Page 16 of The Alpha's Forced Bride

I really didn't know where to go. I had no idea where I was. I was all turned about, and ran in circles for a second trying to get my bearings. Like a confused dog, I chased my own tail, trying desperately to find which way was north or south. How could I tell when the trees were so dense? Where was that pond that Nora mentioned? Shoot, I couldn’t even see Harvey’s cabin anymore.

Beneath me, the ground tilted like the world was on its axis and lost its sense of gravity. I felt like I was tipping over the edge of something. My energy felt totally off, like I had stood up too fast or was trying to walk while drunk. I pumped my legs, working my muscles as hard as I could. I panted and cried through the pain, whimpering through the terrible longing that I felt in my heart to go back to Harvey. Before I knew it, a series of howls broke out behind me. They were coming for me now.

I had to keep running.

Chapter 7 - Harvey

Damn it. Why did she have to run? And why did watching her do it make me feel so thrilled?

My wolf pounced to attention as she broke through the basement door. I wasn't a fool. I saw her noticing the door. I thought about challenging her when she glanced at it a second time. It crossed my mind that it would be enticing to have some kind of chase for foreplay. I also wanted to witness her wolf form—to see how far she would go to get what she wanted. Only one woman was right for me, and that woman had to be grounded in this plane of existence and truly passionate about what she wanted to accomplish in her life.

With a woman like her as my bride, I wouldn't fail in my attempt to save my pack. She would be a great addition to my life in more ways than I could count, and I hoped only that I could return the favor. I chuckled with vivid amusement as I cracked my knuckles. If only I could convince her to stay.

People clamored in the cabin above. I heard Clancy and then Kirk barking orders, and then I heard Demarcus and Shiloh as well. I heard it all: the shouts and snarling, the alarms ringing around the village. The howling came next. They were going to hunt her down.

My wolf snarled.

I didn't like that. I didn't like that they were going to try to pursue my mate. As calmly as possible, I stripped away my clothes and folded them on the desk. Nora casually stood next to me while staring at the broken door. She clicked her tongue a few times, shook her head, and adjusted her shawl over her shoulders. “Gosh, that one's going to be a handful, isn't she?”

My brows tightened as my gaze sharpened. “Please, Nora, don't make fun of my mate.”

Nora wasn't bothered by my command or my gaze, and she didn't seem particularly bothered about Kiara running, either. She was immensely wise and had seen things in Kiara that I hadn't, read things about Kiara that I would have never known. Even Kiara would have never known herself if the elder woman hadn't been so skilled at reading people.

Now that I had a good read on Kiara, my demon could do the work of convincing her to marry me. I would only use him if I had to. It wouldn't be ideal and it wouldn't give me any kind of satisfaction knowing that I had used him to make this happen. Choosing the lesser of two evils didn’t make me feel proud.

Maybe that meant I had to do this on my own. Maybe I could have my wolf lead the way. I wasn't sure. I didn't know where the path would take me, and I couldn’t predict anything like Nora. This wasn’t my idea of foreplay, but then again, none of it was really my idea. We’d gotten this crap from a book, from the journal of a witch who had lost her damn mind.

Footsteps thundered down the stairs as people shuffled into the basement. Clancy and Kirk appeared, with Shiloh and Demarcus close behind them. All four of them circled me, the looks on their faces telling me they would run to the ends of the earth for me.

I held up my right hand. “Don't go after her. I need to do this by myself.”

Shiloh began to argue until Clancy barked at him. Quite literally, he barked at Shiloh as loudly as any dog might. Their eyes turned black as they stared each other down. Nora stepped between them, casually holding up her shawl.

“I'll let the bulls play if you let your alpha go.”

Shiloh cracked his knuckles. Demarcus and Kirk stepped back, allowing the two men to have a face-off with Nora as the referee. She gave me a nod that told me she had things under control. She might be old, but she knew how to deliver a mean jab to the throat. Any funny business with the guys would be met with a swift punch. I looked over at Kirk and DeMarcus, who were obediently waiting for my instructions. After telling them to shift, and doing the same myself, I darted out the door that Kiara had used to break free and sprinted after her scent. Salted azaleas carried on the breeze, taking me toward the beach.

I slowed my pace as I approached what appeared to be some broken twigs and a little bit of blood. I trotted past the area, pausing to sniff the paw prints on the ground, and searched the area with my wolf eyes. In the back of my mind, my demon sang a taunting tune, making fun of me for losing my mate so quickly.

She will never love you, you know, it said. She’s only ever going to see you as a monster. She'll never accept your real form, the one that you use when you don't like losing.

A snarl came from my left, catching me off guard. I looked into the bushes and saw two glowing eyes. The bushes rustled as she darted out from her hiding place, giving herself away. Well, that was one thing that she probably shouldn't have done. She only managed get the jump on me because I was briefly distracted by my demon. I guessed she could tell—but how?

Her front paws landed on my shoulders, and she tossed me back, rolling with me along the ground. We tumbled for a while until I had her pinned by her shoulders, burying my snout into her throat with my teeth bared but not bearing down upon her flesh. She didn't whimper and she didn't wiggle. She froze.

With a defeated growl, she tried to kick at my stomach. She only did this a couple of times until she stopped, realizing it wasn’t working. As soon as I put some weight on my jaws, her flesh puckered beneath my mouth and made me hungry for her. All I wanted to do was bear down on her, but not like this in my wolf form—not in my demon wolf form, either. I didn't want her to see that part of me to be exposed to my demon. If she never saw the demon in full, then she couldn’t reject that part of me—or any part of me.

She growled again, drawing my attention back to her. My demon saying that she didn't want me in any form was strange. Why it said that was a mystery to me. More than that, I didn't understand why she wasn't fighting me more. She was the one who had jumped out from the bushes and pounced on me. Had that been her plan all along?

It occurred to me then that perhaps she just didn't have any idea of where to go from here. These woods were thick, and without any good tracking skills or knowledge of the area, it was hard to get around. We even had trouble identifying certain things in this place. The woods seemed to have a mind of its own. It was a lot like a labyrinth that changed at will, in ways that we couldn't record or map. We could do our best with what was around us, we could try to track things, but if they didn't want to be tracked, then they wouldn't be.

Kiara shifted into her human form.

That might have been a mistake with anyone else, but it was a show of vulnerability to me. Perhaps she was mimicking my ability to manipulate. I might have done the same thing in her position. Her supple flesh felt raw beneath my jaws, under my teeth, inviting me to do the worst. I could just tear right into her throat and turn her to mincemeat here and now. I knew this was the demon trying to invade my thoughts, trying to make it seem like it was my idea. I was able to tell the difference much better and with a bit more clarity than I could before. Slowly, with an ache in my shoulders and jaw from controlling myself so hard, I released her neck and stepped back.

On the way down, I brushed against her breast and then her stomach. Her beautiful hips seemed to invite my snout. Her fingers drove into my fur, pulling my big wolf head to her side. Goddess, this was utter bliss, a connecting moment that stretched into infinity and prompted a soft whine from me. This touch—this place—was doing something to us. We were alone. For the moment, we were safe. And she was giving me the most affectionate scratch behind the ears.

I sniffed along her side only for a second, knowing better than to linger there any longer than I was invited. She didn't fight me, yell, or shove me away. I didn't feel much fight left in her, only that she wished to come back with me. Was that true, or was that just another trick of my demon?

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