5. Roen
ROEN
This has to stop. I shouldn’t care who Nova is, or why she had to take the job, or why I bit my tongue until I tasted blood at the thought of her.
I can’t have her.
But I want her. More than I’ve wanted anything in my entire life. And none of it makes sense.
Sure, I got a gut feeling she was right for the job, but I didn’t expect this. She reacted to my command like any other member of my pack would. Even though she isn’t part of us.
I don’t resort to my alpha authority lightly. That’s why most of us are here—we’ve witnessed the flaws in lycan tradition. We don’t operate like bigger, more political packs, because their abuse of power has gotten out of hand. We’re the runaways, the outcasts. The rejects.
The alpha of the pack I grew up in wielded his dominance over everything. Questioning only resulted in your whole family being punished. As soon as I could fend for myself, I left and vowed to be different.
But in the garage, I had no other choice. I was a millisecond away from shredding Nova’s clothes and forcing her to her knees. Making her take my cock between her plump lips. Letting her drip all over the floor before I finally filled and marked her.
I’ve become fucking weak overnight.
As an alpha and a dominant, I pride myself on patience.
I’ve made submissives wait on their knees for hours.
I’ve made them beg for things they said they’d never want.
I know to hold back, especially with a human.
I would have crushed Nova if I hadn’t stopped.
And from the scent of her arousal, she would have let me.
A ringtone interrupts my brooding, and I toss down the wrench. There’s no use tinkering with the car more until the new parts arrive. The sun is already below the horizon. I must’ve been holed up in here all day.
Olivia’s name appears on the screen, and I swipe to answer. “Yeah?”
She replies with a snort. It only worsens my irritation. “Is there something on your mind?” she hums.
“Stop beating around the bush. You know I hate that shit.”
“How’s Nova?” she asks.
I frown at the teasing edge in her tone. “Why would I know?”
Because I’ve been tracking her scent all day.
I know Nova spent the afternoon unpacking her belongings and called her family, ate another burger I’d put in her fridge while she was out, then left on a walk behind the house.
As frustrating as the whole situation is, I’m at least satisfied knowing she’s fed and enjoying her new surroundings.
The others have strict orders to avoid this area in their wolf forms, so I’m not worried about her running into anything unusual.
Olivia sighs. “You’re being difficult.”
“I’m not.”
“Everyone can sense when you’re this worked up.”
I take a breath and check my emotions. “Last night threw me off, that’s all.”
The other end of the line goes silent for a minute. “Shane told me how you reacted when you found her. When you came up at lunch today, I saw the way she flushed.”
“We hardly know each other.”
“You don’t have to.”
I can’t believe we’re having this conversation. “You know my rules. No dating within the pack unless you’re mates.”
“M-hm. Exactly,” Olivia replies.
That’s what she’s implying? “No.”
“Roen, you can’t ignore?—”
“She’s human, Olivia. It’s not possible.”
“Listen to me,” she insists. I huff. Must Olivia always be this pushy? “I thought so, too. Then I did some digging when I got home. There are rare cases when a bond is triggered between a human and a lycan.”
Being able to sense Nova’s emotions, the attraction, her obeying my command—a mate bond would explain all those things. But there’s one last factor.
“I’m not looking for a mate.” Even if I were, I’m sure Nova doesn’t want to be tied to someone like me. A loner stuck in his ways.
I can practically hear Olivia roll her eyes. “Alphas aren’t meant to run a pack alone. Leading means you’ll need a Luna. Everyone knows that.”
Yeah, I know. I knew when I took on the mantle. But some rules are meant to be broken. I can protect my pack no matter what.
“Most wolves find a mate in their twenties,” Olivia continues. “Honestly, I’m amazed you’ve lasted into the late thirties. Your true nature will come out eventually.”
I scowl. “I’m not accepting a mate just because of some bond. Even if it is in my nature. I won’t force this on Nova, either.”
“I know,” Olivia whispers. “But ignoring her will only make things worse. If it is a bond, there’s a chance she’ll go into heat. And a human would be more sensitive to it than an omega.”
Dammit. Omegas will literally overheat if their mate waits too long to accept or reject them. If this is affecting Nova…then there’s no choice. She has to leave. The thought immediately sends a stab of pain through me, but I grit my teeth.
“I’ll reject her.”
“Don’t,” Olivia protests. Her voice drops to a whisper. “I know how painful that is. Just—don’t let this destroy either of you.”
Then the line clicks off. I drop the phone with a growl.
Closing my eyes, I force myself to take another deep breath. Behind the scent of motor oil and gas is fresh, salty air. Pollen and pine and a hint of Nova’s trail. My muscles instinctively relax as I focus on her.
She’s the last person on earth I’d want to reject.
Olivia’s already on her side, and the rest of the pack isn’t as wary as I expected.
It doesn’t take more than five minutes to tell that Nova has a good heart.
The woman got into a car accident and was more worried about the animal that caused it than about herself.
Then there’s the fact she’s into kink. I gave up on looking for a mate a long time ago, but one who could match my desires? It feels impossible.
If a bond was triggered between us, it won’t be permanent until we both accept it. Until it’s sealed, and I can mark her with my knot and my seed. Fuck, my dick is harder than ever at the thought. I can barely keep it together now, so how would I be able to mate without killing her?
No, it’s not an option. I won’t risk hurting her or imprisoning her in a bond she shouldn’t have. I’ll convince Nova to leave. Even if that makes me the bad guy.
Shifting brings both relief and a new form of torture.
Being in wolf form sharpens my senses, her scent drawing my attention.
I leave the garage and track her through the yard with ease, almost too eagerly.
She circled the house before she left, and I follow her steps into a patch of ferns in the backyard.
The same ones I watched her from last night.
I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t stay inside when she smelled so good. The memory of her flashes through my mind: sleep-rustled hair, those keen eyes that locked onto mine, the temptation of her slightly parted lips. A growl slips out of the back of my throat.
It won’t be hard to be the monster tonight—because when it comes to her, that’s all I am.
As I continue to follow her trail, I take note of every step she took; every place she paused, each tree she examined, the wildflowers she stopped to admire, but left untouched.
Her emotions begin to drift unbidden through the bond. She’s relaxed, probably along the shoreline enjoying the view. There’s a hint of apprehension also, which is appropriate because it’s too late to be in these woods. She’ll figure that out soon enough.
But there’s something else. The wind picks up, and I lift my snout in the air.
Fuck. It’s like last night all over again. Her arousal washes over me like a tidal wave—a sweet, herbal scent accompanied by a pulsing in my veins.
Any logic I had left vanishes.
I. Need. Her. That’s all that matters.
I break out into a run before I can process a plan. The ground is soft under my paws, leaves and branches brushing against my fur. The rhythmic crash of waves fills my ears, and then I’m standing on a cliff by the shoreline.
Nova sits directly below me, a goddess in the moonlight. Her back rests against a large rock as her feet dangle in the water. Loose curls frame her face, and a tiny wrinkle forms across her forehead.
I stiffen as she lets out a soft whimper. It’s worse than I feared. She’s going into heat. I feel it in every cell, down to my very bones. I have to claim her.
My eyes drift down her body, so luscious and soft. The points of her nipples poke through her tank top, and I snap my jaws at the urge to bite them. But it’s when I see her hand moving under her leggings that I bare my teeth.
If I hadn’t ordered the others away, if they had followed her like I did, they could have heard. Watched while she came— If anyone saw Nova like this, I’d kill them without a second thought. Because she’s my territory.
She’s my mate.
Mine.