Page 15 of Wanted By the Wolves
My back hits the headboard as I scramble away. I flinch when my head bangs into the wood, a shot of pain racing down my skull. Everything is fuzzy and achy.
The room is filled with the scent of my slick and alpha pheromones. I don’t remember how I got here or where here is.I’m fucking sick with the thought that these alphas brought me through my first heat and I can’t remember it.
My hand flies to my neck, checking for a bite, but I feel a sticky goo instead.
The one behind the big alpha drags his hands through his hair, a pinched expression on his face. “Leave them, please. They’re to draw out the wolfsbane.”
Wolfsbane?They gave me wolfsbane?
Reacting to the threat without thought, my wolf takes my skin. She lunges for the dark-haired one, ready to sink in herteeth. Green sparks extend from his fingers, and she hits an invisible wall. She snarls, thrashing against the bitter magic.
“Nope. Bites aren’t really my kink.” His silver eyes shine with amusement, and he laughs as he hops off the bed and retreats to a nearby chair.
Where am I? The room clearly belongs to someone. Maybe another room in the king’s home? Where is the king anyway? My head hurts just trying to think about it.
My wolf doesn’t care about the details. She wants to flee.She darts for the open door and scrambles on the wooden floor.The big one is on my wolf’s tail, and she turns on him, baring her teeth.
“All right, sweetheart. I know you’re scared. I bet it’s confusing.”
She snaps her jaws when he moves closer, but it brings a whiff of his scent. He smells like salted caramelized hazelnuts. Warm and rich, with a hint of sweetness.The scent is like a lightning bolt to my system, jarring my memories loose. This wolf was with me. It’s hazy, but I think he was trying to help me.
A purr sounds from the alpha. The rich vibrations settle my wolf enough that the driving need to fight or flee is temporarily paused.
He kneels and reaches out his hand. “It’s all right. You’re safe. No one will hurt you here.”
My wolf stares at the big man. He’s by far the largest alpha I’ve ever seen, with warped burn scars that mark his chest and arms and a thick, rough claw mark that covers half his face. Veins pop along his muscular forearms, and his features are severe. His dark cropped hair is stark and his jaw too strong. Even his lips scowl behind dark scruff.
Despite his terrifying appearance, he radiates calm. It seems to seep out of his pores along with that mouthwatering scent.The urge to move closer is overwhelming.He smells so good, like a holiday in a cozy home.
She inches forward.
He doesn’t move.
She takes another step, this time nudging his hand and sniffing his wrist. The scent makes her tail wag and her paws dance in place. She darts her tongue to get a taste, but it’s not enough. Rubbing against him, she licks anywhere she can get to his salty skin.
A laugh from behind causes her to growl, spinning on the intruder in panic.
At the open door is another wolf in human form. This one is more athletic than big, with a mouth that looks as if he loves to laugh and eyes full of mischief. But those details aren’t the ones my wolf focuses on. She fixates on the places where he’s covered in glowing silver crescents.
Feral bites.
So many that there’s no way he should be standing. The sight makes my insides scream in panic.Not safe. Not safe.
My wolf gives a guttural warning, but before she can take off, he shuts the door. “Sorry, little wolf. No running.”
“That’s Briggs. I’m Dex. He’s my brother,” the calm wolf explains.
Her eyes dart between the two of them, body crouched low on her front legs.
“We brought you here—east of the North Pass—after we found you with the king. You slept through your heat.”
She cocks her head, turning to listen to the one named Dex with the yummy scent and the soothing aura.
“The full moon was four days ago. You were badly injured from the wolfsbane the king used. Gage, the healer, gave you a potion and treated your wounds, but I promise no one here hurt you or took advantage.” Dex holds out his hand again.
The one by the front door drops his jaw, looking at the big alpha with gaping shock I don’t understand.
Dex shrugs.
