Page 42 of Rejected By My Stepbrother Alpha
If I really considered the way I felt about Ivy, I couldn’t give adefinite answer. My feelings for her were just as complicated as our history.
I faltered mid-step as a high-pitched sound interrupted my thoughts.
I froze and listened to the loud sound as it reverberated through the forest. A few birds even flew from their branches. It took me only a moment to understand what the noise was.
It was a woman screaming. But not just any woman…
Ivy.
Without pausing to think, I allowed my wolf to take over, transforming into my other form. The clothes burst off my body as I leaped through the air as a human, and when I landed, I was a wolf. Digging my paws into the dirt, I launched in the direction her scream had come from, flying through the air, running faster than I’d ever had in my life. There was only one thought in my mind.
Protect her.
The bright lights of the city momentarily blinded me as I ran out of the trees. My eyes quickly scanned the area, and cold dread filled me when I spotted a giant gray wolf stalking toward Ivy with his sharp teeth bared.
Ivy was sitting on the ground, her back against a wall. Her distinctive reddish-brown hair was whipping through the wind, and she was holding her arm to her chest. Just from the delicate way she was gripping it, I knew she was wounded. Ivy's head kept nodding forward, then jerking back up as if she was trying to keep herself conscious. And her eyes kept fluttering closed. How much blood had she lost already? In this injured state, she wouldn’t be able to shift to protect herself.
The bastard was going to pay for hurting her. He was going to pay for even thinking about hurting her.
A deep growl ripped out of my throat as I darted as fast as a bullet toward Ivy’s attacker. The other wolf's head swung toward me right before I crashed into him, and we rolled through the air, slamming to the ground in a flurry of sharp nails and teeth.
The gray wolf bared his teeth and growled as he struggled to stand.
My adrenaline and Alpha strength pumped through my body like a drug, and I easily stood back up on my four legs andlunged for the wolf who was still unsteady. I aimed for his neck, but he moved at the last minute, and I bit into his left foreleg.
The wolf howled in pain as I sank my teeth even further into him.
Good.
Whatever pain he’d caused Ivy, I was going to return to him ten-fold.
I loosened my jaw just slightly so that I could go for his throat, but the wolf used this opportunity to rip his foreleg out of my mouth. He whimpered in pain as his blood flowed, but he managed to shakily stand. Even after his injury, the bastard looked past me to where Ivy was still on the ground, holding her arm to her chest. Blood was seeping over her skin, dripping onto the ground. Her face was white as her head lolled to the side, but she managed to keep her eyes open.
Red-hot rage sliced through me like a knife. I was going to kill him, and I'd make sure his death was slow and painful.
The wolf darted to the side, trying to find a way past me to get to Ivy, but I blocked him, mirroring his moves, dodging left and right. We continued this for a few minutes, and after a while, the wolf let out a frustrated huff. When he tried to make a run for Ivy, I'd snap my teeth at him in warning. My opponent was quick on his feet, but he was no match for me. I was an Alpha, and he was in my territory. I'd protect anyone on my land, but I’d defend Ivy with my last breath.
When the wolf’s eyes shot over to the side again, I used this distraction to go for his throat. My fangs sank into his fur, and his salty blood filled my mouth. As the wolf howled in pain, I looked back at Ivy to check on her.
No!
My stomach swooped with anxiety when I saw Ivy’s eyes were closed and her breathing was shallow. Because of my surprise and fear of seeing her this way, I loosened my bite and the bastard sprung away from me, his wound spraying blood onto the ground. The wolf didn't try to fight me or go after Ivy again. He escaped and ran as fast as he could with his injuries into the dark woods.
Cold dread made my stomach sink as I rushed toward her. My blood ran cold as I prayed to the Moon Goddess that she would be all right.
Chapter 16
Scars
Ivy
The world around me took on a hazy, dream-like state. I forced my eyes to open as my arm throbbed with pain.
Asher ran back toward me. I recognized him as soon as he shot out of the woods to fight off my attacker. I'd never seen him in his wolf form. His other form was a massive, light-brown creature. He was one of the biggest wolves I'd ever seen. I had just known it was him. And it hadn't been my mind that told me. It had been my heart and soul.
Asher ran up to my side and dropped a tattered cloth that he had been carrying in his mouth. A moment later, he was a giant wolf sitting beside me, then he shifted back into his human form.
“Ivy!”
