Page 22 of Sold to the Alpha Wolf

Squeezing the sheet that wrapped around me, I knew what I had to do—how I could make him see. See the truth, see me. I pulled the hair off my back, sweeping it over my shoulder as I lowered the fabric covering me just enough to reveal my back.

A hushed gasp left Jet, followed by the deep, acrid smell of burning. It diluted his wonderful natural scent, and even as another wave took me, forcing me to the ground as I writhed—desperate for him inside me—the grief over my own existence hollowed me out.

“What the…” He was at me in a flash, his hands tracing over the dozens of scars that decorated my flesh. “Who did this to you?”

The growl that left him shook my bones, and I lost a bit of myself to the feeling of his hands on my skin. His charred leather smell intensified, and I sensed the protective rage coursing through our pack bond. He was furious, enraged, but it was for me, not at me.

“You said so yourself, Jet.” I moaned, my head falling forward as my womb cramped down, hungry, demanding attention. “I have no wolf. The pack hated me. They likely would have had me killed just to spite you if they’d learned I was your…mate.”

Jet’s fingers smoothed over each and every one of the old wounds—bite marks, claw slashes, blades, whips.

“I will see them all skinned for what they did to you.”

Our mate bond flared, a bright, hot beacon of possessiveness over me that made my head spin. The heat intensified. I’d never felt it this strong before, but I’d also never been around my mate for this long.

And he was still touching me. Jet was running his fingers up and down my spine and around my sides. He was seeking every bit of contact he could get from me.

But Gods, how could I trust this?

“You say that. You say…you’ll end them for what they did. But how do I know…how do I know you won’t just leave me again? I can’t go through that again. This close to an excommunication, to a heat”—another wave wracked through me, and I hissed as my muscles scorched from an internal fire—“I’ll die.”

“I won’t let that happen. I swear to you.” Jet lowered his nose toward my neck, and I stiffened, instinctually going on defense. “Gods, Senna. How could they be so cruel to you? It’s not right.”

I could barely think. Jet was too close again. His scent and feel all around me like this made it impossible to focus. The wave of hormones backed off, sinking to a level far lower than it had been.

Oh, thank Gods, I’m through the first round.

Pulling myself up off the floor, I turned and faced Jet, backing away slightly as I clutched the sheet to put more space between us again. He blinked several times, his mind clearing as the pheromonal pull backed off.

“Oh,” he sighed, “did it? Stop?”

I nodded with a shrug. “Only momentarily. It’ll be back. Soon.”

Jet nodded, backing up even further to sit on his bed. The thing sunk down under his weight, and I eyed the circle of blankets that I’d made in the bed as he messed them up. A faint growl left me—unbidden and unstoppable.

“What was that?” He cocked a brow at me.

“I’m…” I shook my head, trying to focus out of the territorial urge to get him out of my den unless we were using it. “I’m sorry. I’d just…”

My eyes lingered on the bed, and Jet looked down over his shoulder. He stood up, adjusting the blankets so they created that well shape again and stepping away toward the window.

“Did you make a den of my bed, Omega?” he smirked, and I wanted to snap at him, but I held it back.

“Unintentionally.” I rolled my eyes, flopping down to the floor and sitting.

With a nod, that smirk still in place, I watched Jet fold his arms across his chest. He looked at the floor for a moment, chewing on his lip. The need to be with him was still strong, and our mate bond had solidified some in the moments we’d spent together during the first phase of the heat.

“I’m not used to having unclaimed omegas in the house,” he chuckled to himself. “Any wolf looking to go through her heat alone goes for a run and stays in the woods so the others won’t—”

“Rut her into oblivion? Yeah, I guessed as much.”

That disarmingly beautiful smile of his lit up Jet’s face. His deep green eyes met mine again, and heat or not, all I wanted to do was walk up and kiss him. But I knew it was the bond talking—and very much my heat as well.

“I’m…” Jet sighed. “Your life with the Collins pack was horrid. I wish with everything I have that I could go back in time and spare you even a minute of that pain. I didn’t want us to be literally killed for being together, but…”

He took a step forward, the wood floor creaking under his weight. My attention flicked to his boots for just a moment, and I noticed, strangely enough, how well cared for they were. Terrance’s things were permanently stained, roughed up, and well worse for wear.

“This hasn’t been truly living. For either of us.”

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