Wanting More

Arthur didn't bother looking for a way out at all.

Annie's counterquestion landed, and his blue eyes flickered.

Then, without a word, the Alpha scooped her up in his arms.

The nearly two-meter-tall man stood in the courtyard, silencing everyone around them for a moment. The hem of Annie's white robe fell naturally, covering the arm that supported her knees and hiding the private terminals linked by the data cable between them.

Then Arthur Kane strode straight toward the courtyard exit.

No explanation, no pleasantries. He simply released his pheromones as he passed everyone.

The scent of scorched metal was so intense it couldn't be ignored, even outdoors.

In an instant, laughter and whistles erupted.

"Butcher, look at you—you just had to drag the newlyweds to the banquet. Impatient, are we?"

"This isn't the time for drinking."

"Go on, go on! Get back and have your fun!"

Annie rolled her eyes hard on the inside.

Arthur Kane's move was blunt and crude, even rude.

But for the terrorists, it showcased exactly the kind of domineering control a proper Alpha should have.

So no one stopped him. Right under everyone's gaze, he carried Annie back to their guest room.

Click. The door locked behind them.

Annie jumped down from Arthur's arms and reached to yank out the data cable plugged into the port at Arthur's waist.

But the moment her fingertips hooked the silver line, Arthur's broad palm closed around her wrist.

"No need," he said flatly. "Contact Meridian directly."

"..."

Fine, then!

Since their terminals were linked now, there was nothing she could send that Arthur wouldn't see.

And despite his pheromones still churning, he hadn't lost the ability to think—he remembered that they belonged to different factions.

"Don't worry," Annie smiled instead. "It's rest hours on Spica right now. I'm just sending an email."

The mail interface popped up in her contact lens display. Annie sent all the new intel on the Resistance to Meridian, and then, overstepping her bounds, used Arthur's terminal to open Peace Star's chat window.

When she packaged the same intel to Peace Star, Arthur raised an eyebrow but said nothing.

"Let me check the database."

After sending the messages, Annie used the trustee system to search the Royal Agent's logistics intelligence archive.

And she actually found something useful.

"Here."

She clicked the "YES" button on the holographic projection and let Arthur lead her as she generously shared the intel she'd found.

No words, no video—just the data cable linking Arthur's terminal. The content flowed naturally into Arthur's mind.

His eardrums buzzed during the transfer, and the Alpha let out a soft hiss.

It was too strange.

It felt like Annie had personally opened his skull, soft fingertips peeling back the meninges to stroke the wrinkled gyri of his brain. This wasn't right. It was only data injection, but the sensation was so close to having his cortex touched that Arthur tensed up.

Annie's "hand" was teasing and stimulating his consciousness, stroking across the cortical layer, pulling away and then returning, cold and hot, pain and itch alternating inside his skull.

The illusion made Arthur's scalp prickle, a shudder running from the back of his head all the way down.

His breathing lost its rhythm, the smell of scorched metal growing sharper in the room.

Annie: "..."

Even this worked! At this rate, if he didn't get what he wanted today, he'd definitely go into another unscheduled heat.

Tsk. Troublesome.

Annie mulled over a solution while cutting straight to the point.

"Luke Garner—looks like he's an active member of the radical faction," she said.

Arthur's mind automatically displayed the content she'd transmitted: a news report from six months ago about a terrorist attack. The Resistance had successfully blown up a major Twilight arsenal, and it had caused quite a stir—the news had even reached the Galactic Empire and made its local interstellar news section.

The news even included a war correspondent's photo.

In front of some ruins, a small squad of soldiers had been captured on film, one of them wearing a metal mask.

"That's him."

Arthur recognized the mask at a glance. "Luke Garner."

His thoughts raced back through the data cable.

Annie understood.

"Looks like he's an active member," she said with certainty.

He'd blown up a major Twilight arsenal six months ago. If the Resistance handed out medals, he probably had merits to his name, just like Charles Lang.

But that arsenal was outside the City of the Radiant Sun.

As the most prosperous and largest city on New Thebes, the City of the Radiant Sun had security as tight as an iron bucket.

Luke Garner couldn't get in. So how did he know Twilight's movements?

There had to be an inside source within the city, one with first-hand intelligence... someone close to Twilight, or to the Governor's Mansion.

"We should tell Boss He about this," Annie said. "We were attacked by the Resistance—regardless, we should use this as an excuse to meet her in person."

"And the scientist."

Arthur's cold, hard words landed, and silence filled the room for a moment.

The two locked eyes.

The Alpha remained expressionless, those clear blue eyes cold as ice. This time, he was the one to pull the data cable free, separating the plug from his terminal. In an instant, the hallucination of Annie reaching into his brain vanished.

The shuddering sensation dissipated, and Arthur's body relaxed.

But in that breath of relief, he found himself... faintly regretful.

The Alpha cursed under his breath.

He needed to reassert control.

Ever since that damn Ancient Temple, Arthur Kane had been losing ground step by step. That soft, petite Omega looked harmless enough, but she was practically trying to climb right on top of his head.

So Arthur reached out.

His palm clamped hard around the back of her neck, his knuckles pressing against her scent gland.

Annie didn't struggle at all.

She even obediently tilted her head up, baring her vulnerable throat completely to Arthur's view. The smooth line of her neck was pale and slender—like a swan offering itself to a beast.

Staring at her weak point, Arthur swallowed instinctively.

But what infuriated him was that even at this critical moment, the Omega's black eyes remained calm and clear.

His pheromones surged with irritation, and without a second thought, Arthur bent down and bit the neck he'd been staring at.

Annie: "Hey!"

Arthur didn't hold back. He clamped down on the skin where her shoulder met her neck, grinding and savoring it. The searing pain made Annie reach out, but Arthur caught her hand.

The Alpha inhaled the scent of lemon leaves, licking across her sweat and her taste.

"You have no reaction," Arthur said again, his lips pressed against her skin. "Why?"

"Are you going to kill me, Arthur?" Annie answered without answering. "Peace Star must have given you orders."

In the Ancient Temple, if not for that jar of wine, Annie would have come out dead or half-dead.

She had Charles Lang's sudden whim to thank for that.

"Why didn't you do it?"

"I have my reasons."

Oh, "his reasons."

Arthur Kane had a reputation for not following orders, and Peace Star probably couldn't do a thing about him either.

But that was deadly for Annie.

She was deeply bound to him, yet she never knew when he'd strike or what he'd do. She couldn't afford to have a nearly two-meter-tall variable by her side, ready to explode at any moment.

Still... there was progress.

Annie took a deep breath and reassured herself.

Compared to the beginning, things were much better, weren't they! Arthur wasn't actually that uncontrollable... He was an Alpha, and Alphas were always swayed by pheromones and hormones.

If he had desires, he could be controlled.

And what Arthur Kane wanted right now was her "reaction."

Losing control in front of an Omega wounded his pride, and Arthur insisting on Annie giving him a response was his way of demanding security and control.

She could give him that.

Annie closed her eyes briefly.

She raised her arm lightly, her fingertips slipping inside Arthur's collar.

The Alpha was still in the clothes from the day—a simple black jacket and T-shirt, with a windproof scarf around his neck.

Annie's knuckles moved like a snake, slipping into the gap of the scarf and hooking the leather collar beneath it.

This was the "protective measure" she'd put on Arthur Kane that morning. Her soft fingers curled and tugged forward, and the Alpha's breathing broke almost instantly.

"You want more," she murmured. "But Arthur, to ensure my safety and the smooth progress of our mission, I have conditions."

Arthur exhaled irritably.

Why so many words?

This little Omega never stopped talking, always spouting high-minded reasoning that grated on Arthur's nerves.

"Talk."

But this wasn't the first time she'd traded conditions with him, and even Arthur himself hadn't noticed that he was gradually getting used to Annie's way of thinking.

One hand still hooked on the collar, Annie raised her index finger.

"Notify Madam Hado and ask her to cover for us so we can meet Boss He and that scientist. But once we see him, you listen to me."

"No." Arthur refused outright. "You're not my superior."

He wanted a taste, sure, but Arthur wasn't about to neglect real business over it.

"I won't offend you at a time like this," Annie reasoned calmly. "Arthur, I promise I'll explain the motive and reasoning behind every arrangement. Deal?"

That was more like it.

Arthur thought it over. There really was no reason to refuse.

He had originally planned to kill Annie.

But now...

His blue eyes swept across her delicate face. Arthur wasn't stupid. He knew he didn't have many options.

The collar around his neck wasn't dangerous—the Alpha could easily tear it off before she made a move. But Arthur Kane had already missed his best window.

Killing her in the Ancient Temple could have been passed off as an accident. But now that he and this little Omega had become a political symbol in Twilight's eyes, if she died, there was no way Arthur could win the terrorists' trust alone.

For the sake of cooperation, giving her a little sense of security wouldn't hurt.

"Tsk."

The Alpha clicked his tongue in displeasure. No argument meant he'd agreed.

Annie's face suddenly lit up with a smile.

Nice! He really was making progress every time.

Before coming to New Thebes, she'd never imagined she'd end up coexisting peacefully with Arthur Kane.

As long as he cooperated, that was fine.

Even though the collar was on him, Annie didn't want to use that last resort—it would destroy everything she'd built with Arthur.

"Thank you, Arthur."

Annie was generous with her gratitude. She stood on her tiptoes and ruffled the Alpha's short black hair. "Good boy!"

Arthur: "Say that again?!"

He slapped her hand away hard, but the Omega didn't care at all. Smiling brightly, her lips brushed across his jaw.

"You can cash in your reward in advance," Annie said.

"Kneel."

Just two words, and Arthur's pupils dilated wide.