Page 78 of Alpha Jax

If I wasn’t so enraptured by those bright, beautiful eyes of hers, I would’ve seen the warning in them. If I wasn’t so hyper-focused on delivering the little speech I’d worked up in my head, I would’ve heard the heavy footfalls approaching from behind her as I spoke. Too late, I come to the realization that someone else is in her room with her, hearing my confession.

I’m met with a pair of cold, dark eyes- and if looks could kill, I’d already be done for. “It was you?!” Theo demands, venom in his tone. I can practically feel the anger radiating off of him as he stands beside his sister, clenching one fist and grasping the edge of the door so hard with the other that I wouldn’t be surprised if the wood splintered beneath his fingers. “How could you?”

Anger. Betrayal. Disbelief. Rage. It’s all there, swirling in Theo’s eyes, lurking beneath the surface. This isn’t how I wanted him to find out. I’ve thought of a million ways to tell him, but this definitely wasn’t one of them.

Time moves in slow motion as Theo throws the door aside, lunging toward me. I know what’s coming, but I don’t even raise my hand to block my face. I know I deserve it, so I’ll take it like a fucking champ. His punch lands hard, a right hook to my jaw that sends me stumbling backwards. Then there’s searing pain that radiates out from the spot where he made contact, my mouth flooding with warmth.

Funny, I don’t remember the part in the movie about the dude getting his face beat in by the female lead’s brother.

I spit, and dark red blood peppers the floor of the hallway in front of my feet. He got me good. A sob tears from Quinn’s mouth as she grabs for Theo in a futile effort to hold him back from coming after me, but he shrugs her off like a ragdoll. He’s a man on a mission, his singular purpose right now to make me pay for my sins.

“I fucking trusted you,” he growls, lunging for me again. I let him land another punch, this one to my left eye. I feel my cheekbone crack under his knuckles, the pain sending a shockwave through my system. That should satisfy him, but he’s got a feral glint in his eye- he keeps coming at me, savagely, relentlessly.

“I trusted you to look after her!” he shouts as he tackles me to the ground, and this time, I put up my arms to block his blows and hold him back. “Not take advantage of her!” His fists continue flying, aiming for my face while I writhe underneath his weight, dodging them. He got a few good hits in, but I’m not a total masochist. I’ll only let him hit me for so long without fighting back. I grunt as he knees me in the ribs, distracting me momentarily so he can land another punch on my face.

I’m not trying to land any of my own blows, just dodge the ones he’s delivering. It’s not easy, though, and he catches an elbow to the face, which only enrages him further. “I told you… to stay… away… from my… sister…” he pants between swings.

“Stop!” Quinn shouts from somewhere behind us. Her voice sounds so far away. “Please! Stop!”

The scuffle in the hallway of the squad dorms is starting to draw a crowd, but no one dares to intervene. Only another alpha would, and at this hour, they’re all home at their packhouses. These onlookers are all content to stand by and let Theo and I fucking kill each other.

“Stop!” Quinn’s voice is closer this time- too close. She launches herself onto Theo’s back in an attempt to pull him off of me. Without thinking, he flings her off of him- and I watch in horror as her body goes flying into the wall beside us, hitting hard with a sickening thud.

No. Adrenaline is a hell of a thing- you know that story of how a mother somewhere lifted an entire car off of her baby when she had a rush of adrenaline? I imagine that’s what this feels like, because suddenly I’m the fucking incredible hulk- I throw Theo off of me in a single burst of energy, ignoring the pain coursing through my own body as I move to Quinn’s side. She’s sweeping her hair out of her face with a hand, wincing as she pulls herself up into a seated position against the wall.

My heart feels like it’s going to beat out of my chest. My wolf is going berserk- fucking howling in agony at the sight of our girl in pain. “Quinn…” I breathe, reaching out for her.

“Don’t fucking touch her,” Theo hisses, shoving me aside forcefully.

I fall back onto an elbow, glaring at him and seething with anger. “Fuck you, you’re the one that threw her!”

“No, fuckyou, you fucking traitor!” he tosses back at me.

We move toward one another, about to clash again, when Quinn’s voice cuts through the space between us like a knife.

“Enough!”

I freeze, my head snapping sideways to look at Quinn.My beautiful Quinn.She grits her teeth and braces her palms on the wall behind her, getting to her feet. Theo and I scramble to stand as well, both staring at her intently, reaching out to help her- but she holds up her hands to stop us.

It’s like time stands still. All three of us are breathing heavily, Quinn’s eyes darting between me and her brother. I give her a frantic once-over in an attempt to survey any damage to her body from being flung against the wall like that. Nothing jumps out at me as far as broken bones go, so hopefully it’s just bumps and bruises that will heal quickly. Thank fuck for rapid shifter healing, because I couldn’t stand seeing those bruises on that perfect body of hers, marring her smooth skin.

“Quinn…” I reach out for her again, but she gives me a warning look that stops me in my tracks.

“You fucking disgust me,” Theo grumbles, glaring at me. The hateful look in his eyes is one I haven’t seen from him before- and one I won’t soon forget.

“Theo, stop!” Quinn scolds, shooting him the same warning look that I just got from her. “Go.”

A growl tears from Theo’s chest. “Fuck that, I’m not leaving you with this fucking guy!”

“He’s going, too.”

Wait, what?I stare at Quinn questioningly- pleadingly. There’s gravel in my voice when I say her name again. “Quinn…”

“Jaxon, please,” she whispers, turning to look at me.

Her eyes are brimming with tears, the sight and scent of them sending my wolf into fucking orbit. I grit my teeth as he claws at the inside of my chest.

“Both of you, just go.”

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