Chapter 7
The air inside the clubhouse felt heavier after Wolf returned. He didn’t say much when he came in, just gave me that intense look of his, the kind that always made my breath catch. Something had shifted in him, like a storm brewing just under the surface. I could feel it in the way his shoulders were squared, his jaw set. He was still watching me, always watching, and it was starting to get to me in ways I wasn’t ready to admit.
I sip my water and lean back against the bar, trying to calm my nerves. Lena had stepped away, giving us some space, but the room wasn’t empty. A few of the brothers hung around, talking in low voices. They cast glances our way, subtle but not unnoticed. I felt like a curiosity, a stranger in their world. But Wolf? He was different. He stood apart from them, not just in presence but in the way he carried himself, like he was built to lead even when he didn’t want to.
Finally, he crosses the room and stops in front of me. He doesn’t say anything at first, just looks at me with those piercing blue eyes. They are lighter now, almost glowing in the dim light, and I can’t look away.
“Come with me,” he says, his voice low and rough.
It wasn’t a question. It was a command, but there was something in the way he said it that didn’t leave room for argument. My heart is pounding before I even realize I’d nodded.
We end up in his room, a space that is surprisingly clean and simple. A bed, a dresser, a chair in the corner. The walls are bare except for a single photo of a motorcycle, its chrome gleaming under the sunlight. It wasn’t what I’d expected, and yet it felt entirely like him—no nonsense, no distractions.
He closes the door behind us and leans against it, his gaze fixed on me. I can feel the heat rising to my cheeks under his scrutiny, my pulse racing in my ears. I want to say something, to break the tension, but my throat feels dry, and the words won’t come.
“You’re not afraid of me,” he says after a moment, his voice quieter now but no less intense.
I blink, caught off guard. “Should I be?”
His lips twitch, not quite a smile but close. “Most people are. They see the tattoos, the leather, the club, and they keep their distance. But you…you look at me like you’re trying to figure me out.”
I swallow hard, my heart skipping a beat. “Maybe I am.”
He steps closer, slow and deliberate, until he is standing right in front of me. I have to tilt my head back to meet his gaze, and the intensity in his eyes make my knees feel weak.
“What do you see, Bella?” he asks, his voice barely above a whisper.
My breath hitches. I wanted to tell him the truth, that I saw strength and danger and something that called to me in ways I couldn’t explain. But the words got tangled in my throat, and all I could do was stare up at him, caught in his pull.
He reaches out, his fingers brushing against my cheek, and I shiver at the contact. His touch is rough, his hands calloused, but there is a gentleness in the way he traces the line of my jaw. It makes me feel exposed, vulnerable, but not in a bad way. It makes me feel seen.
“I see you,” I say finally, my voice trembling. “I see someone who scares me, but not because I think you’ll hurt me. You scare me because you make me feel…safe.”
His eyes darken, and for a moment, I thought I’d said too much. But then he leans in, his breath warm against my skin as he whispers, “You are safe. As long as I’m breathing, you’re safe.”
And then his lips are on mine.
The kiss is nothing like I’d expected. It wasn’t soft or hesitant. It is raw, consuming, a fire that burns through every doubt and fear I have. His hands slid down to my waist, pulling me closer, and I melt into him, my fingers tangling in his hair as I kiss him back with everything I had.
He backs me up until my knees hit the edge of the bed, and we tumble down together. His weight presses against me, solid and unyielding, I feel completely surrounded by him. Safe. Protected. Desired.
His lips move to my neck, and I gasp as he bites down gently, sending a shiver of pleasure racing through me. “Wolf,” I whisper, my voice barely audible.
He freezes for a moment, his breath heavy against my skin. When he pulls back, his eyes are glowing, brighter than I’d ever seen them, and there is something wild in his expression.
“You have no idea what you do to me,” he states, his voice rough and almost guttural. “You’re mine, Bella. Do you understand that? Mine.”
I nod, my heart racing. “Yes,” I breathe.
His lips curve into a predatory smile, he leans in again, his teeth grazing my skin. “Your eyes…” but he interrupts me.
“Big eyes,” he murmurs, his voice dripping with dark amusement. “To see every part of you.”
I shiver, the words sending a thrill through me as his hand slides up my side. “Big ears,” he continues, his breath hot against my ear. “To hear every sound, you make.”
My breath hitches as his other hand grips my thigh, his strength overwhelming but somehow gentle. “And sharp teeth,” he growls, his voice dropping lower, “to mark what’s mine.”
Before I can respond, he bites down on the curve of my shoulder, not hard enough to hurt but enough to make my body arch against his. Heat pools low in my stomach, and I moan his name, my fingers digging into his shoulders as the world around us disappears. His hands run over my torso, and then he is pulling my t-shirt up and over my head. A soft growl escapes his throat as he looks at my breasts straining to be released.
One minute I am semi dressed, the next I am laying naked under Wolf, his muscles flexing as he throws his jeans off. I have never been undressed with such speed. There is a desperation in our motions to join in an explosion of senses.
Wolf lowers his head, his lips closing over my nipple, suckling. I raise my hips in a wanton anxiety to have this dangerous man between my legs, thrusting with all the force that I need.
“Now Wolf, please” I plead.
He lifts his head, his features tense with lust. “I’m going to eat you,” his voice is a deep growl that sends shivers through my body. He moves down my body, kissing every inch of my skin as he zero’s in on his goal. My breath hitches as his tongue takes a swipe, “Ohhh” I breath.
The pleasure that runs up my body has my eyes closing as my hand fists over his head. I don’t know how long he worships my deepest depths with his mouth, but every kiss, every breath of his against my sensitive skin is driving me higher.
In a flash he is sitting up, his hands are griping my hips as he plunges deep into me. I gasp in surprise at the sensation of fullness that fills me. Damn, he is big!
The walls of my pussy stretch to accommodate every inch of his girth, the slightest movement building my passion to heights that I never thought possible, he plunges hard and fast, a rhythm which talks to what I needed.
The night passes in a blur of heat and passion, every touch and kiss igniting something inside me I didn’t know I had. He is relentless, unyielding, and yet there is a reverence in the way he touches me, like I was something precious. By the time we finally collapse together, our breaths mingling in the quiet, I feel completely unravelled, my body and soul laid bare.
But as I lay there, his arm draped possessively over me, I noticed something. The faint glow in his eyes hadn’t faded, and his teeth—sharp and slightly elongated—caught the light as he smiles at me. My heart skips a beat, a flicker of unease breaking through the haze.
“Wolf,” I start hesitantly, my voice trembling. “What are you?”
He stills, his eyes locking onto mine. For a moment, I thought he might deflect, might try to dismiss what I’d seen. But then he sighs, his expression softening.
“I’m exactly what my name says I am,” he confesses quietly. “A wolf.”
My breath catches, and I stare at him, trying to process what he was saying. “You mean…like, a shifter?”
He nods, his gaze unwavering. “I’m not just a man, Bella. I’m part of a pack. A real pack.”
The words hit me like a freight train, and I sit up, pulling the sheet around me as my mind races. This couldn’t be real. It didn’t make sense. And yet…it explained so much. The way he moved, the way he looked at me, the way he’d protected me with an almost animalistic intensity.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I ask, my voice breaking.
“Because I didn’t want to scare you,” he says, sitting up beside me. “And because I didn’t know if you were ready to know.”
I look at him, my heart pounding. He is dangerous, unpredictable, everything I should run from. But as his glowing eyes hold mine, all I can think is that I’d never felt safer in my life.
“And now?” I whisper.
His lips curve into a slow smile, and he reaches out, brushing a strand of hair from my face. “Now, you’re mine. Forever.”
And despite the chaos in my mind, I find myself leaning into him, my instincts screaming that he was right.
***
The morning light is streaming through the cracks in the curtains, and I am still lying here, wrapped in Wolf’s embrace. The weight of his arm around me is grounding, even as my mind tries to untangle the truth, he’d laid bare the night before. A shifter. A wolf. The words felt strange and surreal, like they belonged in a storybook and not the reality I was living.
He stirs beside me, his eyes opening slowly. That glow was still there, faint but unmistakable, and it sends a shiver through me. “Morning,” he murmurs, his voice rough with sleep.
“Morning,” I whisper, my voice soft. My eyes search his face, trying to reconcile the man I’d come to know with the truth of what he was. “How long have you…been like this?”
“Always,” he says simply. “It’s not something you become. It’s what you’re born into.”
I nod slowly, digesting his words. “And the others? They’re like you?”
“Most of them,” he confesses, sitting up and running a hand through his hair. “The pack is more than just a club, Bella. It’s family. We protect each other, no matter what.”
The word “family” hits me harder than I expected. I’d spent so long trying to hold onto the little family I had left, and here he was, offering me something I didn’t even realize I needed. “And now I’m part of it?” I ask, my voice barely above a whisper.
He looks at me then, his gaze steady and unyielding. “You’ve always been part of it. The moment I saw you, the moment I knew—you were mine. The pack will see it too.”
I swallow hard, the weight of his words settling over me. “What does that mean? For us?”
“It means you’re not alone,” he says. “It means you have people who will stand with you, fight for you. It means you’re safe.”
I nod, letting his words sink in. For the first time in a long time, I felt a glimmer of hope. But there was still a lingering fear, a voice in the back of my mind reminding me of the dangers that came with being part of his world. “And Dylan? What if he comes back?”
Wolf’s expression darkens, his jaw tightening. “If he does, he won’t get far. The pack will handle it.”
I believed him. There was a fierceness in his voice, a certainty that left no room for doubt. But more than that, there was a trust growing between us, fragile but real. And for now, that was enough.
Later that day, I follow Wolf outside to where a group of the brothers are gathered. They are working on bikes, laughing and throwing insults at one another in the way only family could. But as we approach, the mood shifts. Conversations quieten, and all eyes turn to us.
Wolf’s hand brushes against mine, a subtle reassurance as he steps forward. “Bella is now my mate,” he states, his voice carrying easily over the group. “She’s one of us now.”
One of the men—Ironhead, I remember—steps forward, a grin spreading across his face. “Took you long enough, Wolf,” he calls, his tone teasing but warm. He turns to me, his expression softening. “Welcome to the pack.”
“Thanks,” I say, my voice wavering slightly. The weight of their attention is intimidating, but there is kindness in their eyes. Acceptance.
Another man steps forward, his stance relaxed but his gaze sharp. “You’ll fit in fine here,” he says, nodding at me. “Wolf doesn’t bring just anyone into the fold.”
The tension in my chest eases slightly, and I offer a small smile. This world was new and strange, I wondered if I could belong here. Maybe, just maybe, I’d found a place to call home.