* * *
“A-ah…!”
Remi’s head tipped back, trembling under the relentless touch that only grew more insistent.
His body, betraying his will, twisted and heaved in response to the stimuli.
He couldn’t understand why his body reacted, even amidst such consuming fear.
Every time the hand invading his clothes roughly brushed against him, heat surged downward, his blood pooling in shameful awareness.
A tear unknowingly formed at the corner of his eye.
He hated it.
He hated being forced to endure this, to the point it made him feel nauseous.
“N-No… stop…”
With his hands restrained, Remy couldn’t even shield his face as tears spilled freely down his cheeks.
Hayward, who had been focused on exploring every inch of his trembling body, paused momentarily to take in the sight of Remy crying.
Perhaps it was the pheromones.
The sight of that tear-streaked face, terrified and trembling, was unbearably beautiful.
Hayward had never thought he had such inclinations, but watching Remy in anguish only stoked the fire within him.
“Remi,” he murmured.
He withdrew his hand momentarily, reaching up to wipe away the tears streaking Remy’s flushed cheeks.
“Do you even realize how you look right now?”
By the time the tears on his cheek were gone, Hayward had leaned in close, his lips brushing against Remy’s ear.
Breathing in the unstable pheromones that the Omega exuded, he let his breath linger near the trembling earlobe.
“Just seeing you cry like this sets my body on fire. I’m so overwhelmed I can barely contain myself.”
His tongue darted out, tracing over the goosebumps on Remy’s flushed skin.
The dampness of saliva only made the sensation more vivid as Hayward’s tongue teased and taunted.
“Didn’t I tell you? How dangerous it is to be alone with an Alpha?”
He whispered darkly, his tone a blend of warning and possession, as his hand roved downward.
His rough fingers undid Remy’s clothes with practiced ease, and in a single motion, he had exposed the Omega completely.
Fear seized Remy’s wide eyes as his mind went blank.
The terror that gripped him was suffocating, his heart hammering as though it would burst.
“An Alpha like me only thinks about one thing when looking at you—making you mine, making you pregnant. That’s what an Alpha is.”
Hayward’s hand slid over the bare skin, his fingers sinking into the flesh with a deliberate slowness. His tone turned mocking, almost cruel.
“You haven’t experienced knotting yet, have you? Your pheromones tell me you’re still untouched.”
The word “knotting” dropped like a stone in Remy’s chest, his heart sinking into despair.
He didn’t know everything about being an Omega, but he understood enough to know what knotting meant—and the inevitable consequence of it.
“You won’t leave here unmarked. Someone else may have stolen your first, but I’ll make sure you’re mine, no matter what.”
Hayward’s movements grew more frenzied, his hands claiming and dominating without restraint.
Remy writhed helplessly, gasping as unwanted sensations coursed through him, his flushed ears and neck burning hot.
“Stop… please… let me go…” Remy sobbed, his voice trembling.
Hayward chuckled, his grin sharp and mocking.
“But your body is telling a different story.”
“No… I hate it… I—”
“You hear that sound? That’s your body calling for me,” he taunted.
Remi wanted to block out the words, to cover his ears from the humiliation.
But the wet, obscene sounds were impossible to ignore, growing louder in his overwhelmed senses.
Remy wanted nothing more than to block out Hayward’s words.
As if he wasn’t already on the brink of madness, those cloying, insidious words rang louder in his ears, impossible to ignore.
“What do you think? From where I’m standing, it seems like your body wants more.”
“That’s… not true.”
“No. I can feel it. Your body is screaming for something right now.”
Still pressing down on Remy’s waist, Hayward lowered his face.
His lips moved, chasing the increasingly intense scent, and Remy’s body trembled uncontrollably, like a leaf in the wind.
Fear and a burgeoning, overwhelming sensation coursed through him, bringing his entire body to an alarming awareness.
“…!”
Remy’s upper body arched involuntarily.
A heat unlike anything he had ever experienced surged from deep below, racing up his spine to the crown of his head.
His thoughts melted, as though molten butter had been poured into his brain.
The sensation was so overpowering it obliterated even the fear that had consumed him.
“Hah…”
Caught in the grip of pure sensation, Remy could do nothing.
He tilted his head back toward the ceiling, frozen in place.
Like his melted mind, the warmth burrowing into him reduced everything below to a smoldering ruin.
The sensations he had desperately wanted to avoid erupted from within, and at their peak, he gave up entirely, surrendering to the overwhelming desire.
“Ah!”
His head, which had been thrown back, collapsed forward, his face burying into the bed.
His body convulsed sporadically, as though in the throes of a seizure.
“…”
Hayward, watching Remy’s completely spent form, leisurely lifted his head.
He wiped his glistening lips with the back of his hand and licked the liquid smeared there.
Seeing Remy, who seemed entirely undone, Hayward felt as though he might lose control himself.
He climbed over Remy, his hands moving to his pants.
His swollen, straining front was aggressively unbuttoned, ready to finally unleash the desire that only Remy could evoke.
But then—
With a loud thud, a commotion erupted near the door.
“Shit.”
An unwelcome intruder made Hayward curse under his breath.
Before he could collect himself, the intruder charged at him.
“Rex…?”
Hayward froze at the sight of the newcomer.
It wasn’t fear of the threat, but sheer shock at the unexpected face.
That hesitation cost him dearly as Rex’s fist slammed into his face.
Though Hayward, an alpha like Rex, could have easily deflected the punch, his surprise rendered him defenseless.
The impact sent him sprawling.
“Remy!”
Another figure burst into the room.
Shoving past the guards in pursuit, Ashton rushed to the bed where Remy lay collapsed.
“Remy! Get a hold of yourself, Remy!”
Ashton scooped up the unresponsive Remy, shouting in distress.
Meanwhile, Rex, having confirmed Remy’s condition, flew into a rage and unleashed a flurry of blows on Hayward.
The guards stormed in, pulling the frenzied Rex away with great difficulty.
Amid the chaos, Remy remained limp in Ashton’s arms, completely unconscious.
“Damn it!”
Regaining some composure, Hayward blocked Rex’s next attack.
He flipped Rex over, landing a punch squarely to his face.
Now it was Hayward who lashed out with unbridled fury.
The guards moved to restrain him as well, struggling to separate the two.
“Your Highness, please calm down, Prince!”
The room had devolved into utter chaos, suffused with the pheromones of enraged alphas.
Even in his unconscious state, Remy seemed affected, coughing weakly as though suffocating.
Seeing this, Ashton shouted desperately.
“Stop! Stop this at once! Remy is suffering, Your Highness!”
The guards, who had been powerless to stop Hayward’s earlier outburst, could only watch in silence as he fell still at Ashton’s single command.
His gaze fixed instantly on Remy, who was struggling in evident agony.
Rex, too, was transfixed by the sight, his attention riveted on the pale, pained expression of the omega.
“Remy!”
Without hesitation, the two alphas moved toward him.
Remy, cradled in Ashton’s arms, convulsed slightly, gasping for breath.
Hayward tried to snatch Remy away, driven by the unbearable sight of his beloved omega suffering in another alpha’s embrace.
“Ashton,” Hayward growled.
But Ashton had no intention of relinquishing Remy.
Just as during the hunting tournament, Ashton was determined not to give Hayward another chance.
Not after what he had attempted.
“Your Highness, you just tried to assault Remy.”
* * *
