Mated To The Alpha King (Raven and Ethan) novel Chapter 52

Chapter 52

Raven’s POV

I ignored the other gossip around me as I continued with the cooking. It was already time for dinner, and I didn’t want to be late. I didn’t have the strength to face her–the Luna, my half sister, the one who had taken everything from me without batting an eye.

No one knew about our connection. Not the maids. Not the guards. Not even Alpha Ethan. And I intended to keep it that way.

I placed the last dish on the silver tray and wiped my hands on my apron. My fingers trembled as I adjusted the cutlery beside the plates, trying to steady myself. I hated how nervous she still made me feel, how small I felt in her presence even after everything.

Carrying the food toward the dining hall, I rehearsed a blank expression. I couldn’t let her see the anger burning in my chest. Not again. The last time! slipped, she almost had me kicked out for “talking back.” But she always knew how to strike where it hurt most–with her words, with her eyes, with that false sweetness.

I entered the grand dining room and placed each dish carefully on the long oak table. The Luna was already seated at the head, her lips painted a deep red, her hair in perfect waves, her eyes as sharp as ever.

“You’re late,” she said coolly, sipping her wine. “I was starting to think you’d poisoned the food again.”

My heart skipped a beat. She always joked like that. Except it was never really a joke. She wanted the others to hear–to plant that seed of doubt in their minds.

“I apologize, Luna,” I said quietly, keeping my head bowed.

She watched me like a predator does its prey. “Alpha Ethan isn’t joining us tonight. He’s in his study, working. Take his food to him.”

I paused for half a second. That room. Him. Alone. After everything… But I simply nodded.

“And Raven,” she added, just as I turned to leave. “Don’t try to seduce him. That’s what maids like you always try to do, isn’t it? Open your legs for a little

power?”

The words hit me like a slap. The room fell silent around us. I could feel the other servants stiffening. No one dared say anything.

I wanted to reply–to scream that she had no idea what I’d been through, that it wasn’t like that, that he had blackmailed me, broken me, used me like I was nothing. But I knew better. She was trying to provoke me, bait me into defending myself so she could twist it against me later.

I bowed slightly, swallowing the bitter taste in my mouth. “Yes, Luna.”

She smirked in satisfaction and waved me off like I was nothing but dust on her sleeve.

I took the tray with the Alpha’s food and walked through the hallways, my footsteps echoing in the silence. The closer I got to his study, the tighter the knot in my chest grew. I hadn’t seen him since I woke up in the clinic after drinking that poison. Two weeks. Two whole weeks. And not once had he come

to check on me.

I should’ve known better. After all, I was just his little secret. A toy to play with in the dark. A maid he could break for his pleasure and walk away from

when he was done.

As I reached the study door, I stopped. I could hear voices inside.

Laughter.

A woman’s voice.

My stomach twisted violently.

He wasn’t alone.

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Chapter 52

Something cold settled over me, and I stood frozen, clutching the tray in my hands. My heart was beating too fast, too loud.

“…you always work so hard, Alpha,” the woman inside purred. “You deserve a break.”

I heard him chuckle. That deep, commanding voice I knew so well. The same voice that had growled my name in the dark, demanding things from me, I’d never wanted to give. The same voice that haunted me in my sleep.

Rage surged inside me, but it was tangled with something I didn’t want to name–jealousy. Why? Why should I care if he was with another woman? After what he did to me?

But I did care. That was the problem.

After all the pain. After all the tears. After he blackmailed me, after he forced himself on me, after he made me his personal slave–here he was, laughing

with another woman like I never existed.

I turned slowly, my hands trembling as I clutched the tray. I couldn’t do this. I couldn’t walk in there and pretend like I didn’t hear what I heard, like I didn’t feel like my chest was being split in two.

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