Arielle’s POV I was spent.I was done.I needed things to be over, and Richard needed to see that.Yet as his lips melded together with mine, I found it hard to resist him and his damned reason.My tears had long been shed, and though my cheeks were wet and I was shaking, I wasn’t down for the count.We parted suddenly and he was breathing as hard as I was. My heart felt like it was going to burst out of my chest.Then Richard spoke.“You know, you say the pack cannot afford to lose me. The pack needs me. And that I’m a good Alpha,” he breathed out with a husky voice. “But all I hear is you.”I sniffled, fresh tears prickling my eyes at his words.He was right and I knew it.He held me close to his chest, his strong arms around my waist and lifting my chin up to look into his eyes, oh so gently.“You need me, angel. You cannot afford to lose me. And I cannot afford to lose you. I cannot let you go, no matter what you say, and no matter how much you beg. I may be a good Alpha. But now
Richard’s POV I was unsettled by it all.“You haven’t even sat down since you returned,” Darren noted, still in my study at the dead of night. It was already nearing midnight and yet I couldn’t rest.“I left her there, Darren. I don’t think it’s safe out there for her. Yet she wouldn’t understand,” I bit out, impatient.I kept pacing the length of my study.It had been an hour already since I left Arielle, my mate standing there in the forest. She refused my help, yet I gave it, helping her find a good clearing where she could settle in and rest. Yet that wasn’t enough.“If only she would just agree to come back,” I growled under my breath.Apparently my best friend heard it, for he snorted.I aimed a glare at his face, and he raised his two hands up in surrender.“Hey man,” he said in defense, “you know how she is, and how stubborn she can get. I think she’s trying to just cover all bases at this point. The main thing is that she’s safe and we can find her. At least she’s isn’t far
Richard’s POV “What the hell are you doing here?” It was Darren that said something immediately he spotted the girl that had been the cause of all this chaos that was going on. “Haven’t you had enough of us? Or didnyou come here to be insulted?”Darren looked angrier than most people had ever seen him, and I felt pride at my best friend who was more like a brother to me, and the way he rose up in defense of myself and Arielle.Elise paled at Darren’s words and his look, and she hesitated in taking any more steps into the study.“Well?” I asked, after she was silent, and her eyes flickered to meet mine. “Clearly you’re here for a reason. It better not be something that’s going to waste my time. You may not know the meaning of hard work, but the rest of us do.”A flash of anger morphed her features and she scowled at the both of us.“I just came here to talk to you. It’s important, I promise, and it won’t waste your time,” she said, before turning to Darren who still was glaring dagger
Richard’s POV I couldn’t believe the absolute nerve of this girl.I shifted backwards, pushing the hand of my ex-lover roughly aside as she tried to lean in for the kiss. She missed, and opened her eyes gaping at me with a hurt look on her face.“Richard!” She yelled. “Why would you do that? Why are you doing this?” Hee voice broke at the last word and I could see her eyes become glossy as tears rushed to her eye. But I felt nothing - no sympathy, no desire to comfort her, no need to even apologize. I felt nothing, and that was the worst of it.I couldn’t even live her.The most that I could ever feel for Elise, apart from the indifference in me right then was disgust.“You know I love you,” she continued, and the tears which had polled in her eyes now slipped down her cheeks. I watched as she began to sob, pressing her hand to her chest. “Do you know how much I have loved you all this time, Richard? No one else can love you the way that I can,” she declared, wiping away her tears.“
Arielle’s POVI had woken up that morning with a headache, which was likely caused by the fact that I had been laying my head on the flat, hard surface of the forest floor.It had been some time since I camped outside, I had to admit to myself as I stood up slowly. All my body hurt, and I had a crock in my neck. It was not an ideal situation as all, but I knew that it wasn’t something that I couldn’t handle. After all, I had to wait here for Richard, to see if he did have a plan on how to win the Pack Elders, and thus, the rest of the pack over.If that didn’t happen, then I had to leave, forever.Swallowing all the bitter thoughts in my head, I focused on stretching out my muscles, going through the warm-up routine that Lilian had taught me when we began my training. Now, it was like second nature to me, and when I finished the stretches and warm up exercises, my body aches had now considerably decreased in intensity.I took my time to say prayers to the moon goddess, thanking her fo
Richard’s POV:‘A plan?’ She asked me after I reached out to her through the mind link. There was curiosity in her tone, although she sounded odd. I paused, listening to her emotions for lack of a better word. There was slight longing, intermingled with resignation.Out of the corner of my eye, I could spy Darren giving me an intrigued look. Ever since I had told him about the fact that I shared a mind link with Arielle, it I had been receiving those kinds of looks. But I didn’t mind, and only shrugged them off as part of my best friend’s curiosity.Right then I had to focus on one thing and one thing only - and that was Arielle and trying to get her back into the pack, back with me, and to win the Pack aElders over.‘Yes, love. Would you like me to explain it to you or do you need a second?’I heard a scoff, and unwittingly, my bad mood lightened quite a bit. I smirked, and Darren rolled his eyes at my behavior. He muttered under his breath and my sharp ears picked it up. He was talk
Arielle’s POV:I was a mess, and I knew it.Somehow, I knew that it had to be my fault as well, just like everyone else probably thought.There I was, even when Richard was going his best to be comforting, and I was messing things up.I just couldn’t help it. The more I thought about Richard, the more my chest hurt. The more I felt the futility of this love in the face of so many obstacles. If I ended up bonded to Richard, it would greatly harm his integrity as the Alpha.And Elise? Wouldn’t she be there to make things even worse, no matter how much I tried to appeal to the Pack Elders?‘Arielle, stop it,’ Richard’s voice through our mind link broke me even more. He sounded incredibly weary, and I felt even more guilty.I placed my hand over my mouth, trying to stop the tears from coming out. Eventually, and it did take a lot of time and trying, it it stopped.Perhaps it was the constant stream of my mate telling me that it was okay and he would protect me, that made me to actually s
Richard’s POV:I clenched and unclenched my hands, feeling the strain and slight ache that was a normality for me after finishing all the paperwork on my desk.It was already three hours - wait, actually four hours, I amended after a glance at the clock - since I had spoken with Arielle. The sun was already leaving orange, pink and red hues in the sky, as it was setting, giving way for the moon to shine bright. I noted absently that the night of the full moon was only three days from now - and that was why there was just so much paperwork to get done. Too many logistics, and we would be inviting delegates of the neighboring packs as well, just like last time.Standing up from the chair I had been sat on for hours now, I raised my arms over my head and stretched.It was relieving; physically I was fine.Mentally, however…I still had to admit that the fact that my own mate didn’t want me to mark her despite our impending bonding ceremony smarted like a bitch. It was a war I couldn’t wi