His Mate, His Prey

The Road To Redemption

[Violet]

My heart was racing.

I hadn't meant to listen in. I only came out because I panicked when I heard the doorbell. Call it reflex or even based on survival instinct.

And then I saw her.

The human woman in his arms.

She was trembling and before he sent her out, she said something I couldn't unhear.

"Visit your daughter."

Daughter?

Who was she to Lucien?

Ex-wife? Lover? Mother of his child?

My grip tightened on the stair railing, knuckles paling. I had hoped his life wouldn't be complicated and despite the brief, choked exchange between them, I could already tell that despite whatever happened between them, Marielle had been in the wrong. That didn't take a genius to notice. But did that give Lucien the right to abandon a child? To leave her out there somewhere while he lived like this?

Did he have no heart?

The thought made my stomach twist—and not just for the child.

I thought of her—My little sister back in Moonfall.

We weren't related by blood, but her mother had raised me up from when I was a baby. After our mother died, I raised my baby sister myself with the aid of the late alpha who was fond of me.

I watched over her. Loved her. And if she were out there and alone, I'd tear the world apart to find her. And yet, Lucien had a daughter who he didn't even seem to care about before his memory loss? I couldn't care less about how badly he hated the mother of his child and despite not knowing the full story, a baby was always innocent since it took the effort of both parents to make them. Even if the child was conceived accidentally, it didn't mean they should be abandoned.

"Violet?"

The sound of my name pulled me back and I looked down the staircase, startled to see Lucien there.

When had he gotten so close?

He looked troubled—guilty even. Like a man caught mid-affair.

He might have lost his memories, but did that give him the right to start life over as if the past didn't matter?

But here he was. Looking up at me like he'd just realized something he should've known all along.

I didn't know why his friend Fenrick hadn't ratted me out, but I was grateful, even if I didn't understand his reasons. He was clearly a wolf too. And the fact that Fenrick had a spare key—it was clear he and Lucien were close. Very close.

Lucien took a step forward.

"It's not what it seems like, I swear—"

I raised a hand, silencing him. "It doesn't matter anymore."

I turned to go. There was no reason to exchange more words since my goal hadn't changed. All I wanted was revenge, so this man's dirty laundry didn't matter so long as it didn't affect my plans.

But then I heard a thud and when I turned—Lucien had dropped to his knees!

"Please," he said, voice low and desperate. "Please forgive me."

I blinked, caught completely off guard.

"Do you even know what you're apologizing for?" I asked, incredulous.

He hesitated. "I—I don't remember yet. But I know you left. And I must've done something unforgivable to make you leave. If I was unfaithful... if I hurt you... I'll bear the punishment. I swear I'll change. I'll be different this time."

His voice cracked and I thought he was going to cry.

But I'd learned the hard way not to believe a man's pleas—Theodore had taught me that. And how could he be sorry while having absolutely no idea what he was sorry for?

'Still...' my eyes narrowed at him and I folded both hands underneath my chest.

I had no right to punish him like this—but our entire relationship was already a performance. One we couldn't afford to stop now.

I slowly descended the stairs, a white robe hugging my naked body.

"Really?" My voice was almost sweet. "And why should I trust the words of the likes of you, hmm?"

He lifted his head slightly, confusion warring with shame in his eyes.

I stood at the last step. My bare feet hovered just above his head.

Then I lowered them.

One foot pressed lightly against the crown of his bowed head—and he flinched. Not from fear. From surprise. But he didn't move away.

It was sickening.

I was sick, alright.

Seeing him grovel like this—this stranger, this man I barely knew—why did it feel so... satisfying? Was it because having someone as powerful and wealthy as him under my feet was satisfying?

"Kiss it," I said, my voice flat. My toes shifted to the floor just beside his lips.

He didn't even hesitate.

Lucien bent his head lower and pressed his lips gently to the skin of my foot. Once. Twice. His hands rose, cradling my foot with the kind of reverence I didn't expect from a man like him.

I exhaled through my lips when he half-looked up at me without taking his lips away. "Do my kisses please you, wife?"

His voice was low, careful as though unsure of what tone to use.

I hated how warm his mouth had been. How delicate. I didn't know if I was pouring my grief and grudge from Theodore onto him—or if this was punishment for what kind of man he had once been.

Either way... I pulled back before wrapping my arms tightly around my chest.

What the hell was I even doing? Was this justice? Revenge?

I didn't even know the man he used to be. But from the little I knew, I already hated the idea of him.

And yet, this version—the one kneeling before me now—was nothing but a lost pup.

And I... I was starting to feel something I shouldn't.

Not power. Not pity.

Longing.

A quiet, aching hope that maybe instead of punishing him for sins he couldn't even remember—I could do something else.

Something better.

Maybe... I could fix him.

Help him become someone good. Someone worth trusting. Whether or not he remembered who he used to be, I would mould him into a man who wouldn't betray me.

"Lucien... please get up," I murmured without turning. "Don't kneel before people at random."

He stood quietly and I felt him behind me before I heard him move. One arm slipped beneath my chest, the other curved loosely around my neck. His body was big and warm.

He leaned in, voice brushing my ear. "I want to redeem myself. Any way that can make you trust me more, I'll do it."

I was suddenly very aware of... him.

His height towered over mine, and despite the heat between our bodies, I realized with a slow burn of disbelief that his hardness was pressed against my back—not my hips. gods. How tall was this man?

And what exactly had turned him on?

The begging?

The foot kisses?

Me?

I exhaled slowly as his chin came to rest lightly atop my head.

"What do you want, Lucien?" I asked quietly.

He didn't pause. "My first goal is to make you so happy you'll never leave again. My second... is to remember who I was."

"And what if remembering will do no good?"

He didn't answer immediately, but his arms tightened around me.

"Even then, I have to know my sins in order to atone. In order to become a man who deserves you." He said. "So please, Violet. Give me one more chance."

My eyes widened at those words.

'Why was he so loyal to someone he didn't even remember?'

It made no sense.