Ethan’s POV
After the day I have had I want nothing more than to drop in my hotel bed and sleep. Another Pack is in desperate need of money and warriors to fend off the rogues that keep attacking their Pack. Being their closest and richest ally they, of course, came to us for help.
My father hates dealing with this part of being an Alpha so he always sends me to negotiate. He trusts that I will make the right decisions. Turns out these greedy little gits wanted twice as much as they told my father they needed.
After hours of negotiation and fighting over numbers, we finally settled on a reasonable number of warriors and a decent monetary amount. Now I don't want to think about Pack politics for the next twenty four hours.
I drop my bags right inside the doorway of my hotel room and head straight for the shower. As I stand under the hot water I let all of the worries of the past few days melt away. That's when I hear it. Someone is banging on my hotel door. Sticking my head out of the shower, I yell out, "I'm paid through tomorrow," but whoever it is won't stop banging on my door.
Quickly I rinse the soap from my body and I turn off the water, grumbling to myself the whole time. The banging on my door continues and I hear the voice of a woman crying outside.
I fling my hotel door open and there is a petite girl in her bra and panties covered in blood pushing her way into my room. As fast as she can she rushes into my room and slams the door behind her. She sinks to the ground and holds her knees to her chest and cries quietly.
"What is going on?" I ask as she rocks back and forth on my floor mumbling to herself.
"Please don't let him in," She begs as she curls herself into a tighter ball on the ground.
Blood is pooling around her body as it seeps from a gash on the top of her head. The smell of her blood is overpowering and it is driving my wolf wild. I have to hold my breath so he doesn't break free and attack her. She has clearly been through enough for one evening, she doesn't need to add a werewolf attack to her list.
"You have something that belongs to me," A man yells as he bangs on my door.
"Go away," I yell through the door but the man doesn't take the hint.
"Not until I get what belongs to me," He yells back and hits the door with more force.
Carefully I push the small woman out of the way with my foot and swing the door open. The man standing in front of me is half my size and looks like a total creep. Grabbing him around the neck I let my claws sink into his neck. My eyes swirl from blue to black as I lift the man from the ground in anger and toss him out of my doorway. He hits the wall across from my door with a thud. He quickly gets to his feet and rushes down the hall and out of the hotel.
Slamming the door to my hotel again I turn my attention back to the little woman sitting on my hotel floor.
"You can't be here," I tell her as my wolf claws at my mind begging to be set free.
She whimpers slightly and holds her hands to her head. Her eyes grow wide when she pulls her hands away from her hair and they are covered in blood.
"I know, Just let me stay long enough..." She tries to get to her feet but stumbles onto the ground.
I try to hold my breath as I talk to her, but it isn't helping. My wolf is craving her blood. "I cannot keep you safe. You are not safe with me."
"Please," She begs. "Please." She scoots back away from me a little. I can tell that she is scared of me.
Not daring to get to close to her I reach for the comforter on the bed and use my Alpha command for her to, "Get out."
I am surprised when the Alpha command doesn’t work on her and she tries to get to her feet once more. Her feet are unsteady underneath her and she keeps falling to the ground. Just as she reaches the door her body collapses on the ground and she is out cold.
"s**t," I grumble out loud and slowly make my way over to the woman that is unconscious on my floor.
I push her crazy, dark curls out of her face. Holding my breath I let my eyes rake over her body. She is covered in bruises, both new and old. It is clear that she has not had an easy life.
There is something about her that feels familiar but I just can't put my finger on it.
My wolf is begging me to leave this room because he does not trust himself to be around her when she smells so good. I will just leave her here in this room. By the time someone finds her I will be long gone. Pulling on a pair of jeans I quickly Pack my bags and send a text to my father letting him know that I will be home tonight, instead of tomorrow. I toss the comforter over her body and scoop her up bridal style to lay her on the bed.
As I pick her up, she nuzzles into my bare chest and inhales deeply. "Hey," I say as I stroke her face. "Hey, are you awake?"
She doesn't answer me, just clings on to me tighter in her sleep. Groaning loudly I adjust her in my arms and lay her on the bed. My wolf is telling me to leave her but I can't. It doesn't feel like the right thing to do. Pulling one of my shirts gingerly over her head, I gather her in my arms and plan to take her back to my Pack. At least I know she will be safe from whatever life she has here.