Page 7 of Alpha Bond

Maybe she’s waiting for a moment of weakness. I tighten my grip and feel something in me tighten, too. I fight a low growl as that same surge of excitement wells up again. In spite of my weight and my tight hold, she scrambles loose, crawling away from me. Still not shifting.

Why the fuck isn’t she shifting?

I don’t care. She’s barely out of reach, and I grasp her by the hips, hauling her back against me. Soft…so damn soft. I want to growl again. Something in me almost wants her to run…so I can give chase again.

What the fuck, Law?

“Please!” Her face is ashen with terror. Under a torn man’s jacket, she’s dressed in something smooth and slick beneath my palms as I run my hands down her sides and pat her down, checking for a weapon. I don’t feel anything that might cause harm to me…although those curves are definitely hazardous. In fact, as she keeps wriggling, I feel myself pressing between the swell of her ass cheeks. And I realize that my cock is rock hard.

“Don’t…” she moans. “Please.”

Fuck…

Not only am I hard, I’m grinding against her, humping like a horny pup. No wonder she sounds so terrified. I pull away quickly, clambering awkwardly to my feet. Compelling my erection to disappear. She curls on her side, hugging herself.

“Don’t hurt me!” she pleads.

Jeez, I’m such a dick!

“Don’t fucking run!” I bark. The wolf lurks too close for comfort, and my instruction is as much for me as it is for her. Because if she makes me hunt her down again, there’s no telling what I might do. Which is something I don’t understand. I’ve never harmed a female. Though hurting her is the furthest thing from my mind.

“I…I promise…I won’t.” Her voice is tiny. She’s still huddled submissively. Though there’s no hint that she would bare her belly to me, and she’s clasped her hands to her neck, protecting her throat. She has a torn swatch of fabric wrapped around it, though I doubt it provides much warmth.

Where the hell are her clothes?

She’ll die of cold in this weather.

“You’re a wolf,” I say, and she nods, probably because she knows there’s no sense in denying it. “What are you doing here?” When the words come out, my voice is guttural. I can feel how my limbs have roped and grown taut with barely restrained muscle. It’s the closest I’ve ever come to shifting in the presence of any she-wolf. Aside from Casey…but she barely qualifies, there’s more chance of my partner slipping into rut mode herself under the right circumstances. To a strange female, I must look like some kind of nightmare.

“I’m…I’m lost.” Her words are a whisper, and I’m sure they’re partially true. But there’s a lot more to this story. I can sense it.

“How the fuck did you get lost out here?” It’s hard for me to keep my voice gentle. Though why should I? She’s intruding on pack territory, and she stinks of alpha male. Except, when I got a closer whiff of her, there hadn’t been any scent that indicated she’s been claimed at all. She’s just laden with the smell of…

Piss.

What the actual fuck?

“I’m not here to do anything wrong, I swear it!” Her words are placatory, but her eyes have fixed on me with a combination of fear and suspicion. Huge hazel eyes that seem to lighten as I look into them. I get the sense that she’ll run at the first chance she gets – perhaps try to crack my skull again, too. The little wolf might be afraid, but she’s not helpless by any means.

Running would be a mistake, though. A big one. I clench my fists, inhaling deeply as I fight to bring the beast within me under control. I reach for her again, and she flinches away, her body recoiling. And now I feel like the biggest jerk in the world once more. But I keep a hand firmly around her wrist, not trusting her not to bolt.

“I’m sorry,” I say as soothingly as I can under the circumstances. Circumstances which have brought my wolf from his cave, sniffing out a fertile female.

Dammit, that’s not it!

Something’s wrong with her. And she’s terrified. But still ready to come up fighting. I can feel the urge to defend herself warring beneath the surface. She’s simply chosen the smart route, being compliant because clearly, she’s outmatched.

Clever.

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” I add. “We’ve had…some trouble out here.”

She nods slowly, getting to her feet, eyes fixed on my hand, where my fingers encircle her forearm. As she stands in front of me, I get another long whiff of her. It’s a struggle to filter past the alpha, but her own scent soon takes hold. It makes me tilt my head.

Not just unmated and fertile, but… What? Not omega. That would be a disaster. An omega out here would have every male for miles in a rut-lust. Me included. Of course, I wasn’t far from it, if I’m honest with myself. I steel myself, then release her arm and step back. Not far enough to give her room to run again but enough to show her I don’t mean her harm.

“Why are you hiding?” I ask because it’s obvious that she is.

She looks around nervously. “I was on my way home…some guys grabbed me, threw me into their car and drove off. I got away, jumped out, and ran.” She sweeps a hand around us. “I didn’t know where they’d brought me, so I hid out. I was afraid if I tried to find help, I’d run into them again.”