Chapter 14: Chapter 14

Restless, I paced the floor, thinking over and over about what my next step should be. Undeniably, I am attracted to the twins, but the hurt they’ve caused me repeatedly is just too much to pretend it never happened.

“Oh, sweetie. You will wear the tile out if you keep that up.” Andrew’s voice was calmer now, back to his normal soft tone.

“Is my wolf bond worth exposing myself to the toxicity of the Grimm twins, Drew? I can barely be in the same room with them without the urge to fight one or both. not to mention this damn bond has my thinking so foggy I can’t have a single clear and coherent thought around the two of them.” my mind was growing more restless the more I paced, but if I sit in that bed much longer, my brain will explode.

“Honey, you are rambling. You need to breathe a minute ’cause you’re losing it.” I laughed at Andrew’s ability to be so nonchalant after he ripped himself on the twins earlier.

“You think?” I asked as we flopped into the bed.

“What do I do, Drew?” I hid my face in my hands, wishing to rub away my frustrations.

“Do you really want my opinion, Harley? Because we both know exactly what I am going to say.” I did know.

Andrew covets the mate bond like a hopeless romantic. Even before he met Corbin, he talked about it constantly and dreamed of how he would be a great mate to the man he was fated with. I also know there were countless nights where he soothed me through the pain as I screamed and cried for them while they had s*x with other women, and because of those nights, he hated the twins.

“I want to hear you say it.” I whispered, turning on my side to look him in the face.

“I believe in the mate bond Harley, but I also hate their guts… I know the obstacles and sadness you have had to experience with your wolf being dormant, and we have tried so long to restore your connection to her. what if this is how it has to happen?” Could I expose myself and my heart to the bond just to restore that connection to her? Who is to say it would even work? I snuggled into Drew, letting him hug away my confusion and fears.

I awoke later to whispers but was still buried in Drew’s chest.

“If she wasn’t sleeping so peacefully, I would get up from here and kick your a*s! How dare you come in here after the trauma she has experienced today and in the years that you all have thrown her away to suffer the loss of the bond and get pissy because she is cuddled up to her BEST FRIEND. Not to mention I would come closer to shooting my shot with you than I would with Harley. I am GAY Axel. The moon goddess made my fated a MAN. Who I have found, mated, and marked with, by the way. How f*****g dare you?” Drew’s whisper screams and the mention of Axel had my heart racing. Why is he here?

“Look, I’m sorry. My wolf has been unbearable since she came back, and seeing you lying there with her… pisses me off so bad. It should be me she looked to for comfort, or Atlas, not you.” His voice was full of pain, and I could tell by the grit in his voice he was having a hard time controlling his wolf. A tug in my gut made me want to comfort him. The same tug from earlier when I saw the pain in his eyes over his father.

“Oh, I get it. It is easier to ignore your mistakes when they aren’t right in front of you. I think this serves the both of you right.” Drews’s voice grew darker. He may only be a gamma, but he is skilled and violent. I guess the fact that he loves me helps too.

“Enough, Drew. We are still in Clearwater territory and must respect the Alphas despite our feelings for Harley.” Byron’s voice spoke lowly from the corner.

Drew’s grip tightened on me as he was silenced under the command of his Alpha. It must be getting bad for Byron to have silenced him. He would never use his alpha command on his best friend otherwise.

“The first thing I thought after knowing she would be safe was how to fix the things I ruined. Atlas and I both hate ourselves for the pain we have caused her and intend to make up for our mistakes every day that she allows us to.” His sentiment is sweet, but they will have to do more than apologize.

Drew scoffed, and it was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do to swallow the smile on my lips.

“Please, the two of you will have to do so much more than say you are sorry.” Drew snarked, taking the words out of my mouth.

“Listen, gamma, your mouth will get you in trouble. Harley is the only reason I haven’t torn your throat out.” Axel’s aura spread around the room, making Drew shrink into the bed and pulled me in close. I could feel his fear radiating from him, which pissed me off.

“Enough, Axel. I stood from the bed, craning my neck to look at him. His eyes were glued on Drew, colored like the darkest of nights. His wolf has fronted. I put myself between Drew and Axel, but my presence wasn’t enough to bring him back to reality.

I put my hands on his chest. I wanted to shove him and ask him what he thought he was doing acting this way. But as soon as my hands met his chest, he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into his side. Fur started sprouting from his arms, and I could feel his bones groaning as he fit the shift.

“Stop this, Axel. If you hurt him, I will never forgive you.” My voice was low, I didn’t want his shift to force, but the tone I carried was deadly and serious.

“I don’t want to, but you smell like him and… my wolf.” I thought back to this morning when I smelled those girls on them and what I wanted to do but wouldn’t even admit to myself.

“Byron, I need you and Drew to leave. Drew, before you open your mouth, just this once, listen to me.” I couldn’t take my eyes off Axel. A part of me was worried if I took my eyes off him for a second, the shift would happen, and I wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.

Byron and Drew slid out of the room, leaving Axel’s big black orbs trained on me. I stepped back from his grasp, looking him up and down. His tanned arms were flexing as he fit for control. My eyes drifted lower despite my efforts not to go any lower than his chest. He is as gorgeous as I remember, but now with an aura of danger and power that wasn’t there in high school. This version of him made my mouth water.

I untied the back of my gown, letting the waist be free, and then the ties at my neck. I slid the gown off, baring myself to him, and stepped back up to him, running my fingers under the hem of his shirt, slowly pulling it up. I let my knuckles rake across his rock-hard abs. My hands were shaking from the sparks firing between our skin, and my lungs were burning from holding my breath as I pulled it over his head and put it on over mine.

His shirt was so big it fit me like a dress. I sighed, finally able to breathe as his scent wrapped around me like a warm hug. I stepped back into him, rubbing my exposed skin all over him. Now that his smell is on me, it is only fair I mark him with my scent too. I took his face in my hands, pulling him down to me. His eyes were normal again, and he looked as scared as I felt.

If this moment is interrupted, I am not sure we could get it back out of stubbornness and rage.

I trailed my nose up his neck inhaling him deeply while fighting my urge to lick his neck. His body tensed against me, his hands gripped my waist, and he said…

“This is where you belong, little bird. This is where you have always belonged.” The swarm of butterflies threatening to fly me away turned into a burning inferno of need.

He picked me up by my thighs, wrapping my legs around his waist and crushing me against his rock-hard body. I crashed my lips into his taking a little piece of him that I had needed from him for so long. He sat us on the bed, not breaking our k**s. His hands ran up the back of my shirt as his rough fingertips skated across my skin, erupting me in goosebumps. He tied his hand in my hair, gripping it just tightly enough to make my p***y throb with need.

His tongue skated across my lips, asking for entry, and my tongue danced across him as we tried to get more of the other. His mouth worked down my neck, tenderly sucking the spot his mark should be. My head fell back, giving him more access to me. I couldn’t stop the m**n from my lips when his teeth grazed his marking spot. I ground into him, making my whole-body shiver at the delicious friction from his jean-clad member.

A knock on the door broke our mouths from each other as I jumped to my feet. My fingertips danced across my k**s-bruised lips, and my cheeks were flushed. Axel looked irritated, but his eyes were full of life, and a smirk tickled his perfect lips while we tried to catch our breath.

“I apologize for interrupting you, Ms. Ashwood. We have some of the b***d work back that we drew today. We would like to redraw those samples. If I am being honest, you have silver levels in your system that could kill several alpha males. I have never seen anything like it.” the doctor from earlier finally looked up from her clipboard, noticing the awkward air in the room.

“Should I—” I cut her off before she could leave.

“No, it’s okay. We were finished. Alpha Axel was just leaving.” I turned, smiling at him. He cleared his throat standing.

“Right, I was. Thank you for seeing Harley.” His smile made me weak in the knees, and as he left, I had the urge to squeak in girl and swoon over what felt like my first real k**s.