Page 32 of The Alpha Wolf's Bullied Bride

“So…?” I repeat with a disbelieving scoff, confused by her blatant disregard for the implications of the wedding night. Of course, she wouldn't understand the importance of tonight when all of this has happened so quickly.

Even I can hardly make sense of the feelings stirring in my chest, compelling me to keep her safe. In my arms. Under me…

“Firstly”—I hold a finger up in warning—“you're gonna stop working at the center. There is no need for it. Secondly”—I put out another finger—“you’re gonna listen very carefully to what I have to say.”

Lila huffs, her blue eyes darkening before she flicks damp tendrils of hair over her shoulder as she heads to the bed. She flings her clothes on the mattress, then takes a seat at the edge, clutching the towel so tightly to her chest that her knuckles pale.

I chuckle sardonically as I lean against the doorframe, crossing my arms before speaking.

“I’m sorry, Lila. For everything.” It feels as if a weight has been lifted off my shoulders, but my apology is met with resistance when Lila scoffs.

“You’re sorry?” she snickers. “So what is this?” She throws her arms up in a gesture of defeat. “Is this your grand gesture of apology, Flynn?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You picked me as your mate 'cause you couldn’t just say sorry?” Lila scoffs, rolling her eyes and throwing me off the edge.

I march over to her, fists curled at my sides. When I glare into her eyes fiercely, towering over her, I lose my sense of dominance when she stands up and glares with equal ferocity at me.

My heart does that odd little flip, then tugs forward as if a magnetic force compels me forward. The air is dense with tension, but a sweetness curls in my airways when I inhale. Still, I glower down at her, frustrated by how she shakes me to the core.

That's it. That's always been it.

Lila brings out the very worst in me. There's a feeling so deeply buried that it vexes me to the point of madness.

I don’t understand it. I can’t make sense of her.

Why am I drawn to her, when logically, I shouldn’t be? She’s without a wolf, the lowest ranked in our pack. I am the Alpha of Blood Moon, and it would have worked in my favor to have a strong Luna by my side.

My parents have taken it too lightly for my liking, turning the whole thing into a strategic move that makes no sense.

How am I to face the other Alphas in the alliance? I’ll be ridiculed when they hear about this, having to explain that Blood Moon is a united front that values every member’s life. It’s something my brother would have agreed to.

But he’s not here anymore.

All the rampant thoughts in my mind become pointless when Lila’s lips part. My gaze is drawn to those soft cushions of sweet flavor, bedewed by the glistening essence of her own rage when her tongue skims her lips.

“I don’t understand it,” she says, mirroring my sentiments. “You rejected me that day, there was no need to prove that you’re a good man by picking me as your mate.”

“A good man?” I scoff. “I’m not a good man, Lila. I am the Alpha of this pack.”

“So what do you want with me?” she asks with a sarcastic chuckle. “I’m just the wolf-less girl. The baby elephant, remember?”

A glint of sadness flashes through her eyes, and for a fleeting moment, I catch her dropping her guard and showing vulnerability.

She hasn’t really gotten over that day in the meadow. She’s been pretending all along. It was only toughened walls she’d been keeping up, pretending to be cold toward me.

Her moment of weakness ignites my own, my heart and mind softening as I take a step forward and close the little distance between us. It’s a motion that happens naturally, an unseen force pulling me forward until my senses are engulfed in her presence. A sweet scent enters my airways, my heart pounding as if to match hers when I suddenly hear the racing patter of her heartbeat.

I quickly reel my rational mind back in, conflicted by these feelings while I wrestle with the knowledge that this is a bad idea.

Lila as my mate is a bad idea for the safety of this pack.

I groan, wanting to back away but unable to move. Somehow, I’m drawing forward, craving the sweet scent that lingers around her. “You need to stop…”

Lila frowns, her head coiling back. “Stop what?”

“Stop breathing,” I grunt, inhaling sharply as I dip my head to her neck, her scent gland throwing off pheromones that weaken my knees. She shouldn’t have that much of an effect on me, not when she doesn’t possess a wolf. Still, I draw closer like a bee circling a pollinated flower, my mind heady with the intoxication of her essence.

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