Mated to My Intended's Enemy

Victoria

I never thought my eighteenth birthday would be the day I'd have to fight for my freedom, but here I was, in a nightclub called "Devil's Lair," searching for a man who could help me escape my fate.

My name is Victoria Howlthorne, a wolf-human hybrid born to the once-powerful Howlthorne pack. With my father's pure wolf blood running through my veins alongside my human mother's legacy, I should have been cherished. Instead, I became a commodity.

The bass pounded through my body as I navigated the crowded dance floor. The five thousand dollars I'd stolen from Enzo's secret stash felt heavy in my purse – a small price for the freedom I deserved.

"I still think this is crazy, Vic," my best friend Emma whispered, her eyes darting nervously around the club. "There has to be another way."

I took a long sip of my cocktail, feeling the burn slide down my throat. "There isn't. By tomorrow, I'll be shipped off to Alpha Moretti as payment for Enzo's gambling debts. I refuse to be a virgin sacrifice."

The truth was brutal but simple. Six years ago, my father and stepmother died protecting our territory borders. My half-brother Enzo – a child from my father's affair – somehow managed to claim the Alpha title despite his weakness. Now he was drowning in debt and had found the perfect solution: me.

"But Alpha Moretti..." Emma shuddered visibly. "The rumors about him... they say he's been cursed by the Moon Goddess herself. His mates don't survive his... appetites."

I knew the stories. Alpha Moretti's sexual sadism was legendary among wolf packs. Five million dollars in debt had pushed Enzo to offer me as payment.

"That's exactly why I'm here," I said firmly. "If I'm no longer pure, maybe he'll reject the deal. Either way, I refuse to let my first time be with a monster."

My eyes scanned the club until they locked on a figure at the bar. The sight of him made my breath catch in my throat. He leaned against the counter with casual confidence, but there was nothing casual about his presence. Broad shoulders stretched his black henley, the fabric clinging to defined muscles underneath. His jaw looked like it had been carved from stone, strong and angular, with just enough stubble to look dangerously sexy. From his profile, I could see a thin scar tracing down his cheekbone, adding character rather than detracting from his beauty.

But it was more than his looks that drew me in. Something primal emanated from him – a magnetic pull I couldn't explain.

"That one," I whispered to Emma, a sly smile on my lips,"He's perfect."

"Holy shit," Emma gasped, eyes wide. "He's gorgeous, but Victoria, he looks... dangerous."

"Good," I said, smoothing down my little black dress that barely covered my ass. "Dangerous is exactly what I need tonight."

I picked up my drink, walked over in my heels like a quiet cat, and slid onto the barstool next to him. I crossed my legs slowly, letting just enough thigh show. Leaning forward, I rested my elbow on the bar, giving him a perfect view of my chest.

"Buy a girl a drink?" I asked, my voice playful.

His eyes were hazel with gold flecks, glowing under the dim lights. He didn't leer-he looked at me like a hunter deciding whether I was worth the chase.

"Shouldn't you be in college studying for finals?" he said, his deep voice rolling through me like thunder. There was a faint accent-Italian maybe? Sexy as hell.

I smiled and flipped my hair over my shoulder, letting it fall down my back. I licked my lower lip slowly.

"It's my birthday," I said, lowering my voice. "I'm celebrating. survival."

He raised an eyebrow, amused. "Survival?"

"Eighteen years of being good, quiet, obedient." I picked up a lemon slice from my drink and traced its edge with my finger. "Tonight, I want to be reckless. Just once."

He didn't answer right away. He just smiled-a slow, dangerous smile that made my stomach twist. I reached for his hand resting on the bar. It was big, warm, with veins showing beneath the surface.

"Your hands look like they could hurt me," I said softly, running my fingertips across his knuckles.

Only if you ask nicely," he replied, voice low and rough, eyes darkening.

I bit my lip, teasing.

"Then maybe I will," I said, leaning in close until my lips brushed his ear. My breath touched his skin. "But you better make it worth it.Tequila. Straight."

The corner of his mouth curved upward. "Bold choice."

"I'm feeling bold tonight." I extended my hand. "I'm Victoria."

He hesitated before taking it, his much larger hand enveloping mine. The contact sent electricity shooting up my arm. "Leo."

Leo. Simple. Powerful. Like the king of beasts.

"So, Leo," I said, leaning closer so my scent would reach him, "what brings a man like you here alone?"

"Business." His eyes never left mine as he lifted his glass. "Until you interrupted it."

"Do you want me to leave?" I challenged.

He studied me for a long moment. "No."

The tequila arrived. I threw it back in one swift motion, welcoming the burn. Leo watched me, his expression unreadable but intense. When I set the glass down, his fingers brushed against mine.

"Another?" he asked.

"I'd rather dance."

We moved to the dance floor, the crowd parting instinctively for him. Once surrounded by bodies, I pressed against him, my back to his front. His hands found my hips, strong and possessive. The music pulsed through us both as I moved against him, feeling his body respond.

"What game are you playing, little wolf?" he murmured against my ear, his breath hot on my skin.

The way he said it sent thrills through me. I turned to face him, wrapping my arms around his neck.

"Who says I'm playing a game? Maybe I just see something I want."

His thumb traced my lower lip, and I resisted the urge to take it into my mouth. "And what is it you want?"

"You," I said simply. "In a room. Alone."

His eyes darkened dangerously. "Careful what you wish for."

I reached into my purse and pulled out the hotel key card I'd acquired earlier. "Room 1503. Fifteen minutes. Your move."

Before he could respond, I turned and walked away, heart hammering in my chest. As I passed Emma, I gave her a nod, and she slipped out to wait for me in the car as planned.

In the elevator, I pressed my thighs together, already feeling the heat and dampness building between them. The scent on Leo's skin - earthy and sharp, like pine and deep forest - stirred something wild and primal inside me. I had never felt this kind of raw, magnetic pull before.

In the hotel room, I freshened up quickly, then paced nervously. Would he come? What if he didn't?

But exactly fifteen minutes later, a knock came at the door. When I opened it, Leo filled the doorframe, his powerful presence making the spacious room feel suddenly small. Without a word, he stepped inside, closing the door behind him.

"Last chance to back out," he said, his voice low and controlled.

I moved closer, placing my hands on his chest. Through the thin fabric, I felt his heart beating steadily – much more composed than my own racing pulse.

"I don't want to back out," I whispered, raising myself on tiptoes. "I want you to fuck me, Leo."

His control visibly fractured. His large hand slid up my thigh, the heat of his palm sending electricity through my skin. I gasped as his fingers traced higher, teasing the edge of my panties.

"You smell sweet," he growled, burying his face in my neck. I arched into him, already desperate for more contact. The subtle forest scent that surrounded him grew stronger, and my body responded instinctively. I wrapped my arms around his neck, boldly climbing onto his lap as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"Room 1503," I breathed against his ear. "I'm all yours tonight."

His hands gripped my hips, and I could feel his impressive hardness beneath me. For a moment, something like hesitation crossed his features, but when I rolled my hips against him, whatever resistance he'd been holding onto snapped.

"Be careful what you ask for, little wolf," he whispered against my lips. "I might just ruin you for anyone else."

Leo

I never expected that this night would turn into one of the most confusing and infuriating encounters of my existence. As Alpha of the Shadow Pack, I'd agreed to meet with Enzo Howlthorne at my club to finalize our arrangement-five million dollars of gambling debt to be settled with something far more valuable.

He presented me with a photo of his half-sister, Victoria - a newly turned eighteen-year-old hybrid wolf. Beautiful. Pure. With noble Alpha blood in her veins. Enzo described her as unshifted, soft-natured, and obedient by default. In his words, she would make the perfect, well-behaved little sex slave.

Yet the woman approaching me at the bar looked nothing like the demure virgin I'd been promised. She was breathtaking. Curves poured into a little black dress that barely covered what mattered, long chestnut hair cascading down her back, and those eyes-wide, innocent, yet burning with determination. She moved like she owned the place, sliding onto the stool beside me and crossing those impossibly long legs.

"Buy a girl a drink?" she purred, leaning forward to give me a perfect view of her cleavage.

My wolf howled in approval. Mine. She's already ours. What game is she playing?

I kept my composure, though my blood was already heating. "Shouldn't you be in college studying for finals?" I asked, allowing myself to study her more carefully. Her scent was intoxicating-pure, untouched, yet somehow bold and defiant.

"It's my birthday," she said with a smile that made my cock twitch. "I'm celebrating... survival."

Birthday. Eighteen. The age when she'd legally become mine according to our arrangement. Was this some kind of test? Did Enzo send her here to see if I'd recognize her?

When she touched my hand, electricity sparked between us. The connection was undeniable-this was my mate, whether she knew it or not. But she clearly had no idea who I was, which meant...

"Your hands look like they could hurt me," she whispered, tracing my knuckles.

"Only if you ask nicely," I responded, my voice rougher than intended as my wolf clawed for control.

The way she bit her lip nearly broke my restraint. This wasn't the sheltered Alpha's daughter Enzo had described. This was a woman on a mission, and suddenly I was very interested in discovering what that mission was.

"I'm Victoria," she said, extending her hand.

I hesitated before taking it, knowing that touch would only intensify our connection. "Leo," I replied, using my given name rather than my full title. Let her believe I was just another man in a club. For now.

When she pressed against me on the dance floor, her perfect ass grinding against my growing hardness, I nearly lost it. "What game are you playing, little wolf?" I whispered against her ear, unable to stop myself from using the endearment.

And then she handed me a hotel key card. Room 1503. Fifteen minutes.

I should have walked away. I should have called Enzo right then and demanded an explanation. Instead, I found myself counting down the minutes, my wolf pacing restlessly inside me.

When I knocked on her door exactly fifteen minutes later, the scent of her arousal hit me like a physical blow. She looked up at me with those wide eyes, and I gave her one last chance to back out.

"I don't want to back out," she whispered, rising on her tiptoes. "I want you to fuck me, Leo."

My control shattered. I'd spent years mastering my Alpha instincts, but one request from those sweet lips and I was undone. Her skin was silk beneath my fingers as I traced up her thigh, teasing the edge of her panties. She was already wet for me, her scent driving me wild.

"You smell sweet," I growled, burying my face in her neck to inhale more of her intoxicating aroma. When she climbed onto my lap, grinding against my painfully hard cock, I nearly took her right there.

She breathed against my ear. "I'm all yours tonight."

All mine. The irony wasn't lost on me. She had no idea she'd already been promised to me-that by tomorrow, she'd officially belong to me according to the agreement with her brother. And here she was, offering herself freely.

"Be careful what you ask for, little wolf," I whispered against her lips. "I might just ruin you for anyone else."

"Leo," she moaned, her nails digging into my shoulders as I filled her completely. "Oh god, Leo."

Her inexperience was obvious, but her enthusiasm made up for it.Because the moment I slid into her tight, wet heat and felt her barrier give way, something primal and possessive took over.

I took my time, watching her face as she experienced each new sensation. When I hooked her legs over my arms and drove deeper, her eyes widened in shocked pleasure.

"Is this what you wanted?" I growled, maintaining a punishing rhythm. "To give yourself to a stranger? "

She looked confused for a moment, but then her eyes rolled back as a particularly deep thrust hit the perfect spot. "Yes," she gasped. "I don't want to be sold to some-ah!-thirty-two-year-old monster."

The words hit me like a bucket of ice water. Thirty-two-year-old monster. Is that what she thought of me? What Enzo had told her?

Something dark and angry unfurled in my chest. She was here to ruin herself before being handed over to me-not knowing she was currently beneath the very man she was trying to escape.

"Do I feel like a monster to you now?" I growled, increasing my pace, determined to make her scream my name.

"No," she gasped, her inner walls clenching around me. "You feel... amazing."

I flipped her onto her hands and knees, taking her from behind the way my wolf demanded. The sight of her submission, her perfect ass raised for me, her back arched as she pushed back against me-it was the most erotic thing I'd ever seen.

"You're mine," I found myself saying as I pounded into her. "Say it."

"I'm yours," she moaned, not understanding the truth behind the words. "Yours, Leo."

Jealousy twisted in my gut-jealousy of myself, as absurd as that sounded. She was giving herself to me to avoid being given to... me. The irony would have been amusing if I wasn't so consumed with possessing her completely.

When her inner walls began to pulse around my cock, I knew she was close. I reached around to circle her clit with my thumb, and she came with a cry that would haunt my dreams-back arched, eyes rolled back, my name on her lips like a prayer. The sight pushed me over the edge, and I emptied myself deep inside her, marking her as mine in the most primitive way.

Afterward, I pulled her against my chest, kissing her deeply. My wolf was satisfied but wanted more-wanted to keep her here, to take her again and again until she couldn't remember ever wanting to escape me.

"That was..." she whispered against my lips.

"Just the beginning," I promised, already hardening again inside her.

Her eyes widened in surprise and delight. We were just getting started when my phone rang, the specific tone telling me it was an emergency. I cursed, reaching for it while keeping Victoria pinned beneath me.

It was Beta Tiny's number. I silenced it immediately, but the spell had been broken. Victoria suddenly seemed to remember herself, slipping out from under me with remarkable agility for someone who'd just lost her virginity.

I watched, perplexed, as she hurriedly dressed and then-to my utter disbelief-reached into her purse and pulled out a stack of bills.

"Two thousand should cover it, right?" she said, placing the money on the nightstand. "You were amazing."

My brain short-circuited. "Cover what?"

She paused, studying my expression with sudden uncertainty. Then, as if coming to some conclusion, she pulled out another thousand dollars and carefully arranged the bills in a neat stack.

"Three thousand total," she said, her voice gentle now, almost apologetic. "That's fair, isn't it? You're clearly the best in your field."

The realization hit me like a physical blow. She thought I was a prostitute. A fucking male escort. The woman promised to me as payment for her brother's debt had just paid me for sex.

I couldn't help it-a cold laugh escaped me. "You think I'm for hire?"

Her eyes widened slightly. "Aren't you? I mean... at the club... the way you looked at me..."

"I'm many things, Victoria," I said slowly, rising from the bed in all my naked glory, enjoying how her eyes couldn't help but track down my body. "But a whore isn't one of them."

Confusion and embarrassment colored her cheeks. She backed toward the door. "I'm sorry, I just assumed... Look, keep the money anyway. Consider it a gift for... making my first time special."

Before I could stop her, she had slipped out the door, leaving me standing naked with three thousand dollars on the nightstand and a rage building inside me that threatened to consume everything in its path.

My phone rang again. This time I answered it, seeing Enzo's name on the screen.

"You better have a damn good explanation for this," I snarled into the phone.

"For what?" Enzo's pathetic voice quavered. "Is something wrong with the arrangement?"

"Be in my office tomorrow morning," I ordered. "Nine AM sharp. And Enzo? If you're even a minute late, I'll tear out your throat myself."

I ended the call and stared at the neatly stacked bills on the nightstand. Victoria Howlthorne had no idea what she'd just done-or who I really was. But tomorrow, when she was officially handed over to Alpha Moretti as payment for her brother's debt, she would learn exactly who she had given her virginity to.

And I would make damn sure she never forgot who she belonged to again.

Victoria

I was still smiling from my night with Leo as I slipped back into the mansion, dawn just breaking across the pack house. The soreness between my thighs was a delicious reminder of what had happened-how I'd taken control of my own destiny for once. I'd done it. I'd given away what Enzo had been planning to sell. For once in my miserable life, I'd made my own choice.

My victorious mood lasted precisely three seconds after entering the living room.

"You worthless little bitch! You thief!" Enzo's voice thundered through the house as he grabbed my arm, spinning me around to face him. His eyes-normally a cool blue-had shifted to their wolf hazel, a clear sign of his rage. He gripped my chin roughly, tilting my face to examine the marks on my neck. "What the hell have you done? How am I supposed to negotiate with Alpha Moretti now?"

I couldn't suppress my smile, even as his fingers dug painfully into my jaw. Every single thing that made Enzo unhappy was a small victory for me.

"Let me go," I said, voice steadier than I expected. "I don't know what you're talking about."

He shoved me against the wall, his hand moving to my throat. "Don't play dumb. Five thousand dollars missing from my safe. And look at you-covered in another man's scent, bruises on your neck." He leaned closer, inhaling deeply. "You reek of sex. Did you really think I wouldn't notice?"

"Did you really think I wouldn't notice that you were selling me like cattle?" I shot back, finding courage in my anger. "Trading me to settle your pathetic gambling debts?"

Enzo's eyes widened slightly. "You don't understand pack politics," he sneered. "Alpha Moretti is offering you a position most she-wolves would kill for. You should be grateful-"

"Grateful?" I laughed, the sound bitter even to my own ears. "For being handed over to a thirty-two-year-old monster? A man known for breaking his partners during sex? I'd rather die."

His lips curled into a cruel smile. "You think being Luna to a powerful Alpha is worse than what you are now? A pathetic half-breed who can't even shift? Father may have bonded with your human mother, but that doesn't change what you are."

The mention of my parents sent a spike of pain through my heart. "At least my mother didn't abandon her mate and child," I hissed. "Unlike darling Aurora, who ran away when things got tough."

It was a low blow, and I knew it. Aurora, Enzo's mother, had betrayed our father and left the pack when Enzo was just a child. She only returned with eight-year-old Enzo after learning my human mother had died giving birth to me. By then, Father was devastated by grief, barely functioning as Alpha.

"Don't you dare speak of my mother," Enzo growled. "At least she came back. Yours just died and left you as a burden for everyone else."

The words stung more than they should have. I knew my mother hadn't chosen to die-childbirth complications from carrying a hybrid baby had weakened her human body beyond recovery. She'd held on until I was three, growing weaker each day, before finally succumbing.

"You weren't always like this," I said quietly. "Before Father died, you were different. You used to protect me, remember? You taught me how to ride a bike. You threatened to beat up the kids who called me half-breed."

Something flickered in Enzo's eyes-a shadow of the brother I'd once known. Before he became Alpha. Before the gambling and prostitutes and drugs had eaten away at whatever moral compass he once possessed.

"That was before I understood what a liability you are," he said, but his voice held less conviction. "Before I understood pack hierarchy."

"Before Luna Aurora poisoned you against me."

His expression hardened again. "Enough! You think you're so smart with your little rebellion? You've just made things worse for yourself. What do you think Moretti will do when he discovers you've given away what he paid for?"

I lifted my chin defiantly. "I don't belong to him. Or to you."

The slap came without warning, the force of it snapping my head to the side and sending me sprawling across the coffee table. Glass shattered as I crashed into it, cutting my arms and legs as I fell.

"You belong to whoever I say you belong to!" Enzo roared, standing over me. "You think I enjoy being in debt to Moretti? You think I enjoy having to hand over my own sister to settle it? This is your fault! If Father hadn't wasted so much of our fortune on your human mother's medical treatments-"

"Don't you dare blame her!" I screamed, tears streaming down my face now. "Don't you dare blame a dying woman who loved her family more than anything!"

Enzo grabbed a fistful of my hair, yanking me to my feet. "Clean this mess up," he hissed. "Then stay in your room until I figure out how to fix your stupidity."

I wanted to fight back. I wanted to claw at his face, to make him bleed the way he'd made me bleed countless times. But without my wolf, I was no match for an Alpha werewolf's strength. I'd learned that lesson through too many broken bones and bruises.

"I hate you," I whispered, my voice shaking with rage and pain.

"Feeling's mutual, little sister." He shoved me toward the shattered remains of the coffee table. "Clean it up. Now."

I dropped to my knees, carefully picking up shards of glass with trembling hands. Tears blurred my vision as I worked, the cuts on my palms stinging. How had my life come to this? I was the daughter of Alpha Howlthorne, once respected leader of our pack. Now I was nothing but property to be traded away.

Enzo watched me for a few minutes, his presence a looming threat, before finally stalking off to his study with a disgusted grunt. Only when I heard the door slam did I allow myself to really cry, silent sobs shaking my body as I continued cleaning.

By the time I finished, my knees were cramped and my hands were bleeding from several cuts. I dragged myself to my room, pulling the first-aid kit from under my bed where I kept it hidden. Enzo had "accidentally" thrown away my medical supplies too many times for me to keep them in the bathroom anymore.

The face that stared back at me from my vanity mirror was barely recognizable. A red handprint bloomed across my left cheek, my bottom lip was split, and the light in my eyes-what little remained-seemed dimmer than ever. The bruises Leo had left on my neck now looked less like badges of rebellion and more like markers of another failed attempt at freedom.

I dabbed antiseptic on my cuts, wincing at the sting. "Happy birthday to me," I whispered bitterly to my reflection.

My mother had been gone for fifteen years now. Sometimes I couldn't remember her face without looking at photographs. I missed her. I missed my father. I even missed the Enzo who used to sneak me extra dessert and teach me how to throw a proper punch.

The tears came again, hot and relentless. I'd turned eighteen yesterday-the age when most werewolves shift for the first time. But my wolf never emerged. Another sign of my unworthiness, according to Enzo. Another reason I'd never truly belong in the wolf world.

I'd considered running away to my human aunt Sarah's home several times, but I knew better. If I involved my human relatives, Enzo wouldn't hesitate to hurt them. Besides, what could humans do against an Alpha werewolf determined to get his property back?

I touched the necklace at my throat-the only thing I had left of my mother. A simple silver crescent moon pendant that had somehow survived Enzo's many attempts to pawn my possessions.

"What do I do now, Mom?" I whispered to the empty room. "I thought I was being so clever, giving away what Enzo was selling. But now..."

Was this really my fate? To be handed over to Alpha Moretti like some prized breeding mare? I'd heard the stories about him-how his sexual appetites were violent, even by werewolf standards. How he'd been cursed by the Moon Goddess for some ancient transgression, cursed to destroy anything he tried to love.

I curled up on my bed, ignoring the pain from my various injuries. Maybe I could run tonight. Take what little money I had saved and just disappear. It wouldn't be much of a life, constantly looking over my shoulder, but it would be mine.