Chapter 03

SYDNEY

"Rise and shine," my brother yelled, entering my room and leaping onto the bed. He landed on my tummy, knocking the air right out of me, "you had a visitor last night, didn't you?" He wiggled his ginger brows at me and I groaned, shoving a pillow in his face. His bubbly laugh filled the room, "did he lick your foot again or did it go further?"

"Sylvain!" I shrieked, appalled at his words. My skin automatically flushed at the thought of last night. He had left after those words and I wondered what more he could possibly have in store for me. Either way, I'd show him that I could take it, "I don't know what he was doing here but we didn't do anything."

"Really," Sylvain's brows shot up in surprise, "why is there a handprint around your neck then? Did he try to kill you again because I swea—"

"Calm yourself," I warned, rolling my eyes at how over productive he could be at times. If Quade and I ever stood a chance, he would have to work extra hard to win my brother over, "firstly, I can take care of myself, and secondly, I think he came to check up on me."

"You mean after he fucked someone else he had the audacity to check up on you," my brother's scowl was scornful. To be honest, I never thought about it like that but, of course, my perceptive brother picked up on everything, "what are you going to do with the bitch that fucked him?"

"Nothing."

"What?"

"He didn't force her or vice versa. It was consensual which means if I punish her, I'd have to punish him," I groaned at my predicament, "and if I don't punish her then everyone is going to take advantage of me. Could you invent a time machine and, I don't know, stop Quade from being born, then come back?"

"That would be a wasted trip, you'd still have a mate somewhere out there," Sylvain said, ruffling my already messy hair with his large hand, "Come on, we have a lot to do today. Tane will be here, you and I will go check on the new pack house and I need to meet with some investors for a new hotel being built. Dad also wants to invest in Dimitri's nightclub. It's good money."

"That actually sounds like a normal, human day. No pack stuff, no werewolf business, no mate bond to deal with," I sighed happily at that, "Today just might be a good day."

"It will," his lips split into a toothy grin as he pinched my left cheek playfully, "but we have to keep our guard up. Quade's parents might be in England but you know how they work. If they see or sense that our guard is down..."

"I know, keep changing the patrol schedules every day until we completely neutralize this threat," I tossed the blankets off, padding my way into the bathroom, "and little bro, get out of my room!" I shouted, closing the bathroom door behind me.

I quickly conducted my bathroom duties, spending extra time curling my hair and putting a thin layer of makeup on my face. No one would see the bags under my eyes from my lack of sleep, no one would see that my face was thinning, my cheekbones protruding even more than they did before.

I slipped into a nude-colored blouse and a black pencil skirt. If we were meeting with investors then I needed to make a good impression. Dressing up in shorts and a tank top simply wouldn't do. I searched my closet for my Louboutin Red Bottoms. With me always being in the midst of a lush forest, I never found the need to wear them. When I was done, I quickly gave myself a once-over in the full-length mirror. If one looked close enough, they would see Quade's mark on my neck still glowing, almost as if the entire wolf was engulfed in flames.

Humans couldn't see such a thing, it couldn't even pass off as a tattoo if it kept glowing the way it did. I grabbed my concealer and foundation, blending them in an attempt to hide the mark. By the time I was done layering the make-up, you couldn't even make out that there was something hidden safely underneath.

Fluffing my curls one last time, and getting my clutch from the closet, I left my room. I made my way down to the kitchen, walking with my head held high and chin up through the halls. The place had already been cleaned out. That was the best thing about living in a pack. Because no one suffered from hangovers, there weren't any grumpy teens fussing to clean the place. Everyone knew their responsibilities in this pack.

I walked into the kitchen and found Heather with her head in the fridge, "I don't think you'll find Zen in there," I mused, snickering when she yelped in surprise and hit her head on one of the shelves, "be careful, would you."

She pulled her head out and rubbed the spot she hit. Her hair was wild — sex hair for sure — and she was clad in one of Zen's t-shirts and plaid boxers, "I'm trying to find that chocolate cake we made," she pouted her lips just the way a little girl would.

"You don't expect to make something, leave it in the fridge, and expect it to be there the next day? This is a pack house filled with greedy teens and little children that go crazy at the sight of cake. Unfortunately, you can't have your cake and eat it too," I said, pouring myself a cup of coffee.

"The person who made that statement was probably a werewolf living in a pack house," she grimaced, leaning her weight over the kitchen island, "by the way, we have to schedule a shopping trip considering the clothes I wore last night are..."

"Ripped to shreds," Zen looked at his mate, amused by her flushed cheeks, "sorry about that," he placed a lingering kiss into her hair.

"They're just clothes," I shrugged, sending him a wink, "it was for a good cause."

The scent of sandalwood with hints of lavender and cinnamon assaulted my senses and had the mark hidden under layers of makeup tingling. I sensed him standing behind me as I sipped my coffee but chose not to acknowledge his presence. It was when he began trailing his fingers over the spot his mark laid that I couldn't ignore him anymore. The simple act had my knees quivering.

"What do you want, Quade?" I asked in a stern voice. Heather and Zen used that as their opportunity to leave. I wished they would take me with them.

"Where are you going?" He whispered into my ear and I was startled at just how close he was. I could feel his hot breath prick my skin.

"Don't see how that's any of your business," I murmured, moving away to get a breakfast bagel. Breakfast wasn't something I usually had but if it distracted me from an annoying mate then I would use it.

"Fair enough, but why did you bother to conceal your mark?" His tone was accusatory. I knew exactly what he was implying and I didn't like it one bit. Just because I wore his mark, it didn't mean he could rule every aspect of my life.

"That's none of your concern," I sneered over my shoulder, "don't you have another random bitch to fuck? I still haven't dealt with your last one yet but I don't mind you adding to the list."

Quade circled his fingers around the crook off my arm, whirling me around to face him, "I'm not playing games, Sydney," the way my name sounded rolling off his tongue almost had me caving in to him, "where are you going?"

I leveled our gazes for a moment and then dropped mine to his chest. He was fuming, completely enraged. His chest heaved up and down as if he were fighting to control himself. If I angered him any further, that would provoke him to shift. I didn't need a giant black Alpha wolf in the middle of the kitchen but I also didn't want to give in. Another catch 22 situation.

"I have work to do," I calmly said, trying to send a wave of tranquility through the mate bond so he be wouldn't be so wound up, "leave me alone, Quade, please."

His facial expression softened and he let go of my arm, "Look, I'm sorry for what I did. Even if I wanted to hurt you, I shouldn't have done what I did with one of your pack members. It was disrespectful to you as an Alpha."

"If you're looking for an 'I forgive you' then you're not going to get it, Quade," I placed my cup and bagel down onto the counter, "As an Alpha, she's not going to respect me anymore. I know I probably deserve some of the shit you're doing but I've built my reputation in this pack on a foundation of respect. Don't fucking ruin that for me just because you're trying to get back at me. As for the mark, you show yours and still have zero respect for it, so what if I do it too?" I watched my eyes flash purple in his and then he flinched, clenching his jaw.

"I apologize, Alpha," he murmured and I realized I somehow used my Alpha tone on him. It was an honest mistake, I didn't mean to, "It's good to see you're finally fighting back and not letting me continue my shit. For a minute I thought he had broken you."

I was stunned into silence for a beat, using the edge of the counter to keep me standing, "What do you mean?"

"Mate bond, remember?" He plunged his fists into the pockets of the black jeans he wore, "You can hide how you feel from everyone, but not me. Before he left, you had a retaliation for everything I did or said. Fuck, the first time I fucked a girl in your house you broke down the door, threatened her, and chased her out naked. I admit, I went too far but you had to feel what it felt like for me."

"You say that but I bet this will continue," my voice was weak. If he noticed the change in me, how many others did?

He snorted, "You just put me under an Alpha command, love. Need I remind you how those work?"

I shook my head no, clenching my molars, "I just want to know why. Besides the fact you wanted me to feel what you felt, why?"

"I don't know," his brows knitted together and forehead crinkled, "I'm not about to have a fucking heart to heart with you but I guess you deserve the honesty since you're getting that backbone of yours back. I couldn't stand the thought of him touching you, and doing more than that," he squeezed his eyes shut and a feeling of disgust consumed me. I knew immediately that it was coming from him, "And every time you let him fuck you, I felt it. Every fucking torturous second. The fire was worse than anything silver could do. I know you enjoyed every bit of it," his voice came out in a snarl, and when he opened his eyes my breath hitched. In the depths of his green was swirling silver.

"I didn't want to purposely hurt you. It's not my fault the rejection didn't work," I scowled at him, not completely loving his explanation. Of course, I tried to be understanding but I needed the same in return, "and don't pretend as if you didn't enjoy whatever you've been up to."

"That's the thing, Sydney," he said my name again in that thick British accent of his, "I didn't enjoy it. You're half-human, you can literally fuck whoever you want and it would still pleasure you. I'm a full-blooded werewolf that relies on the fucking mate bond. The moment our bond clicked into place, there was no room for anything else. Nothing and no one can pleasure me," he ran his tongue over his bottom lip, "only you can."

"So what, it was painful for you?" My laugh was sarcastic and held no humor whatsoever.

I could hear his teeth grating as he forced out, "It didn't hurt, but it wasn't anywhere close to enjoyable. I don't expect you to beli—"

"You're right, I don't believe you."

"It snapped you out of your fucking daze didn't it," he angrily growled, "I shouldn't have done it but we both got what we wanted. I know it was far more painful than what I felt but, fuck. It did make me feel good knowing you were writhing in pain the way I did. And you're finally waking the fuck up so put your big girl panties on, or take them off," that sinful smirk of his made an appearance, "whatever suits you best and take your fucking place. No one is going to do your job for you," he turned on his heel to walk away but halted, looking over his shoulder, "I guess it's safe to say we can go our separate ways now."