Chapter 6

Christopher took another swig of his whiskey, then turned to me with a playful grin.

“Now, isn’t that more your speed?” He gestured toward the untouched wine glass in front of me.

I brought the glass to my lips, and as the sweet, tangy flavor of the wine hit my tongue, it was as if my taste buds were doing a happy dance.

A soft moan of satisfaction escaped my lips, and I couldn’t help but smile.

Christopher’s smile mirrored my own.

I took another sip, and it suddenly hit me that I was sharing a drink with my alpha, the stern and commanding Alpha Christopher. I felt out of place. What business did I have being in his company?

I gently shrugged off his jacket from my shoulders, stood up, and set the glass down on the table.

“Thank you for everything you’ve done. I was in a rough spot, and you stepped in when you didn’t have to. Now I’m just causing you trouble,” I said, quickly turning to leave. But before I could take another step, his hand found my arm and he gently pulled me back, keeping me in place.

“Wait,” Christopher said, turning me around slowly.

He was tall, and even in heels, I barely reached his neck. He was close, so close. His scent was intoxicating.

“I don’t want him to see you leaving like this,” Christopher’s words were slow, husky, barely above a whisper, and each syllable echoed within me, making me shiver. “Let’s go out the back.”

Christopher draped his jacket over my shoulders again, and with a hand at my back, he led me out. He opened a door to a part of the bar I’d never seen before. It was a private parking area, just for him.

And there sat a freaking Lamborghini.

He quickly opened the passenger door for me. I stared at him in disbelief for a few seconds.

“I’m not going to let you go home alone now,” he said, nodding toward the car. I didn’t dare argue; I just got in.

“I live on Flakes Street, near the hospital,” I said as soon as Christopher slid into the car. He looked at me for a few seconds and just nodded before starting the car. I stared out the window. I couldn’t believe the alpha himself was driving me home. I couldn’t help but laugh.

“What?” he asked.

“I just think it’s funny that the alpha is giving me a ride,” I said, and he smiled back. The irony wasn’t lost on me that just a day ago I’d been taking care of him, and now here he was taking care of me.

“I thought after the way I talked to you in the hospital you wouldn’t want anything to do with me.”

“You did restrict my workout routines,” he responded.

At first, I was afraid he was going to punish me for the audacity I had shown at the hospital, now that I wasn’t crying over my jerk of an ex. But then he laughed—a deep, hearty laugh—and I realized he understood I was just doing my job.

Our moment was interrupted by a cell phone ringing. He answered the call on speakerphone.

“Alpha.”

“Yes, Hensen,” he replied.

“We have made an arrest. A wolf has invaded our borders, and we suspect it is from the south.”

The words made Christopher inhale sharply, and when I turned to look at him, I saw his body tense.

The south, again.

“I am on my way.”

He quickly ended the call and floored the accelerator. The roar of the car engine made my heart leap in my chest. He didn’t say anything else, but I could feel his anger radiating off him.

The sudden shift in gears—both in the car and his demeanor—was jarring. I had never been in a car moving this fast. Normally, I would be terrified, but his confidence was so palpable, I felt safe. It felt almost natural to just go with the flow.

When we reached the street where he was supposed to turn left to get to my house, he continued straight. I thought about saying something, but the look on his face made me hold my tongue. I didn’t protest. Was I being kidnapped? It didn’t feel like it. I decided to just see where the night took me.

He drove to the pack’s house.

We ascended a ramp and entered a garage filled with the most diverse collection of cars I’d ever seen. He parked in an empty spot and quickly got out of the car. He came around and opened the door for me, not uttering a word. As soon as I got out, he placed his hand on my back and led me to a side door. I entered to find a grand wooden staircase in front of me and a door to the side.

“I’m sorry, Scarlett, I need to sort some things out,” Alpha said. “I’ll take you home when I can. In the meantime, my room is up the stairs, the first door on the left. Wait for me there.”

He leaned down, planting a kiss on the top of my head. The feel of his lips on my skin sent a shiver down my spine. I hoped he didn’t notice. He pulled away and gave a short nod and a half smile before opening the side door and leaving me there.

What the hell was happening? I was a whirlwind of emotions, so intense that I couldn’t distinguish one from the other.

I considered making a run for it. Why should I wait for the alpha in his room?

But how would I get home?

I didn’t have a car, and I certainly wasn’t dressed for a long walk.

Did I really have a choice?

And he had been so kind to me so far; it would be wrong to just bolt.

I ascended the stairs, not really sure where I was going. At the top, there were several doors. Which one was his? One of them was a large, intricately carved wooden door, and it was the first one on the left, so I figured that was it. I walked in to find the most perfect room I had ever seen.

This room was larger than my entire house, decorated in shades of black and gray. There was a large bed at the back on the left. In the front, there was an open closet with a sofa in the middle. I could see pants and shirts neatly folded and lined up. They looked like they had never been worn.

On the right, there was a bar, stocked with all kinds of drinks and a small counter for mixing them. At the back, there was a bathroom with glass walls, revealing a large stone bathtub and a massive shower. Beyond that, there was a balcony with more glass doors. From inside the room, you could see the breathtaking view of the city. It was like a dream.

I sat on the sofa, unsure of what to do next, and that’s when I noticed the TV, almost camouflaged within the black furniture. I found the remote and tried to watch something, but it was hard to focus. I’d had enough craziness for one night. I couldn’t tell how much time had slipped by before the door creaked open and Christopher stepped in.

“Turns out it was just an exile,” he announced, moving toward me with measured steps.

I couldn’t help but ask, “I overheard them mention the south. Are they our enemies now? Weren’t they your family?” Christopher paused, seemingly searching for the right words as he neared me. I switched off the TV and rose to my feet, heading for the door. I assumed he was ready to take me home.

“Sorry, it’s not my place to ask,” I apologized.

Just as I was about to walk past him, Christopher’s arm snaked around my waist, holding me in place. His face leaned in close to mine, his lips brushing against my ear.

“They are my family,” he admitted in a low, threatening tone.

“Up until last year, the alpha to the south was my uncle, and we were at peace. But then Alpha Joshua, my cousin, took over,” Christopher explained, letting out a heavy sigh.

“Joshua believes that our territory includes lands that should be theirs, that the division was unjust. To make matters worse, he’s married with three kids, two of them boys. I have no mate or heirs. He thinks he can use this against me.”

“Does it matter that you don’t have heirs? You’re still the alpha here.”

“It shouldn’t matter,” Christopher replied. “But Joshua is exploiting it. I know he’s scheming. He wants to undermine my authority as alpha, turn my pack against me.”

Christopher’s confession felt raw, as if he’d never shared this with anyone before. Instinctively, I reached up to touch his face. He took my hand and closed his eyes. I gently stroked his cheekbone, a soothing caress. Christopher opened his eyes slowly, and I was caught in the intensity of his gaze—studying me, piercing me, consuming me.

He tucked a loose strand of my hair behind my ear, his hand tracing the line of my jaw until he held my chin between his thumb and forefinger. He gently lifted my chin as he lowered his face, my breath hitching with every inch he closed in. I didn’t know what I was doing, only that I didn’t want to stop. My lips parted and his gaze dropped to them, my heart pounding so hard I thought it might burst. And then he bridged the gap between us, his lips meeting mine, and I felt as if he was baring his soul to me.

A shiver ran through me, a sensation I’d never experienced before. His tongue slipped into my mouth, and I welcomed it. It felt like an embrace, his tongue dancing with mine in a rhythm that felt familiar, as if I’d been waiting for this my entire life.

His hand tightened around my waist, pulling me closer in a swift, assertive move, as if he wanted to show me he was in control—and something inside me reveled in it. His other hand slid up to my neck, drawing me even closer, as if he was trying to meld our bodies into one. I felt a surge of electricity coursing through me, igniting pleasure in its wake.

The sensation was concentrated between my legs, and I yearned for his touch on every inch of my body. I let out a raspy moan into his mouth, and I heard a growl, but I couldn’t tell if it was him or his wolf.

My hand moved from his face to his neck, pulling him closer. Driven by instinct, I pressed my hips against his, feeling his arousal grow.

Christopher squirmed, pressing me tighter against him. He lifted me by the waist, breaking our kiss for a moment. Looking at him now was even more challenging.

His lips were slightly swollen and smeared with my lipstick. He was panting heavily, and I braced myself for him to say it was a mistake, but instead, he kissed me again, and it was even more intense than before.

Mathew had been aggressive; his kiss was ravenous, almost animalistic, but Christopher was surprisingly gentle. His kiss was intense and dominant, radiating alpha energy, but at the same time, it was tender, as if he was taking care of me while kissing me.

His other hand moved to my ass, giving it a light squeeze before sliding up to my thigh. It was enough for my legs to wrap around his hips, and at the same time, he bit my lower lip.

He kissed my neck as he turned me around and laid me on the bed, intensifying the electric shocks and leaving me breathless. I thought I should have some rational thought to stop, that maybe it wasn’t right, but nothing wrong could make me feel this way. I just wanted to continue; I just wanted him.

Christopher slowly slid the strap of my dress down, and the trail of kisses that started at my neck slowly moved downward, leaving a path of saliva and pleasure in their wake.

“You’re the sexiest fucking thing I’ve ever seen,” he murmured. His words were husky whispers of desire, spoken against my skin, sending tremors through me.

Part of me thought I was insane, here with Christopher, who I knew as our pack’s alpha. I had only really met him a few days ago at the hospital. But the spark I felt between us then—and now—was undeniable. All I wanted was to see where this would lead.