Page 29 of My Possessive Alpha

As I looked at him, that attraction pulsed in my chest, and more than anything, I wanted to feel his skin against mine. I wanted to leap head-first into that passion and be reminded of how intense it was.

Even if he was a bit tense, I wanted to help ease it away from his system.

There was nothing wrong with his response, but I could still sense something strange happening underneath it all.

“We had a lot of fun. It was nice to get out and see everything with her,” I replied, smiling at how much better things had been between us. “I’m glad I’ve had the chance to patch things up with her.”

“I’m glad too.”

We continued to eat, flitting between pockets of silence and light conversation, and while it wasn’t alarming by any means, I just couldn’t shake the sinking feeling in my stomach.

“Is everything with the pack going well?” I questioned after a moment, catching the slightest hint of tension in his shoulders as he swallowed the food.

Sebastian cleared his throat and nodded a moment longer than necessary as if to overcompensate for something. “Yeah, everything’s been just fine. Nothing to worry about.”

The almost imperceptible uptick in his heart rate didn’t get past me, even if that was his goal. It was enough to make my stomach ache slightly.

With Zoe’s dismissal and reassurance earlier, I wanted to believe nothing was wrong. But it seemed I was onto something, and I needed to know if it had anything to do with me.

While I didn’t want to pry or stick my nose where it didn’t belong, I wanted to know that Sebastian was alright. That we were okay.

Chapter 17 - Sebastian

No part of me wanted to lie to Lydia. I didn’t want that to be the foundation of our bond, even if I felt it was the best way to protect her.

She had just come from a potentially dangerous living situation with her parents and Jack, and I didn’t want her to get caught up in anything else. I didn’t want her to doubt the safety I could offer her, and I certainly didn’t want her to fear that Jack might retaliate.

But as I sat there at the table with her, trying to keep everything under wraps in the meantime, I hated the turmoil within me. I hated the swirl of doubt within me—the faintest worry that she might decide to go back home and give in to her parents’ wishes. That to appease them, she might splinter our bond and give herself over to Jack.

A part of me wanted to believe the Jack situation was nothing and that he wouldn’t confront us or anyone in the pack. I wanted to assume that I was overreacting and that, since he likely knew about us due to tracking Lydia’s scent back here, he had given up and lost interest.

I didn’t know how concerned I should be about the whole thing, and while I knew I couldn’t keep it from Lydia forever, I wanted to grant her as much carefree time as possible.

Yet, as I felt her gaze on me by the time we both wrapped up our meal, I had the feeling I wasn’t going to get my way.

“What’s wrong, Sebastian?” She asked, not looking away from me. “Living with my parents in that pack made me very perceptive of every little expression and gesture, and I know something is going on. It would be easier if you just told me.”

Of course, she noticed something was off with me. For days, I had been sidestepping around the conversation, avoiding telling her anything about the scents we detected, and inadvertently avoiding getting too close to her out of fear that she might change her mind about us.

For a brief moment, I contemplated burying myself even deeper, but the thought alone made my stomach turn. She was my mate, and I didn’t want to lie to her.

Releasing a deep breath, I leaned forward slightly and met her gaze. The pit in my stomach only grew as the words left my mouth. “All right. First, I need you to answer something for me.”

Lydia’s brows furrowed slightly, eyes brimming with concern, and she nodded. “Sure, what is it?”

“Have you ever…considered being with Jack?”

I immediately hated how it sounded coming from my mouth and how it immediately forced a look of shock to cross her face.

I felt almost pathetic for asking, but I needed to know without a doubt that I wasn’t stowing her away for no reason. My inner wolf and I needed to know she was fully in this bond with me.

Although, as she blinked past that slight stupor, disgust was quick to take its place. “Jack? Why would I want to be with him?”

“Please, just answer,” I said, ignoring her question in response. I didn’t want hypothetical answers—I only needed to know where her mind and heart were before I could continue.

Lydia softened somewhat as she studied me momentarily, then shook her head. “Of course I haven’t. I’ve never been interested in him in that way. I couldn’t stomach itwhen my parents suggested I be with him—that was why I ran in the first place.”

Upon hearing her answer and feeling every moment of her sincerity, I felt ridiculous for even asking, yet I had to ask. She never gave me a reason to doubt her, but given the fragility of the situation and our new bond, I couldn’t help it.

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