Chapter 2
Chapter
Two
He was close.
Even though I couldn’t see my alpha, I knew he was nearby. Somewhere out there in the dark. Hidden in the shadows between the trees, watching me. Waiting for the right moment to step out into the moonlight and reveal himself.
I could feel him. His presence—tangible, electric. A sense as real as taste or sight or sound. Warm anticipation tingled through my fingers and toes, pooling in my center as seconds ticked by. My fingers curled in, desperate to feel something—anything—besides empty night air.
Fortunately, he never kept me waiting long.
Less than a minute later, there was a crackle in foliage behind me. I spun around just in time to see him emerging from the depths of the forest.
Damn, he was breathtaking.
It didn’t matter how many times this dream repeated; that first sight of him never failed to leave me speechless. And it wasn’t just his sheer size and strength—though don’t get me wrong, those things were amazing. Still, there was so much more to his allure.
He was a true creature of the Wilds. It was as if every part of him had been painted from nature. His eyes were the color of the moss clinging to rock faces. His hair, the same shade as the redwood bark. His body as hard as the granite cliffs.
He moved with unnatural speed and grace for someone so massive, effortlessly sliding between the trees as he made his way toward me.
And just like always, I held my breath until he was right up against me. The warmth of his body enveloped me as his arms wrapped tight around my back, pulling me close.
“My love.”
Oh my God! I loved it when he said that. His deep, rumbly voice had a way of traveling straight through me, shaking me to my core.
It didn’t matter that he didn’t mean the words. How could he? He wasn’t real. Just a fantasy cobbled together from the secret desires of my perverted mind.
But when he looked at me like that—like I was the beating heart of his world—pretending became dangerously easy.
Especially since nothing here felt like a dream.
The pressure of his hands on my back felt real enough. The chill of the night air. The sensation of my heart hammering inside my chest. All of it was as vivid and vibrant as in real life.
It was only the absurdity of the situation that revealed this was only an illusion.
No ferus called anyone “my love.” No civilized woman would ever go to the Wilds. And anyone who found themselves rushed by an alpha would be dead in seconds…not pulled up into his arms and branded with a searing, soul-shattering kiss.
But that’s what always happened next—and this time was no different.
The tips of the alpha’s fingers raked up my neck and through my hair, guiding me toward his waiting mouth. His lips—the only soft part of his body as far as I could tell—pressed against mine. The tip of his tongue teased my mouth open.
My breath came out as an aching sigh. Every ounce of anticipation building inside of me turned into desperate hunger.
But my alpha knew what it meant. He always did.
Lips still locked with mine, he carried me through the forest, one arm easily supporting my weight as I threw my arms around his neck and locked my legs around his hips.
It wasn’t far from the depths of the forest to his home—maybe half a mile. For him, the distance was nothing. He carried me easily up steep, rugged terrain. It never took him more than a few minutes to reach his cabin door, not even with a full-grown woman in his arms.
It was a small place—a shack, really. A single, solidly constructed room lifted a few feet off the ground, just large enough to house a hearth, a table, and a massive bed.
It was hard to believe that someone so large could live in such a confined space. And the structure wasn’t an anomaly. The cabin was only one of many that ringed an ancient-looking village. There had to be at least a hundred other alphas living in the same conditions. Maybe more.
Not that I ever saw them.
Thankfully, in this fantasy dreamland, there was only ever us—me and my alpha. Apparently, my subconscious knew better than to attempt to throw anyone else into our tangle of pleasure and lust.-
At least, I hoped it was my subconscious that had created all this.
My gaze caught on the familiar woodpile as he rushed me up his stairs and kicked open the door, my eyes zeroing in on the intricate scroll pattern that was carved into the handle. I could make out every loop, every curve, every tiny detail…everything exactly how it had looked in the photo.
How was that possible?
If I’d only glimpsed the gallery ad out of the corner of my eye before, how was I able to recall every detail so perfectly, down to the pattern on an axe? There should have been mistakes. Places where my mind had filled in the gaps. Spots where my imagination had gotten it wrong.
But everything—and I do mean everything—was exactly like it had been in the picture.
The realization was enough to momentarily distract me from the kiss. I started to pull back, but the alpha wouldn’t let me. His hold on the back of my head tightened and pulled me right back in, intensifying the kiss.
Instantly, every other thought flew away. There was only the sensation of his skin on mine.
Stepping inside the cramped cabin, the alpha tossed me on top of the bed. As usual, I landed with a gasp in the middle, sinking into the soft mattress and fur coverings. I looked up just in time to see him climbing up onto the foot. On hands and knees, he slowly made his way over me.
Oh God!
Electric thrills ran through my body, knowing what was about to happen, anticipating the ecstasy I was about to feel.
The moment he was above me, I slipped my hands beneath his tanned leather jacket, the back of my fingers brushing against the impossibly soft fur lining. Curling my fingers tight, I pulled the coat off his shoulders, slipping the sleeves down his arms, before tossing the heavy garment on the floor.
He wasn’t bare-chested. Not yet, at least. I’d still have to peel off his plain linen shirt before I’d be able to feel his skin against mine.
But there was time for that.
Plenty of time.
That was the truly amazing part of these dreams. Time flowed differently here. Everything lasted exactly as long as it needed to. There was no rush. No ticking clocks. No concept of running late. There was only the present moment, time enough to fully feel every glorious sensation.
I let out a long breath as the alpha grasped the bottom of my blouse and pulled it up above my head. Even though there was no fire in the hearth, and the air inside his cabin was autumn crisp, I didn’t shiver. Not when the fire in gaze was enough to heat my whole body.
Not bothering with the clasp on the back of my bra—did he even know how to undo one?—my alpha simply pulled it up over my head the same as he’d done with my shirt.
The moment my breasts were free, a deep, feral growl filled the room. A primal sound that made my heart hammer and my insides melt. Wet heat pooled between my legs. I licked my lips and arched my back, offering my body up to him.
He didn’t need to be asked twice.
In the space of a single heartbeat, he wrapped his arms around my spine, pulling me up toward his open mouth.
A primal moan fell ripped from my throat as his tongue, thick and strong, laved against my nipple. And there was no stopping the cry as the tip of his tongue flicked back and forth against the hardened bud, sending bright sparks of pleasure through my body.
My fingers gripped into the thin fabric of his shirt, my nails raking against his shoulders underneath. But if my desperate grasps caused him pain, he didn’t let it show.
Instead, he let out a low rumble of approval that only stoked the fire inside me, making me burn faster and hotter. The sensation was nothing short of mind-blowing.
This would have been the moment I cried out his name…if I knew it.
But I didn’t.
As shameful as it is to admit, there was never a point in these dreams where I’d asked him for it. Between the “my loves” and the kisses and the ecstasy, there was never the time.
Besides, it was just a dream. If I’d wanted to give him a name, I could have at any point. But what did you name a fantasy alpha who managed to give you earth-shattering orgasms in the private corners of your subconscious mind?
John?
Phil?
Greg?
Nothing seemed right.
So instead, I just let that detail go. He was—and always would be—my “dream alpha.” Just like I would always be his “love.”
Pulling back from my breast, the alpha ran his tongue farther down my chest. Then, dropping me back down on the mattress, he curled his fingers around the waistband of my pants.
“Damn, you taste good,” he growled, his voice so low I felt it as much as heard it. “I want more.”
New thrills pulsed through my veins as he pulled at the button closure of my fly, tiny gasps coming out of me, one after the other as they pop…pop…popped free.
With one smooth tug, he pulled them off.
I closed my eyes as his head descended, waiting to feel the sublime pleasure of that talented tongue lapping against the most intimate parts of me. Desperate to lose myself in the sensation. To forget about my horrible day…and my uncertain future.
I pressed my head back against his pillow.
My fingers curled in his hair.
I drew in a deep breath, waiting to experience heaven on earth, and…
“Sophia!”
What the hell?
“Sophia, wake up!”
No!
My roommate’s voice shattered the sublime silence of the forest.
I tried to ignore it. I tried to press on. But…
Hands—small hands that definitely didn’t belong to any alpha—wrapped around my shoulders and shook me.
Hard.
Violently ripped from the greatest sensation I ever knew, my eyes flew open, and I found myself looking, not into the lust-filled mossy green gaze of my dream alpha’s eyes, but into my friend Felicity’s vaguely disappointed blue ones.
Damn it.
I was back in the real world.
The loud, fast-paced, painfully chaotic real world.
I wanted to snap. Yell at her to go away, then roll over and see if I could escape right back into my secret fantasy world.
But I should have known better.
Felicity wasn’t the type to rip me out of a nap for no reason. If I was up, it was because she needed something, and I wasn’t going back to sleep until she got it.
“For God’s sake, Felicity. What is it?” My voice was thick and groggy. “I was in the middle of a dream.”
“Yeah, and a really good one by the sound of it.” Her eyes lit up with a knowing glint.
“So why the hell did you pull me out of it?”
“Because I ran into Patricia on my way home from work today, and she said you got fired.” Oh yeah. That. “What happened?”
“Nothing major,” I grumbled, wiping the sleep from my eyes. “The bus was running late, and it was my third strike.”
Felicity let out a sympathetic sigh. “Those bastards.”
“Don’t worry,” I tried to reassure her. “I’ve got enough in savings to make it through a few months. I’ll start looking for another job tomorrow.”
“Oh, I’m not worried about money,” she said. “You’re the most responsible person I know.”
While technically a compliment, that wasn’t saying much.
Growing up, neither one of us had been the honor society type. I was too quiet, happy to keep my head down and fly under the radar. Felicity, on the other hand, was the one with her head in clouds and her ass in detention.
But even with this massive difference in our personality types, we’d managed to be close friends since elementary school, and probably would be for life.
Which was why I didn’t think twice about pushing her off the edge of my bed and rolling right back over on my pillow.
“Great,” I snapped. “Now that you know, you can leave me alone and let me get back to sleep.”
“Not so fast,” she said, grasping my shoulder and pulling me back to face her. “That’s not all. I have good news.”
Instantly, my muscles tensed.
Felicity never had good news. Sometimes she had crazy gossip or a new hare-brained idea, but never plain ol’ good news.
“What is it this time?” I didn’t even try to cover up the skepticism in my voice.
With a widening smile, she pulled two long slips of paper from her back pocket.
“Guess who scored two free tickets to a hot gallery party this Friday?” she beamed. “I’m talking a real black tie, rich people, free champagne kind of gala.”
Oh no.
“That lady whose dog I walk is leaving for Milan tomorrow and can’t go, so she gave them to me. Can you believe it?” Felicity continued. “We can dress up and pretend to be fancy. It’ll be so much fun.”
Maybe for her it would be fun, but my stomach had already started to drop. A sudden sinking feeling crept under my skin.
“W-What gala?”
“Oh, I don’t remember,” Felicity said, turning the tickets around in her hand so she could read the name. But I already knew, long before she said the words I was dreading to hear. “Beyond the Walls of the Wilds at the William and Sommerset Gallery.”