Page 5 of Brutal Alpha’s Sold Mate (Starfire Hollow Alphas #4)

The woman sitting next to me is a mystery wrapped in defiance. Any other wolf in her position would be groveling or trying to play nice to get on my good side. Not her. No, Kai’s made it abundantly clear she thinks I’m beneath her and that she’d rather be anywhere but here.

It’s… fascinating.

She should be afraid of me. I’m bigger, stronger, and, in every sense of the word, her captor.

I could literally control her if I chose to.

But instead of fear, she exudes irritation, as if I’ve interrupted her busy schedule by saving her from what I assume was a nightmare.

I can feel the heat of her glare, even as I focus on the rutted dirt road ahead.

“How much longer are we driving through this… nothing?” she grumbles, her tone laced with disdain as she peers out the window. “I didn’t know there were still places on the map where civilization hasn’t caught up.”

I smirk, but don’t take my eyes off the road. “Not much farther. You’ll find it worth the wait.”

She snorts, but her muttering doesn’t stop. Something about the wilderness, the gravel road, the ancient barn we passed half a mile back. It’s as if she’s deliberately trying to get under my skin. It almost works.

“Civilization isn’t all it’s cracked up to be,” I claim after a beat. “Sometimes simpler is better.”

She scoffs, clearly unimpressed. “Spoken like someone who’s never been anywhere worth visiting.”

Her opinion doesn’t surprise me. She’s from a modern pack, that much is obvious.

East Hills wolves have their fancy packhouses, a full town full of touristy bullshit, and more human amenities than most wolves know what to do with.

We’re different. The Black Cauldron pack prefers things rugged and functional.

The road curves sharply, and the tree line thins, revealing the heart of my pack’s territory.

It’s not much to look at—wooden cabins nestled in a clearing, smoke curling from a few chimneys, and a handful of wolves milling about in their human forms. Most of the vehicles are trucks that have seen better days, and a group of pups chases each other around a dilapidated swing set near the packhouse.

Kai’s reaction is immediate. She stiffens in her seat, and her lips part as she takes it all in. It’s not shock but something more subtle, like disbelief laced with judgment. I’d be offended if it weren’t so damn amusing.

“This is it?” she asks, incredulous. “You live here ?”

I park the SUV in front of the largest building: a two-story structure with a wide porch and a sagging roof. This is our version of a church. A building dedicated to ceremonies and pack meetings.

“It’s home,” I say simply, stepping out of the vehicle.

She doesn’t follow right away. Her gaze sweeps the scene like she’s waiting for the punchline. When she finally climbs out, it’s with a resigned sigh that makes me want to laugh.

“Welcome to the Black Cauldron pack,” I declare, gesturing to the area. “It’s not much, but it’s ours.”

She hikes up a brow, crossing her arms. “I’ve seen hunting cabins with more charm.”

“Good thing we’re not here to impress you,” I reply, earning a scowl.

Leonard steps out onto the porch as we approach. He’s dressed in his usual attire: a flannel shirt, worn jeans, and boots that have seen more miles than most cars. His weathered face breaks into a grin when he sees me.

“Well, if it isn’t Theo Hunt,” Leonard greets us. “Didn’t expect to see you back so soon. Thought that meeting would take a bit longer.”

“This is Kai,” I explain, nodding in her direction. “We’ve had a little chat on the drive in. She’s going to help me secure the alpha position.”

Leonard’s grin fades, replaced by a look of cautious approval. He sniffs the air around her before granting an approving nod. “Strong mate. Good choice.”

Kai bristles, and her spine lengthens as she glares at both of us. “I’m standing right here, you know.”

Leonard chuckles, unbothered by her tone. “Good. I like a she-wolf with some fire.”

I glance at her, biting back a smirk. She looks ready to snap back, but Leonard’s already turning toward the porch. “Come on inside. We’ll make it official.”

Kai’s steps are slow and unsure as she follows me inside. The packhouse is as rustic as the rest of the territory, with its wood-paneled walls, mismatched furniture, and the faint scents of pine and smoke lingering in the air.

“This is where you hold ceremonies?” she asks, scrunching up her nose.

“It gets the job done,” I reply, ignoring her skepticism.

Leonard retrieves a battered leather-bound book from a shelf and sets it on the dining table. “Nothing fancy,” he comments as he flips to a marked page. “Just a simple binding ceremony to make it official.”

Kai looks at me, and her expression is somewhere between wary and defiant. “Is this really necessary?”

“It is if you want the deal to work,” I reply evenly. “The pack needs to see us as a united front. This is how we make that happen.”

She huffs, but she doesn’t argue. Instead, she crosses her arms and nods for Leonard to continue.

The ceremony is short and to the point. Leonard reads a passage about loyalty and partnership, then he asks us to exchange vows.

Kai’s gaze burns into mine as she repeats what she’s told to say.

She’s not happy about this arrangement, and she makes that clear by throwing in a few colorful expletives as she speaks.

When it’s my turn, I keep my words simple. I promise to protect her, to respect her, and to honor our agreement. The pack doesn’t need to know the details—they just need to believe it’s real.

Then comes the kiss.

I expect it to be quick and impersonal, a formality to seal the deal. A brush of lips, nothing more. A transaction like any other. But the moment my lips meet hers, everything I planned for shatters.

Her defiance doesn’t fade—it ignites. It’s not the kiss of someone resigned to her fate or begrudgingly going through the motions.

No, there’s fire in it, an explosive, consuming energy that spiders through my body like lightning.

The strength in it is startling, and for a heartbeat, I’m completely unmoored. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

My hand finds her waist instinctively, steadying her—or maybe myself.

Her warmth seeps through my fingers, grounding yet somehow unsettling.

Her scent surrounds me, faintly wild and utterly intoxicating, with hints of earth and something unplaceably natural, like the first breath of an untamed forest after a storm.

I can’t seem to pull away, even when my brain is screaming at me to get a grip.

She’s not supposed to feel like this. Not like heaven wrapped in the flames of hell.

Not like a storm crashing into me, tearing through every shield I’ve built.

But that’s exactly what she is. Every inch of her brims with power held back only by circumstance, and for the first time in longer than I care to admit, I’m off-balance.

The pack, the elder, the ceremony—they all fade into a dull hum in the background.

There’s nothing else but her, the way her lips press against mine with equal parts rebellion and lust, and the traitorous way my body responds to her.

Heat pools low in my stomach, and the rational part of me—the part that reminds me this is nothing more than a deal, a means to an end—takes a backseat to something more primal.

When I finally pull back, it feels like dragging myself out of a riptide. My breathing is unsteady, but I don’t dare show it. She’s watching me with something in her eyes—anger, maybe, or confusion. Or worse, the same fire that’s still smoldering in my chest.

Her lips are parted, she’s panting, and I have the overwhelming urge to reach for her again. My wolf stirs, restless and at attention, and I shove the sensation down hard. This isn’t part of the plan. None of this is part of the damn plan.

For her part, she recovers quickly. She steps back, breaking whatever invisible thread was holding us together. The flames in her eyes turn to ice, and I feel her walls slam back into place as if daring me to make something of it.

“Well,” she sneers, “was that everything you dreamed of, Alpha?”

The way she says it—mocking, laced with venom—should piss me off. Instead, it does something else entirely. It brings something alive in me that I had no idea even existed. Not that I can show it.

“Let’s not make a habit of it,” I reply, forcing my voice to sound as detached as possible.

Her smirk is a challenge, but she doesn’t respond. Instead, she turns on her heel with her shoulders squared as if she’s already put the entire ceremony—and me—behind her.

I glance at Leonard, who’s watching me with a knowing look that I don’t like one bit. He says nothing, but the faint smile tugging at the corner of his mouth is louder than any words could be.

“It’s done,” he finally announces, breaking the silence. “Congratulations, Alpha Hunt and Luna Kai.”

The title settles over me like a weight, heavier than I expected.

I nod, keeping my expression neutral, but my thoughts are anything but.

This wasn’t supposed to be complicated. I was supposed to bring her here, seal the deal, and move on.

She was a means to an end, a tool to secure the alpha position. Nothing more.

But as I watch her walk away with her head held high despite everything, I can’t shake the feeling that I’ve just made a deal with something I don’t fully understand. But I shove it down. There’s no time to dwell on it. The pack doesn’t need to see any cracks in the image we’ve just presented.

Kai, of course, looks like she’d rather be anywhere else as she walks beside me back toward the SUV.

Every step radiates insubordination, and I can practically hear the words she’s biting back.

She doesn’t speak as we climb into the vehicle, but her silence is loaded, crackling like a fuse waiting to ignite.