Keenan could see Maya smirk as she slowly chewed on her food. He dug his nails into his palms as anger surged through him. She had been clearly terrified by his threat, but now she was deviously smiling as she ate.

She sat on the bed cross-legged and hidden underneath her dress so the table could stay as close to the bed as possible while she ate. She leaned forward slightly, holding the bowl as she ate.

Her black hair framed her face and a bit of color could be seen on her cheek but nothing drew his attention more than the pleased look in her blue eyes.

What are you plotting?

He could not ignore her elaborate fainting spell; however, he could not help but find it odd. It would have made more sense to do it before the wedding—an attempt to halt it and to buy herself more time before Vilhelm, her father, came to the rescue.

Or is there some other plan I can’t quite put my finger on?

Keenan had planned to have the wedding as soon as he had her in his grasp, to stop the High Alpha from being able to get his brother to withdraw his decree. He knew Vilhelm would stop at nothing to get her back, and he would do anything to prevent that.

Now, he had her exactly where he wanted, but it felt too easy, and that made him uneasy. She had willingly followed him, and though they were attacked, they got away and married. Vilhelm couldn’t get her away from him even if he wanted to.

He knew that. She knew that. Yet, she didn’t seem terrified of the situation she was in. The only time he could pick up fear from her was when he was addressing her directly. Otherwise, she was eating her meal a little too happily.

Another thing that bothered him was the wolfless scent that filled the room. He had known from the moment he met her that she didn’t have a wolf. Something about the scent on her body signified she lacked wolf form. It was a little strange to explain, as he had never met anyone like that.

He wasn’t bothered about it, as it wasn’t completely unusual for teenagers to get their wolves late, but this was the first time he could pick up such a wolfless scent in an adult. Keenan didn’t care for her; he truly believed this was her punishment, but he would be lying if he said he didn’t spend countless nights thinking about it. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

He hated it.

He hated her; he was certain of that. He hated her and everything she stood for. The sight of her irked him, made him lose reason, and even as she sat across from him, he wanted nothing more than to throw her out of the room.

After eating as much as she could, Maya slowly lifted her head and stretched out her long, fair, well-trimmed slender fingers to pick up the folded napkin. She unfolded it and brought it to her lips, wiping the corners.

It was a simple act, but why couldn’t he look away? How could she look pathetic and elegant at the same time?

His gaze darkened as he remembered her walking down the aisle. The dress she wore was hideous, she was still wearing the hideous dress and a part of him felt a little pleasure at the humiliation, but all that ended when he looked at her face. He could still recall it now.

"Get out!" he blurted.

Being in the same room was too much. He could barely keep his anger in check. He could barely control his thoughts. She was fed and conscious; she had no more business here.

Her hand tightened over the napkin, and a flash of fear passed across her features. Keenan felt a little reprieve at her reaction. He wanted her to be terrified of him, just as he had been terrified of what they were going to do to him next while he was in the dungeons.

She scrambled out of his bed, almost knocking the plates down. She was barefoot, and her footsteps were soft as they hit the carpet. For a moment, she lost her footing but regained it before she face-planted onto the hard floor.

Maya bowed, squeezing her fingers in front of her, and mumbled, "Thank you."

But Keenan couldn’t bear to see the sight of her for another moment, and he most especially didn’t want her thanks.

"You have a nasty habit of getting on my nerves. The next time you refuse a meal, I won’t offer you such courtesy. I will make sure you eat off the dirty floor."

Her eyebrows lifted at his words, and her forehead furrowed. Her fingers unfolded, and she pressed her hands to the sides of her body as her mouth opened in an inaudible gasp.

There it was—the fear that brought him so much delight. This was not some vacation. This was her life now. A life with him. He couldn’t wait to wipe the smile from her lips forever.

Gratitude! Don’t make me laugh. There is nothing but horrors awaiting.

She turned away from him and walked toward the doors. Keenan didn’t glance in her direction, not until he heard the door shut.

He could still smell her as strongly as though she was still seated in front of him. It annoyed him how aware he was of her presence, almost as if he couldn’t escape it.

The tables had turned, but why did he still feel trapped? Why didn’t he have his satisfaction yet? Perhaps it was still too early. Very soon, he would have her groveling.

Yes, that is exactly what I want.

Keenan breathed out of his mouth as he dug the tips of his fingers into the sides of his head. He closed his eyes and felt the banging in his mind slowly quieten.

Moments later, servants came to clear the empty dishes, and Alpha Keenan, who was still sitting on the sofa had a different expression on his face. He was calmer and less agitated.

He stood to his feet, startling the servants who were obviously wary of their Alpha. "Open all the windows and change the sheets!" he ordered as he walked toward the door.

The servants nodded quickly, and one of them moved to open the windows while another pulled off the sheets.

Keenan didn’t look back as he exited his room. When he returned, he didn’t want a single trace of her left in his room.