One week passed as I started to avoid my stepbrothers.

Although I never accepted them as my brothers, my mom had married their dad. So there was nothing I could deny.

I had my heart broken last week when Trevor warned me to stay away from him and his brother, Kevin. I was just following his words.

"Elara, what is your plan for tomorrow night?" Julia asked.

We were sitting in the cafeteria on our campus. The classes were no longer engaging for me, and the study was no longer exciting for me. I failed to be active the whole week, as my mind kept going back to the wedding night of my mother.

"Plan for what, Julia?" I asked her, sipping on my coffee.

She slammed her forehead. "Silly! You forgot tomorrow is your birthday?"

Her question surprised me. Indeed, I forgot about my birthday.

"I was so stressed the whole week that I forgot about my birthday, Julia."

"I know right. You are stressed for your Dad. He went to his brother's hometown."

I closed my eyes and sighed. "The fact is that he didn't even inform me until my uncle called me and told me about him."

Julia patted my shoulder and said, "It's good that you don't have to face those loansharks for now."

I nodded my head, mumbling, "I think dad gave my money to those men. So for now, I don't need to worry about them."

I recalled dad stole my money from my bag. I assumed it was the reason those men never came back.

"You said you are going to apply to be a waitress in the club," Julia reminded me.

"Yeah. They told me to go to the club tonight. I hope I get the job so that I can make some money for this month."

Julia stared at me for a while without speaking. I held her hand and asked,

"What happened?"

She rubbed her hand over my hand. "Do you want me to ask for money from my dad? He can help you."

I shook my head. "I didn't even take help from my mom; how can I take your dad's help?"

My mother had been calling me, asking me to go to the pack house and start living with her and her new family.

But that was not my family. It was my fate, and I would have to live alone. I just prayed that my uncle would convince my father to stop drinking and gambling.

As I was talking with Julia, my gaze was drawn to the entrance of the cafeteria.

My eyes fell on Kevin, who was walking into the cafe. His hand was around a girl's waist. I recognized her as one of my classmates.

"What the fuck! How did Shea manage to seduce Kevin?" Julia said with a surprised look.

I still hadn't told her that my mother was married to Kevin and Trevor's father.

I looked away from Kevin. I did not care who he was roaming around with. He always picked on me. The whole week he only glared at me like an angry bull whenever our eyes met.

As I sipped my coffee again, Julia spoke out. "Babe, look. Your man is here!"

I paused drinking, glancing at the entrance again. I noticed Trevor entering the cafe with his friends.

"They are more like friends than brothers. I heard Kevin is the younger brother. Trevor is just one minute older."

I averted my gaze away from Trevor when he and his friends walked past our table. My heartbeat raced. I tried to control my breaths.

"Let's not talk about him," I said to Julia.

"Why? Are you getting tired of him? I know you like Trevor, don't you? I have always seen how you look at him with loving eyes."

My eyes shifted to Trevor, who grabbed a chair from the table where Kevin went to sit with the girl.

I saw the girl sitting between the two brothers. She started kissing Kevin's neck while she rested her hand on Trevor's thigh.

I gulped, looking away from them. I was hurt, seeing someone touching Trevor.

"She is April, the daughter of Alpha Thomas. She came to study here only because of the Kingston brothers," Julia said.

She was a gossip queen. She had all the hidden information that other girls were dying to know.

"Are they shameless? Why do they have the same fling?" I mumbled without looking at them.

Julia laughed at my question. Her eyes fixed on the Kingston brothers. "There are like two sides of a coin. They always stay together. It's their unity. No girl can crack their bond if they come between them."

I was silent for a while. Then I sighed and mumbled, "That's great. They should always stay together. It's good for them."

-

In the late evening,

I went to the club near Moonlight University, as they told me.

I waited for an hour to meet the manager. There was a rush in the club tonight since tomorrow is the weekend.

"Elara Hayes?"

I heard my name from behind. I was sitting on a couch, so when I heard my name, I got up immediately.

I turned around and found a man in middle age. I nodded my head and greeted him. "Sir, good evening. I am Elara Hayes. A few days ago, your club approached me about a job as a waitress."

He motioned to a room in the club's corner. "You go to the changing room; one of our girls will give you your clothes."

I was surprised. "But you haven't asked me anything yet. What about the salary?"

He chuckled at me. "You are a young girl. Let's see how you serve the clients tonight; tomorrow I will fix your salary."

I nodded my head and went to the changing room. I found a girl my age. She handed me a mini black shirt and a white shirt.

I blinked, not knowing how I would wear it because I had never worn such a short dress.

"Don't make the clients wait. The first rule of this business here is always be on time," the girl said and left the room.

"Business?" I mumbled in confusion.

I ignored her words and hurriedly changed my clothes. I tried to pull my short shirt down, trying to cover my upper thigh.

"They must have given me the wrong size."

I walked out of the room awkwardly. The manager was near the counter. He saw and approached me.

His eyes moved to my body, making me feel uncomfortable. He handed me a tray with a bottle of wine and a few glasses.

"Sir, I think that girl gave me the wrong size of clothes," I said, thinking about changing them.

"She gave you the right size. Follow me," he said and walked toward the staircase.

While holding the tray, I followed him upstairs. I glanced at the people downstairs. "Wasn't I supposed to serve drinks to these people?" I asked.

"You will serve the VIP clients," the manager replied simply.

When I arrived on the second floor. I saw there were four doors on both sides. They were private cabins for VIP customers.

The manager opened the last door on the left side and gestured for me to enter.

When I walked into the room, I realized it was not a private cabin for drinks but a room with a big bed.

I was taken aback.

I saw a man in his late thirties. I glanced around and found no one in the room except him.

My heart shook in fear. My grip on the tray tightened.

"I-I think I came to the wrong room."

The man looked at me with lust. He eyed me with a dirty gaze and replied with a chuckle.

"Wrong room? I paid ten thousand dollars for you. So you are in the right room, baby."

My eyes widened. I was caught off guard. I took steps backwards, and my back pressed against the door.

"N-No, you are lying."

My hand reached for the door handle. I tried to open the door, but it was locked. I returned my gaze to him with shocked eyes.

He laughed as if he was enjoying my fear.

"Your father sold you to me for one night."

Tremors ran through my body. I could not believe my father sold me for money. How was it even possible?

I did not want to believe it. But I recalled the day when the men came to ask for money and he pushed me toward them.

Tears ran out of my eyes. My inner self was horribly shaken.

'Dad, how could you do that to your own daughter?'

The man took a step toward me, making me freeze in place.

I shook my hand, trying to stop him from approaching me.

"S-Sir, please let me go. I didn't know about it."

He stopped and snatched the tray from me. I gulped, assuming he had realized I was not aware of it.

He placed the tray on the coffee table.

"P-Please tell someone to open the door. I promise I will pay back-"

He did not listen to me as he came to stand in front of me. He gripped my arms tightly. It hurt like he was digging his fingers on my flesh.

I flinched at his touch. "Don't touch me!" I said, pushing him with all of my strength.

He seemed to be surprised by my action. His expression then changed, and he growled at me.

"How dare you push me?" he said and rushed toward me.

I turned around and started to bang on the door. "Someone please help!"

The man turned me around to him. He held my waist and started kissing my neck.

"Your body smells so sweet," he groaned as he started sucking my neck.

His touches disgusted me. I felt dirty. I pushed him to move him away from me and slapped him on his cheek.

His eyes widened in shock. He held his cheek and looked at me with wide eyes.

I was scared. He looked like he would kill me right now. I shook my head.

"I-I don't want to do anything with you. Please let me go." I joined my hand and begged him.

I did not want to be raped by him. I did not want to lose my virginity like that to anyone. I wanted to give my body to someone who would touch my soul. I would give my first time to my mate.

The man glared at me as he came to pull my hair. I hissed in pain. His grip was so tight that I felt my scalp burning.

'What did I do to experience this?' I questioned myself.

The man dragged me to the bed while grasping my hair. He pushed me down to the bed and held a glass of wine, which was on the nightstand.

"What is this? I won't drink," I said, shaking my head.

He pulled my hair tighter.

"Aahhh!"

I let out a painful moan. He took the chance and pressed the glass against my mouth. The liquor ran into my mouth, burning my throat.

I tried to turn my head away from him, but he grabbed my jaw tightly. He forced me to drink the wine. Most of it spilled on my white shirt, soaking it.

He looked at my body with lustful eyes. My eyes turned blurry. I started feeling dizzy.

He got on me and took off his own shirt. "Now, how will you refuse me?"

I started feeling strange. My whole body felt heated.

As he unbuttoned two of the buttons of my shirt, the door handle twisted, and someone opened the door.

The man looked shocked as he turned his head to the door. I looked at the door with a hope to survive.

"WHAT THE FUCK!"

I blinked my eyes, trying to clear my view.

It was Kevin Kingston.

"K-Kevin," I whispered under my breath.

But he did not seem to hear me. His brows were lifted as if he did not expect it.

"Kevin, it seems someone booked the room before us," a girl spoke.

I realized Kevin was with the girl he had been hanging out with recently.

"Oh, I am so sorry, Sir. I thought the room was vacant," the waiter, who had just unlocked the door, said.

I wanted to move my hand to ask for help. But I was not able to do it.

The man who was on top of me yelled at the waiter. "Leave the fuck out."

Kevin's gaze was on me. He glared at me. "I knew you were a bitch like your mom."

The man looked desperate as he said to Kevin, "Can't you see we were in an intense moment? Why are you disturbing us, boy?"

I bit my tongue to come back to my sanity, shaking my head. "N-No, Kevin. I didn't-"

Kevin did not listen to me as he rushed toward the bed and yanked the man away from my body.

I felt someone move something heavy from my body and heart. I wiped my tears and slowly sat up.

Kevin punched the man's face. "Having sex with a minor and talking like you are some kind of gangster? Do you even know who you are talking to?"

The man tried to fight back, but Kevin started kicking him in his abdomen. My eyes cleared a little as I heard the groans of the man.

I was satisfied by the way Kevin was beating the man.

The girl back hugged Kevin. "Let him go, Kevin. I bet this girl seduced him first. What will he do?"

Kevin paused, turning his head to me. I was about to shake my hand, but the man spoke with a growl.

"I bought her with ten thousand dollars."

Kevin's gaze moved as he gave me a disgusted look. "So that's how you enrolled in our university? By selling your body to men?"

I bit my bottom lip, shaking my head. "No, I didn't sell my body to him. He is lying."

Kevin let go of the man. He stood up and shrugged his shoulders.

"Kevin, don't let him-"

"GET OUT."

Kevin yelled at me. I cried and hurriedly left the room.

The man also got out of the room. He followed me while saying,

"What did you think? You can run away from me?"

I ran as fast as I could. I wiped my tears and ran downstairs.

I turned my head, trying to see where the man was. He was far behind me.

I wanted to leave the club. But I stopped when my head swirled and everything became hazy again. This time, I felt intoxicated.

My body felt lightweight, and I felt my body wanted to be touched.

My legs started to move again. But I did not know where I was going.

"Catch her!"

I heard the man's voice from behind. I turned my head and found some men following me.

"I will mark her tonight and make her my slave. How could she dare to make me suffer like this?"

I was frightened, losing my sanity slowly.

I turned my heels and ran in another direction until I reached a private lounge area.

My heels broke, and I fell in front of someone sitting on a single couch. His long legs in black jeans were folded as I was near his black boots.

He was sitting like a king around the ordinary boys.

He was smoking as the white smoke encircled him.

I looked up and saw the man I loved gazing at me with a pair of cold eyes.

"T-Trevor"

His eyes narrowed. He lowered his head and spoke with a cold voice.

"Didn't I tell you to stay away?"

The sensation inside me kept telling me to get close to him. He was the most attractive man I had ever seen. The manly nature was captivating.

I stared at him with desire.

I heard the loud footsteps running past the area.

I immediately moved closer to Trevor and placed my hand on his thigh.

Then I let out a low whisper of begging.

"Trevor... Claim me."

The low light of the private lounge caught the sharp angles of his face, highlighting the hard line of his jaw and the cold fury in his eyes.

My heart shook from the coldness.

The boys in the lounge spoke with a surprised tone.

"Wow! Never knew someone had the guts to approach you like this, dude."

"She is a waitress."

"Let us see your seductive face."

"Look at her thighs!"

"Babe, the man you are trying to seduce is not good for you."

"Of course, you might die."

"Around all of us, he is a beast in bed."

They burst into laughter. Their words made me feel embarrassed. However, the influence of the wine did something really wrong to me.

They could not see my face, as I was only facing Trevor, and my hair was covering my face from both sides.

I could only stare at Trevor, ignoring the whole world around me.

Trevor's eyes were on me.

The air was thick with tension. It was a suffocating mix of my desperation and his icy disdain. His dark eyes were unforgiving as they bore into me.

"Bro, why don't you give this chick a chance? Maybe she is good in bed?" A boy said as he stood up and came toward me.

Trevor's eyes moved from me, and he shifted his gaze to the boy.

"You all, leave."

The boy grinned at him. "You mean you will do that to her right here?"

The other boys chuckled while shaking their heads.

I lowered my head. But their words did not hit my mind. All I wanted was to become Trevor's. I did not want another man to mark me forcefully. If I had that fate, then I better let him have me. Because he was the man of my heart.

"Do you guys think this girl can match my type?" Trevor asked with a glare at the boys.

They were taken aback. One of them cleared their throat and said, "Let's leave. I think he got mad. The girl crossed her lines."

They all got up from their seats. "See you at the campus,' they said and left the lounge area.

The silence mixed with my dizziness. I raised my head to meet Trevor's eyes.

"Please make me yours," I whispered again.

He did not respond. He just glared at me, his jaw tight with rage.

The silence stretched between us, suffocating me with his unspoken words.

"Trevor?" I muttered.

He finally moved, pushing me away with a shove that sent me sprawling onto the floor.

He rose to his feet and walked past me. I turned my head and looked at his broad back.

My heart trembled in fear. My body did not want him to walk away like this.

I stood up and rushed to hug him from behind. His steps halted.

"Please don't refuse me tonight. Please save me."

He pushed my hands that wrapped around his body. He turned around and glared at me.

His hand, which was holding the cigarette, came to grab my jaw. "I wonder what kind of bitch you are! Begging men to spend nights with you? How much money do you want, hmm?"

His words and cold voice made me flinch. I felt pain in my jaw.

"There she is!"

I recognized the voice of the man to whom my father had sold me.

Trevor turned around to see the man and a few guards. The man pointed his finger at me and said,

"Bitch, come here. Seducing a new man? What about me?"

Trevor frowned at the man. "Who are you?"

His voice made the man shift his full attention to Trevor.

The man was taken aback. "Aren't you Trevor Kingston? Alpha Gray's son?" he asked.

Trevor was popular among the businessmen. Because his father often asked him to join meetings with him. He knew his son had an eye on the business shield.

Trevor stared at the man without responding. The man let out an awkward chuckle. "Mr. Kingston, I hope you won't mind if I take my girl away from you."

Trevor raised an eyebrow. "Your girl?"

I blinked, taking a shaky breath. I prayed in my mind that Trevor did not hand me over to that man.

I held the sleeve of Trevor's jacket and shook my head.

"This girl took ten thousand from me in exchange for her body for one night. Now that she saw you, she thought she got a bigger deal than me. She is a scammer!"

The man's voice echoed in the lounge area.

"D-Don't trust him," I said in a raspy voice.

Trevor turned his head to me. His eyes moved to my soaked shirt, which had two buttons opened, revealing my cleavage.

I let go of his jacket and tried to button up my shirt with shaky hands. He scoffed at me and walked away from me.

I thought he would leave me to that man. If he left, I would have no other way to get rid of that man. My life, my dignity, and my chastity would end here to that perverted man.

Trevor got near the entrance of the lounge area, but he did not leave. Instead, he stopped beside the man and took a long puff of smoke.

The man extended his hand toward him to shake. "Please, visit my company sometime. I am-"

He could not introduce himself as Trevor grabbed his hand and pressed his cigarette on the man's wrist.

The man groaned in pain. He wanted to snatch his hand away, but Trevor's hand tightened his grip.

He let go of the man's hand when the flame of the cigarette burned his skin, turning it black, almost burning the veins.

The guards did not dare to move toward Trevor since they heard he was the head Alpha's son.

The man fell on the floor while holding his hand. "Why did you do that?" he asked.

Trevor gave him a stern look and replied,

"Because she is my stepsister."

The man's eyes widened. He was not aware that his one single move could offend the head Alpha's family.

He glared at me and said, "You are Alpha's stepdaughter? Why did you need so much money? You could have asked him directly!"

I did not hear the man. Trevor's voice kept echoing in my mind.

'She is my stepsister.'

I saw Trevor kick the man's manhood with his boots and mutter, "Go and fuck other girls with this broken dick."

The man fainted on the floor in pain. Trevor left without looking back at me.

I realized I was drugged. Trevor's one sentence returned me to reality.

I glanced around to look for something, then grabbed a beer bottle. I hit the bottle to the wall near me and gripped a broken piece tightly.

Blood poured out of my palm. Slowly, I was getting back to my senses.

I realized what I had done a while ago. I was ashamed that Trevor might have misunderstood me.

I rushed out of the lounge area and started to search for him.

Suddenly, the lights went off in the club. It scared me.

People started to count until the lights turned on again. People cheered for someone saying,

"Happy birthday."

I turned to the girl whose birthday was today. I realized it was also my birthday.

I had finally turned eighteen.

People around me glanced at me awkwardly as my palm was bleeding.

I thought about leaving the club, leaving the most painful and horrible memories behind.

However, my legs froze when a scent hit my nostrils.

I sniffed in the air and moved forward until I reached the gate of the club.

I was shocked when my eyes fell on someone and my wolf started chanting.

"MATE"

My heart warmed and my eyes lit up. I couldn't believe fate had chosen the man I fell for.

"Trevor is my mate!"

He was leaning against a wall near the gate. His eyes met mine, and they glowed red, which indicated that he could also feel the mate bond.

I smiled at him and was about to go to him, but my legs froze.

My eyes widened when my mate grabbed another girl's waist and kissed her in front of me.