Wulf took my hand, and the touch sent a wave of warmth straight through me. No pain pill could compare. I trailed behind him, limp and almost dizzy, the feeling of our contact soothing parts of me I thought would be on the fritz for life.
He found a table near the bar lit only by the lights built into the floor.
We sat. His thighs brushed against mine and stayed there. He had let go of my hand and my wolf wanted me to beg him to do it again. The clothed thigh against mine wasn’t enough. Not even the hand-holding was enough. He hungered for more.
I wanted all of this man and I’d only just met him.
“What do we do now?” I asked, voice shaking I wasn’t confident in myself anyway, but this nervousness had to mean something.
“I don’t play with an omega without knowing his needs and wants first. I like to make sure you get the most out of our time together. So, what exactly are you here for Striker?”
To most people, that was probably not a loaded question. They came here for fun. To find a mate. Or a one-night stand. Or for exploring their kinks. To spend time with like-minded individuals.
I came here to experience a pain level that would overtake all the other pain in my life.
“Um,” I stammered. Nothing else came out.
“Please tell me you’ve had this conversation with other alphas.”
“No one has ever asked what I was here for beyond the…beyond receiving pain. Impact.”
Wulf nodded. “You deserve the whole experience. Some come for surface level reasons. But others come for something deeper. You strike me as the type who doesn’t come for cheap tricks.”
The alpha smiled. “Strike, huh? Was that on purpose?”
He cracked up. “No, it wasn’t.” He reached out and touched the non-damaged thigh. I sucked in a breath through my teeth. “I’m sorry. Did I hurt you?”
“No. It’s the other thigh.”
“The other thigh?” He asked, looking down at my legs and then back up at me. “Talk to me, omega.”
The thought of telling this beautiful, strong alpha my sob story made me want to run for the hills, even though that was impossible now. Retelling that story made people look away. Stop calling. Stop texting. Avert their eyes when they saw me in public.
So, one day I stopped telling it.
I understood, for the most part. Other people didn’t know what to say. They didn’t want to feel sorry for me and so,avoidance became the norm. It was easier than admitting they didn’t know how to deal with me.
My friends list shortened by more than half after the accident and the rest trickled away in the following months.
The last thing I wanted was to tell this alpha my story and stand by as a silent observer while he walked away, didn’t look at me again, played with others who weren’t so damned broken.
But as I resolved not to tell him, his compassionate gaze sent my walls tumbling down.
Maybe I could trust this alpha with my story.
Just this once.
Chapter Five
Wulf
“Why don’t we find somewhere more private to have this conversation.” I stood up and held a hand out to the omega. “If you’re okay with that?”
“O-okay,” he said. “Although you probably won’t be that interested.”
My wolf was already far more than just a little interested. “Let’s find a friend of mine and see if there is a private room available. If not, we’ll just tuck into a corner somewhere.” I waited until he slipped his hand into mine then led him across the main floor to where I spotted Oren near the St. Andrew’s cross. An omega was bound upside down to the device, so I understood why he might think the scene needed closer supervision. The dom in question was quite experienced, or he wouldn’t have been allowed to even do such a thing.
“I’ve never seen that before,” Striker murmured. “Is it quite safe?”
