Page 4 of The Kill

His breathing is ragged as he presses his nose to my hair then drags his lips up the column of my throat, making me recoil. When his hand slips along the outside of my thigh, I whine, my brain scrambling to find a way out of this situation. But I’m no match for him.

“I might just do that. After.”

I should have kept running.

I curse myself for my weakness, but, deep down, I know any freedom I had would have been temporary.

No matter where I went, he’d have found me.

Maybe it’s better that it’s going to be all over so soon. At least I’ll be at peace.

“Here’s a novel idea. You could pick on someone your own size, and let the lady go.”

3

MANDY

Seemingly as stunned as I am, Lee spins, growling his displeasure at being disturbed when the deep, booming voice comes out of nowhere.

Yanking me by the hair again, Lee pulls me to his side as he faces the huge male approaching casually from among the trees. His gaze never waivers from Lee as he strolls down the sloping riverbank. Hands in his pockets, he couldn’t look any less bothered by the scene he’s stumbled upon.

Lee however, is livid. Tugging my head closer to him, keeping me off balance, he angles my neck so his mark can be seen.

“This has nothing to do with you. She’s my mate. Mine to do with as I please, so stay out of it,” he sneers.

With a weary sigh, and an eye roll, the handsome stranger continues to come closer, reaching a hand up to push his wavy, black hair back from his face. “I’m afraid that’s not going to be possible. You see, this is my territory and we don’t tolerate mate abuse here.”

His expression is almost apologetic, like he just told Lee he can’t park his car here.

“I’m taking her home. Right now. You don’t need to bother yourself with our domestic dispute. We’ll just be on our way.”

With another apologetic shrug, the stranger quirks up one side of his full mouth. “You're going to have to leave the lady here until my alpha has a chance to speak with her, to make sure she wants to go home with you. She looks like she could do with some food and a doctor.”

The stranger’s gaze snags on mine for a millisecond but I feel the intention behind that look. He’s asking me to trust him; and, for some reason, I do. They say better the devil you know, but in this case, definitely not.

It could be a lie.

Maybe this pack is no better than the one I’m fleeing, and he has no intention of offering me refuge, but at least dying at someone else’s hands would rob Lee of the pleasure.

“Nobody takes from me. She is mine.” Lee’s grip tightens and I wince. My scalp screams at the sting, and when he lets go, I expect I’ll be missing clumps of hair but I fight to keep from crying out. This situation is fraught enough as it is.

The stranger smiles, chilling in its insincerity.

“You could always come back to the pack house and meet him yourself. Explain what’s going on.” The stranger’s voice drops lower, and his tone is gravelly. “I’m sure my alpha would be very interested to hear what this tiny thing did to deserve being beaten and hunted like prey.”

The threat is clear, and Lee keeps his mouth shut, begrudgingly, knowing that’s not a conversation he wants to have. If this impressive wolf shifter isn’t the alpha, the real one must be seriously powerful.

And Lee’s not that brave.

We’re at an impasse. The silence stretches on, filling the air around us with cloying tension so thick it’s hard to breathe. The longer the three of us stand there, waiting for someone to say or do something, the harder my heart beats in my chest.

Finally, in one last offer of leniency, the stranger raises an eyebrow and tips his head to the side, gesturing in the general direction we came from. He’s giving Lee one last chance to leave without a fuss, to slink out of here intact, albeit with his tail between his legs and his pride wounded.

If Lee’s hatred for me wasn’t bone deep, it would be the clever thing to do. But Lee has never been that smart, and I know he won’t go without me. Torturing me is his cowardly way of showing his dad, and the rest of the pack, that he’s a tough guy; in control, not weakened by the undue influence of his mate.

“I don’t give a fuck what your alpha thinks. Or you for that matter.” Lee stares at the wolf suspiciously, unsettled by his cool demeanour. The fact that he doesn’t seem to see Lee as a threat has Lee rattled.

In our pack, Lee is feared because he has power and control, not because he’s fought for his position. Out here in the wilds, one-on-one with a shifter who seems absurdly relaxed, he’s off-kilter. Looking at the sheer size of this man and the confidence he exudes, I don’t blame Lee for being worried.

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