Marked by the Alpha

Dangerous Weakness

The moment Rowan stepped out of the suite, I collapsed onto the couch. My muscles trembled as the heat rolled through me in waves. My skin was too hot. My thoughts were scattered. I hated everything about this feeling. It wasn’t just physical. It was humiliating.

I pressed my fingers against my temples, trying to steady my breath. I had never slipped like that before. Never lost control so fast.

He knew. Rowan Vale knew the truth.

And he had not even used it against me.

Not yet.

I could still feel his scent lingering in the air. His voice echoed in my head, repeating the same words over and over.

“You’re mine.”

I gritted my teeth and stood up. I needed a cold shower and whatever was left of the suppressant. My body was still fighting the heat, but my mind was already racing ahead.

If he tells anyone, everything falls apart.

I had fought for my place for too long. My father expected a successor who showed no weakness. My mother expected perfection. The board, the clients, the press — they all believed Cassian Reeve was the strong Alpha prince of the Reeve Empire.

But if anyone found out I was an Omega pretending to be something else, I would lose everything.

I turned on the shower and stepped under the freezing stream. The cold bit into my skin, but it did nothing to calm the ache inside me. My heat had been triggered hard, and the suppressant dose I had taken before was clearly not enough.

And Rowan had the rest.

That bastard. Of all people, why did it have to be him?

We had been enemies for as long as I could remember. At school, he always tried to outdo me. At every business event, he was there, smug and calculating. Always looking like he knew more than he should.

Now he did.

I stood under the cold water until my lips turned pale. Then I wrapped a towel around my waist and stepped out. My phone buzzed on the nightstand. I walked over, checked the screen.

A message.

From him.

Rowan Vale:

I still have your suppressant.

If you want it, meet me at my suite. Room 901.

Come alone.

I stared at the message for a long time.

He was playing a game. He wanted to see how far I would go. He wanted to see if I would beg. I wasn’t going to give him that satisfaction.

But I also didn’t have a choice.

The heat was getting worse by the hour. If I didn’t get that suppressant soon, I’d lose control completely. And if anyone else found out…

No. I couldn’t risk it.

I got dressed quickly, choosing something plain. No suit, no tie, just black slacks and a dark shirt. My face was pale in the mirror. My eyes looked tired.

But my jaw was set.

He wanted me to come to him. Fine.

I would walk into his room with my head high, take what was mine, and leave before anything else could happen.

At least, that was the plan.

But when I stepped into Room 901, everything changed.

He was waiting for me, leaning against the window with the city lights behind him. He looked calm. Relaxed. Like he had been expecting this moment for a long time.

And in his hand was the syringe.

My suppressant.

He smiled.

“I knew you’d come.”

I shut the door behind me, keeping my expression as blank as I could manage.

“Give it to me,” I said quietly.

Rowan twirled the syringe in his fingers like it was a toy. His eyes scanned me slowly, pausing at the faint flush on my skin and the tension in my shoulders.

“You’re not doing so well,” he said. “The suppressant is wearing off, isn’t it?”

I said nothing.

He walked toward me, calm and steady. I didn’t move, didn’t flinch. I refused to show weakness in front of him. Not again.

But the closer he got, the harder it was to ignore the effect he had on me. His scent, strong and dominant, was like a magnet. My body responded instinctively, muscles clenching, knees softening. It was infuriating.

Rowan finally stopped just a foot away from me.

“You could have told me the truth, Cassian,” he said.

“It wasn’t yours to know,” I replied coldly.

“Maybe not,” he said. “But now that I do, it changes everything.”

“It changes nothing,” I snapped. “You’re still my competitor. I still want to destroy you in that meeting tomorrow.”

Rowan smiled. Not the arrogant smirk I was used to, but something darker. Hungrier.

“I don’t think you’ll be thinking about business much longer.”

He held the syringe between us, tempting, close enough to grab. I reached for it, but he pulled it back at the last second.

“I said give it to me,” I growled.

“Say please,” he said simply.

I blinked. “What?”

“You heard me.”

He was enjoying this. Drawing it out. Watching me fall apart inch by inch. I hated him for it. But more than that, I hated how much I needed what he had.

The heat was pulsing now, relentless and raw. My whole body screamed for relief.

I swallowed my pride, hard and bitter, then forced the word out through clenched teeth.

“Please.”

He raised a brow. “That didn’t sound very sincere.”

I stepped back, fists clenched at my sides. “I’m not playing this game.”

“Oh, but you already are.”

He stepped forward again, slowly this time. My back hit the wall.

I didn’t remember moving. Didn’t remember breathing. All I could feel was him—his scent, his presence, his heat.

He leaned in, voice low near my ear.

“You’re in heat. You’re vulnerable. You’re standing in my room asking me for something only I can give. And you’re telling me this isn’t a game?”

I bit the inside of my cheek until I tasted blood.

He pulled back just slightly, enough for our eyes to meet.

“Take the suppressant,” he said, finally handing it over. “But know this, Cassian. I’m not going to let you keep pretending anymore. You can wear your suit, play your role, and fool everyone else. But not me.”

I snatched the syringe from his hand and took a step back.

He didn’t stop me.

But just as I turned toward the door, he spoke one last time.

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning. Let’s see if you can still sit across from me at that table without remembering tonight.”

I didn’t answer.

I walked out.

But even as the door closed behind me, I could still feel him in every part of my skin.