KESTER.
Getting your head back on straight is hard enough on a typical day.
But when you've just seen her—a stunning, maddening woman in one of those tiny dresses I've warned her not to wear—fuck, it becomes nearly impossible.
The small, flowery dress clung to her curves like a second skin, so short and delicate I could probably shred it with a single tug of my fingers. The image of it falling away, the bare expanse of her skin beneath, burned in my mind.
And those green eyes of hers... Why the hell does she stare at me like that? Like she knows exactly what she's doing to me.
It wrecks me every time.
Blood rushed south, hot and primal, and I nearly lost myself. Again.
Now, here I was, tortured and frustrated, staring at my laptop and watching her read a book.
I was fucking watching her read a book!
Her long legs are tucked under her, the hem of that damned dress riding up just enough to tease. I could watch her for the rest of my life.
I shouldn't be watching her. I know that. But the truth? I can't stop. I'm obsessed, and every second I spend in her presence only deepens it.
At first, when Dad had come up with the idea of marrying a new wife, I was pissed at him. Not after what he did to my mum - the same reason we both have a lot of friction between us. And sometimes, I wonder if my stepmother was truly enjoying or enduring her marriage to my father.
We've never been on good terms. However, he's been doing all he could to set things right between us, like making me visit home on weekends when I finally bought my mansion here in the city.
I found it boring and disturbing. The only thing that made it worthwhile was the thought of peeping at my stepsister from the hole I had carved on the wall separating both our rooms.
I had carved that hole when I was twenty. In a bid to justify my stupid action, I convinced myself that it was just to keep an eye on her so she wouldn't hurt herself.
Funny. Stupid, even.
Hurt herself with what and why?
But I guess old habit never dies. Here I was, with not just a hole in the wall but tons of cameras planted all over her room, allowing me to enjoy the view of everything she did and every move she made.
Wait. Hold on.
I watched her stand up from the bed and walk toward her closet. My heart picked up speed as I feared it was what I imagined.
She... She wanted to use the shower. I had to look away.
"Keep staring, Kester. She is ours," My wolf said. He always called her ours. Was he insane? Not that I won't make her ours, but he always sounded as though it was natural and acceptable.
"Shut the fuck up," I mutter under my breath, dragging a hand down my face as my gaze caught something... That corner of the room wasn't properly captured. I could barely see her. Just a tiny part of that corner was visible.
"Fuck!" I slammed my fist on the bed in rage. I told those motherfuckers to do a perfect job, and I thought they did.
Then, I saw something. A part of her... This should be a sin. It should be forbidden. But it thrilled me. It was a glimpse... Just a glimpse. The curve of her breast, barely visible as she peels off the straps of that dress.
It was quick. So quick that I almost didn't see it.
Although it was blurry, it would do. I quickly took a screenshot of it and saved it in my gallery, along with the others.
My dick hardened painfully, feeling so hot and heavy from just staring at the blurry image, the desire to burst into her room and claim her was nearly overwhelming. To see her fully, taste her skin, and hear her breath hitch under my touch. Perhaps I could have a little taste of those rosy nipples, too.
I guess I had accepted the fact that Kasmine wasn't just my sister anymore. She was now my obsession.
The ringing of my phone shattered the sweet thoughts I was having.
Fuck.
There was always that distraction. Always.
"What?" I growl into the receiver, barely containing my frustration.
It was my Beta, Lance.
Lance has been the one acting in my stead whenever I wasn't at the pack house. He was just like a brother to me, and I trusted him with my life.
But there were times when I felt like strangling him with my bare hands, just like now.
"There is an urgent meeting that needs your attention, Alpha," He announced.
I thought I made you Beta so I wouldn't have to deal with this shit," I snapped.
"Calm down, man. If it wasn't urgent and out of my control, you know I wouldn't have called," He replied, "It's about the Shadow Valley pack," He added.
At the mention of the Shadow Valley pack, every sinful thought about Kasmine that clouded my mind dissipated, and I was already on my way to the pack house.
The Shadow Valley pack was one other pack that wrestled power with us. We are the most powerful, influential, resourceful, just name it. But the Shadow Valley pack was quickly making its way up the radar to meet us at the top. And now, they seek an alliance with us.
May I be doomed to let my pack into an alliance with their proud peacock of an Alpha.
"In order to solidify the alliance, one of our own must mate with one of yours," One of the elders from the Shadow Valley pack drew his long speech to a conclusion. "Our Alpha, Alpha Kex, has taken a liking to your daughter, Kasmine. He would like to make her his chosen mate," The elder dropped the bomb.
The world spun around me, and for a moment, all I could hear was the blood rushing through my veins.
I tried to but couldn't stop myself from the evil I was about to do. With a speed faster than the expectation of everyone around, I was standing behind the elder who dared utter such sacrilege, my hand gripping his neck with a force that almost made it snap.
"How dare you?" I said, my voice gruff and dangerous. "First, your Alpha dared make me travel all the way here for a meeting he knew so well he wasn't going to attend; then you have the effrontery to speak such nonsense to me about my sister?" I growled.
"Kester!" My father's voice was the only one that broke through my haze.
My gaze snapped in the direction of his voice, and that was when I saw everyone on their feet, their face a mask of shock, anger, fear...
"Tell your pathetic Alpha that we don't want an alliance with a coward like him and that we'll never have anything to do with him or his pack from today on," I declared. My father stepped forward, and I knew what he was trying to do, but my next words stopped him, "I am Alpha, and my word is final!"
I left the pack house, my blood boiling, the thought of Kasmine being anyone's but mine threatening to consume me. I ordered the driver and convoy to leave. They were reluctant at first, but they left. I opted to drive myself home. I just needed to be in my own space.
My father wasn't pleased with how I handled the Shadow Valley pack representatives. Of course, I expected nothing else from him. No wonder his reign as Alpha wasn't half as successful as mine. He was weak and a push-over.
'You also have to start preparing to marry June. It's growing cold. We need that alliance like our lives depend on it,' My father's words kept echoing in my head.
Yes. As hard as it was to admit it, June's father was very influential and highly connected. His Tech company is one of the largest in the country, just like mine.
Getting married to June would bring Zamfort even more global recognition and boost our income from the international market by more than 27,8 percent.
That is huge. Everyone would jump on this opportunity... Not me.
I drove into the compound, and it was quiet. The driver and my men weren't back yet, except for those who were guarding the perimeter and outside my house.
Ignoring their greetings, I stormed into the house, making my way to the stairs in quick strides. I halted as soon as I reached my door.
Something wasn't right. My door was slightly open.
A wave of panic washed over me as I immediately realized what was happening.
Kasmine.
No! Fuck, No! She shouldn't be in there!
I reached for the doorknob, pushing it open with enough force that it hit the wall. My breath caught in my throat as my eyes landed on her.
She froze like a deer caught in headlights, standing at the edge of my bed, clutching a book she clearly shouldn't have been holding.
"What the fuck are you doing in here?" I growled, my heart slamming against my ribcage, the chaos inside me building at an uncontrollable speed as my eyes scanned the area where she stood.
She had seen it all... Everything.