#Chapter 3- (Arina) A Drunken Mistake

“Get your fucking hands off her,” Jonathan shouted as he approached us angrily.

His fists were clenched and all I could see coming from him was pure rage. The man that was against me had a low grumble laugh emerging from deep in his throat. I wasn’t sure if Jonathan could hear him, but I could, and it sent a chill down my spine.

I struggled to get his hands off me.

“Don’t make me tell you again,” Jonathan growled.

The man eventually released me and I nearly fell to the ground. I felt tears burning in my eyes and my body trembled. I couldn’t get the feeling of his hands off me; the way his mouth tasted against mine and the way he felt when he was biting me and caressing me.

There was no shower hot enough to get that feeling off me.

“Arina, get in the car!!” Jonathan ordered.

I wasn’t sure I could walk to his car if I wanted to. I was seeing 4 of them. The mystery man stepped in front of me. He wasn’t going to let me go that easily.

However, with how furious Jonathan was, I wouldn’t want to cross him.

“She doesn’t want to go anywhere,” the man said to him, clenching his fists.

He was ready to fight.

“I wasn’t asking,” Jonathan said between his gritted teeth. “Get in the car, Arina,” he said again.

I stumbled from behind the man and tried to make my way to the car, but the man put his arm out, stopping me in my tracks.

“Let her go!!!” Jonathan yelled; I could see a faint vein in his forehead that looked like it was about to burst.

“Yeah? What if don’t?” The man’s tone was daring.

I was afraid of what Jonathan might do. Growing up, he’s always been protective of me. I’ve known him since I was born; he’s always been like a big brother to me. We lost communication when I was 12; it was his 18^th birthday and I stopped hearing from him. He no longer came to visit me at the school in Moon-Valley.

I couldn’t believe he was here right now.

Before Jonathan or the man could say anything more, Jonathan was already grabbing at his coat. He shoved him against the man’s bike and both the man, and the bike went tumbling to the ground in a thud.

The man looked up at Jonathan who was seething his breath through his teeth in a fit of rage.

“What the fuck, man?!” The guy said as he attempted to stand to his feet.

Jonathan’s fist went straight through his jaw; I saw blood splattering from the guy’s mouth. I nearly jumped out of my skin. He sent another blow to the other side of his face, and I could hear the cracking of the man’s nose. Blood poured from his nostrils and down his shirt.

His nose was definitely broken. 

“Arina!!!!” Jonathan yelled; his voice booming through the empty streets of Ironclaw and startling me.

He didn’t have to tell me again; I stumbled over to his car and slid into the passenger side.

“Don’t you EVER go near her again,” Jonathan growled as he turned and went towards his car.

The guy just sat and stared as Jonathan sped away.

(Jonathan)

Stupid girl.

What the fuck was she thinking?

Going with that guy. She doesn’t even know who he was. She met him once at a bar and decided to go with him. What would have happened if I wasn’t there to protect her?

He knew she was shitfaced, and he was still going to take advantage of her. What a piece of shit.

Arina sat in the passenger side, staring out the window with tears falling from her eyes and soaking over her features. They were both quiet for a long while; Jonathan was trying to calm himself down because his anger was getting the best of him. Arina was probably trying to process what had just happened.

She reeked of beer; that was typically her drink of choice.

What was she even doing in Ironclaw anyways?

Seeing Arina after all these years brought back the painful memories of having to leave her. Staying away was the hardest thing he’s had to do but he knew it was necessary after finding out, on his 18^th birthday, that 12-year-old, Arina, was destined to be his mate.

His love for her only grew stronger every day but he needed to wait for her to age into an adult before he could officially make her his luna.

“How did you know I was here?” Arina finally said in a drunken whisper.

Jonathan didn’t have an answer that would be settling for her. How could he tell her that she was his mate and that he would always know where she was? That he can feel her emotions and when she needs him the most? That her wolf has never lost communication with his wolf?

She wouldn’t understand any of that. She was still a kid.

He gripped the steering wheel, making his knuckles grow white.

“How about you tell me what the fuck you were doing here, Arina,” Jonathan said through his clenched jaw.

She stayed quiet for a moment, she stared back out the window and rested her head on the door. The beer was getting to her head, and she was having trouble keeping herself awake.

“I just wanted to feel something,” she whispered.

“You could have gotten hurt,” he growled. “Or worse…”

He shuddered at the thought of any harm coming to her.

“You never answered my question,” she said softly. “How did you know I was here?”

“It doesn’t matter,” he muttered.

“Where are you taking me?” She asked, her voice quivering.

He hadn’t thought about where he was taking her, he just knew he needed to get her out of there. Out of Ironclaw.  

“Moon-Valley” he answered.

He knew that’s where she was residing since leaving Ironclaw when she was 10 years old. She went to the art school and stayed in a dorm room with her best friend, Jessica. Moon-Valley was run by Alpha Greggory, a good friend of Jonathan’s. They became close since Arina’s been staying there. Even after Jonathan had to disappear from Arina’s life, he remained close to Greggory.

“Do we have to go there?” Arina asked, batting her eyes at him.

His frown deepened.

“Why wouldn’t you want to go back?” He asked, side-eyeing her as he continued to drive.

“I’m just not ready to go back yet,” she murmured, staring down at her fidgeting hands.

“Then where is it you want to go?” He asked.

Arina lifted her legs on the seat and pressed her knees close to her chest as she stared up at him.

“Anywhere else,” she said softly. 

Jonathan sighed; he had no idea where to take her. He didn’t have to think long because her legs fell off the seat and he heard her gasp.

"We need to pull over,” she said erupted.

He glanced over at her. She was starting to look ill. She was holding onto her stomach, and he quickly realized why she needed to pull over.

Jonathan slammed on the breaks, pulling his car off the side of the road. She slammed the door open and nearly fell on her face getting out. Before he could join her outside, she was already vomiting into the dirt.

She threw up all over her clothing.

Jonathan rubbed his temple with his fingers and attempted to hold her blonde hair back before she threw up in it.

Too late.

He groaned as she nearly fell in the mess of her vomit.

“Okay, new plan,” he muttered as she finished emptying her stomach.

She wiped the vomit from her mouth as tears fell from her eyes; her body was trembling. She could hardly hold herself up.

He wrapped his arms around her frail body and pull her to her feet; he walked her back to his car.

As she slipped back into his car, she began sobbing into her hands.

“I’m taking you back to my place so we can get you cleaned up,” Jonathan informed her as he sped away from the side of the road. She didn’t say anything in response; she continued crying in her hands.

“Arina, what’s going on with you?” Jonathan finally asked after a long silence.

She continued sobbing in her hands, then she peered up at him. Her features reddened and tear-stained. She looked so broken.

“I’m in pain, Jonathan” she whispered.   

And he lost the power to ream her, only wanted to take her home.

He pulled through his town of Sabrebite, where he was left Alpha once his father died a few years ago. His home wasn’t far from the center of the town. It was a patchy wooded area; fairly secluded from the rest of the town.

He put his car in park and breathed for a few moments. He wasn’t able to ask her many more questions; she spoke briefly about her father kicking her out of Ironclaw. She mentioned how she suspects Rock and Melissa were the ones who killed her mother.

How could an Alpha do this to his own family? To his luna? To his daughter?

Arina stirred in her sleep and groaned as though she was in pain. She opened her eyes, adjusting them to his porch lights that were shining brightly on the car. She looked around, confused for a few moments before looking down at her clothing.

She sighed, defeated.

“I’m sorry,” she kept mumbling between tears. “I drank so much…”

“It’s okay,” he assured her.

He paused when he noticed she was awkwardly fumbling with her seatbelt. He undid her seatbelt with ease and helped her out of the car.

Wrapping his arms around her, he pulled her close, holding her in an embrace. She didn’t fight him; she willingly caved into his chest and cried some more. He noticed her body was shaking, which only made him hold her tighter.

He guided her into his home. She stood at the doorway hesitantly for a few moments. Meeting her eyes, her gaze softened, and she stepped inside.

His house was ordinary, but she seemed to be taking everything in. Even though he was an Alpha, he didn’t have a big home. It was only him and he liked a smaller space. It had a couple of bedrooms and a couple of bathrooms. Along with a kitchen, a living room, and a home office he did most of his work when he wasn’t at the office.

“We should get cleaned up,” Jonathan told her. He tried to keep his tone low to not startle her.

She stayed quiet.

Rummaging through his drawers in his bedroom, he found a T-shirt that would cover most of her body. He grabbed some clothing for himself and a couple of towels.

Returning to Arina, Jonathan noticed she was still standing in the same spot, near the main entrance, playing with her fingers. She used the edge of the doorway to keep from falling over. Jonathan couldn’t mistake, that even in her drunken state, she looked uncomfortable.

As he approached her, she shifted her gaze upward to meet his. He wrapped his fingers through hers and guided her into the bathroom.

He turned on the shower and allowed the hot water to wash through his fingers. Once it was at a comfortable temperature, he turned to her.

“I’ll give you some privacy.”

Before he could leave the room, her fingers were gripping his biceps. Tears were welling up in her eyes again, and she bit her lip vigorously.

She often bit her lip when she was nervous or lost in her train of thought. It was a nasty habit he wished she would break but staring at her he couldn’t help but think how badly he wanted to bite her lip. 

“Please don’t leave. I don’t want to be alone,” she pleaded, her voice wavering.