Chapter 126: The Bite That Wasn't There

~Ouch.~

Maya’s eyes fluttered open as she rolled onto her back, the agony in her side ~intense~. ~Damn it~, that stung. And her ~legs. Crap~. Julian was ~large~, but she hadn’t anticipated him being ~that~ large.

She’d slept with him.

He’d slept with her.

~And it was damn good~.

~You enjoyed it. You enjoyed it a lot~.

Instinctively, she placed a hand on her neck, exploring the skin with her fingertips. It was slightly swollen, bruised…but ~no mark~.

Even now, she could tell it was still night and the moon was still visible.

~But they hadn’t disobeyed Alex’s orders~. They hadn’t left, and they hadn’t transformed.

Maya wanted to believe nothing bad had occurred during the night, but all she could remember was skin and pleasure.

She was certain the roof could have been torn off and she wouldn’t have noticed.

~Damn~.

She moved her hand to the other side, ~just to be sure~, inspecting the skin in the same manner.

“I didn’t bite you,” a sleepy voice said.

Maya sat up abruptly, clutching the sheet that only covered her midriff. ~Damn~. She turned to look at Julian, who was lying on his side, his eyes still shut.

“I kept my teeth to myself,” he joked as he yawned, stretching his arms above his head.

Maya pursed her lips, bending her neck forward as a heaviness filled her. ~Mate didn’t~. Was it her disappointment, or her wolf’s?

Because it made sense. ~They shouldn’t~. Not now. Not this kind of permanent bond.

Yet.

~Mate didn’t do it.~

It was gnawing at her, as if she had done something ~wrong~. But she hadn’t. It was the right decision, the right thought.

~Even though she had exposed her neck like a bitch in heat~. So much for being the one in control.

Was everyone ~this~ pathetic with their mate?

Thinking back about Olivia all desperate and in heat made her frown. As long as she didn’t get to ~that~ point.

“Don’t worry, I woulda kept your teeth away.”

“Is that so?” he asked, propping himself up on his elbow, his head resting in the palm of his hand. Julian smacked his lips. “Didn’t feel that way.”

“Don’t start thinking you’re so special. ~I needed the release~. You showing up half-dead kinda killed my sex life, all right.”

~Not a lie~.

Stupid wolf, though. The closeness, the jealousy, the full moon. It had been a little too much. She had already slipped before without considering all that. Now, it had tipped her over the edge.

Not that she regretted it.

~Damn it~. The man was good; she had to give him that much.

She flopped back on her back, breaking their eye contact as she stretched her body, never even bothering to cover her chest.

She wouldn’t be modest because of him, and if he didn’t like it—well, that was his problem.

“Thank the full moon and my wolf.”

“I feel like I did say many thanks last night,” he said, his voice low and deep, tickling her from inside.

~Round two?~

~No, no, no. More like round four.~

Seriously! ~No!~ Already she could feel the dried blood around her wound, and she knew she would have to ask Olivia to change her bandage and fix her up.

And Olivia would ask about it and ~damn it~.

She wasn’t looking forward to that conversation.

Then again, what were her choices? Stay here with a smug, arrogant Julian, or face Olivia, who mostly only bossed ~Alex~ around.

Option two sounded a lot more appealing. Plus it would be less dangerous. The sight of him, naked and ready, already had her nipples hardening.

~Time to put some distance between them~.

Maya swung her legs over the bed and searched the floor for ~something~. Her fingers grabbed a pile of yellow fabric as she slipped on an oversized shirt to cover herself.

Then, she dug her underwear and shorts out from somewhere in the bundle of blankets and slipped them on.

“Where are you going?”

“Because of ~someone~, my wound opened up again. Your nose so crappy you can’t smell the blood?”

“Kinda distracted by other scents.”

“Yeah, well, you can say ~hello~ to your girlfriend.”

“My girlfriend?”

Maya lifted her hand and waved it around. “You even got two of ’em. Leftie and rightie. ~Enjoy~!”

~That's one way to end a conversation~. Maya seized the moment of his distraction and bolted from the room, the door slamming shut behind her.

She didn't need his physique, his arrogance, or her own body betraying her.

A little space would be beneficial while she pieced her thoughts back together.

The hallway floor was chilly under her feet as she took long strides—or as long as she could manage—towards Alex and Olivia's room.

She half-expected Alex to be on guard ~just in case~, but she could ~sense~ his presence.

She was certain their self-control surpassed hers, but they didn't have any reason to exercise it. ~Oh lord, there's going to be another baby soon, isn't there~? Hadn't she ~just~ had one?

Rolling her eyes, Maya knocked on their door, letting her touch reverberate. ~No more of this “we didn't hear you” nonsense~.

“Get dressed!” she hollered through the door.

A growl echoed from inside—Alex, she presumed—followed by heavy, thunderous footsteps. ~Oh wonderful, he's in a delightful mood~. As always.

He flung the door open in an instant, his eyes narrowing at her. She could see the venomous words forming on his lips, but they all evaporated when he sniffed the air around her.

“Are you fucking kidding me?”

“Yes, I'm serious. I need Olivia. I'm bleeding,” she declared, gesturing to her stomach. ~As if he didn't know what she meant~. But riling him up was ~so entertaining~.

“That's not what I'm referring to, Maya.”

“Then what ~are~ you referring to, Alex?”

“You mated with him?”

Was he ~blind~ now? Maya rolled her eyes, folding her arms across her chest.

“It's called sex, not mating. You should try it. Now, can I see your girlfriend before I bleed out on your doorstep?”

“If you didn't sleep with morons while injured, you wouldn't be bleeding out.”

“Well, my inner wolf is a lustful creature who hadn't been satisfied in a while. What can I say?

“Also, if a certain domineering alpha hadn't locked me in my room all night with a sex-crazed man during a ~full moon~, maybe I wouldn't have had to relieve myself.

“So here we are. ~Olivia, please~,” she said, the words tumbling out quickly.

Blaming Alex was an effective way to steer the conversation.

“I'm coming,” Olivia's voice chimed in.

Maya tilted her head to peek around Alex's broad frame, catching a glimpse of Olivia hurriedly getting dressed.

Suddenly, her view was obstructed by Alex, who shifted to the left to block the doorway, prompting Maya to roll her eyes.

“Really? I've seen her naked plenty of times. ~And not in that way~, before you jump to conclusions and forget she's head over heels for you.

“Good thing she's the one, or she wouldn't have given you a second glance.”

“She's not wrong,” Olivia chimed in from the back of the room.

“I'm not having this discussion.”

“We could talk about—”

“How's Willow?”

“That was ~low~.”

“Was it?”

“I could ask how was Will—”

“LET'S GO!” Olivia's voice rang out as she grabbed Maya's arm, pulling her into the hallway.

~Yep, ~from Alex's glare, she could tell she had almost crossed a line, but Olivia had intervened. In her defense, he had initiated it by mentioning ~Willow~.

Maya grimaced as Olivia sped down the hall, yanking her arm hard enough to dislocate it. ~Okay, a bit too forceful~.

“Come on, it can't be ~that~ sensitive of a subject.”

“Really, Maya?”

“I'm just saying, I don't see what the big deal is.”

“You know what the big deal is.”

“He needs to move on.”

“Like you need to move on from Willow?”

Sometimes, she missed the meek Olivia who was lost and filled with sorrow. She had become quite sharp over the years. ~No doubt, Alex's influence~.

“No way. It’s not the same. Your situation was ages ago. Mine is happening right now.”

“Julian isn’t interested in Willow.”

“Julian-who-couldn’t-recall-his-own-name isn’t interested in Willow. The ~real~ Julian clearly cared.”

“So what? Weren’t you the one who said everyone has a past? Why is it different now? Because it involves ~you~ and your mate? Sounds a bit hypocritical, don’t you think?”

“Listen. It’s okay as long as everyone is respectful. She’s dealing with unresolved issues and we have… ongoing issues.”

Olivia let out a sigh, finally letting go of Maya’s hand. It fell into the void between them. Olivia continued to walk a few steps ahead. ~She doesn’t seem convinced~, Maya thought.

Maya had always been respectful. She’d slept with a few guys who were now mated, and she would never ~dream~ of leaving her scent behind. She knew better.

It wasn’t her fault that Willow lacked basic manners.

“Alex wasn’t wrong, you know. You’re practically ~dripping~ with pheromones. You’re practically screaming ‘take me.’ No wonder he thought you two mated.”

“That’s rich, coming from the girl who had everyone in a frenzy because she kept going into heat.”

“That’s not my fault.”

“You still drove everyone mad. So maybe we should stop talking about ~me~.”

“Yeah, well I didn’t rip open a wound and try to kill myself over a pretty boy.”

“No, but you did—”

“Alright, you win.”

Maya smirked. “Really? Just like that? Alex would have put up a fight.”

“Yeah, well, you’re both sex-crazed.”

“You have a point there.”

Maya wasn’t embarrassed about sleeping with Julian—she’d enjoyed it.

She was a bit annoyed that her wolf couldn’t keep her hands off him for five minutes and pounced on him at the first chance, but ~whatever~.

She might have slept with him in the woods that time if they hadn’t been interrupted, so who was she to complain?

The crucial thing was that he didn’t bite her, and she didn’t bite him.

Hold on.

~She didn’t, did she~?

Maya halted, trying to remember the whirlwind of limbs and passionate sex from the night before.

She remembered their bodies intertwined, the way she had perhaps too eagerly offered her neck…

She didn’t have a mark.

He’d said he didn’t bite her.

~Oh, shit~. She hadn’t done an Olivia, had she?

“Maya? What’s up?” Olivia asked, turning to look at her with a puzzled expression.

“I—I’m really hoping I didn’t do something as stupid as you right now.”

“Alright, I’ll pretend I’m not insulted by that. Even though it’s a strange way to be nice to the girl you want help from. What do you mean?”

“Please, if you were going to be offended by me, you would have been a long time ago,” Maya said, waving her off.

She had said much worse things than this. “He didn’t bite me,” she clarified.

“Yeah, I can see that.”

“But what if…”

Olivia’s mouth formed an ~o~. “What if ~you~ bit him?”

“Something like that.”

“Didn’t he say something? Didn’t you check him?”

Maya shrugged. “He was being all smug about everything, so I kind of hurried out of there.” Olivia barely suppressed a giggle, turning her head away from Maya. “What’s so funny?”

“Do you remember how many times you told me I was ~running~ from Alex and my problems and how many times you pushed me to face my issues… and you ran away from Julian? That’s hilarious.”

“I didn’t ~run away~. I left quickly. There’s a difference.” There ~was~. She had no regrets about what happened. She could face him.

~“I am bleeding~. Remember? That’s what you should be worried about.”

“~Sure~.”

Perhaps she was dodging him. But she was confronting everything head-on, thank you very much. In fact, it was a power move. Yes.

Maya was letting Julian pursue her. He didn’t need to know how good it felt, or that…

She enjoyed him taking control.

Damn it.

She did.

The whole idea was to seize and maintain control. How did it end up this way?

“Are you going to patch me up or just keep making snide remarks?”

“I can multitask.”

Of course. Nothing like getting stitched up by an Omega who thinks he’s a comedian. Great.