Rejected by My Alpha, Claimed by the Cursed King

6 The King’s Claim

Lydia’s heart raced as she stepped into the grand hall of the Moretti estate.The air was thick with the scent of firewood and something darker something almost alive.Every step she took echoed against the marble floors, and yet she couldn’t tear her eyes away from the figure waiting at the far end.

Sorean stood there like a shadow carved from night itself. His eyes, sharp and piercing, never left her. He didn’t move when she entered; he didn’t even breathe. And yet, Lydia felt the weight of his presence pressing against her chest, almost suffocating.

“You came,” he said, his voice low, rough, commanding.

“I… I didn’t know where else to go,” Lydia stammered.

Sorean’s gaze softened just enough to make her knees weak but only for a moment.Then the darkness returned.“You belong to me,Lydia.That alpha of yours? He rejected you.But I… I don’t reject what’s mine.”

Lydia froze.The words felt like fire sliding down her spine, scorching and thrilling all at once. “Mine?” she whispered.

“Yes. Mine.” He stepped closer, and the space between them crackled like lightning. “From the moment I laid eyes on you, I’ve been bound to you. Cursed as I am, I cannot let anyone else touch what fate itself has marked.”

Fear, desire, and something she couldn’t name mingled inside her. “But… I don’t even know you. I don’t understand any of this.”

Sorean’s expression hardened. “You will. And whether you like it or not, you will obey. Because from this moment, you are under my protection… and my claim.”

A sudden chill ran through the room, and Lydia instinctively stepped back. The flickering candles seemed to bend toward him, the shadows stretching unnaturally long, as if the darkness itself worshiped him.

“I,I can’t just” Lydia’s voice caught.

“You can,” he interrupted sharply, “or you will learn the consequences of defiance.”

Her heart slammed in her chest, a mix of terror and an undeniable attraction she couldn’t deny. Sorean’s eyes softened once more, and for a heartbeat, he looked almost human. “You’re not alone anymore, Lydia. And soon… you’ll see why even a king cursed cannot be denied.”

Lydia swallowed hard, realizing that her life had changed forever. The alpha who rejected her was gone. And in his place stood a king, dangerous and cursed, who had claimed her as his own.

And deep down, she felt the first spark of something she could never have imagined: wanting him to.