Part 40

(POV-Aria)

Running with Marcus was a brand new experience that Aria immediately knew she wanted more of.

Her thoughts had gotten ahead of her, imagining how it might be if they were on a mating run instead. If when he let her get far ahead of him, far enough that his scent had almost disappeared, if that was how it felt to dash ahead wildly, her instincts begging her to set traps he might fall into, to test just how strong he was. How cunning and sly.

Aria had always had a knack for setting traps growing up. She'd grown up under her father's tutelage, learning how to look at any situation and find a way out. Her mother had taught her which traps would suit the terrain she'd no doubt be in, and had told her which traps even her father had fallen for on their own mating run.

"He did not fall for a snare," Aria had giggled, smothering her laughter with both hands so her father wouldn't hear it. Her mother had giggled as well, a fond smile on her face as she recounted the events of her mating run.

It was hilarious to think that her father, the Delta who had inadvertently been the one to handle most of the pack's matters while their Beta dealt with the Alpha and his softer tendencies, had fallen for as simple a trap as a snare. But if Aria knew her mother, and she liked to think she did, she knew that her mother would have set the most elaborate traps and even an Alpha wouldn't have been able to escape or detect them. She remembered how her father had been caught thousands of times, just staring at his mate with the softest adoration in his eyes. Even as a pup, Aria knew that she wanted her true mate to look at her the way her father looked at her mother.

But that obviously hadn't happened, and Aria had slowly begun to accept that it would never happen. And, with Marcus racing after her, she was beginning to feel okay about it.

He caught up to her again easily, playfully tackling her to the ground and pinning her to the damp earth beneath them. She huffed, a small snort of disobedience slipping from her snout in mock defiance. His huge body lay atop hers, his weight immeasurable, but Aria couldn't deny that it felt good to have his wolf pinning her down. It felt right. And Aria knew that it meant her feelings for him were only growing, and she wouldn't be able to contain them soon.

She shook her head of the distracting thoughts and bucked her lower body up, taking him by surprise and knocking him off. She leapt to her paws and trotted around him proudly, tossing her head and shaking her fur out.

They circled one another for a moment, his bright grey eyes glinting with mischief, before she sped off again, his excited growl echoing as she disappeared into the trees again.

He was right on her tail, expertly navigating through the thicket of trees and bounding over fallen trunks that crossed their path. The leaves thwacked their legs as they sped by, the whistle of the wind in their ears and the thundering of their paws in the dirt matching the thrumming of their hearts.

Aria wondered if she might stay, if maybe they could go out on runs everyday, and they could play and wrestle together and her heart would feel so much lighter, so much fuller because of him. Being a part of his pack, even if it was temporary because they hadn't addressed whatever was happening between them, she had felt more at ease than she ever had with her own pack. Back home, she'd had to keep her wits about her, always looking over her shoulder in case a few wolves would try to bully her. And when Aiden had returned and taken his place as Alpha, he'd scared her into hiding because she couldn't take seeing him and Meredith be so happy together.

She realized that she didn't really want to go back. She would be happy to stay with Marcus instead, as long as she could still visit her parents and April without worrying about Aiden losing his mind whenever she stepped on pack lands.

Surely, she wondered, the mating mark should have severed their bond. She hadn't heard of many instances of a wolf choosing another mate over their true mate, but it had happened before. And those wolves must have managed to live without the bond interfering with their love. Why had Aiden still tried to claim her when he had already given Meredith the mark?

Nothing made sense to her. Maybe It had something to do with the fact that Aiden was an Alpha, and his wolf would have nothing but his true mate. It would make sense that way: a true mate was a wolf who had been designed for another, a true equal. Maybe Aiden's wolf refused to acknowledge Meredith as his mate, maybe he wanted Aria instead because he knew that Aria was right, that Aria was stronger. But it seemed so vain to think that way. She barely knew Meredith and couldn't stand comparing herself to others.

She focused on the run again, feeling Marcus coming up behind her again, ready to pounce yet again and pin her.

Suddenly, a scent that she felt she knew and yet had never smelled before had pulled her attention away, east, towards a small, barely visible path that led away from the clearing they were in.

Without thinking about it, she had dashed forward, not hearing Marcus' warning growls. It smelled... dark. Almost like death. Decay and dried blood and despair. And there was a hint of something that brought Marcus' face to mind, maybe his scent?

She only made it a few steps before his jaw had locked on her tail and he'd pinned her down with enough force that the wind was knocked from her lungs.

Aria hadn't expected Marcus to rebuke her so physically for her curiosity, but her wolf whimpered, retreating back into her mind at his harsh punishment.

He hadn't exactly hurt her, but he'd never physically attacked her that way before. Maybe she was being a little sensitive, but he'd reacted on pure instinct, meaning that was as physical as he could have been with her in that situation.

She ran back to the packhouse, embarrassed and hurt by his behavior. She hadn't meant to stumble onto the strange house hidden deep in the woods, but a scent that was both familiar and unfamiliar had pulled her forward, and when she found the house, she couldn't help but want to explore.

How was she supposed to know that Marcus would have refused?

She had no idea that he was hiding anything from her, and the house was so far removed from the packhouse and the rest of the grounds that it hadn't even crossed her mind that it might have been a secret. She'd gotten so caught up in their run, so giddy with joy from the way he bounded after her, his pink tongue lolling out the side of his mouth like an excited dog, that it had taken too long for her to realize he was being serious.

It made her feel like he didn't trust her, especially if there were places on his lands that she wasn't allowed to explore.

She'd been staying in his territory long enough that he should have told her if there were any places she wasn't allowed to go. She'd been in his office, and she had no interest in any information from his pack. She wasn't there to carry secrets back to her own pack, God, she'd run from her pack.

Even more so because she had no idea what they were, or what the nature of their relationship was.

The whole way back, she berated herself for overstaying her welcome. She should have known that no wolf would truly have wanted her to stay long term, and she was stupid to think that getting even more involved with him was a good idea.

She ran as fast as she could, trying desperately to outrun the pain that remained hot on her heels.

She made it back to the packhouse and shifted immediately, refusing to look at him until she was fully clothed again.

"Take me home," she demanded, her blood roaring in her ears. "Right now."

She watched him shift and felt a twinge of fear, recalling the way he'd pinned her down and snarled at her, his muzzle pulled back to expose his fangs in warning.

She had expected him to fight back, or tell her he was sorry for being a prick, but nothing could have prepared her for the cold mask that settled over his face, nor the cruel, settled over his face, nor the cruel, emotionless "Fine" he spat at her.

In a daze, she followed him in silence, watching as he instructed Jaden to make sure Aria got home safe, before leading her back to his bedroom so that she could pack the few belongings she'd brought with her.

She avoided the stares from the rest of his pack, too embarrassed to look any of them in the eye, and she wondered just how often their Alpha brought a woman back to the packhouse. The shame heated her face, turning her cheeks a burning red. She couldn't believe she'd managed to embarrass herself again by thinking she was worth anyone's love. That must have been why Aiden had so easily chosen Meredith over Aria; she was just difficult to love.