Betrayed and Claimed by the Lycan King Chapter 138

Ezra's POV

"I'm a complete fucking asshole," I muttered to myself.

My mind was replaying last night's events on an endless, torturous loop. The way I'd treated Isolde. The cold, detached manner in which I'd taken her. The way I'd left her alone afterward, without a single word of comfort or tenderness.

In all my years, I'd never regretted my actions with a woman as much as I did now.

*You're growing soft,* Prime growled in my mind. *An Alpha doesn't regret. An Alpha takes what he wants.*

"Shut the fuck up," I snarled back at my wolf.

Hours later, I found myself in the underground Battle Arena, watching Isolde from across the room. She was sparring with Nyssa, her movements precise and powerful despite what I'd put her through last night.

When our eyes met briefly across the training floor, I deliberately hardened my expression, letting my gaze turn cold and dismissive. The flash of hurt in her eyes was like a physical blow, but I maintained my icy facade.

"Again," I barked when she finished her set with Nyssa. "Your form is sloppy. A real opponent would have you on your back in seconds."

Isolde's jaw tightened, but she nodded and resumed her stance.

The training room fell silent. Orion shot me a questioning look, but I ignored him. Isolde stood frozen for a moment, her chest heaving with exertion, her eyes shimmering with unshed tears.

Then she turned and walked swiftly toward the locker rooms.

Watching her leave broke something in me. My chest physically ached as if someone had reached in and squeezed my heart in a vise grip.

---

The board of directors and pack elders were expecting my decision soon. The thought filled me with dread. If I denied that Isolde was my mate, they would push me to choose someone else immediately. They might even try to arrange a political match—someone "suitable" for the Alpha of Silver Moon.

And if I acknowledged her? The consequences could be even worse. For both of us.

I was caught between two impossible choices, and the pressure was crushing me from all sides.

*You know what you want,* Prime said. *She is ours. Claim her properly.*

"And then what?" I muttered to myself. "Watch as they tear her apart?"

The distinctive chime of the private elevator access card pulled me from my dark thoughts. I turned toward the elevator doors as they slid open, revealing Evanthe dressed in nothing but a silk robe, a victorious smile playing on her lips as she stepped into my private space.

Her hand moved to the belt of her robe, and I immediately saw her intention.

"Stop!" I commanded sharply. "Don't do what you're about to do. Keep your clothes on."

Her hand froze, but her smile didn't falter.

"Who authorized you to come up here?" I asked coldly.

Evanthe laughed, a sound like tinkling glass that had once appealed to me but now grated on my nerves.

"As if anyone in Silver Moon Tower would dare stop the PR Director from seeing the CEO," she replied, her voice dripping with arrogance.

She took another step toward me, and I instinctively backed away, maintaining the distance between us.

"What do you want, Evanthe?" I asked, though I knew perfectly well.

Her smile widened. "I think you know exactly what I want."

She ran her hand down the front of her robe suggestively. "You've always been interested in... this. You've never been able to resist it."

The thought of touching her made my skin crawl. She was like a poisonous vine, beautiful but deadly, and I had no desire to let her wrap herself around me again.

"Not interested," I said flatly.

Evanthe glanced around my penthouse with exaggerated interest.

"This is different from where we usually spend our nights," she observed. "Is this where you bring your little debt girl for your private time? Isolde, isn't it?"

"That's none of your business," I replied curtly.

"So the debt girl must be special then," she said, her voice hardening.

*You have no idea how special she is to me,* I thought, but kept my expression neutral.

"You need to leave," I said.

Evanthe's smile disappeared completely. "No, I won't just leave."

"I'll call security."

She laughed. "Go ahead. I'm sure they'd love to escort the PR Director out of the CEO's private quarters in nothing but a robe."

"I heard about the board meeting," she continued, changing tactics. "You didn't confirm that Isolde is your mate. That means you're not sure she's the one."

"I'm not discussing this with you," I said. "Leave. Now."

"Why do you deny what's between us?" she demanded. "A few days ago, in your office, you didn't reject me. You took me on that ridiculously expensive desk of yours. You chose me again."

I couldn't help but laugh, a cold, humorless sound. "That's complete bullshit."

"Is it?" she challenged.

"You've become delusional in your pursuit of power and status, Evanthe."

Her eyes flashed. "This isn't about power or status! This is about pursuing love for you. Pursuing all of you!"

"I'm not in the mood for emotional poetry," I said dismissively. "Get out."

Instead of leaving, she began listing reasons she would make a better Luna than Isolde.

"That debt girl will never be a proper Luna... but I would be. I'm strong, I'm clever, I have pure Lycan blood in my veins. No one in Silver Moon is more suited to be your Luna than me. You need me!"

I looked at her with undisguised contempt. "I don't recall posting a job opening for the position of Silver Moon Luna."

The truth was, despite occasionally being attracted to Evanthe's body in the past, I would never make her my Luna.

"If you choose her," Evanthe warned, "the board and the pack will never accept it. She's just an ordinary werewolf, the daughter of a debt-ridden family. The executives and pack members would rather resign than let a debtor's daughter become Luna!"

Something snapped inside me. I grabbed her arm and dragged her toward the elevator.

"Enough. Your visit is over."

She struggled against my grip, but I was far stronger. I shoved her into the elevator and immediately locked down the access permissions.

"You can't do this!" she screamed, pounding on the elevator buttons.

Her voice faded as the elevator descended, but I could still hear her cursing all the way down. She had completely lost her mind.

I activated the internal communication system. "Security, ensure Ms. Hawthorne leaves the building immediately."