Dinner of Defiance

My body aches from the violation. Every step I take toward the dining table sends a sharp throb through my swollen vagina and bruised inner thighs. It is a raw, physical reminder of his forced penetration. I take my seat exactly where the imposing Luna Rossi directs me. Across the heavy wooden surface, Mateo avoids making eye contact with me. He stares down at his porcelain plate like a coward.

Luna Rossi ignores the heavy tension suffocating the room. She takes charge of the meal, slicing and serving the fresh bread. I track her movements. I notice how her grip on the serrated bread knife lingers a second too long. Her knuckles turn white around the handle—a calculated, silent physical threat. She sets the knife down within her reach. Without missing a beat, she transitions the conversation to my new responsibilities regarding the twisted living arrangement they forced upon me.

Gathering the fractured remnants of my courage, I lift my chin. I stare directly at her and answer with blunt honesty. "I do not believe my life is any of your business anymore."

The reaction is explosive.

Mateo’s large hand slams against the heavy wooden table. The sudden crack echoes through the room and startles both of us. The plates rattle against the wood. His dark eyes flash with a dangerous warning as he leans forward, his chest rumbling. He growls, forbidding me from speaking to his mother with such disrespect.

Unfazed by her son's outburst, Luna Rossi’s expression hardens into a mask of pure, aristocratic cruelty. She cuts into her roasted meat, taking a slow bite before she launches into a cold degradation of my omega status.

"Do you honestly think you belong in this role?" she sneers, pointing her silver fork at me. She claims that a weak, wolfless girl like me could never hold a candle to a proper, beta-ranked female. A beta who is actually capable of bearing strong heirs for the pack.

Desperation and pride flare in my chest. I refuse to sit in silence while she tears down my worth. I fiercely defend my superior intellect and capabilities.

"I can do everything your chosen beta can do, and I can do it better," I snap, gripping the edge of the table. I cite my advanced skills in medical science and pack economics, proving I am more than just my lack of a wolf. "I hold the highest credentials. The comparison isn't fair if you base this solely on genetics."

My desperate defense only amuses her. She lets out a sharp, condescending laugh that grates against my ears. She leans in, her eyes devoid of empathy, and states, "Daphne is the new Luna of Veridia City, whether you like it or not."

She twists the metaphorical knife further, insisting that this degrading replacement is a mercy. She claims it is meant to protect me. "Do you know how many Lunas die each year?" she asks. "Targeted by the very same vicious rogues who mercilessly slaughtered your family. We are keeping you safe."

The sheer disrespect to my dead family causes my hand to twitch over my silver fork.

Despite my lowly omega rank, I am not defenseless. I was raised and trained by a Lycan Major General to be a lethal soldier. In this volatile moment, my combat instincts hum to life. Adrenaline floods my veins. It would be easy to lunge across the table and show this arrogant woman exactly what this little omega can do with a piece of cutlery. My muscles coil, preparing for the strike.

Sensing the lethal shift in my demeanor and the escalating danger in the room, Mateo intervenes. He barks a harsh growl at his mother. "Mom, get out."

"Excuse me?" she scoffs, feigning offense.

"Leave so that she and I can speak alone," he orders.

Luna Rossi pauses, gathering her purse before making her exit. She turns back at the door to deliver one final, chilling threat. "You can choose to be a part of this family the easy way, or you can endure it the hard way. The choice is yours."

She makes it clear that leaving this city is not an option on the table. The front door clicks shut behind her, sealing me inside.

The heavy, suffocating silence that follows her departure breaks my resolve. Hot tears well in my eyes as the crushing realization hits me. This powerful family is colluding to make my life a living hell. They legally trapped me in this territory, and Mateo expects me to sit down and take the abuse.

I look at the boy sitting across from me. I look at the man who assaulted me in the bathroom. "You swore on your life," I whisper, my voice breaking. I remind him of our past, how he swore he would never let anything hurt me.

Mateo insists he still intends to protect me. "I would do anything for you, Arabella," he says, blind to the fact that he is the monster destroying me.

With sickening casualness, he gestures to the porcelain plate in front of me. He suggests I at least try the dinner his mother prepared.

Heartbroken, repulsed, and overflowing with primal rage, I glare at the food. I suck in a deep breath, drawing up a thick glob of mucus from the back of my throat. I lean forward and spit it directly into the center of the prepared meat.

Mateo stares at the ruined meal in absolute disbelief. He has never seen me exhibit such vulgar, ill-mannered defiance. He sits frozen in his chair, his jaw slacked.

I stand up and step around the table, leaning in close to his face. The proximity makes my skin crawl with disgust. I press a tender, mocking kiss to the side of his temple. I whisper directly into his ear, telling him that is exactly what I think about his mother's food.

I step back, looking down at him. "I would reject you right now if I believed your fragile ego would accept it," I promise him, my voice dripping with venom. I vow that by the time this nightmare is over, he is going to hate me with every ounce of his soul, exactly the way I hate him right now.

My words snap his fragile control.

He lashes out with lightning speed. His large hand shoots up, grabbing my wrist with crushing force. His fingers dig deep into my skin. He pulls me hard against his solid chest, the impact jarring my teeth, before he shoves me backward with brute force.

My spine slams into the plaster wall. The impact knocks the air from my lungs in a harsh whoosh. I gasp, my chest heaving as I try to pull oxygen back into my system.

"You hate me?" he asks, letting out a dark, unhinged laugh that reverberates in his chest.

My body trembles against the cold plaster. I refuse to meet his piercing gaze. I stare at his shoulder, terrified that if I look into his eyes, the mate bond will expose the pathetic truth. It will expose that beneath the searing hatred, a pathetic part of me is still mourning the love we lost. I want to hate him, but the metaphorical flames are closing in around us, leaving no escape route.

"Reject me," I beg him, my voice cracking under the emotional weight. "Please. Just reject me. I don't want this arrangement. I don't want you when you act like this monster."

Instead of pulling away, Mateo steps closer. He presses his large body flush against mine, pinning me to the wall. The hard planes of his chest crush against my breasts. He lowers his head, burying his face deep into the crook of my neck. He inhales my natural scent deeply, his hot breath ghosting over my skin.

He whispers darkly against my skin that rejecting me is never going to happen. "Not a chance, Arabella," he mutters, his lips brushing my pulse point.

He then reveals his sickening master plan, the delusion fueling his cruel actions. He explains that as soon as Daphne provides him with the necessary Alpha heir, the arrangement will be over. He promises it will just be the two of us once his duty to the pack is fulfilled. His tone turns dangerously possessive. He promises that I will finally bear his permanent mark on my neck, binding us forever, and we can put all this ugliness behind us. The terrifying reality of his words sinks in, setting a ticking clock on my dwindling freedom.