Auctioned to the Cruel King - Chapter 83: Chapter 83

Kayla’s POV
“Both of you can come in now,” Lance called without even turning his head. “I can hear you scurrying behind the door.”
I was already off the desk by then, smoothing down the hem of my dress like it would erase his scent now smeared all over me. He’d kissed me again after that first one, slowly at first, then with a hunger that had left me breathless, grounded, dazed in a way that was too new and too soft for someone like him.
And each time, no, every time, he whispered the same two words against my skin: Thank you.
He never said what for. And I didn’t ask again. I think, deep down, I already knew.
The door creaked open.
Alaric entered first. He didn’t meet my eyes, but his throat worked as he cleared it, and behind him came Vivian. They’d probably heard it, especially her. No way in hell she didn't listen in while being so close.
But that didn't bother me. Moreover, it wasn’t going to stay a secret much longer anyway.
On the other hand, I’d come to see a change in Lance’s right-hand man. He still wore his usual expression, that stonecut seriousness, but the way his eyes flicked briefly to Vivian’s back, said more than his face ever would.
I didn’t imagine that.
Something was going on between them. Or maybe not.
“Alright,” Lance said, clapping his hands together once. The sharp sound made Vivian glance his way. “As suggested by Kayla,” he said, eyes darting to me just briefly, “we may need to make a few adjustments to that letter.” He stretched a hand toward Alaric. “So… may I have it?”
Vivian tilted her head, a slow arc of disbelief curling across her face.
“What?” Lance asked, tone clipped.
“Are you sure we should be doing this?” she said slowly. “About putting her out there like this? I mean, it paints a massive target on her back. Who knows how far Landon’s madness will reach?” She said it like she was annoyed.
The way her voice dipped at the end…there was something in it that surprised me. It might look like a concern but could be a new ploy of hers.
I’d be seven fit buried and likely there over a decade before I get that kind of emotion from her. Still, it was the closest to concern and my chest pinched unexpectedly.
“If you have a better plan,” Lance replied, “I’m all ears.”
Vivian’s jaw twitched. “I don’t. But I do know we shouldn’t be using your unborn child, the future of this pack, as bait. I can’t believe you would even consider it.”
She snapped. I’d never meant anything to her, but now, suddenly, something shifted.
“I’ve made my peace with it.”
Vivian looked at me sharply.
I kept going. “Besides, there’s only so long I can hide this. Once the bump starts to show, the council will know. Everyone will. The whispers will grow. It's better to control the narrative now, to get ahead of it… instead of letting it spiral behind our backs.”
Lance glanced at me then.
“Besides,” he said, voice low, “Landon has too much to lose. And far less to gain if he tries something now. He won’t make a move. He’s not that stupid.”
Vivian scoffed, sharp and bitter. “So you think the bastard won’t show up because of that?” She sounded incredulous. And yet—I didn’t entirely disagree with her.
That was when Alaric finally spoke. “There are chances.”
The room turned quiet again. Alaric’s voice always did that, carved space into the silence like a blade.
I looked at him, then said,
“Landon won’t make a move,” I said. “At least not openly. His primary reason for showing up would be to gloat. To look Lance in the face and act like he won something, even if he hasn’t. No one can deny that his actions have gotten under our skin, and Landon knows that too.” The truth of it burned behind my teeth.
“But,” I continued, “if he has another plan—one that’s more subtle, more run-down and hidden—he might skip the entire meeting. Might think showing up here would be a waste of time.”
Especially when the person he serves objects. That is why…
“But once he hears about the pregnancy?” I looked at Vivian, held her gaze. “That gloating will fall right off his face. He’ll want to confirm it. See it for himself. And he won’t be able to resist the bait.”
A beat passed.
Vivian tilted her head slightly. “Tell me…” she said carefully. “How sure are you about Landon’s mind? His way of thinking?”
I didn't cringe or fear or look ashamed when I said, “Because I was once his Luna.”
Alaric's mask cracked a bit. Even though he knew, like Lance, all along, he likely didn't believe I’d say it casually, so did I.
I waited for the snarky response to this, but Vivian just stared, then sighed.
Lance cleared his throat. “You already considered that, too,” he said, speaking to Vivian now. “If not, you’d be opposing the plan harder than this.”
Vivian exhaled through her nose. No witty retort. Just the tension of her shoulders settling into place.
“So,” she said at last, voice dry, “the plan is to bait him.”
“Exactly,” Lance said, stepping forward.
His hand extended toward Alaric, and this time, his right-hand man passed him the previous letter without a word. And then—he tore it. Right through the seal.
“Ric,” Lance said calmly, “I want you to draft a new one. An invitation to Alpha Landon. But this time, highlight everything we just agreed on. Make it a celebration.”
Alaric nodded once.
We left the office after that. Alaric walked ahead, his stride long and steady, the pack’s seal already in hand, no doubt forming the bones of the new letter in his head before we even reached the end of the hall.
He stopped just before the arch that led to the kitchen chamber. Then turned.
But before he could speak, a hand lightly touched my arm.
“Can we talk?” Vivian asked.
I blinked down at her hand. It wasn’t demanding.
I didn’t know how to answer at first. I was still wary of her. Still not sure where we stood, what stood between us besides snide remarks and old resentment. But something was different, so I nodded.
“Sure.”
Vivian glanced at Alaric. “Okay. We’ll see later,” she added to him.