Rejected By My Mate,Claimed by his uncle

Chapter 6

Lillian's POV.

Suspicion blazed in Sergio's eyes as his gaze shifted to Sebastian, and my heart sank.

The dining room fell into a suffocating silence.

"You." Sergio's voice shook with rage as he pointed at Sebastian. "Why does my wife smell like you?"

Sebastian met his furious stare without the slightest change in expression. "I think you're letting your imagination get the better of you," he replied coolly.

"My imagination?" Sergio barked out a bitter laugh. "Do you take me for a fool?"

His wolf surged beneath his skin, and the pressure rolling off him made the glasses on the table tremble.

Without warning, he released my chin and lunged across the table.

"You bastard!" Sergio barked.

Before anyone could react, Sebastian caught Sergio's wrist in one swift movement.

His grip looked effortless, yet no matter how hard Sergio struggled to wrench his arm free, it didn't budge even an inch.

A sharp crack echoed through the room as Sebastian twisted his wrist.

"Ah!" Sergio cried out as he dropped to one knee, his face twisting in pain.

"Control yourself, nephew," Sebastian said calmly, his voice colder than winter. "You're embarrassing yourself."

The room fell deathly silent as everyone watched in stunned disbelief. I could only stare at Sebastian, unable to comprehend what I was seeing. He hadn't even risen from his chair.

He simply looked down at Sergio with quiet authority, as though restraining one of the strongest Alphas in California required no effort at all.

Sergio gritted his teeth, his face burning with humiliation.

"You..." he growled, his voice trembling with barely restrained fury.

"You've forgotten your manners," Sebastian interrupted, finally releasing his wrist. "Learn to think before you attack."

Sergio immediately stumbled to his feet, rubbing his wrist as fury burned in his eyes.

For one reckless moment, I thought he would attack again.

Instead, his gaze landed on me.

The fury in his expression turned even darker.

"This is your fault," Sergio snarled before storming toward me. He grabbed my arm so tightly that I cried out in pain.

"Sergio!" I gasped, struggling against his grip.

"Move," he ordered coldly, dragging me toward the door before I could regain my balance.

"Let me go! You're hurting me!" I pleaded, stumbling after him, but he ignored every word.

As he dragged me from the dining room, I could feel Sebastian's eyes following me. I wanted to look back. I wanted to know if he would stop this, but he remained silent, and that silence hurt more than I wanted to admit.

Sergio dragged me upstairs and threw open the bedroom door. Before I could steady myself, he shoved me inside so hard that I crashed onto the floor, pain shooting through my shoulder as he slammed the door behind us.

"Tell me the truth!" Sergio demanded.

"I am telling you the truth!" I shot back, struggling to my feet.

He strode over, grabbed my arm again, and yanked me upright.

"Who put that mark on your neck?" he growled.

"I don't know," I answered, my voice trembling.

"Liar!" he roared, his voice shaking the room. "You expect me to believe that? I could smell another wolf all over you."

My heart pounded painfully against my ribs.

"I didn't betray you," I whispered.

The words tasted bitter the moment they left my mouth. How could I betray a man who had betrayed me first? Even so, if the truth came out, the entire pack would demand my head for sleeping with both a nephew and his uncle.

"I didn't sleep with anyone," I insisted.

Sergio narrowed his eyes before shoving me away. I stumbled backward until the backs of my legs struck the edge of the bed.

He stared at me for several long seconds before letting out a slow, dangerous breath.

"Fine," he said, his voice frighteningly calm. "If you won't tell me, I'll find out myself."

He turned and walked toward the door.

"Sergio..." I called after him, panic rising in my chest.

Without looking back, he gripped the doorknob and said, "I'm going to investigate every wolf who stepped foot inside this pack today. If I discover you've made a fool of me, you'll wish you'd never been born."

The door slammed shut behind him, and a second later, the unmistakable click of the lock echoed through the room.

"No..." I whispered, rushing to the door. I grabbed the handle and twisted it desperately, but it refused to move. "Sergio!" I pounded my fists against the wood. "Open the door!"

Only silence answered me.

"Sergio!" I screamed again, striking the door until my hands ached. "Open this door! You can't lock me in here!"

My voice echoed through the room, but no one came. The pounding on the door slowed until my fists could no longer rise.

I slid down against the wood, my knees pulled tightly to my chest.

The room had grown dark by the time I heard the lock turn.

My head snapped up as the door opened slowly. Sebastian stood on the other side, one hand still resting on the spare key.

"You..." I whispered, scrambling to my feet.

He stepped inside and quietly shut the door behind him.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, my voice shaking.

He didn't answer immediately. Instead, his blue eyes swept over my face, lingering on the redness around my eyes before settling on the bruises Sergio had left on my arm.

"You should leave," I said quickly. "If Sergio finds you here…."

"I know," he cut me off.

Fear tightened around my chest.

"You can't tell him,” the words rushed out before I could stop them. "Please... if he finds out what happened, he'll kill me."

For the first time since entering the room, something flickered across Sebastian's face.

His eyes lingered on the bruises around my arm, and the coldness in his expression slowly faded. His jaw tightened as his gaze traced each mark, and something resembling pain flickered across his face.

For a moment, he looked as though he wanted to reach for me, but his hand remained clenched at his side. When he finally met my eyes, there was unmistakable concern in his gaze.

"I'll keep your secret," Sebastian said.

Relief rushed through me so quickly that my knees nearly gave out.

"Thank you," I whispered.

"On one condition," he added.

The relief vanished as quickly as it had come. I stared at him, my chest tightening.

"What condition?" I asked.

Sebastian slipped one hand into his pocket, his expression impossible to read.

“Divorce Sergio,” Sebastian said, his voice low. “Become my bedmate. Nothing more.”

My breath caught in my throat.

"What?" I whispered in disbelief.

He refused to acknowledge the way his wolf snarled inside him at the word bedmate. A bedmate was temporary. A fated mate was forever.

“Don't mistake this for affection. I'll satisfy my needs, and in return, you'll have a place where Sergio can never touch you again.”

I searched Sebastian's face for warmth, for regret, for anything that resembled the man fate had chosen for me, but I found nothing. My chest tightened as disappointment settled over me.

"So that's all this is to you?" I asked, my voice trembling.

Sebastian said nothing, and his silence was answer enough.

Before I could think better of it, I raised my hand and slapped him across the face. The sharp crack echoed through the room.

"I'd rather die than become another bargain," I spat.

Sebastian slowly turned his head back toward me. His expression remained calm, as though the slap had barely registered.

"You'll come to me, Lillian," he said softly, brushing his thumb across his reddened cheek. "It's only a matter of time.”