CHAPTER TEN
Ted POV
Chirping?
I blink open my eyes slowly.
Birds.
There are birds chirping. Soft and melodic, like I'm waking up in a storybook. Which makes no sense, because the last thing I remember is walking home, exhausted, angry, wet from the light drizzle, and arguing with Niall Alden.
Then?
Nothing.
My eyes snap fully open, and I sit up quickly. Too quickly. The room spins for a second before settling.
Where am I?
I'm on a bed. No. Not just a bed. A luxurious, silk-sheeted, floral-scented monstrosity of a bed that looks like it belongs to a royal or someone who charges $5,000 a night for a room. The canopy above is sheer, cream-colored, and embroidered with tiny glowing threads.
The room is massive, the walls painted in a soft blush pink, with gold detailing on the corners. A massive arched window opens up to a breathtaking view of some kind of private garden. The sunlight is golden. Dreamy.
The air is perfumed.
And I am, for some reason, in a pink pajama set. Shirt and shorts. Both crisp. Comfortable. Clearly expensive.
Panic flickers low in my stomach.
I get off the bed, feet brushing soft carpet. I look around. My clothes from yesterday are gone. Vanished. Nowhere in sight.
On a nearby table, I spot my phone and wallet.
I lurch forward and grab the phone.
Charged. 100%.
I press the screen.
No missed calls. No messages. Just... full battery.
Before I can start unlocking it, the door swings open.
And in walks the devil.
Blue shorts. An ugly Hawaiian shirt that looks like it came straight from a cursed vacation catalogue. Raven hair loose to his shoulders and slightly damp like he'd just showered.
Niall Alden.
He sees me and smiles.
"Oh, you're awake?"
"What's going on?" I ask.
He walks farther into the room and drops onto a velvet chair with the grace of someone completely unbothered by consequences.
"Oh, I kidnapped you."
My jaw drops.
"Yeah, I got that part!" I snap. "Why?!"
He leans back casually, one leg propped over the other.
"Because we're getting married."
My brain stalls.
"Excuse me?!"
He shrugs.
"I mean, there has to be the whole falling-in-love thing first, probably. Or not. My parents did it the other way around. Worked out well enough."
My voice rises. "I am against this! I am not marrying you!"
I can hear my voice cracking, my panic bubbling just beneath the surface.
"A-a-and I'm never going to fall in love with you!!"
Dammit.
My words always get tangled when I'm agitated.
He stares.
Then gives me that irritating little smirk like I just told him I was going to bake cookies instead.
"Right," he says simply.
Like he doesn't believe me at all.
Like it's just a matter of time.
I want to scream.
"I have to go back! My family will be worried!"
He raises an eyebrow.
"Actually, your uncle and cousin technically sold you to me. For, what, half a million?"
I freeze.
"They what?!"
He pulls out his phone and taps a few things, then holds it up.
I snatch it.
A message thread.
My name.My schedule.
All the places I work. My class certifications. My blood type.
And a short message:
He's strong for an omega. Here's everything we know. Half a million wired in advance. Enjoy.
I feel the world tilt.
No. No, no, no.
"Regardless," I grit out, "I'm a legal adult. I'm 22. They can't sell me. That's not a thing."
He folds his arms.
"Mmm, yes and no. You see, there's already a price tag on you on the dark net. Listed at just 50k. Which, by the way, is insulting. You had a buyer already. They were going to drug and deliver you to some very unsavory types.
Had I not stepped in and multiplied the offer by ten, you'd be wearing a collar right now in someone else's bed."
My blood runs cold.
"They wouldn't..."
"Wouldn't they?" he cuts in gently.
I open my mouth.
Then close it.
I want to say no.
I want to believe my uncle wouldn't.
But I do believe it.
Because I know him.
Because I've always known, deep down, that the man who raised me didn't do it out of love. Just out of necessity.
Because I was useful. And once I wasn't? Guess I know now.
...
I sit down slowly.
Then, softly, he says, "I'm sorry."
I don't look at him.
"Give me some space."
To my surprise, he doesn't argue.He nods once and leaves, the door shutting gently behind him.
As soon as he's gone, I crumble.I slide to the floor, still hugging my knees, heart pounding.
I don't know what to do, what I'm supposed to feel.Betrayal? Fear?
Relief that it was him and not someone worse?
I don't know.I press my forehead to my knees.
I just want to disappear.