My Alpha’s Little Thief

Chapter 3

"Do you always seduce men before robbing them, or am I just special?"

Seraphina woke with a start, heart pounding against her ribs. Sunlight streamed through floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating an unfamiliar bedroom more lavish than even Magnus's estate. For a moment, disorientation clouded her mind—until her gaze landed on the man watching her from a leather chair by the window.

Kael Draven. The events of the previous night rushed back in a flood of images—the forest, the wolf, waking in his home, her failed attempt to steal from him.

He sat with one ankle resting on the opposite knee, perfectly at ease. The morning light caught the gold in his eyes, making them shine like amber. They were mesmerizing.

Seraphina pulled the silk sheets higher, suddenly aware of her half nakedness. "How long have you been watching me sleep?" she demanded, injecting as much indignation into her voice as she could muster.

Kael's lips curved into a half-smile. "Long enough to wonder what kind of dreams make a thief frown in her sleep." He unfolded himself from the chair with predatory grace, moving to a sideboard where he poured amber liquid into a crystal tumbler despite the early hour.

"Who were you running from?" he asked casually, his back to her as he raised the glass to his lips.

Seraphina hesitated. He already knew about Magnus, but how much should she reveal? Her fingers gripped the sheet tighter. "I told you," she replied, making her voice deliberately weak. "My fiancé."

"And I told you I don't like liars," Kael countered, turning to face her. "There's more to your story than an escaped bride. Much more."

She blinked rapidly, as though fighting tears. "I don't remember much after running into the forest," she whispered. "Everything's... hazy."

He took a step toward the bed, then another, his movement fluid like water over stone. "You don't remember collapsing into my arms?" A dangerous smile played at his lips. "Or how you clung to me like a lover?"

Heat rushed to her cheeks. "I did no such thing."

"No?" He raised an eyebrow. "Perhaps it was just wishful thinking on my part."

Something in his tone made her skin prickle in a good way. As he moved toward her, Seraphina's gaze darted past his shoulder to the wall behind him—where a safe stood partially open, revealing stacks of cash inside.

Her heart skipped. She needed money to disappear properly, to start fresh where Magnus could never find her. The safe was a gift from whatever gods still favored thieves.

Seraphina shifted tactics instantly. She sat up straighter, letting the sheet fall just enough to reveal the curve of her shoulder beneath the borrowed silk shirt. "You did save me," she murmured, voice pitched lower. "I remember feeling... safe with you."

Kael's eyes darkened as she slid from the bed, bare feet silent against the plush carpet as she approached him. The shirt hung to mid-thigh, exposing long legs still bearing scratches from her forest flight.

"Most men would have taken advantage," she continued, stopping just inches from him. She tilted her head, looking up through her lashes as she traced a finger along the collar of his crisp white shirt. "But you've been a perfect gentleman."

His nostrils flared slightly, jaw tightening. "Don't mistake restraint for gentleness, sweetheart."

"Then what should I mistake it for?" she whispered, leaning closer until she could feel the heat radiating from his body. Her hand slid to his chest, feeling the steady, powerful thump of his heart beneath expensive fabric.

As her other hand drifted casually toward his pocket where she'd spotted the outline of a key card—Kael caught on almost immediately and he gripped her wrist and twisted it behind her back, spinning her so her body arched against his.

"Tsk," he whispered, lips brushing the shell of her ear. "That was almost impressive."

Seraphina reacted instinctively. She drove her heel down toward his groin, simultaneously twisting in his grip. As she broke free, her hand flew to the hidden knife strapped to her thigh—something she did out of habit now.

But Kael was faster. Before the blade could fully clear its sheath, he caught her arm, spun her around, and slammed her back against the wall. The knife clattered to the floor between them, and Kael kicked it away without breaking eye contact.

"A thief and armed," he observed, golden eyes gleaming with something like admiration. "And here I thought you were just a runaway bride."

Seraphina struggled against his grip, but it was like fighting a steel vise. No human should be this strong.

"Let me go," she hissed, even as she suddenly remembered. The impossible speed. The unnatural strength. The golden eyes that matched the wolf she'd seen in the forest.

"Not until you tell me who you really are, Seraphina Vale," Kael replied, his breath warm against her face. "Because I'm beginning to think I've invited a viper into my home."

Their bodies were pressed together, her pulse racing beneath his fingers where they circled her wrists. Something primal sparked between them—a tension that had nothing to do with fear and everything to do with a more dangerous kind of hunger.

A sharp knock interrupted the moment. Kael didn't release her as he called, "Enter."

A tall man with silver threading his dark hair stepped into the room, his expression grave. He barely glanced at their compromising position before addressing Kael.

"Sir, there's been a development," he said, voice carefully controlled. "Magnus Thorn was found dead at his estate last night. Murdered."

The blood drained from Seraphina's face. Kael's grip tightened fractionally as he studied her reaction, his expression unreadable.

"How?" he asked, never taking his eyes off her.

"Gunshot wound to the chest," the man replied. "Local authorities are treating it as a professional hit."

A long, loaded silence stretched between them. Seraphina's mind raced—Magnus, dead? It seemed impossible. The monster who had haunted her nightmares, gone just like that?

Slowly, Kael released one of her wrists to trace a finger along her jawline, tilting her chin up until she had no choice but to meet his gaze.

"Tell me, sweetheart," he murmured, voice dangerously soft, "what exactly did you do?"

Seraphina swallowed hard, fighting to keep her expression neutral. "Nothing," she whispered. "I ran. That's all."

His eyes narrowed, searching her face for truth. "Let me guess," he said, thumb brushing across her lower lip in a touch that was almost a caress. "You didn't just run from your wedding. You ran with something valuable."

Her pulse skittered wildly. He didn't know yet.

But the calculating gleam in his golden eyes told her he would soon enough.