Aurelia
"You can't be here," I said, my voice hoarse as I tried to swallow down the misery of my thoughts, repeating the same words I had said last night. "You're the reason all of this is happening in the first place, and now the witches are punishing me because I—"
I stopped myself, shaking my head and taking a deep breath.
The torment I was feeling wasn't his problem. He didn't need to know about the despair that was churning inside of me. Neither did he need to know about the comfort I found in the softness of his presence, and that I let the terror of it wrap around me like barbed wire.
He was like a sweet tasting poison, his scent infiltrating my every sense—and it anchored itself deep into my bones, pulsing through my bloodstream until all I was consumed by was the thought of him.
It was a feeling so primal and so immensely wrong—even still, I couldn't stop myself from clutching onto it.
"I don't want you here. Please, I need you to leave me alone." I reiterated, refusing to look up at him even as every fibre of my being wanted to do just that.
I had already spent too much time fantasizing about having him all to myself, and now that my feelings were more fragile than they had been yesterday—I knew that if he continued to pretend to care about my wellbeing, that I wouldn't be able to stop myself from being so desperately stupid.
Instead, I turned my attention to the things I had set down at my side, using them to distract me. I rearranged the fruit I had managed to collect—some had fallen in my bid to get away from the dining hall, but most of it was strewn haphazardly on my ceremonial plate. I picked up my paring knife to begin cutting through it all, but in my bid to ignore the alpha that was merely a few metres away from me now, I had also forgotten about my injuries.
As my palm clutched around the wooden handle of the knife, I hissed through my teeth before my grip loosened and the blade clattered against my plate again.
"You are hurt, and you are crying." He stated with more emphasis this time, his tone lowering a few octaves as it wrapped around a furious sounding growl.
My hands shook as I wondered what to do, but like all Alphas—this one seemed to have a problem being told what to do.
He moved faster than my broken brain could process, and even as I tried to ignore him—I knew it would be useless.
The leaves crunched under his feet as he moved towards me, my heart beating out of rhythm as I felt his towering form shadowing over mine. The air around us seemed to still as he waited expectantly for me to acknowledge him, but I didn't have the strength to deal with him again especially if this would lead to anything remotely similar to what had happened between us last night.
"Little moon." He said softly, "Look at me," His words tugged at my heartstrings, my conviction falling into ruins as my refusal to look at him only managed to spur him further.
His hand was on my face before I could stop him, the electric shocks sparking against the joining of our skin as he grabbed onto my chin. His forefinger and thumb pressing against my jaw as he yanked my head to its rightful position, my breath catching in my throat as I stared up at him—in shock and in awe.
My eyes widened as I took in the fierce look on his face, this time his sharp features highlighted by the light of the sun instead of the moon.
"When I speak to you, I'd much prefer it if you were looking at me," he tilted my head further as I swallowed against the sudden dryness in my throat. "Do you understand?" I blinked up at him in astonishment, my gaze grasping onto every part of him that I missed last night, drinking him in like he was the last drop of water on this earth.
I barely nodded my head before he let out a grunt of approval, but then his eyes caught sight of the damage against my neck.
The fury on his face increased tenfold.
"I leave you for one night and you come back to me all bloodied and bruised." His nostrils flared, the muscle in his jaw ticking like a bomb ready to go off. "What the fuck happened to your neck?" He turned my face to the side just as I memorised the sight of him, his eyes assessing the damage further now that he had me in his grasp.
"It's nothing," I sputtered, looking out into the trees, and hoping he wouldn't ignite the dangerous desire inside of me again. I could already feel it clawing through me and there was only so much time before my wolf joined in on the curse of it too.
"What makes you think I'm going to believe such an obvious lie?" I gnawed at my lip, faced with the dilemma of what was in front of me.
Even if I told him the truth of what had happened, he wouldn't be able to do anything about it. Yet, there was a part of me that didn't want him to know about the hardships I faced, and about the girls in the sanctuary that hounded and harassed me because of something that was so far out of my control. I didn't want him to think I was as weak and unworthy as everyone else thought I was.
My heart was thundering in my chest as he turned my face back to him, his brows drawn together in something that looked like concern.
"Tell me what happened to you." His tone had taken a harsh lilt, and if last night was any evidence of the authority he held over me, I knew he wouldn't let me go until he had gotten at least a semblance of an answer out of me.
"And if I tell you, will you leave me alone?" I lifted my chin in his grip, my spine straightening as my mind mirrored the same type of determination I saw within him.
His eyes clouded slightly as he looked down at me, his thumb gently brushing over my bottom lip as he pulled it away from the way my teeth were biting into it.
The small touch speared at my insides, and in that moment I knew he was as much at fault over my feelings as I was on my own. The Alpha in front of me was standing on a dangerous line as he continued to treat me like I was more than what I was, but the problem with all of this was—I didn't think he was going to stop.
He gave me a small nod and I let out a shaky breath as I dropped my gaze from his. My eyes settled on his chest as I contemplated my words for a moment. All I needed to do was tell him a more believable lie, and then I could wallow in my guilt without his need to hover over me.
"Some of the girls in the sanctuary got a little harsh in their gameplay, but it's not a big deal. It happens from time to time and—"
He growled, cutting off my lies before I had even begun.
"You're lying to me again, little moon." His voice was soft, but his hold on me tightened as his fingers pushed into the hollows of my cheeks. He leaned closer towards me, right until his lips were inches away from mine. "If I had claimed you, I'd have you over my knee for trying to deceive me. I'd paint that sweet little ass of yours red with the palm of my hand, and I wouldn't stop until I was sure you had learnt your lesson." My heart was about to explode out of my chest as I processed his words, but this time the anger flared inside the hollow parts of me.
Why did I have to tell him anything in the first place?
He was the one trespassing on sacred ground and destroying the peace of this sanctuary. He was the guest who had rules to follow, and this was my home. It was none of his business if I wanted to cry amongst the trees, and it was definitely not his place to threaten me with such an intimate punishment when he had proven to me over and over again that I wasn't his fated mate.
"It's a good thing that I am not yours to punish then, isn't it? So you can keep that hand of yours to yourself." I pushed his grip away from my face and surprisingly he showed no resistance towards my sudden burst of outrage.
He smiled to himself even as I glared at him, straightening to his full height again. "We'll see about that, little moon."
I scoffed at his arrogance, too angry to even try to decipher his words.
"You need to leave." I grumbled, "I have things to do and none of them involve conversing with such an overbearing man." I said with my continued resentment, but he laughed lightly at my insulting words, the sound filling me up even in spite of my sour mood.
"I'm not sure I have met anyone who has ever gotten so easily frustrated, it's such an adorable look on you." He mused, his lips still lifted into a small smile. Before I could even come up with a retort, he dropped to his knees on the ground in front of me.
His hands curled around my calves, inching upwards until I was dizzy with the inability to take a full breath.
"What are you—"
I pressed my thighs together as his gaze settled on my lap, my words trailing off as his fingers played with the hem of my dress. He frowned down at the thin material before his wolf began to take control. I watched as his nails elongated into claws, and to my absolute horror, he began to tear through the flimsy fabric.
In the state I was in, he could have easily overpowered me, so I subdued myself under his impolite touch. My body tensed as his claws grazed my skin, shooting electricity through me and heating me to my core, my own wolf enjoying the rough way he dealt with me far too much.
When he had torn two inches from the bottom of my dress, his gaze levelled with mine again. But when he looked at me like this, all I could see was the agony on Meena's face when she had asked me if he laid his hands on me by force.
"Please don't hurt me." I whimpered, the frown appearing between his brows again as he pierced me with an even more tortured look.
"Give me your hand," And even with the uncertainty that was gripping me from the inside out, my body reacted to his on instinct as it relented to his command.
His hand engulfed mine, and even when I thought he couldn't do anything more horrific than he had already done, he proved me wrong.
He spat right into the palm of my hand, and I let out a surprised shriek. His hand tightened around mine as I tried to pull away from him, a disapproving growl meeting my ears in retaliation.
"Calm down, little moon—have they taught you nothing in this sanctuary of yours?" He huffed as he began to spread his hot saliva over my cuts and scratches. "An Alpha's saliva has healing qualities for his—" He looked up at me in shock for a moment, catching himself from revealing something he didn't want me to hear, "Maybe it will work on you too." He said, spitting into my palm again to distract me from his almost slip-up before he dipped his fingers into his gathered saliva.
He aimed for my neck this time and I veered away from his touch, but there was very little that could deter this Alpha from any opportunity of touching me.
He narrowed his eyes before he leaned into me again, his chest pressing into my legs as he worked delicately on my scratched-up skin.
I should have told him that what he was trying to do wasn't going to work, that the sanctuary had told me everything I needed to know about the man I would be fated to. Saliva was only a healing quality to the people Alpha's held soul ties with, it was another gift that the witches had bestowed upon a fated pair, but even as I knew the truth of it all—I still couldn't cut down the hopeful way he had chosen to take care of me.
My bitter mood was flowering into something tender, and I closed my eyes with a sigh. The silence between us filled with the melding of our breaths as I tried to keep myself from moaning against the will of his softened touch.
"Little moon." His words were a warm breath over my skin, the sound throatier than all the other times he had called me that sweet little name. "Are your eyes closed because you struggle with the sight of blood, or are they closed because you can't bear to look at me?"
My heart was pounding in my ears as I concentrated on the feel of his fingers, wishing I had it in me to ignore the weight of his words.
"I'm struggling with the sight of you kneeling in front of me," I murmured. "I'm struggling with how you're fawning over me and treating me as if I am your mate." My thoughts made themselves known even when I knew I should have kept them safely tucked inside of my head.
His fingers stopped their movements as they rested against my pulse point, taking in the hungry beat of my heart.
"This is—this is wrong, I shouldn't even be indulging myself with you. My mate is out there somewhere, and I am—I am dishonouring him like this. I'm being so utterly stupid." I opened my eyes now, wallowing in the feelings that wanted to consume me whole.
Something feral flashed in the eyes of the Alpha in front of me, and I hated how much my body responded to it.
"You are not dishonouring him; I can promise you that much." He said with as much sincerity as he could muster. "He would be proud to have a mate like you." I scowled at his sweet words—words weren't something that could change my mind anymore.
"Is that why he's making me wait so long?" I scoffed, a frown appearing on his face once again as I pushed him away from me.
Usually, I kept my feelings locked away because I knew there weren't many people who could understand them, but in front of him I was spewing them out with no recourse.
I picked up the strips of fabric he had ripped from my dress earlier, finally understanding what they were for. I wrapped the flimsy pieces of material around the deeper cuts in the palms of my hands, his saliva still sticky against my skin and suddenly I hated myself because of it.
"I'm sure he'll come for you—" He tried to say, but on top of everything else—I couldn't bear to know that he pitied me as well.
"Your words mean nothing when he's the one who has chosen to leave me here for three whole years. You've come here to get your mate and when you're gone I will still be here waiting, the rest of the sanctuary girls will continue to think I am cursed, and they will continue to do everything they can to prove to me that I don't deserve to be here." My words came out in a pathetic flurry.
He moved in front of me, a scowl covering his lips in equal measure as he repositioned himself. His hands pressed against the bare skin of my knees, his fingers pushing into my flesh, as he forced my gaze to his once again.
"Is that why I found you in this state? I distinctly remember a purple stone around your neck yesterday, did someone take it from you because of—"
"You don't understand!" I said in frustration. "Marked wolves aren't supposed to stay in this sanctuary for as long as I have. What they do to me is bearable, what is less bearable is coming to terms with the fact that my Alpha is never coming for me." He tore his gaze away from mine with an angry growl, his hands leaving my body as they moved to his hair.
"I didn't think that you could be hurt because of—"
"You don't have to feel sorry for me—I really did mean it when I wished you and your mate the best for the future," I affirmed, moving back to focusing on arranging my ceremonial plate.
I picked up a slice of honeydew, using the knife to cut the fruit from the rind. He sighed when he caught sight of what I was doing before he settled onto the forest floor, leaning his back against the raised bark of the tree. He lifted one of his legs, resting his arm on top of it as he turned to take me in.
My heart continued to beat heavily as I focused on my task, knowing that he was watching me. Knowing that he should have walked away after my outburst, but my fury had only seemed to make his urge to stay by my side stronger. I placed the cut melon on my plate before I picked up the assortment of figs, moving to slice through the ripened fruit.
He didn't say a word as he moved to pick the food from the plate, the fruit slickening around his fingers before he put it in his mouth. I bit my tongue as I watched him from the corner of my eyes, hoping he would satisfy his hunger quickly. I was sure the matrons would have fed the Alphas before the ceremony and still—
He went for a handful of pomegranate seeds that I had struggled to free from their cage, and that's when I'd had enough.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I accused him, and he feigned innocence as he looked at me.
"I'm eating breakfast with you." He said gently, offering me what was currently in his hands. My heart fluttered in my chest at the compassionate look on his face.
"This isn't my breakfast; you are stealing from my ceremonial plate." I bit back at him, my mood floundering between frustration and affection.
He sighed, his stance tensing.
"I'm not sure what a ceremonial plate is, little moon—you'll have to explain this one to me."
"It is my offering to my mate if he comes to claim me today, and I'd rather it not be contaminated by the hands and scent of another male." He laughed softly at my explanation, murmuring some words under his breath that even my wolfish ears couldn't pick up on.
"My apologies, I—
The sound of a bell rang through the air, and I jolted upright.
Oh no. I had spent way too much time out here and I hadn't even realised.
"What is that?"
"Crap!" I grumbled, "That's the first warning bell, it's to let everyone know that the ceremony will be commencing soon. I'm going to be so late; I still haven't even gotten dressed yet." I started to panic, picking up my things before I got back up. I started moving away from him, but before I could get further than a few feet, his hand was around my wrist.
I growled at him. "We don't need to be wasting any more time in each other's company, we need to—"
He cut me off.
"I think things are going to change for you this time around. If you don't believe it for yourself, then I hope you can believe me when I say it." There was something so sincere about the look in his eyes that I almost believed him, but instead of basking in his words like I wanted to, I pulled away from him and rushed back to the sanctuary.
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