I let out a frustrated breath as I spun on my heels to return the kit to the cabinet, huffing and puffing on my way there. I don’t wish to speak about the past.
What does it matter, anyway?
“You could have rejected the Council’s proposal, Alpha Brooks.” I slam the cabinet door with a deliberate bang.
“Well, you seem to recall that I am an alpha,” Brooks muses, and I hear the bed springs creaking under his weight as he lies down. “It’s the only reason I agreed to this whole scheme.”
I turn around slowly, folding my arms over my chest, my eyes flicking to the empty spot beside him.
“We don’t have to pretend that either of us wants this,” I point out with a raised brow.
“I’m not pretending, Rissa,” Brooks scoffs as he pats the empty side of the bed. “You should get some rest. I know I need to.”
As Brooks closes his eyes, I sigh in frustration.
“I’m not sleeping on the same bed as you,” I murmur, standing firmly in place.
Brooks opens one eye and gazes at me measuredly. “Do whatever the fuck you want, Omega. We’re in this situation because of you, anyway. It’s not like we have a choice.”
He presses his lips into a tight line as he turns over on his good side, facing his back to me. I bite my inner lip, contemplating what to do next, when I realize I still have an opportunity to escape when I hear him sigh as if he’s just fallen asleep.
Allowing a few moments to pass to be sure that he’s asleep, I quietly tiptoed to the window to sneak a peek at what I’m dealing with. I need to gather my sense of direction before I set out, but my plans are thwarted the moment I peek through the tiny slip between the curtain and the window. The night is dark beyond the window, but it’s blackened by the looming presence of the demon that twists and whirls in torrents of eerie smoke that send shivers down my spine.
Great!
There’s no way I can leave the hut without being caught by the malevolent spirit that circles it as if it’s waiting to get its fix of werewolf blood. Sighing again, I turn to the bed and begrudgingly drag my feet toward it.
If I can’t escape the alpha tonight, I’ll just have to find another window of opportunity to leave. Plucking up the courage to lie down, I keep my body stiff, lying as close to the edge as possible when I close my eyes and let the exhaustion of the day wash over me.
Chapter 6 - Brooks
I feel the bed lightly dipping beside me, but I keep my eyes closed to feign sleep until I’m sure she isn’t trying to escape.
Did she really think I didn’t know that’s what she had in mind when she went to the window? The demon must be somewhere close, and there’s no way she can leave without being caught. I stifle the urge to scoff, letting a few moments pass before I hear her sigh, and I’m sure she’s asleep.
Instead of making any sound that might wake her, I slowly turn enough to glance over my shoulder, noticing how her lips are parted as she softly breathes.
Relief washes over me, only because I won’t have to do any more chasing for the rest of the night. But what comes next takes me by surprise when it flows through my being and settles in my core.
Gulping hard, I try removing my eyes from Rissa’s sleeping face, but end up failing dismally, finding myself mesmerized by how stunning her sleeping face is.
Her features are ethereal, from the way her plump upper lip curves at her cupid’s bow as if she’s smiling without trying, to the way her button nose sits perfectly in the center of her face. Rissa is out-of-this-world beautiful.
I don’t even think she realizes it.
I’ve barely accepted it myself.
Finally tearing my gaze away, I feel a lump forming in my throat, reminding me of how small this hut is. The constricting space does little to defuse my heinous thoughts about the she-wolf lying beside me, especially when I can smell her scent all around me.
The method she’d used to mask our werewolf scent has long worn off, leaving behind floating traces of sweet florals, as if we’re not cooped up in this hut because of the mess she’d made. I feel like a feral animal who’s been caged up in this place, and the discomfort seems to let my mind work overtime with thoughts that reignite my anger.
Am I supposed to ignore the fact that she’s caused me so much stress over the past few hours? We almost lost our lives because of her!
As I stare at the ceiling angrily, a faint voice inside my head reminds me that, despite how angry I am with Rissa, I can’t ignore the undeniable.
I’ve made some mistakes of my own, and I shouldn’t avoid being accountable for them.
I should have been more cautious and anticipated the demon’s appearance long before the attack.
