surrogate Sins

chapter 004

RHEA’S POV

The farther we drove from the city, the quieter everything became. Towering buildings disappeared first. Then crowded streets. Then noise itself.

Soon, all that remained was the dark stretch of forest surrounding the winding roads ahead of us. Dense trees swallowed the landscape on both sides while fog rolled softly between them beneath the fading evening sky.

Silverfang territory.

Even the air felt different here. Wilder. Heavier.

I sat quietly in the passenger seat while Kael drove without speaking, his attention fixed calmly on the road ahead.

For some reason, the silence around him never felt empty. It felt controlled.Dangerously controlled.

Eventually, massive iron gates appeared through the trees. Guards immediately stepped aside the moment they recognized the car.

The gates opened slowly.And my breath caught instantly. The estate looked unreal.

Huge stone walls stretched across the property while warm golden lights illuminated towering windows and elegant balconies.

The mansion itself sat deep within the forest like something pulled from an old fantasy novel.

Beautiful. Cold. Untouchable. I stared openly as the car moved farther inside.“What kind of hell looks like this?” I muttered quietly before I could stop myself.

Something that almost sounded like amusement flickered briefly across Kael’s face. But it disappeared too quickly to fully exist.

The car finally stopped near the front entrance.

Several staff members immediately appeared, moving silently to open doors and carry bags I didn’t even realize had been transferred from my car already.

I stepped out slowly, staring up at the estate again.

This place was more beautiful than anywhere I had ever been in my life.

Which honestly made it more terrifying.

Because beautiful things usually hide ugly truths underneath. Kael stepped beside me smoothly. “Dinner is at seven,” he said calmly.

I looked toward him. “We’ll discuss the remaining details then.” And just like that, he walked away.

No dramatic welcome. No attempt at conversation. Just controlled distance.

I watched his broad figure disappear farther down the hallway before finally following one of the house staff upstairs.

The room waiting for me was larger than my entire apartment back home. Soft cream walls. Massive windows overlooking the forest.

A king-sized bed covered in dark gray sheets. Luxury surrounded me everywhere I looked. I slowly sat down on the edge of the mattress, almost afraid to touch anything.

This didn’t feel real. None of it. Yesterday I was preparing to marry Damien. Today I was living inside a billionaire alpha’s estate waiting to carry his child.

A tired laugh escaped my throat. Maybe I really had lost my mind. Still, maybe this could work.

Maybe I could survive this arrangement quietly.

Carry the baby. Take the money. Disappear somewhere far away. Start over. Maybe for once in my life, I could actually leave happily instead of broken.

My phone suddenly buzzed loudly beside me. Mom. Then another notification. Dinah. Then Damien. The screen kept lighting up repeatedly.

I stared at it for several seconds before something inside me hardened again. Enough. I grabbed the phone, powered it off completely, then tossed it into the trash can across the room.

The silence afterward felt strangely peaceful. I laid back slowly against the soft mattress, exhaustion pulling heavily at my body.

Just for a minute. That was what I told myself before sleep dragged me under completely.

At first, I heard moaning. Soft. Breathless.

Familiar. My stomach twisted violently. Dinah.

The bridal suite appeared around me instantly.

White sheets. Champagne. Damien’s hands on my sister’s body. I tried to look away. I couldn’t. “Dinah is my fated mate.” His voice echoed painfully through my chest again.

“You should’ve known this would happen eventually.”

Then suddenly, the dream shifted. The wedding suite disappeared. Now I was back inside the bar from that night. Alcohol burned down my throat while humiliation crushed me from the inside out.

And across from me sat Kael Maddox. Sharp gray eyes. Dark suit. Dangerous calm. Unlike everyone else, he hadn’t looked at me with pity.

He simply listened while I drunkenly told him everything. How my fiancé betrayed me. How my sister smiled while destroying me. How exhausted I was of always being unwanted.

Kael hadn’t interrupted once. Hadn’t mocked me.

Hadn’t offered fake comfort. He simply watched me carefully before sliding a black business card across the table.

“Choose yourself instead,” he murmured quietly.

Then he leaned closer. Close enough for his voice to brush against my skin.

“Welcome to hell, baby girl.” I gasped sharply and snapped awake. My chest rose unevenly while darkness surrounded the room.

For a second, I looked around disoriented before realizing where I was. The estate. Kael’s estate. Not a dream. A clock near the bedside glowed softly.

7:02 PM.

Shit. I quickly pushed myself out of bed before fixing my hair slightly and heading downstairs. A maid quietly directed me toward the dining room.

Kael was already there waiting. Of course he was.

He sat at the end of the long dining table wearing another dark suit, one hand resting near a glass of wine while soft golden lights illuminated the sharp angles of his face.

His gaze lifted the moment I entered. “You slept.”

It wasn’t really a question.

“A little,” I admitted quietly.

He nodded once toward the seat across from him. “Sit.”

Dinner had already been prepared. Expensive food I couldn’t even pronounce properly sat arranged neatly across the table.

For several minutes, silence filled the room except for the quiet sound of silverware. Then Kael finally spoke. “Your bloodline isn’t my concern.”

I looked up slowly. “My alpha blood will dominate yours during conception,” he continued calmly. “The child will be strong regardless.”

Strong. The word still stung somehow. I set my fork down carefully. “And if it doesn’t?” His eyes narrowed slightly. “What if my wolf awakens?” I asked quietly. “What if something changes?”

For the first time that evening, tension flickered across his expression. He didn’t seem pleased with the question at all. Still, he answered.

“Then we will adapt.” Simple. Controlled. But something about the way he said it made me feel like Kael Maddox didn’t enjoy unpredictability very much.

I exhaled softly before nodding once. Then his gaze locked onto mine fully. “And understand this, Rhea.”

Something about his tone made my pulse slow instantly. “We are not going to be bonded,” he said calmly. “This is strictly business.”

My chest tightened unexpectedly.

“You do your part. I do mine.” His voice remained coldly steady. “When it’s over, we separate.”

For some reason, hearing the words aloud hurt more than I expected. Which was ridiculous. This was the arrangement. Nothing more. No feelings.

No future. No bond. So why did disappointment still settle heavily inside me anyway?

I lowered my gaze toward the table briefly before forcing myself to nod. “Business,” I repeated quietly.

Kael watched me for a long moment after that. Unreadable as always. And somehow, that made everything feel even more dangerous.