Rejected by Alpha, Collected by Dragon

Chapter 4. Better beginings

Chloe

As I start walking down the road, I spot several groups of scary looking wolves hanging around the front of some of the buildings. Some of them glance at me, but then quickly look away. Most of them disappear inside the buildings before I pass by them. It’s a little strange, but hey! It’s better than being howled at!

I reach the path along the river than runs through the middle of the city. Even out here, where it isn’t as well maintained as closer to the city’s center, it’s pretty. Wild flowers dot the edges of the meandering water, turtles, sunning themselves on sunken logs and rocks, turn their heads to watch me pass before once again closing their eyes and dozing peacefully. I let my mind wander, not really paying much attention to my surroundings as I reflect over the last few days. Yeah, so my mate rejected me, but did I really want to be the pack’s Luna? I wasn’t cut out for that kind of thing! And yeah, I’ve possibly been collected by a dragon, and I’m not really sure what that means. I’m not even sure if he’s just keeping me close until he’s ready to breed me and then, what? He’ll let me go? It’s not the most romantic notion ever, but he is hot. There are worse people to lose my virginity to. It’s not like I’m saving it for my mate anymore. I scowl at the thought. When I think about Dominick, there’s still a little twinge of pain. I thought the rejection pains were supposed to be strong, but fast. Like ripping a band-aid off. If you survived the initial onslaught, you were good to go. So why did it still feel a little like my heart was clenching every time I thought about him?

“Chloe?”

Speak of the devil! I blink my eyes, and realize I really should have been paying a little bit of attention while I walked. Standing in front of me is my mate… well, my ex-mate. He’s looking at me with wide, stunned eyes. Eyes that slowly shift down my body and narrow slightly.

“Whose shirt is that?” he asks slowly, the hint of a possessive growl in his tone. My temper flares a little. Who is he to question what I wear? He rejected me!

Before I can answer, a familiar arm snakes around my waist, hauling me against his hard body. “That would be mine, Alpha,” Duncan sneers.

I look up at him as my mouth drops open. “Did you follow me?” I ask, incredulous.

“Sweetheart,” he grins down at me, “anyone with half a brain would follow that ass.” He leans down and before I realize what he’s doing, he licks my earlobe and bites it gently, growling low in his throat. The scrape of his teeth is enough to send a wave of heat straight to my core, my panties are instantly soaked, and I close my eyes as a purr vibrates my chest.

Dominick clears his throat and my eyes fly open to focus on him. Heat stains my cheeks and I wriggle, trying to put some space between Duncan and I, but he tightens his grip and smirks down at me.

“I… um… I’m glad I ran into you,” Dominick says, shoving his hands in his pockets and shifting nervously on his feet. “I wanted to apologize to you, and try to explain.” I stop wriggling, admitting defeat, and focus completely on my ex-mate. Every other time I’ve seen him, he’s been impeccably polished. His sandy blonde hair styled so it flops just so onto his forehead, his skin tanned and glowing with health, and his clothes tailored to show off his stunning body. Right now, his hair is sticking out at strange angles like he’s run a hand through it too many times. His skin is slightly sallow and there are dark circles under his eyes and tight lines around his mouth. His clothes still fit him like a second skin, but they’re wrinkled and rumpled like he’s slept in them or worn them for too many days. Despite the fact that he rejected me and I should hate him, right now I want to run up to him and hold him, tell him everything will be ok.

I’m grateful for Duncan’s arm holding me back from making a complete fool of myself.

Dominick glares at Duncan, a silent order to give us some privacy, but Duncan just smirks at him. “Anything you have to say to her, wolf, you can say in front of me,” he growls. “I’ll just hear all about it later anyway,” he sneers, the implication that we’re more than we are hanging in the air.

Dominick looks like Duncan just slapped him, but he takes a deep breath and shakes it off. “It was my advisors’ idea,” Dominick says sadly. “The rejection. They think it’ll be better if I’m… if I appear available. They didn’t want me to take any mate that was…”

“A nobody?” I suggest. There’s a lump in my throat and I could start crying any second, but thankfully, my voice comes out strong and clear.

Dominick looks me in the eye and I’m startled to see tears there. “Chloe…”

I want to tell him to never say my name again. Every time he says it, it’s like a knife twists in my heart because it feels so good. I want to hear him shout my name, moan it, whisper it with breathlessness against my skin. I want my name to be the only name on his lips. I can clearly imagine what it would be like to be held by him, to be under him, to have him move inside of me and my womb contracts with the thought. I sag slightly into Duncan’s side and he holds me up.

Shaking my head, I turn around and walk back the way I came without another word. Duncan glares at Dominick, but moves with me, his arm never letting me go. The sunshine is suddenly garish. It should be cloudy and raining. All the happily singing birds need to just shut up. There’s nothing to be that happy about.

We walk far enough away that I know I can’t see Dominick or risk him hearing me, and I stop, moving to the side of the path and sitting on a patch of grass next to the water. Duncan sits next to me quietly, his eyes moving over the river as though searching for something.

After a few minutes of concentrating on my breathing, the tightness in my chest begins to ease, and the fog in my brain lifts. “What was that back there?” I ask him. He quirks an eyebrow at me but stays silent. “All that posturing. Why not just rub your scent all over me?” I huff at him.

To my shock, he laughs. A deep belly laugh that carries across the water. “Honey, I hate to tell you this, but you’ve spent the last three days wearing my clothes, using my soap, and drooling on me while you snore!”

“I do not snore!” I gasp.

“You do!” he insists. “It’s adorable. But, sweetheart, the point is: you already have my scent all over you.”

I open my mouth to protest, but realize he’s right. I feel the blush heat my cheeks, but this time it keeps spreading until I feel like my whole body may spontaneously combust from the mortification.

His golden eyes watch me intently while I want to crawl into a hole and pretend none of this is happening. Reaching out his hand, he cups my chin firmly and turns my head so I have no choice but to meet his mesmerizing gaze. I’m not sure if it’s just because I’m this close to him, but for the first time I notice that his pupils are slightly elongated. “I like that you smell like me,” he whispers so quietly, I’m not entirely sure I heard him correctly. But then his mouth is on mine, and all thoughts fizzle out as the only thing I can think about is the feel of his lips. His tongue runs along my lower lip, seeking entrance, and I don’t even hesitate, parting my lips to let him in. His tongue rubs along mine, and I moan into his mouth at the feeling of him invading me. I feel his hand on my back, pulling me into him until I’m straddling his lap. Somehow, my hands have tangled themselves in his hair, and my breasts are pressed firmly against his chest.

He breaks the kiss, only to nibble along my jaw. When he reaches my neck and dips even lower, to the spot where my mate would have marked me if he’d wanted me, I can’t stop the moan that rips from my chest. My n*****s are so hard, I’m afraid they’re going to poke holes in the fabric of my shirt, and my hips have a mind of their own as they rub against the hardness growing between his legs. He sucks, not hard enough to leave a mark, but it’s enough that I’m about to orgasm all over his lap in this very public space. I don’t care, though. If he stops, I’m pretty sure I’ll die.

“Chloe,” he mumbles against my skin and I moan again. The way he says my name is almost as good as when Dominick said it. I want him to say it again. Instead, he pulls back to look in my eyes. “We should go to your place.”

“Mmmm…” I purr in happy agreement. His place is probably closer, but I’m ready to go anywhere with him as long as he keeps touching me.

“So you can pack a bag,” he chuckles. His golden eyes watching me with amusement pull me out of the lust filled haze that had taken over my body. Suddenly, I’m all too aware that we are sitting out in the open in the middle of the day. I’m straddling his lap, my skirt hitched up to my hips. His hair is a mess from where I’ve been tugging on it, and I practically begged him to f*ck me.

Classy.

Sighing, I stand up, tugging my skirt back into place, and try to salvage whatever is left of my dignity. I start to walk away, unable to look at him, but he catches up to me and links his fingers with mine. I look down at our joined hands, and up to his face. He winks at me, but says nothing as we continue to walk hand in hand. It makes me feel a little less like a loser.