Marked Twice by the Alpha King Chapter 115

**Ava's POV**

When he kissed me, it wasn't gentle. His mouth claimed mine with a hunger that knocked the breath from my lungs. I grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer as my back hit the cold tile wall.

His hand slid to my waist, fingers digging in just enough to make me gasp. Every coherent thought scattered like leaves in a windstorm—Sarah's proposal, Jackson's scheme, all of it blown away by the feel of Blake's body pressed against mine.

He tasted like whiskey and something wilder, something that made my wolf whimper with need. His teeth grazed my bottom lip as his knee pushed between my thighs.

"You drive me crazy," he murmured against my neck, voice rough. "Watching you across the room, not being able to touch you..."

"Look who's talking." I ran my fingers through his hair, tugging just hard enough to make him groan. "You and your stupid Alpha swagger."

His laugh vibrated against my skin as he nipped at my collarbone. "You like my swagger."

"Shut up and kiss me." I pulled his mouth back to mine, desperate to forget everything else, if only for a few stolen minutes.

We crashed together like waves breaking on rocks, all hands and heat and breathless need. His fingers found the zipper of my dress, and I didn't stop him, even though the rational part of my brain screamed that anyone could walk in.

His lips traveled down my throat to the mark on my neck. The moment he touched it, liquid fire raced through my veins. I bit my lip to keep from crying out, my body arching against his.

"We should go," he whispered, his voice strained with restraint. "My car's out back. The cabin's only thirty minutes away."

The thought of our little hideaway made my heart ache with longing. But reality came crashing back—Sarah waiting for me, the ceremony still in full swing, dozens of eyes that would notice if we both disappeared.

"I can't," I said reluctantly, my hands still clutching his shoulders. "Not tonight."

Instead of pushing or questioning, he just nodded, pressing his forehead against mine. That simple respect made my chest tighten in a way his kisses hadn't.

"Then I'll take what I can get." He traced my jawline with his thumb. "A stolen moment is better than none at all."

This time when he kissed me, it was slower, deeper, like he was trying to memorize the feel of me. I melted into him, my wolf howling inside at the rightness of it all.

His hand slid lower, hiking up my dress, and I forgot where we were, forgot everything except the feel of his skin against mine, the promise of more—

Footsteps echoed in the corridor outside. We froze, eyes locked, breathing hard.

"Someone's coming," he murmured, reluctantly pulling away.

"Probably Sarah." I quickly straightened my clothes, finger-combing my tangled hair. "She said she'd be back."

Blake pressed one last kiss to my temple. "When all this is over..."

He didn't finish, but I nodded anyway, understanding the promise in those unspoken words.

"Wait for me." The plea slipped out before I could stop it, barely audible even to my own ears.

His eyes softened, the gold fading back to stormy blue. "As long as it takes."

Then he was gone, slipping out with the silent grace only an Alpha could manage. I sagged against the wall, heart still racing, lips still burning from his kiss.

Tomorrow I'd have to choose between my family and... whatever this thing with Blake was becoming. The thought made me feel like I was being torn in half.

**Third Person POV**

"Have you completely lost your mind?" Richard Hayes cornered his son behind a decorative oak, voice barely above a whisper. "Inviting the Rivers girl back as an instructor? After all the trouble we went through to get her father out of the way?"

Jackson's mouth curled into that smile that had always made Richard uneasy—too calculating for someone so young.

"Relax, Father. It's perfectly thought out."

"Thought out? The pack will riot!"

"They'll see a compassionate future Alpha," Jackson corrected, adjusting his cufflinks. "One who believes in second chances, even for those who've made... unfortunate family connections."

Richard studied his son's face, looking for the truth behind the polished veneer. "Cut the crap. What's your real play here?"

Something dangerous flickered in Jackson's eyes. "Did you see Morgan back there? The Alpha King himself, rushing to defend some nobody from Shadow Creek?" He shook his head. "That's not normal."

"You think there's something between them?" Richard's brow furrowed.

"I don't think, I know." Jackson's voice hardened. "She's changed. I can feel it. She was mine, Father. I marked her."

"You suspect..." Richard couldn't even finish the thought.

"I need her here, on our territory, under my watch." Jackson tapped his fingers against his thigh—the only sign of his agitation. "If what I suspect is true, we'd have the perfect leverage against Silverpeak."

Richard pulled back, suddenly wary of his own son. "You're playing with fire. If Morgan has claimed her—"

"Then I'll have proof of the Alpha King violating one of our most sacred laws." Jackson's smile returned, sharper now. "Taking another wolf's marked mate? Even the mighty Blake Morgan couldn't survive that scandal."

"And your engagement to Sophia? The alliance we've spent years building?"

Jackson waved dismissively. "Sophia is a means to an end. If a better opportunity presents itself, only a fool would ignore it."

Richard stared at his son, truly seeing him perhaps for the first time. The ambition he'd once fostered with pride had twisted into something darker, something that sent a chill down his spine.

"Don't drag us into something you can't control," he warned.

"I'm always in control, Father." Jackson's confidence never wavered. "Every possibility has been considered."

What he didn't say—what he'd never admit aloud—was how he planned to use William Rivers as a permanent leash around Ava's neck. The Blood Protection Right was just bait. She'd never get close enough to invoke it, but the hope would keep her dancing to his tune.

And once she was back in Shadow Creek, on his territory, under his command... well, she'd learn quickly that second chances came with strings attached. Very tight strings.

The two men rejoined the ceremony, where the ceremonial torches cast long shadows across the grass. Like omens, they stretched toward the horizon, dark and foreboding.