Konstantin: The Heartless Beta
6. Claiming Her

Lily

Oh, God, I'm in trouble, especially with the way he sounded over the link. He's pissed off with me for putting him on the spot in front of Zephyr; I know he is.

But why meet me in the woods behind the old mansion? Shaking my head, I train my ears and search for him by scent, leading me to a small clearing about a mile from the mansion. “Konstantin?” I call out, not seeing him at all, but then a pair of silver eyes meet my gaze, and Konstantin saunters out in his wolf form.

I've always admired the Volkov wolves with their large frames, obsidian fur and powerful forms. Where Kai was a hulking mass of power, Konstantin was more lithe, even if he was twice my wolf's size.

"Why have you called for me?” I ask, still confused as to why I am here. Konstantin snarls, bearing his teeth, then shifts back into his human form - and I gasp.

I've seen him naked before, plenty of times after we've hunted together. It always gives me a thrill because Konstantin has a beautiful body. Athletic and lithe, with taut, rippling muscles. He wasn't too brawny like Kai and not overly bulky - just utter perfection. The tattoos gave him that extra bit of sexiness and made him seem dangerous.

But there's something different about him tonight, something primal as he stalks over to me with his silver eyes flashing. He's angry, I can tell that, but he’s also... hurting?

“You... You wanted to see...” I stutter as he comes to a stop in front of me, his scent taking my breath away once again.

I meet his unrelenting stare, and I have to take a step back to put some distance between us. "Konsta-"

“You came knowing I am angry, but now you can't handle it? I thought you were a warrior, Lilith,” he says, shooting me a venomous look. The only time he calls me by my first name is when he’s really pissed off with me, and he's only done it twice before in over ten years with him.

“I am a warrior; you should know this better than anybody; I just didn't expect to encounter you half-naked out here,” I say, struggling to string two coherent sentences together. His scent is overwhelming to the point of dizziness. But as I try to level out my breathing, something occurs to me...

"Are you doing that on purpose right now? Are you scenting me?!” I ask, horrified at my realisation and take another tentative step backwards. A grin spreads across his face, causing his silver eyes to glow even more, so I reach out to slap him.

Obviously, he stops me.

“What the fuck, Konstantin! Why would you do that when I told you that I have a mate? What the hell is wrong with you?!" I ask, trying to pull my wrist out of his grip but failing. “You're acting like a child right now!”

He gives me a dark chuckle and shakes his head. “You're the child here, not me,” he says in a low voice, letting go of my wrist.

Something in me gives, and before he can react, I slap him across his face and push him backwards. “I'm the child here?! Who is the one always stopping you from making stupid decisions? Who's always stopping you from engaging in fights you know won't have a good outcome?!” I ask, pushing him backwards and feeling the anger coiling in my stomach.

"And who is the one who left me alone all evening with an Alpha known to be cruel?”

He scoffs and rolls his eyes. “You're my second in command. You would have been able to look after yourself if he had to try something. Not that it looked like you hated the attention, though.” He says, holding my gaze for a moment then walking away.

But I pull him back and glare at him. “You think I enjoyed his attention all night? Do you think I wanted that? I couldn't stand him, Konstantin, and his scent made me want to gag. His touch made me cringe, but I endured it because-"

“Because what, Lily? Hm?" He interjects with a cocky grin on his face.

I shake my head. “What does it matter anyway? You only see me as a glorified slave, and that is a big part of the reason I am leaving.”

"Oh? Would you have preferred to fight your life away in your brother's wolf fighting rings?” He asks me with a raised eyebrow and crosses his arms. His nonchalance is really starting to grate me.

“I would have at least felt like I had a purpose there!”

Konstantin stalks towards me, and I take a few steps back, but I realise too late that he's backed me up against a large tree.

"So for over ten years, you've never felt like you've had a purpose at my side? I've only made you feel like a slave?” He asks me with narrowed silver eyes.

I swallow down my truth and nod, to which he lets out a roar and places his hands on either side of my head as if caging me in.

“Leave then. Leave right fucking now and don't ever come back; you're exiled,” he says through gritted teeth, staring deep into my eyes.

I shake my head and chuckle. “You're not my fucking Alpha or my mate, Konstantin. You don't have the authority to exile me,” I say, knowing that I've hit the mark by the way he clenches his jaw tight. Taking advantage of this, I slip from his hold and turn to run away, but he knocks my feet out from under me. Winded, I jump to my feet and rear back my fist to punch his face, but he grabs my wrist and spins me around, holding my arm behind my back.

“Let me go!” I cry out, feeling his naked body pressed against me. He loosens his grip on my wrist, but as soon as he does, I twist myself around and push him to the ground, but he grabs my forearm and pulls me down with him.

We go down with a thump, and anger churns in my belly. Konstantin is now on top of me, holding me down and caging me in yet again. I ball my hands into fists and hit his chest. “Get off me, Konstantin!” I cry out and try to move him, but it is no use.

It's only when I stop hitting his chest that I notice his eyes have shimmered back to normal, but the look in his eye is one of a wounded man

“Konstantin-"

His lips were on mine before I could complete the sentence, and I found myself reciprocating his kiss, sinking into him as if I belonged there. He teased with his tongue, tasting me and deepening the already frenzied kiss. I run my hands down his back, the hard surface of his muscles uncoiling under my touch.

“Lily,” he whispers my name in reverence, teasing kisses down my collarbone, nipping and biting at my skin. He takes my silk nightgown and tears it in two, followed by my night dress. He skims my body with hungry eyes, licking his lips and letting out an appreciative growl.

I know what's coming next... I can feel the pull even more with the way he looks at me and pins me with his silver gaze. I've never wanted anything as much as I want him to claim me right now, and his beast looks absolutely starved.

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