Page 6 of Cruel Alpha Bully

I forgot what this feels like.

This intensity, this unbelievable excitement and anticipation… I used to feel it every day. It’s been about five years living without it, and now I don’t even know how I tolerated that.

I feel so alive. I hate to admit it, but I’ve missed this feeling.

Bae raises a hand and gestures lightly with his fingers.

Come, come to me.

Fear streaks through me, along with the memory of how he humiliated me in front of the entire school on the biggest night of my life. Suddenly, I’m standing in front of him again. Not on a cold mountain, but back in the gym. My heart is full of hope, and I feel so confident and beautiful in my gorgeous blue gown.

Maybe he’ll say yes! Maybe we’ll walk out of here together!

Then, his harsh voice. His cutting words. The laughter that rang through the place and echoed off the walls as the band stopped playing to join the joke. How the laughter caught like wildfire on dry wood, first to Bae’s friends, then the crowd... and finally to every single person in the gym.

“No!” I scream, my voice shattering the silence.

I see Bailey jump a little, but I don’t stay to see what the rest of them do. The memory has given me back control over my own body, and with a fierce act of will, I shift back into my wolf form and turn, charging down the mountain as fast as my paws will take me.

Green leaves, twisted branches, and cold gray rock flow by at the edges of my vision as I flee the circle. I push every thought out of my head and just run. There is nothing but the cold, damp earth on my paws, the clear air in my lungs, and the hot rush of my blood.

By the time I get back to the airport, I’m panting heavily and exhausted. The sun has sunk behind the horizon, and shadows are deepening all around me. I find my clothes and change quickly. It’s already getting uncomfortably cold.

Walking back into the main terminal, I try to regain my calm. Maybe what just happened was some kind of demented hallucination. As I claim my luggage, I consider putting it right back and boarding a plane straight to Denver.

Memories of my little safe life flood back to me. The comfort of those easy days and pleasant evenings calls to me, filling me with longing.

But as I walk out the front doors of the terminal, the cold wind from the mountains hits me, and I remember the feeling of standing in front of Bae in the dying light of the day. The hot rush of my blood flooding to my nipples and a great throbbing starting up inside of me that made my skin sing.

Alive.

As I wave for a taxi, I remember why I’m actually here. I can’t leave until I attend Grandmother’s funeral and say goodbye. I don’t want to see Bae again, but I can’t just run away.

The taxi rolls through the streets, and I watch the soft strobe of the streetlights as we head closer and closer to my parents’ house. My body still hums with that arousal I can’t shake. I want more of it—dear God, I want him. I want him so much, I can’t stand it.

But how can I want someone who doesn’t want me?

Tears sting my eyes, and I have to shove the thought away so I can pay the driver and grab my bags. I haul them up to the door and knock to let my folks know I’m home. Opening the door, I look forward to the warm comfort of my parents and my brother.

I can hear voices rising and falling as I shove the door open, but I don’t think much of it. There are probably some family members here to help with the funeral preparations. I barely even look up as I call out for someone to give me a hand with my bags.

There are a few people standing in the hall, and I turn to face them, getting a bit upset that my stuff is still sitting on the stoop and no one is helping me.

I’ve had a damn long day. I could really use a break right now.

Then I focus properly on the crowd in the hallway, and when I see who it is, I feel like I’ve been punched in the guts.

Crowded into the hallway are Bailey, Carson, my parents, and my brother, Jack.

Immediately, my body comes alive. That throbbing deep inside me is almost painful, it’s so intense, and my nipples are so hard, I feel like they could cut through my shirt. I want to run the short distance between us and press myself against him. I know that only Bae can satisfy this need, this bone-deep, primal craving.

Before I realize it, I’m walking towards him. Bae doesn’t speak, but he has an adorable little smirk creeping onto his face.

He knows. He knows how horny I am!

Carson’s voice cuts through the sensations, bringing me back to the real world.

“So, you see, Gina has to come with us, right now. It’s a great honor to be chosen in the ceremony, and Gina’s grandmother would be so proud of her. I wish she was still here to see it. It would make her so happy.”

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