Chapter 7
1165 Words
-Summer-
I was only trying to understand this person... whoever she was. Sienna was her name, that I knew, and this Alpha in front of me... he was her true mate, but apparently she had lovers. How was that possible? He even seemed so angry that I asked him why he allowed it, but wasn’t an Alpha crazily territorial?
“What?” I questioned. “Aren’t you an Alpha?”
“Oh, now mocking my status again? Going to tell me I will never be a real Alpha? That I am weak and worthless?”
Was that something this Sienna usually told him? How could she even say that?
“But that’s not true,” I said without thinking.
“What?”
“I mean, look at you.” I held out my hand, and he looked very confused. “If you’re not a real Alpha, I don’t know who is. Have you looked at yourself? You’re so strong and powerful. I can feel your aura so much, and your scent screams Alpha. It smells fantastic…”
The last part I had not meant to say, but I had never had a true mate before, and I was starting to understand that it was easy to lose focus around one. They made you completely melt, and you only thought about how attractive they were. Was this normal? I believed so, and yet he looked at me like I had insulted him.
“Sorry, should I not have said anything?” I asked, fearing how his mood might change.
“You think I look like a real Alpha?” he inquired.
“Yes, of course.”
“Why would you say that?” he questioned.
“What do you mean?”
“You have never acknowledged my power? I know I have grown stronger since we met, but you told me I could never compensate for the weakness in me.”
“What?” I asked, shocked.
How could she say that? Had he tried to grow stronger in order to make up for the way she had insulted him and clearly made him very insecure? Oh, by the Goddess, how could anyone be so horrible to their mate?
“Surprised?” he remarked.
“Well, I...”
“You said it.”
“I...” Oh, we had some work to do, didn’t we? I had no idea where I was, but it was obvious I was locked in this room with him for the day. So, I might as well attempt to bridge the gap between us.
“Sorry,” I said sincerely.
He seemed taken aback, pulling back slightly. I hadn’t expected such a reaction.
“You’re... sorry?” he asked.
“I’ve said some mean things in the past, and I realize my mistake. I’m sorry. You’re a true Alpha. I see that,” I told him, causing him to literally drop his jaw.
-Ashton-
It was getting frightening. My mate... apologized? No! Sienna never apologized for anything. In her mind, she was the Goddess’s gift to the world. It wasn’t just me she refused to apologize to. The word didn’t exist in her vocabulary, yet she said it so easily this morning. Why was that?
Heat... my wolf whispered.
Sometimes he would let some words slip, yet he seemed a little more human this morning, too, but he always felt better after we connected, if only briefly.
She had been quite vocal during her heat this time, though. I didn’t remember her being so responsive, not even during her heat. It was like she knew, even in those moments, that she hated me, no matter what. Maybe her heat was still messing with her head a little, making her more responsive to the bond. But it was eerie.
“I... All right. Apology accepted,” I finally said, though I knew she wasn’t being entirely truthful.
“Good, so um... what are we doing today?”
“You say ‘we’,” I remarked.
“Yes, I don’t think it’s necessary to involve anyone else. You can entertain me, right?”
I wasn’t sure what she meant by “entertain”, and I crossed my arms. I refused to be her jester.
“What?” she inquired.
“You want to spend the day pointing out my flaws?”
“No?” she said, but it sounded more like a question, and she gave me a strange look.
“Really?”
“Yeah, I’m good.”
That was odd, I thought.
“You actually want to spend the day together?”
“Well, I do feel a bit exhausted, and you were kind enough to bring me food, so why shouldn’t I?”
“You can never distance yourself from me fast enough,” I reminded her. “Just tell me if you want someone else.”
“I’m good,” she repeated.
“You want me?”
“Yup.”
“Why?” I asked.
“We’re mates,” she said, shrugging.
“Never mattered to you before.”
“If you don’t want to be here...” she began, holding up her hands.
“No!” I quickly interjected.
She looked at me, surprised.
“I mean, I do.”
Did I? It was so easy for me to fall into her trap. Her showing me a bit of attention was like throwing scraps to a starving dog. I lapped it up. It was pathetic. She was right. I was no real Alpha, just a slave to our bond.
“So, what would you like to do?” she questioned.
“What would you like to do?”
“I don’t know. What do we usually do together?”
“You often don’t like spending time with me,” I reminded her.
“Right...”
“We only spend time together when we have important events to attend or when we...” I trailed off, gesturing toward the bed.
She glanced over her shoulder and then turned to me, looking nervous as she tapped her fingers against the table.
“Oh, I don’t think I’m quite...”
“No, don’t worry. I know you don’t want me to touch you unless you’re in your heat,” I snarled, looking away, feeling the sting in my heart, knowing my mate did not desire me.
“No, that’s not it!” she blurted out, making me whip my head around.
“What?”
“I mean... I just... We spent the last 24 hours mating, and... well, I am a bit... sore,” she said, her cheeks growing so pink as if she couldn’t even speak about what we had done.
“Oh...” was all that came out of me as she looked down.
A silence stretched between us, and neither of us seemed to know what to fill it with. However, Sienna broke it eventually.
“Maybe we can just... lie around and read a book?”
- Writer
