Chapter 3 _ Bring it on

Late that night, Angel lay in her bed in her studio apartment still able to hear the ringing of the slamming storeroom door in her ears. She lay staring at the wall, unable to stop herself from thinking of Layon’s final parting words, the words that had stung her heart so badly she felt as though they were permanently branded upon the inside of her chest. Whenever she tried to push thoughts of their confrontation away, they were only replaced by other thoughts, thoughts of what might have happened if she hadn’t fallen out of favor with the rest of the Alpha pack, if she had still been friends with Suzen and even Layon.

She remembered all too well how Reebah had once told her she’d overheard their father’s talking about a possible union between her and Layon. Reebah had been so excited, exclaiming at the fact that if it were to actually happen then they would have been sisters.

“Yeah, right,”

Angel thought aloud, rolling her eyes and cursing herself for even thinking of such things now.

Back then she had laughed aloud at Reebah's excitement, her heart hammering with childish hope at the thought that one day she would practically be a queen, married to the alpha

and having his cubs, furthering their pack and ensuring that everyone was safe and cared for.

“Now look at me.”

Talking to herself had become a habit for Angel. After all, she rarely had anybody else to talk to and sometimes she felt as though if she didn’t, she might lose the ability to talk at all. Holding back angry and frustrated tears, Angel turned onto her side and closed her eyes, attempting one final time to get to sleep before she realized that it wasn’t going to be possible.

Whenever she closed her eyes all she could see was Layon, his grey eyes glaring at her from the doorway of the storeroom. He was handsome and alluring in an unnerving sort of way and even though she had been about ready to claw his face off then, now all she could think about was how she longed for things to have been different between them.

“Why was I such a bitch to him?”

she asked herself, cringing at the reminder of the fact that had been exactly what he had called her right before he stormed out of the room. Determined not to think about him or any of it any longer, Angel finally gave up trying to sleep and glanced at the alarm clock on the bedside table. It was almost five in the morning. She had been in bed for almost two hours and yet she felt as though she was never going to be able to drop off.

Knowing that she would have to be up in an hour for university, she decided it was better to go through the day entirely sleepless rather than drowsy after only forty-five minutes, if she was even lucky enough to get that.

Stumbling from her bed that creaked and felt threateningly close to breaking, she dressed in her usual running attire of black yoga pants, sports bra, and tank top and shoved her feet into her Nike trainers before wandering half asleep from the apartment block. Perhaps a jog would clear her head.

Besides, she ran every morning before university, as it appeared to be the only thing that kept her wolf at bay. Being the lowest member of the Alpha pack she often ran under the radar, but she was certain that the moment she shifted somebody would know about it and it wasn’t exactly accepted, even in the locked community of Alpha where only the supernatural lived, safe from the humans who had found out about their existence only ten years earlier.

The only place safe to shift without fear of being accused of being unruly or causing trouble was within the boundaries of the Alpha Manor estate, and Angel rarely dared set foot there unless it was commanded that the whole pack must attend some ritual or ceremony or other.

Trying not to think of how shitty her life was, Angel began to run in the direction of the only other woodland in the locked community that just so happened to be at the very end of her street. It also happened to be her favorite place in the whole world, the only place she had managed to find any peace amongst the trees and sitting beneath her favorite willow tree beside the small lake, where the water sprites sometimes played and splashed her with water on a hot summer’s day.

The sprites weren’t judgmental. They barely managed to communicate with her, and Angel doubted if they even knew that she was a social pariah. It was the lake that she had just reached when she realized that she sensed something, something that told her she wasn’t alone. It began as a burning sensation between her shoulder blades as if she was being watched,

but as she slowed her pace, she realized she could hear the sound of footsteps coming from behind her. Tensing her shoulders and keeping to a slower pace, she listened, determined not to turn around until she was absolutely sure she

wasn’t being a total idiot.

When she could take the feeling no longer, she whipped around as fast as she could, allowing her eyes to flash amber as she warned,

“I know you are there! Show yourself or I’ll tear you to shreds.”

Being a werewolf, even a female one, she knew exactly how to take care of herself, and as a traitor’s daughter she’d certainly had enough

experience at it, especially in the early days when the other pack members had been more physical about putting her in her place.

There was no response save for the sound of the footsteps pausing, only to be replaced by the sound of a heart beating somewhere in the trees. Scanning them with her keen eyes, she tried her hardest to pick up movement, but there was none. Still, she could hear the heart beating.

“I know you are there! Come out!”

She yelled. It was then that she heard the sound of groaning coming from the bushes beside her and she jumped, stumbling backward and away from them even as they began to rustle on the opposite side of a small ditch. Hackles rising and wolf clawing at her insides, Angel allowed her fangs and teeth to begin to protrude. Just because she couldn’t fully shift into her wolf didn’t mean she couldn’t use her to protect herself.

“Would you keep your voice down? Some of us are trying to sleep,”

came an oddly familiar voice, and a moment later a very tall and very naked Layon appeared from the rustling bushes holding his head as though he was struggling with a major hangover.

Biting back embarrassed laughter, Angel quickly averted her eyes. Though it was not the first time she had seen a naked werewolf in human form before, it was definitely the first time she had seen Layon that way. It took her only a glimpse to know that he was a finer specimen than she had ever seen, well-endowed and muscular from head to toe, standing at well over six feet. He towered over her in all his naked glory even with so many feet between them.

“Did you seriously sleep in the bushes?”

Angel asked, raising a brow even though she knew he wouldn’t see her face with how she had turned away. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him shrug.

“Everything is a blur after my father’s scolding last night,”

he admitted, his voice pained as though he was feeling the after-effects of all the alcohol he had consumed. Angel knew it must have been a lot to take down a werewolf of his size.

“I snuck back out to meet up with the boys again and then…well, it’s blank. Though I could have sworn Jason was out here with me.”

Angel tensed at the mention of Layon’s second. Remembering how he had commented on her being hot the night before, she suddenly began to feel sick, wondering if perhaps he had been the one stalking her just now.

All too late she realized that her response had been physical, and Layon asked,

“Hey, are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” she said in an all too clipped tone

.

“Look, I’m not here for another argument…”

he began. Feeling angry with herself for making him feel bad all over again, and remembering how they had left things the night before, Angel took a deep breath and quickly interrupted him.

“I’m sorry. I’m just a little riled up. I could have sworn someone was following me.”

Even as she said the words, she glanced over her shoulder and into the trees. In an instant Layon propelled himself over the ditch, rushing toward her like a protective slab of pure muscle. All too late Angel realized just how close and utterly naked he was, and yet he seemed entirely unconcerned with it, his entire body tensed, ready to spring to her defense. She barely managed to stifle an eye roll. Alpha males.

They remained there for several moments, both listening, though Angel found it exceedingly hard as she felt him standing right behind her, just inches away from touching her. She was cast in his shadow, only able to scent his musky and masculine odor. All she could hear was his heart beating as he growled out a warning to whomever might be in the trees watching them.

When, finally, he began to ease off a little, he suggested,

“Come on. I’ll take you home.”

“Do you think that perhaps you could put some clothes on first?”

Angel’s cheeks reddened the instant he skirted around her. He eyed her closely and his grey gaze flashed with amusement as he asked,

“What’s wrong, Angel? Has my glorious body got you feeling all hot and bothered?”

A challenging and almost seductive growl erupted from his throat and she instinctively lashed out with a hand, forcing her palm against his chest to push him away from her. The moment she did, she regretted it. The heat ofh him, the spark that erupted between their flesh, made her head spin.

“Just get dressed, would you?”

she scowled back at him, quickly yanking her hand away, careful not to touch him again.

“Who’s the alpha here, Angel?”

“Neither of us,” Angel pointed out with a mischievous grin.