Page 25 of The Alpha's Forced Bride
After standing, I wandered toward the bathroom in something of a dazed state. I collected a few towels and carefully patted her down, being extra careful around her sensitive slit. I turned to myself only when I was satisfied that she was clean. Her eyes were closed, and a serene expression was on her face, making her features so delicate that I wanted to touch them. A few minutes was all it took for her to fall asleep. It was the most comfortable she had been since she'd gotten here. Given the circumstances, I was impressed that she was allowing herself to be so vulnerable with me.
The influence of the oils was that of a magical nature. They weren't drugs or anything of that sort. Rather, they were more of an aphrodisiac that inspired the body and the inner wolf to respond to one's mate. My elders and predecessors had developed this over the years to make it easier to reproduce. Tonight, it had worked brilliantly on us both.
I collected the used towels and tossed them into the hamper. For a moment, I thought about taking a shower. But again, I didn't want to leave her side. All I wanted was to be pressed up against her as many times as physically possible, and not even in a sexual sense. I was simply desperate to have her close so that I could feel the tide of her breath and the rhythms of her body. I adjusted the sheets to accommodate her, admiring how the way her hair spilled over the pillow looked so much like a black river. I ran my fingers through it, feeling its silkiness, its softness. Sweat and oil caused some of the strands of hair to stick together, preventing me from stroking my fingers through it.
I grabbed a brush from the nightstand and brushed out the knots that had formed during our romping. Soft mewls rose from each stroke, her eyelids fluttering like she wanted to wake up. But she didn’t. She snoozed peacefully as I tenderly groomed her. After tucking her in, I curled under the sheets with her and wrapped my arm around her waist. Sleep had never come easily to me. Yet I found myself drifting off the moment my face touched her shoulder. Seconds later, I fell deep into that wonderful place where I knew I could get rest.
***
Bacon sizzled in the pan as I mixed the appropriate ingredients for pancakes. I couldn’t recall the last time I had a woman sleep in my bed. It must have been over a decade ago. Even then, whatever memories I had eluded my grasp. The calming sensation of having a warm body beside me was incredible. Kiara was such a peaceful sleeper. She rested very still, kept to my side, and didn’t hog the sheets. Nothing about her was worth complaining about, even the soft snores that she made. Unaware of her surroundings, she rested so easily. It put me at ease to realize how wonderful it felt to see her when I woke up.
I was in the midst of preparing the coffee when I heard her stir. Behind me in the living room was a pile of clothes on the couch. Nora had managed to steal a cream-colored cashmere sweater, dark jeans, boots, and a pair of thick white socks. I figured Kiara was tired of wearing my clothes, although she'd made no complaints about the matter. She looked cute walking around in my oversized joggers and muscle shirts. It made her scent stick to my clothes—and that made me want to wear them even more.
Once breakfast was finished, I loaded up a tray, tucked the clothes under my arm, and carried everything to the bedroom where Kiara was sitting up on the bed. She brushed her long, dark hair out with her slender fingers, reminding me of everything we did last night. Lust consumed me. I wanted to drop everything and jump on the bed. The sunlight illuminated her face from the window. Birds chirped outside. The trees rustled in the breeze. The wind struck the side of the cabin with a formal strength rather than the threatening aura that it had some nights ago.
Thinking about that night was strange because that was when Clancy and I were trying to figure out how to save this pack. Not more than a week later, I was mated to a woman who wore my mark and who didn't shy away from my touch. That very same woman was now in my bed.
I carried the tray of food over and set it next to her, then handed her the clothes. I watched her face light up when she felt the softness of the sweater. This was more delightful than feeling her unravel from an orgasm.
She ran her fingers over the sweater. “If you thrifted this, that's quite a lucky find.”
I reached out to stroke her cheek, drawing her gaze to me. “You can thank Nora for that.”
Her smile grew, making her eyes look greener this morning than her usual bluish-green—almost like a pale emerald, almost like a stone struck with moonlight. She looked up at me with those eyes, the smile still there, my hand still on her cheek.
She breathed slowly. “What happens next?”
I ran my thumb underneath her eye and watched her flesh twitch at my behest. “I'm not really sure yet.”
Her smile receded, and she set the clothes aside, focusing on the tray with a downcast look on her face. Her hair fell into her eyes, and I felt the need to push it away, to brush a lock behind her ear. But I got the feeling that she didn't want to be touched at that moment. Instead, I rounded the bed and sat beside her, giving her enough space to eat.
She quietly munched on a few bits of bacon and then turned to me with a tight expression. “Well, you're the one who's supposed to know, right? We did this ritual to save your pack. Did it work?”
I looked away from her, almost feeling ashamed that I didn't have an idea of what to do as her mate and as an alpha.
She scoffed. “So, I’ve been kidnapped, thrown into a cage, and forced to mate with a completely random stranger—and now, that stranger has no idea what's going to happen next.” She dropped her hands loudly on her lap. “Great.”
Agitated by her tone, I reached for her piece of toast and plucked it angrily from the plate. “If I had known you were going to wake up on the wrong side of the bed, I would have set up breakfast in the living room, not in here.”
She folded her arms across her chest. “I don't see what that has to do with anything.”
“We had such a wonderful time last night.” I bit into the toast, chewing it pointedly. I didn't continue until I swallowed. “I don't see why you're having such a bad attitude about everything right now.”
She gaped at me as though I had insulted her dead mother. That wasn't even something that I knew about her. I had no concept of her family. The only person she'd mentioned was a father and perhaps a few other people like her alphas, the plurality of which I still didn't understand. Even so, she looked almost indignant at how I said things.
She frowned at her hands. “This has nothing to do with last night.”
I shook my head. “Well, then, I don't understand what you're complaining about. Whether you like it or not, you belong to me now.”
She raised her eyebrows. “Oh, really?”
With that, she jumped from the bed and zoomed to the door. I interceded almost instantaneously as though I could predict her next movements. I held her tightly for a moment, locking my arms around her elbows to keep her arms pinned at her sides. I thought she was going to fight me harder. Wasn’t that the point of her running?
“You can’t treat me like this,” she argued while struggling against me.
“You’re not my mother.”
She grunted. “You sure could use one.”
