The Triplet Alphas' Forbidden Temptation

The soft, rhythmic tapping of keys filled the quiet bedroom.

Click... Click... Click.

The sound slowly pulled Yuki out of sleep.

Her lashes fluttered. Her body still felt weak, but the crushing ache that had settled deep inside her had eased. Her fever had finally broken. Sweat clung to the back of her neck and dampened the shirt she wore beneath the blankets.

A familiar scent drifted into her lungs. Pine and cinnamon blended together. It smelled like fresh rain. She didn’t even need to open her eyes to know who was beside her.

Her stomach twisted. What am I doing in Killian’s bed?

Embarrassment washed over her so suddenly that she almost wished she had remained asleep. The memory of clinging to him flashed through her mind, making her want to crawl under the mattress and disappear forever.

Very carefully, she parted her eyes through her lashes. Her vision was blurred through them.

The room was dim. Only a single bedside lamp burned quietly, casting a pool of warm light over one side of the bedroom while the rest remained wrapped in shadows. Beyond the tall windows, the sky was pitch black. Rain still drummed softly against the glass, but the manor itself had fallen silent.

It had to be very late. She kept her breathing even as her gaze wandered towards him.

Killian sat in the chair beside the bed with a laptop balanced across his knees. The pale glow from the screen illuminated the sharp lines of his face while the bedside lamp softened the rest.

Without his usual tailored suit, he looked... different.

His blond hair appeared several shades darker beneath the low light, falling carelessly across his forehead instead of being perfectly styled. He wore nothing more than a plain black T-shirt that hugged his shoulders and a pair of loose lounge trousers.

It was the first time she had ever seen him dressed like an ordinary person. There was no expensive watch, no perfectly pressed jacket or polished shoes, just a man young enough that she suddenly realised he probably wasn’t much older than she was. At times, she forgot he was only around twenty-four years old.

It almost annoyed her.

What a waste of a handsome face.

Hating him would have been much easier if he weren’t so ridiculously attractive.

Seeing that all of his attention remained fixed on the laptop, she became a little bolder. Her eyes wandered over the sharp bridge of his nose, the strong line of his jaw, and the faint crease between his brows whenever he concentrated.

The room remained silent.

Then her stomach betrayed her.

Grrrr...

The tiny growl sounded deafening. Yuki froze. Her entire body went rigid.

No. No... no... her thoughts screamed. She wished she could just disappear as her soul departed from the sheer embarrassment. Her heart started to race.

Killian’s fingers stopped moving across the keyboard.

Please no, her thoughts screamed.

Heat rushed into her cheeks. Without thinking, she squeezed her eyes shut again and lay perfectly still, praying he had somehow imagined it.

She felt his gaze settle on her. The silence stretched.

One second.

Two.

Three.

Then his calm voice drifted through the room. "You know," he said quietly, "I can hear your racing heartbeat."

Her pulse immediately accelerated. "And I can tell the difference between the breathing of someone who’s asleep and someone who’s pretending."

Her soul nearly left her body again for the umpteenth time.

"I’ve known you were awake this whole time."

She wanted the earth to split open and swallow her. The laptop clicked shut. She heard him place it on the bedside table before the mattress dipped slightly beneath his weight.

Cold air swept across her skin as the blanket disappeared. Yuki instinctively grabbed for it, but Killian had already folded it back.

"Stop pretending to sleep, little fox."

There was something unfamiliar in his voice. It almost sounded amused.

"You aren’t nearly as cunning as you think."

She stubbornly kept her eyes shut. "I’m asleep," she mumbled, then mentally face-palmed.

"You just answered me."

"..."

Wonderful. Before she could think of another excuse, warmth brushed against her lips. Sparks erupted, followed by a tiny bite.

Her eyes flew open. "What are you doing?" she blurted, staring at him in complete shock.

Killian looked entirely unapologetic. "Getting you to stop pretending." His face remained far too close.

Close enough that she could feel his breath, close enough that every spark from the mate bond exploded between them. Her heart pounded wildly inside her chest.

Unfortunately...

He could hear every beat.

She wanted to move away, but her body refused to cooperate. Killian calmly ignored her flustered expression and rested the back of his hand against her forehead. She felt those familiar sparks from his touch.

His face remained completely composed, as though he hadn’t just kissed her to prove a point. After a few seconds, he nodded. "Your fever’s gone." His hand slipped away before he stood up. "You haven’t eaten since yesterday morning."

He slid his feet into a pair of slippers. "You must be starving," he added.

He walked towards the bedroom door as though inviting her for dinner in the middle of the night was perfectly normal.

"Come on," he said. "I’ll get you something to eat."

Yuki stared after him, then pointed at herself. "You want to cook for me?" Her voice cracked with disbelief.

Killian glanced over his shoulder. "Why are you looking at me like that?" he asked, finding her stare annoying.

"Because you’re being nice," she said in a suspicious tone as her eyes narrowed at him. "Who are you, and what have you done with Killian Ravencourt?" He definitely wasn’t the jerk she knew.

His lips twitched. "You could just say thank you," he sneered.

She slowly pushed herself upright, leaning against the headboard. "Anyone would be cautious when someone who clearly dislikes them suddenly starts acting nice."

She folded her arms. "Don’t tell me you’ve had a change of heart."

Killian pinched the bridge of his nose. He looked as though she had already exhausted him. "I don’t like you," he admitted bluntly, "but that doesn’t mean I want you dead."

Her expression faltered. His voice lost its teasing edge. "You collapsed, and your wolf retreated."

Yuki blinked. "My... wolf retreated?" she repeated, sounding sceptical.

"If I hadn’t stayed beside you," Killian continued, "you would’ve ended up in intensive care."

She frowned at his words, her brows pulling into a knot. "Your fever wasn’t the real problem." Killian met her eyes. "Your wolf shut herself away," he continued.

The room became quiet again. "If she’d stayed like that much longer," he said, "even if your body recovered, she’d have become too weak."

His jaw tightened. "And if that happened..."

He didn’t need to finish. Yuki already understood.

"The rejection could have killed me," she whispered.

Killian gave a single nod. She sat there silently, trying to process everything.

He leaned against the wall. "I think your wolf was affected by everything that happened today." His eyes rested on her.

"Which is ironic because you keep telling me how badly you want this bond broken."

Yuki looked up, a knot twisting in her stomach.

His voice remained calm. "You say you can’t stand us, and yet you made yourself sick over us."

A faint sneer touched his lips. Yuki lowered her eyes, hissing under her breath. The disdain in his tone was getting under her skin.

"So much for not caring." He scoffed, then folded his arms. "At this rate, rejecting you might actually kill you."

For several seconds, she simply stared at him. Then she smiled. It wasn’t a happy smile.

"So that’s why you’re taking care of me."

Killian frowned.

"You don’t actually care. You’re just trying to calm my wolf down before rejecting me." She gave a quiet laugh. It felt so ridiculous, but it was her present reality. She looked directly into his eyes.

"You don’t want everyone blaming you if I die afterwards. It’s just to protect your image."

Silence stretched between them. Finally, Killian sighed.

"You don’t have to put it like that," he muttered, a hint of resignation in his tone.

"But isn’t it true?" she chimed with mild amusement, tilting her head as she stared at him.

"You need my wolf stable enough to survive the rejection." Her smile became sharper. "So you’re comforting her before breaking her all over again."

His eyes darkened. Before he could answer, she spoke again.

"I appreciate the effort." Her voice remained steady. "But it won’t change my mind."

Killian looked at her for a long moment before the corner of his mouth lifted into a faint, almost taunting smile.

"That’s interesting," he drawled, folding his arms. "If my memory serves me well, I can still remember I wasn’t the one who suggested the rejection, Yuki."

His gaze held hers.

"This was your decision," Killian added.

She let out a humourless scoff. "Of course it was, because I’d rather die with my dignity..." Her fingers tightened around the blanket, her eyes never leaving his. "...than spend the rest of my life as your mistress and a baby-making machine."