28. Hettie
Chapter 28
Hettie
I don’t go straight home after wrestling Grass from Tallie’s house. The big grump is pissed at me for taking him away from his new best friend, and I don’t have the heart to keep him against his will for long. I take a walk with him, hoping it will help me clear my head. The faint call of the wolfsbane is getting easier to ignore, but I’m not sure for how long.
Part of me wants to say fuck it and follow the call. After all, that’s what I’m here for. To help save the pack by counteracting their curse. If I went alone, though, I’m risking my safety and the wrath of my husband. I want to do this the right way, and I just have to trust I’m doing the right thing.
I trudge ahead through the thick snow and chilling winds. Besides that, it’s beautiful. Our town looks picturesque, like one of those paintings by Thomas Kincade my mother loves so much. Smoke burns from chimneys, and snow covers the roofs of houses.
After making my lap around town, I let Grass run back to Tallie. Better he’s there while I talk to Rip. I make it back to the packhouse and up to our room in record time, only to find the room empty.
Disappointment sinks in.
I tell myself I don’t care. I tell myself it’s better that he’s not here, so I can spend a few hours by myself, relaxing. I tell myself it’s better this way.
It’s all a lie, of course.
With a sigh, I strip, taking off the layers of clothes I put on this morning until I’m down to my bra and panties. To kill some time, I decide a good soak in the tub will do me some good. Taking a walk with Grass didn’t help clear my mind, but maybe this will.
I head into the bathroom, turning the water on and waiting for it to get hot. My preferred temperature is molten-lava hot and not a degree below. Once the water is to my liking, I take off my panties and bra and ease myself in.
The hot water hits my skin, a shocking contrast to the coldness of my body. I moan, sinking into the tub until I’m submerged from the neck down. My eyes flutter closed, and I lean my head back, trying to turn off my overactive brain.
It works for approximately ten seconds, until I hear the door creak. My eyes pop open. Movement from the other side of the wall keeps me still. Footsteps grow louder but finally stop just right outside the door.
I know it’s Rip. I can feel him. Sense him.
I’m not sure if I want him to come in or walk away.
The handle turns, and I suck in a breath as Rip pushes it open, strolling in.
“The door is shut for a reason, asshole!” I glare, trying to hide how much his presence is really affecting me.
Rip only smirks, looking far too smug. Bastard.
He’s shirtless, because of course he is, with his pants hanging low on his waist. I can see the patch of dark hair on his lower abdomen, leading down and disappearing inside his pants. My eyes roam down, stopping at his crotch. Images of his rut flood my mind. Him fucking my mouth like I was little more than a whore. It was fucking hot as hell.
Rip’s smirk only grows, reading my wayward thoughts as I quickly look anywhere but there .
“What do you want?”
“Tallie told me you heard the call today.” He crosses his arms over his chest. It wasn’t what I expected him to say, and I’m a little peeved Tallie would disclose that to him, but I know she did it out of care for me.
“I did. And, unlike you, I didn’t run into the woods because I actually listen to what you say.” Not completely the truth, but Rip doesn’t need to know it took Tallie to talk me out of doing just that.
“You were a dick, Rip,” I continue. I’ve never been one to beat around the bush. He needs to see he’s upset me, but more importantly, he needs to know I deserve better. “You embarrassed me in front of your commanders. I felt like a pretty object you wanted to show off but not hear. Do you understand how awful that feels?”
His cocky smirk finally vanishes. His shoulders sag as he crosses his arms over his chest again. He almost looks…embarrassed? Remorseful?
Good.
“I never meant to make you feel that way, Hettie.”
“Well, your intentions mean shit. That’s how I felt. I’m not sure what you expect from me, but if it’s to keep my mouth shut and go along with everything you say, you are in for a rude awakening.”
“No, no, that’s not what I want.” Rip runs a hand through his disheveled hair. He has dark circles under his eyes, making me wonder if he got any sleep last night.
“Then you need to figure that out, because I need us to be on the same page.” I grab the soap. If he’s going to stay here, then he’s going to watch me clean myself.
I rub the bar of soap on my arms, up to my shoulders. I feel Rip’s eyes on me, and it sends a thrilling tingle down my spine. Although I’m mad at him, I also can’t help but tease him. Just a little.
I bring the bar of soap to my chest, rubbing it across my breasts. I pay extra attention to my nipples, rubbing and pinching the sensitive nubs between my fingers. An involuntary moan leaves my lips.
“Are you punishing me, Dove?” Rip’s voice is low, almost a growl. I wasn’t planning on punishing him, but I think I’m rather enjoying it now.
I ignore his question. “What do you want, Alpha? A meek wife who will blindly follow your rule? Or one who will challenge you without fear?”
When he doesn’t answer, I move the bar of soap down between my breasts. I draw a slow, tantalizing line down my stomach, inching closer to my pussy.
But my hand never makes it there. Faster than I thought him capable, Rip is on me, hauling me out of the tub.
I scream, “Rip! What the fuck?”
The bastard doesn’t listen. Again . And carries me, dripping wet, to the counter. When my ass hits the dark granite countertop, Rip pushes his way between my legs, forcing me to open for him. I’m stuck between the hard wall and my large alpha.
“What I want is you. Your sass, attitude, and opinions. I want to make decisions with you, and I want you to put me in my place when I fuck up. I want everything you are willing to give me, Dove.
“I shouldn’t have dismissed your concerns like I did,” he continues.
“No, you shouldn’t have.” My voice goes breathy because Rip cups my pussy, his thumb rubbing against my seam. It makes being mad at him incredibly difficult.
“I’m sorry, Dove. Will you accept my apology and end this torture?”
I scoff. “I hardly tortured you. I just didn’t let you into the room last night.”
“I beg to differ,” he growls. “Knowing you were in here, naked and bathing alone, doing goddess only knows what to yourself drove me positively feral. I was so hard thinking about you, Hettie. So fucking hard.”
Moisture pools between my legs, and I bite my lip. “That wasn’t my fault.”
“But it was. It was very much your fault.” He moves his thumb to my clit, and I suck in a breath as he moves in slow circles. “Like an untrained dog, I had to relieve myself outside the door.”
I take a moment for his words to register, and when they do, my eyes widen. “I knew that was fucking cum on the door! You’re so damn gross.”
Though, thinking of Rip outside the door, working himself up to an orgasm for me is so fucking hot. I shouldn’t be into it, but I am.
He applies more pressure to my clit, and I moan, wiggling against him. “Say you forgive me.”
“I forgive you,” I say in one breath, arching into his touch.
“Good girl.” He hums like he won. Honestly, he probably did, but a girl can only think so hard when a sexy man is playing with her clit.
“I will do better. Make sure I listen to you and your reasonings. And you will continue to stay out of the woods. We will find wolfsbane together once our men come back from their journey to Dragon’s Keep.” He marks his words by pushing two fingers inside of me, curling them.
I gasp, reaching out to steady myself on his shoulders. He’s got me so needy; I’m going to agree to anything he says just so he can fuck me.
“I’ll stay out of the woods. We’ll search for wolfsbane together. Only if you give me your cock, Alpha.”
A cocky grin spreads across his features. “If that’s what my mate wants.”
It’s agony watching him reach for his pants, slowly pulling them down. He’s teasing me, seeing just how far he can push me, but two can play this game.
I knock his hand away, pulling down his pants until his big cock springs free. There’s already a small bead of cum on his mushroom tip. I use my thumb, spreading the moisture around.
He eyes me curiously. Despite him letting me take the lead, I can see how badly he wants to lose control. The tension he’s holding in his shoulders, waiting to be inside of me.
For the first time, I feel like a damn queen.
I run his tip through my fold, teasing us both. My neediness is evident in my glistening pussy and my juices on his cock. I can’t keep either of us waiting any longer as I line him up and guide his cock inside of me.
We moan together, and the little control Rip has shatters. His hand comes to my neck, pinning me in place and adding the faintest bit of pressure. I gasp, trusting him completely.
“Accept my apology, mate.” He punctuates each word with a thrust, my whole body moving on impact.
I already accepted his apology once, but I will again and again if that’s what he wants. Anything to make him keep going. “Yes, Rip. Yes.”
“Alpha,” he growls. “I’m your fucking Alpha right now.”
“Yes, Alpha, fuck. I forgive you.”
I barely get the words out before his lips are on mine, burning me from the inside out. He doesn’t just kiss me. No, this man claims me. My mouth. My pussy. My body. Everything. It all calls to him.
But it’s so much more than that. So much more than a simple claiming. I feel safe around him. Like my existence matters to him. He’s branded himself on my heart, making himself a part of me.
It’s scary. It’s thrilling. It’s…everything.
Of their own accord, my legs wrap around his torso, heels digging into the top of Rip’s sculpted ass. Seriously, it’s unfair how perfect it is.
I’m close. I just need… “There!” I gasp when Rip moves deep inside me, speeding up his thumb on my clit. It’s too much. The pleasure builds inside of me, my whole body trembling with unleashed passion.
“Come with me, Dove.” The need and desire in Rip’s voice is the final straw that pushes me over the edge. I’m coming hard all over his cock. He explodes inside me, making me a complete and utter mess.
Rip pants, leaning forward to rest his forehead against mine. It’s a small act, but one that fills me with warmth.
“I’ve been leading the pack myself for so long, I don’t know what it means to have a partner to share it with. But I can’t think of a better person to share this pack with than you. I never want you to feel like that again, Hettie. I’ll work on it.” Rip’s voice is soft and so sincere. I think this is the first time I’ve ever heard a genuine apology.
“Thank you,” I whisper. Emotions I can’t quite describe fill my chest. My words aren’t enough, but they’re going to have to be. It’s all I’m capable of right now.
Rip pulls out of me and goes to grab a towel to clean me off. I happily let him, suddenly feeling extremely fatigued.
“Rest,” Rip says, picking me up from the counter and carrying me back into our room. He places me down on my side of the bed and then climbs over to his side. His arms wrap around me, pulling me to his chest.
My eyelids droop, seconds away from giving in to sleep. “Goodnight,” I murmur, hardly aware of what I’m saying. “Love you.”
The last thing I remember is Rip tensing behind me, and then everything goes dark.