Chapter Thirteen
Luca
Sofia hasn’t shown up for training since our little… tussle three days ago, and my wolf is about ready to tear through my chest. Every hour she stays away feels like a rejection, and the fucker won’t shut up about it—pacing, snarling, pushing me to chase her down.
Not that I don’t want the same. But I’m supposed to be giving her space. And I already pushed her way too fucking far the last time I saw her.
But fuck it. If she doesn’t show today, then I’m going over to her place and forcing her to spend time with me. I’m done giving her space. How the fuck am I supposed to win her over if she keeps avoiding me?
I walk into the training hall and immediately catch Jackson’s infuriating smirk. He knows. He knows about me threatening that prick who put his hands on my mate and that I haven’t seen her since. His smug look makes my wolf itch to bare his teeth.
“Thought I’d observe today,” I mutter.
“Sure, the more the merrier,” Jackson replies, all too casual. “But maybe remember that you’re supposed to be showing Sofia that you’re not a complete asshole.”
His grin widens, and I try not to engage, knowing it’ll only encourage him.
But I can’t help the puff of air I breathe out.
Trying to keep my possessive side in check is going to be damn near impossible when every fiber of my being is pushing me to claim Sofia.
This is the reason I stayed away from her for years.
Every time I look at her or breathe in her scent, I want to touch her. To taste her.
And it will only get worse. The longer we go on without accepting the bond, the more feral my wolf will become.
He’ll keep pushing me until I can’t hold him back any longer.
We have months before that happens, though.
I hope. I wouldn’t wish moon madness on my worst enemy, but it’s what happens when a male shifter either doesn’t find his mate or finds her but doesn’t get to claim her.
The warriors start spilling into the training area, and at least that prick who was pawing Sofia has the good sense to avoid eye contact and move towards the back of the group. Good. My wolf is still out for his blood.
And then… her.
Sofia strolls in, one of the last to arrive, and my chest tightens, my ribs pressing in on me like a fist. My wolf nearly claws his way out.
Later, I tell him. For now, I hang back.
If she’s noticed I’m here, she doesn’t show it.
And that gives me the opportunity to take her in.
Fuck. She’s radiant. Her black leggings cling to her shapely legs like a second skin; a red sports bra shows off her toned stomach. Her dark hair is tamed into two braids.
And then she laughs. A quick, bright burst. My knees nearly buckle. How long has it been since I heard that sound? She used to laugh with me all the time. More of a girlish giggle back then, now it’s a sultry laugh that has my spine tingling.
She still doesn’t even glance my way, and that makes it worse. Makes me want to force her gaze back to me. Now that I’m no longer hiding how I feel, I want all of her attention on me. At all fucking times.
It’s ridiculous, I know it is. I’ve done this to myself. I pushed her away, and now I need to warm her up to me again. But knowing that logically does nothing to temper the borderline obsessive thoughts I’ve been having.
Jackson steps into the center of the group and announces that they will be sparring in human form today. Going head-to-head and following each match, the winner will stay on and face the next opponent. The group will then give feedback on what could have been done to improve their technique.
He indicates two warriors to start—Jason and Samantha.
Mid-level warriors. Not our best by a long shot, but solid fighters.
They move into position, and the rest of the warriors move into a large circle around them, cheering as they grapple.
A few moments later, Samantha emerges victorious.
The next warrior—Casey—has her tapping out within a couple of minutes.
And then, Casey is promptly knocked out by his next opponent.
The rhythm is familiar: quick wins, a few good matches. Occasionally, someone lasts an extra round before they are defeated.
And then it’s Sofia’s turn. She’s up against Mike. My stomach sinks. He’s a powerful warrior. My wolf bristles, and my jaw clenches at the thought of him laying her out on the mat.
“Just watch,” Jackson murmurs in my head through the mindlink.
Sofia rolls her shoulders, drops into a defensive crouch, sharp and focused. Mike mirrors her position, and they circle each other before Sofia lunges. I hold my breath, but it’s not long before Sofia has him on the ground with his arm twisted back, and Mike is tapping out.
Her next match is against one of our strongest females. Cadence. She’s my age. Which means she has years more training on Sofia. And yet Sofia takes less than a minute to have her knocked on her ass and only another thirty seconds before she’s tapping out.
My jaw literally drops.
Opponent after opponent steps up, and Sofia tears through them like they’re nothing. A sheen of sweat glistens on her flawless skin, her chest rising and falling with effort, her braids swinging as she moves. She’s fast, lethal, efficient, and fucking magnificent.
Jackson comes to stand beside me and claps me on the back. “She’s been doing this for years.”
My brows furrow and my mouth hangs open as I watch my mate in all her wonder. “What?” I ask, my voice strangled, because no other words are coming to mind as I watch Sofia kick, punch, flip, and throw each shifter that comes up against her.
I was aware she was strong. I understood she was fierce, but this… fuck. My mate is magnificent. My wolf puffs out his chest and encourages me to show her how strong we are; to show her we are worthy of her.
“She’s been kicking ass and taking names for years.
It’s basically an unwritten rule that no one warns the younger warriors.
It’s just funnier that way.” He shrugs. “They come in thinking she’s a pampered pack princess, and she gets to put them in their places.
The new warriors learn that they aren’t as hot as they think they are, and Sofia gets to prove everyone wrong. Win-win.”
Well shit.
“I didn’t think she bothered to show up to training. She never comes when I’m here.”
“Huh,” he murmurs, cocking his head to the side. “That’s funny. She always comes when you’re not here. Almost seems as though that’s not a coincidence.”
He levels me with a look that has my ears burning and my head spinning. How did I fuck myself over so colossally? She is perfect, and I’ve pushed her away because of what? My inability to be attracted to her and stay in the same room as her without telling her how much I wanted her?
Shame curdles in my gut.
I’m a fucking idiot. I didn’t see it because I wasn’t here. I was too damn busy trying to pretend I didn’t care. And while I was drowning in my own bullshit, she became this undeniable force. Strong. Fierce. Unstoppable.
And I missed it.
Because I pushed her so far, she won’t even share air with me now. How could I have been so damn blind?
My wolf lets out a growl when it’s Simon’s turn to go up against Sofia. Like fuck is that happening.
“My turn,” I growl, stepping into the circle.
Sofia glares at me, her eyes full of fire. “No problem. He’s all yours. But do try to remember that training isn’t the place to work out your homicidal tendencies,” she says with a wink, while stepping back. A couple of the warriors laugh until I level them with a look that shuts them up quickly.
“I wasn’t talking about him,” I say with a smirk, looking her up and down. She used to have a crush on me when she was a kid. Everyone could see it. I need to get her to remember that version of me.
“Oh no,” she deadpans. “I’ve suddenly got a terrible pain in my ass. There’s no way I could possibly continue.”
Smartass brat. My wolf practically purrs. Her fire is half the reason I can’t stay away. I don’t want easy submission—I want to earn it. To break through that stubborn defiance until she begs for me.
She crosses her arms, which serves to push her tits up. My eyes are instantly drawn to them, and, Fates, do I want to fuck that attitude out of her. Goddess, help me. She has no idea what she does to me.
“Am I done?” she calls to Jackson.
“Yup, you’ve done more than enough for today,” he replies. And Sofia instantly turns and stalks out of the training facility with me trailing behind her.
She turns back to face me once she gets to the bottom of the steps and plants her hands on her hips. “Can you stop following me?”
“Well,” I murmur, stalking closer, “you said you had a pain in your ass. We better get that looked at, huh?”
Her eyes widen in realization a second before I throw her over my shoulder.
She shrieks as I prowl away from the training hall without looking back.
She wiggles and tries to extricate herself from my hold, and my arms clamp down on her thighs to limit the damage she can inflict.
She thumps my back with her fist, knocking the air from my lungs, and before I can process what I’m doing, my hand comes down hard on her ass.
Sofia lets out a yelp that goes straight to my dick.
“Unless you want me to give you a real pain in that sweet ass, I’d suggest you stop fighting, Princess,” I growl.
She huffs out a breath and mutters a stream of insults and threats as I stroll into the woods with a surprisingly and uncharacteristically subdued Sofia.
I think I might have shocked her into submission, but that won’t last long.
Honestly, I shocked myself too. Not that I don’t want to redden Sofia’s ass, but I’m meant to be winning her over, and that’s probably not the right way to go about things.
Although it did have her scent deepening with arousal, so maybe not the worst idea either.