sinking into my brain.

He doesn’t let go until we’re inside his study. The music fades completely. Only our breaths can be heard.

“Let me see,” he says.

“I’m fine.”

“That’s not what I asked.” His voice is stern and his face hard.

I roll my eyes, trying to create distance, but he steps into my space, killing the gap. He tilts my chin up. His thumb brushes over my cheek where Derek’s grip had been. The touch is soft, and it makes me feel like I might break, even though I told him I wouldn’t.

“You’re sure he didn’t hurt you?”

“I’ve had worse,” I say in a small voice.

His eyes darken with that yellow tint I saw earlier.

“That doesn’t make it acceptable. It makes it a goddamn tragedy that you think worse is a benchmark for safety.”

We’re standing close enough that I can feel the heat of his breath. My brain is doing very stupid things. I’m looking for the Alpha, the protector, but all I see is a man who looks like he’s starving for me. His thumb stays at the corner of my mouth, and for a second, the trauma from a few minutes ago fades. My entire being becomes consumed by him.

“I’m not breakable, Alpha, and you know that,” I whisper.

He grits his teeth. “That’s not the point.”

“Then what is?” I snap.

His eyes drop to my lips, and for a second, we stop speaking. Our hearts do the talking, echoing loudly as we lean closer slowly. Then his hand slides into my hair, and he crashes his mouth against mine. This time, it’s hotter and hungrier.

I kiss him back with the same intensity. The kiss expels the fear and the aftermath of Derek’s touch. I fist my hands into his shirt, pulling him closer. It’s insane. He’s the Alpha. We’re in his house, where there is a huge party. But for a second, nothing else exists.

But reality hits. I press a hand to his chest, breaking the kiss.

“This can’t happen.”

“Ava—”

“No. You don’t get to act like this is… nothing.”

“It is not nothing to me.” He grabs my hand, kissing my palm, but I yank it away.

“Then what is it? Define what we have.” His lips remain sealed. “It would ruin your reputation, Richard. Mine is already ruined, but yours isn’t.”

“Everyone knows I do odd jobs,” I say, shame clawing through my throat.

“I know, but no one will question their Alpha. I can take care of you, Ava. I’m divorced. Everything doesn’t have to be a fight for survival.”

“Richard, please!” I yell. “I don’t belong here anymore. Your kind ridicule me and judge me. The only reason you allow me near Mia is because we’ve been friends since childhood.” Tears cloud my eyes, and my heart feels like it will give in. “Perhaps out of some simple respect for my father, your late Beta.”

He opens his mouth, but I’m faster.

“If he were around, you wouldn’t have f****d me in your storeroom. You would have treated me more nobly—like you would want any man to treat your daughter. Not like a little relief before you went back to being the perfect Alpha.”

My eyes fall to the ground as a tear slips free.

“You think that was a distraction?” His breath falls hot on my neck, pinning me against the edge of his massive desk. “I haven’t slept in weeks because I can still taste you. Ava, I…”

“Ava? Dad? Are you in here?”

Mia’s voice cuts through the haze.