Alpha Doms Box Set: 9 Delicious Stories + 10 Sexy Heroes = 19 Reasons to Indulge (27 page)

I closed my eyes to the ache; the one that I
knew would be a permanent fixture in my chest.

I took a deep breath, opening my eyes and
refocusing on my current task.

Slowly, I made progress; yet, all-too-soon I
was ready to go. I threw away what I couldn’t take with me,
ensuring that I left the room spotless.

God, how quickly things changed. I knew
Mother Nature was constantly changing, her seasons a beauty to
behold mid-shift, but change wasn’t always easy to embrace. Change
required gazing at the truth of all you’d once been and all you’d
once done. Change required accepting the past in order to walk into
the future. It didn’t guarantee a better future, but most of the
time it guaranteed you would be free from your past.

Change required risk. It required that I
take a chance on myself for once. It was demanding that I followed
the Prayer of Serenity and relied on nature to reveal something
new. It demanded all I never thought I had in me so I could
re-write my fate. Hopefully the reward would be worth it in the
end. I wasn’t asking for perfection, just happiness. If there was
one thing I had to thank Jayson for, it was waking me up to the
truth. I wasn’t perfect, but it didn’t mean I didn’t deserve
happiness.

I looked around the house one last time.
There weren’t very many happy memories here, but it was still a
part of me. Its layout would always be engrained in my memory; its
walls would continually be an easily called upon vision.

I grabbed my purse and slid it over one
strap of my backpack. With only the shoes I wore on my feet, I
closed the door to my past.

—

Chapter Fourteen

JAYSON

I’d tossed and turned most of the night,
fretting over her. The sun was just beginning to rise when I
finally fell into a rough slumber.

I bolted up when someone pounded on my
bedroom door.

“
Wake the fuck up, Jay!”
Aaron yelled.

Light. Sun. Shit! How long had I been
out?

I leapt out of bed and opened the door.

He shoved his hand out in front of him.
“Shit, man! Throw on some clothes and let’s go. She’s leaving. I
saw her walking with her bag towards the exit.”

My heart pounded in my chest. My mind raced
as my wolf bellowed. I ran to my closet and grabbed the first thing
I saw, immediately throwing it on. I didn’t bother with shoes as I
pushed past Aaron.

Damn it. I couldn’t let her go. I couldn’t
lose her. I wanted to be the better man, but I didn’t think I could
live in that kind of misery for the rest of my life.

I threw open the front door, not bothering
to close it behind me. The entire property was surrounded my
forest. The only way in or out of the property was through the dirt
road that led to the highway.

Pack members had emerged from their homes to
see what was going on. I ignored them, bursting into a full-on run.
I shot through the maze of homes towards the exit.

I halted when she came into view. Sure
enough, she had a full backpack on her back and her purse slung
over her shoulder.

She weaved through the last of the homes.
She was almost beyond them when Edna spoke.

“
Good riddens,” the
middle-aged woman mumbled.

My wolf sneered as every muscle in my body
shook. I was just about to snap at Edna when Laina turned on her. I
took a few steps back, not wanting to interfere until
necessary.

Laina fisted the straps of her book bag as
she studied the woman. “You know what, Edna, I may not be what you
define as an ideal female were, but I’m not the awful person you
make me out to be.”

Edna crossed her arms, lifting her nose
upwards as if to snub Laina. “You may not be awful, but you
certainly weren’t good enough for our alpha.”

Laina nodded her head. “Maybe I wasn’t, but
I was good enough to watch your two young children. You remember
that next time you want to throw me under the bus. I may not meet
the alpha’s standards, but I most certainly meet yours, otherwise
you shouldn’t have let me near your little boys. And, by the way,
good luck finding someone who will do all that I did with them and
for them.” Laina spun around and walked away with her head held
high.

Pride erupted, but it quickly faltered under
the notion that she thought she wasn’t good enough for me. Had I
really not conveyed how much I wanted her? How could she not have
seen it?

Hope swept through my chest for the first
time.

I shook myself. Fuck! I needed to get to
her.

I shot past a flabbergasted Edna, still
opening and closing her mouth. I quickly closed the distance
between me and Laina. I reached out and grabbed her, pulling her
into my arms.

She gasped as she collided into my chest.
She gazed up at me wide-eyed.

“
Do you really think you’re
not good enough?” I damn near did a fucking dance when she didn’t
cast her gaze away.

She gave me a small smile. “You’ll find
someone who is. I’m confident of it.”

“
Why aren’t you good
enough?” I was riding a fine line as my wolf roared.

She briefly looked away before facing me
again. “I love this pack, and I love its alpha. You both deserve to
have the best of the female weres representing you. You don’t need
a fat-“

I slapped her ass.

She yelped, frowning at me.

“
Say one more demeaning
thing about yourself and I swear I’ll strip you naked right here
and give you forty lashes in front of everyone.”

Her face blanched, but her arousal faintly
slipped into the air around us.

I leaned in close, nuzzling her neck. “I
think that’d be sexy as hell. I could show everyone that you’re
mine. By the end of those slaps, your ass would be red and your
pussy would be weeping for me.” I nipped her neck.

She shivered, remaining silent.

“
You have thirty seconds to
object, sweetie.” I kissed her neck, trailing up to her
jaw.

Her eyes were wide with shock. Her lips were
trembling, tempting me to capture them and give them a reason to
quiver.

I smiled mischievously, my wolf’s rumble
close to a purr of excitement. “Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five,
four-“

“
No!” She
snapped.

I pursed my lips, batting at my
disappointment. There was a reason I didn’t hope. Things were
better black and white. Hope was a grey area, an unknown part of
life.

I painstakingly unglued myself from her. My
wolf went crazy, turning psycho on me. He could never destroy me
the way her single word rejection had though.

“
Please, don’t leave,” the
familiar female voice cut in.

I was surprised to find my brothers and
mother there. I watched as Laina cast a wary gaze upon them.

“
I know we’ve been complete
dicks, but don’t leave him because of us,” Brad said.

“
Language, Bradford,” my
mother snipped. “What my foul son was trying to say was that we
haven’t treated you with respect, which was inappropriate and
uncalled for. My eldest, our alpha, has never agreed with us nor
participated. Instead, he reprimanded all of us and sent us away
without supper the night you didn’t join us. And last night he
might as well have done the same considering he sat there like a
wilted flower staring at your empty chair all evening.”

I felt my cheeks heat. Leave it to my mother
to air out my dirty laundry. It was because they meant well, and
because I was fucking desperate, that I let them carry on.

She cleared her throat. “My point is that
Jayson clearly sees you for who you are rather than what others say
you are. Don’t punish him because of the rest of us.”

“
What she said,” Aaron
said.

Laina fidgeted. Her gaze was everywhere as
she worried her bottom lip. It was a little while before she
finally focused on my family. “I’m not punishing him.”

She abruptly turned and walked away, heading
for the road again.

My wolf’s anger seeped into my veins.
Without thinking, I yanked her back into my arms. “Then what the
hell are you doing?”

She stared at the ground, her body lightly
trembling in my arms. I was ready to throw my hands into the air
and scream when I caught sight of her tears.

I crooked a finger beneath her chin and
lifted her face towards me. “Hey, talk to me, sweetie.”

She warily looked at the crowd starting to
gather around us. She clamped her lips together. Secrets were
definitely safe with her.

My gaze traveled over the curious pack
members as they moved closer. I couldn’t fault them. I was their
alpha; I was as much their concern as they were mine.

“
Will you come back with me
so we can talk this out privately?” My pulse kicked up at the
thought of her in my private space again.

Slowly, she nodded her head. She wasn’t
enthusiastic over the idea, but she didn’t have much choice unless
she wanted to hash this out in front of everyone.

I let go of her, opting to hold one of her
hands. I threaded my fingers between hers, thrilled when she didn’t
jerk away. Her hand was dainty compared to mine. It was just
another thing to love about her.

I escorted her back to my house. I set her
bags beside the door before leading her upstairs. I held open my
bedroom door.

She hesitated in front of it.

“
It’s the only soundproof
room in the house.”

That seemed to convince her. She took those
final few steps, crossing the threshold.

I took a deep breath as I closed the bedroom
door.

—

Chapter Fifteen

LAINA

I couldn’t help but think of what had
happened in this room yesterday. I didn’t think I’d ever forget it.
How could I? He’d somehow demolished my fortress of refuge and left
me out to face the storm.

He stepped in front of me. “Take a
seat.”

I glanced back to check the door. All of the
locks remained open. With that knowledge, I sat down on the edge of
the bed.

He studied me for a minute before he
followed. He immediately leaned forward, resting his elbows on his
knees and clasping his hands. “What are you doing, Laina?” His
voice was soft, but had a rough edge.

Anger, disquiet, rumbled to my surface.
“Jayson, yesterday you tied me up. You did all sorts of things to
me, some of which I can’t even define. One thing I can clearly
recall and easily decipher was you unlocking the cuffs and then
immediately turning away from me. You didn’t stop there though. You
opened the bedroom door and stood there, waiting for me to leave.
Nothing about you was warm. You acted like I’d done something
wrong, like I’d pissed you off. You… you dismissed me. I told you
I’d been gone within twenty-four hours because you never said
otherwise and your actions didn’t either.”

He closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of
his nose, his forehead creasing as he did so.

He was doing it again. At least now I
understood what he must have gone through when I did it. It was
utterly frustrating to want answers, to want an explanation, but
receive silence.

I slid down from the bed. His hand snaked
out and captured my wrist. I looked at him, shocked to find he
hadn’t opened his eyes. His move had been so fast, so precise.

He pulled me to him, wrapping his arms
around my waist tightly. His muscles flexed as they swathed me.

I was unsure how to respond. Uncertainly, I
returned the gesture.

His warmth felt good against me. I felt safe
in his arms. I never feared him like I did my father and brother.
Even when I knew he was angry, I never worried that he’d slip and
hurt me. I knew I’d always be protected in his arms, even after
he’d seen the worst of me.

He loosened his grip on me marginally,
enough to slide back and face me. As he unsheathed his eyes, I was
immediately lost in their glistening depths.

“
I want you, Laina. Fuck, I
want you so bad. If you thought anything different, I’m sorry.
You’re who I want. No one but you.” His voice was
aggrieved.

His words sent a new wave of emotions, of
happiness, crashing through me. He didn’t hide from me. He gazed
into my eyes the entire time, delivering the truth with
confidence.

Before I allowed the joy and relief to take
over, I closed my eyes, shutting out the beauty of him. “Name one
good thing about me.”

“
Open your eyes,” he
commanded.

I opened them and sought him.

“
I could name a million
good things about you.” He smiled. “Besides the fact that you’re
great with the pack young and will make an excellent mother one
day…” He kissed my forehead. “You’re smart.” He kissed my temple.
“You’re brave.” He kissed my cheek. “You’re beautiful.” He kissed
the tip of my nose. “You’re strong.” He hovered over my lips.
“You’re mine.” He pressed his lips to mine.

His lips molded to mine as I fell into his
embrace. He pulled out yesterday’s rubber band in my hair and freed
my locks. He weaved his fingers through my hair and cradled my
head.

His taste exploded on my tongue as he
plunged his tongue inside my mouth. I sucked on his tongue,
eliciting a growl from him.

Abruptly he pulled back. His body shook as
he stared at me. “Strip,” he ordered.

When I merely gaped back at him, he slit his
eyes at me. “Or else I’ll chain you up again, only this time I
won’t spank you. I’ll do much worse.”

That had me moving. I kicked off my shoes
and toed off my socks as I tossed my tank top aside and undid my
bra. I slipped my bra off my arms before I slid my sweat pant
capris and panties off at the same time. I stood naked before him
in record time.

His eyes glittered with amusement and
appreciation. It wasn’t a harmful amusement though.