The Raven Wolf King: Wolfless novel Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Valeria

Raphael’s nose presses against my ear. I hear him breathe, and the warmth of his breath tickles me. It makes me want to press against him. His hand slides around my neck, resting gently under my jaw. He lifts my chin, and I feel his lips trace slowly down my neck, warm and soft against my skin.

“Stop,” I whisper. But I don’t want him to stop–or at least my body doesn’t.

I feel his nose skate to the back of my neck, and then he takes in a long breath.

“Raphael? That’s your name?” I ask.

“Yes.” His eyes seem to darken when I speak his name.

“Why are you doing this?”

He pauses but doesn’t part from me. “I don’t know. I don’t know what I’m doing. I shouldn’t be doing this. I meant what I did, what I said that night.”

I begin to understand and mutter, “Because… it’s not you.”

His brows come together in confusion, but then realization hits him. “It’s my wolf. He… wants you.” He closes his eyes, pressing them with anger.

“But you rejected me, so there’s nothing here for you,” I say.

With a sigh, his hands fall to my waist. “I… had my reasons for what I did.”

“I don’t care about your reasons. Nothing will make it better. What you did is done. Now, let me go.”

He gently turns me around to face him and presses my back against the wall. His hand rests above my head, and he leans in, his eyes locked on mine.

He’s calm now. I can tell the wolf inside him isn’t at the surface. But I can’t hold his gaze. My eyes drop, and holy mother of the goddess… his body is pure perfection.

I’ve never seen a man look this good. And those tattoos. I never cared for them before, but now? I’m converted. I love a man with tattoos.

I force myself to look away.

“Look at me,” he whispers.

“No,” I whisper back.

His fingers settle on my chin and keep it in place as he moves his face into my line of sight. He’s so beautiful. I still don’t understand how we ended up as fated mates. If Jade ever found out, she’d lose it, and honestly, I’d rather she didn’t.

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I don’t want anyone to know. Being rejected hurts enough. But if people knew it was he who turned me away, it would be worse. It’s not just the pain. It’s the shame. The way it twists inside me every time I

look at him and remember what we could’ve had.

“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he says. “It was never my intention. But I’m going to need you to stay away

from me.”

“It doesn’t take away the fact that you did hurt me, and I will stay away. Now let me go and I’ll try to make it so we never have to see each other again.”

I don’t know how I’m going to keep that promise. The thought of avoiding him feels impossible, yet I cling to it, because it’s the only way I know how to protect myself.

I’m pretty sure it was only my imagination that made it seem like he didn’t like the idea.

He’s the one who looks away now. “I’ll let you finish.”

He steps back, taking his warmth with him, and leaves the shower. The steam lingers, but without him, it feels colder. I wanted him to go, yet the moment he’s gone, sadness settles in.

My eyes widen, almost popping from their sockets. I don’t know what’s wrong with me, but the realization slams into me–I was naked with one of the wolf princes.

Prince Raphael… my fated mate.

I’d been so lost in my own grief that I never stopped to truly think about it. And now here I am, standing

in his shower, naked.

Crap…

I clean myself as fast as I can, and when I come out of the shower, my clothes are gone. “Just great.” A towel waits for me on the sink counter. I wrap it around me and slowly open the door.

Raphael stands at the window, brushing his teeth, a towel wrapped around his waist. His hair is still wet, drops of water sliding down his shoulders and chest, catching the light as they fall.

My stomach flips, twisting with nerves. He notices me right away. Without a word, he picks up a pile of folded clothes from the bed and hands them to me. I take them quickly and shut the door in his face, just as he’s about to speak. Behind the door, I press the clothes to my chest, my heart racing.

What… is this? I take a look at the clothes he gave me. A pair of clean dress pants and a dress t–shirt. Men’s clothes… his clothes!

I breathe out in defeat. No choice.

I put them on. They’re huge on me. Just as I finish buttoning the pants, he enters the bathroom and

rinses his mouth at the sink. I slip by him and rush out of the bathroom and straight to the door, but the man is quick. Within seconds, he’s standing behind me, holding the door shut again.

“What now?” I mutter.

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“Valeria, is your name?” His baritone voice is so close it vibrates through me.

“Y–yeah.”

He nods. “Valeria, try not to fall down stairs again.”

I roll my eyes without him seeing me, and at last he lets go of the door. I push it open, but something makes me pause. I glance back at him, and the act surprises me even more than it must surprise him. For a moment, our eyes meet. His expression is unreadable and I feel a pull I don’t want to admit. I should walk away, but instead I stand there as he patiently waits for me to say or do something.

“There was a… woman. A beautiful woman. Was she… a dream?”

He stares at me for a few seconds before he speaks. “It was my mother.”

I freeze, staring at him in shock. But I shouldn’t be surprised. I can see it now. That’s where he gets it. They’re both beautiful.

“Please… give her my thanks.”

I don’t know if he was about to say something or if he just nodded, because I ran out and then realized I was completely lost. Did I really walk this far?

It takes me forever to find the hall that leads back to my room. Somehow, I ended up in the opposite wing, where the royal family lives. How I got there without anyone stopping me is a mystery, though most of the guards were distracted by the party downstairs.

As I walk, people stare and whisper. My stomach twists. I’m sure I look terrible.

When I reach my parents‘ room–directly across from mine and Jade’s–the door is standing open.

“Valeria! Where have you been?” Dad exclaims.

Taking a deep breath, I enter the room. Jade stands in front of a mirror as Mother helps her try on what I assume is a new dress. I fold my arms across the clothes I’m wearing, pulling the fabric tighter around me so no one notices they’re men’s clothes.

I stay silent, standing with my arms crossed.

“What happened? Who did this to you?” He almost looks concerned.

I look at my mother, and his concern immediately fades.

“Oh. I see.” He still looks irritated. “Meryl, people can’t see her like this. What will they think?”

Mother gives an eye–roll. “No one will see her. She won’t be leaving her room until she looks presentable again.” Her irritation is thrown at me now. “And if you challenge me again, the same thing will happen–a good beating and you’ll be sent back to your room. It will become a cycle, and you’ll never leave.”

The thing is she would do it too.

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Father nods. “This will work, I suppose. But please, try to stay your hand next time.”

“That depends on her.” Mother’s unyielding eyes fix on me.

I look away, only to catch Jade narrowing her eyes at me, her gaze lingering on my clothes. Then a sudden knock breaks the silence. The door opens, and Prince Emmet steps in with a wide smile.

“Emmet!” Jade cheers, her voice bright with excitement.

He bows his head. “I was wondering if your family would do me the honor of having breakfast with me? I’d like to get to know you all…” His eyes drift to me. “Are you alright?”

My family panics, but I don’t, because I know what to say. “I fell down the stairs.”

“You… fell?” He’s not buying it.

“Yes! She’s so clumsy sometimes!” Mother laughs and takes him by the arm, away from me. “We would love to have breakfast with you!” She gives me a glance, and I know she wants me to leave, so I do.

I rush to my room. Max immediately greets me, wagging his tail. Even though he’s the family dog and they treat him better than they treat me, besides Father, I’m his next favorite person. He likes Father and

me the most.

I sit on the bed, looking in the mirror from here, wondering how much more I can endure. I’m an adult. Mother shouldn’t be able to treat me like this, but I’m at her mercy. As long as I live with them and I’m not mated, they’ll do whatever they want with me. Especially because I’m wolfless and don’t have the strength that Mother and the others possess.

Maybe I should leave. But I know nothing of the human world. My life has always been with the pack. Even with a family that hurts me, I still cling to the pack life. Perhaps… one day.

I change, leaving the clothes Raphael gave me folded on the bed. As I brush my hair, Jade enters my room. “You slut.” She rushes to the folded clothes and examines them. “This is good quality and…” Her hands graze something I hadn’t seen before. A royal insignia on the neck collar of the shirt. “Royal.” she whispers.

We both stare at each other with wide eyes. “You ARE whoring yourself to the princes!” She laughs, not noticing a shadow appear at the door. “No one wants your sorry ass, so you whore yourself? What a slut.”

I freeze, shocked, as Emmet stares at us. First with surprise, then with sudden disgust. “P–Prince Emmet?” I whisper, my voice trembling.

Jade turns, her face shifting through shades of color. “E–Emmet!”

“I… just wanted to make sure you were okay, if you needed a doctor,” he says to me.

I shake my head. “I–I’m fine. Really.”

Jade nervously laughs. “Oh! Of course, she’s fine. She’s clumsy and is used to pain. She’s resilient!”

He slowly nods. Jade runs to him, hooking her hand around his. “Let’s head down to breakfast!”

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They head out of the room, but the way he looks at her now makes me smile. Karma. I knew eventually he would see this side of her.

Mother suddenly appears at the door. I spring to my feet, my body tense. “Stay here until those bruises heal. Food will be brought to you.” The door closes, and I immediately lie down on the bed, legs and arms spread out. It hurts to breathe or even move. I close my eyes, trying to take a nap, but a sudden loud noise gets my attention.

It comes from the hall. When I take a look, Grimm is struggling to pick up a mop without using his hands. His arms are full of boxes. It’s the sadness in his face that makes me stop and stare.

The door creaks, and he jumps. “Whoa!”

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