A dangerous deal

Alexandra POV

The door just came off! I thought that the steel door would hold long enough for me to get the second steel door open, but it was permanently glued to the wall.

My name echoed in the stale, cold walls.

I hide behind the only raised tomb in this chamber. I curled into a ball and struggled to quiet my breathing.

“Alexandra, I know you’re down here.”

I paused. “Alpha Enzo?” I whispered.

“Come out. They’re all gone.”

I remained in my hiding spot. He might want to kill me just like the other shifters who chased me.

I heard footsteps, and my entire body froze over. I shut my eyes. The last thing I expected to happen was to be chased by a group of male shifters. I only managed to outrun them because beta guards got between us for a few minutes before they started chasing me again.

I didn’t want to die like this. I didn’t want to live like this either. Maybe leaving the shifter region was my only choice.

A heavy sigh made me open my eyes.

“Didn’t you hear me?” Enzo barked.

He yanked me off the ground as if I were a rag doll.

“I told you they’re gone!”

“You’re no less dangerous than them,” my voice cracked.

The tomb was dark and only lit by the floodlights from outside. I saw the rage cast over Enzo’s face.

“What are you doing here anyway?” I demanded.

“This is my pack. You’re on my soil.”

A knot formed in my throat. “I didn’t know I was in Onyx. I didn’t do anything wrong. I don’t know why those shifters chased me. I was just minding my own business and—”

He pressed his thumb on my lips to quiet me. “Relax, I know you didn’t do anything wrong.”

“You do?”

His thumb slipped from my lips. It felt like ice on a hot rock. I held myself back, or I’d moan.

Whoa, get a grip, Alex.

Enzo was drop-dead sexy. I wanted to be locked in his embrace, and I was curious about what his mouth on my skin would feel like.

I exhaled deeply to control myself.

He placed his hand on my back and rubbed. Oh, he’s making this worse!

“Was this your first heat?” Enzo asked.

“Heat? Is that what this is?” I gasped. “H-How?”

He frowned. “You tell me, Alex. Is there something you want to tell me?”

I was tongue-tied. I was drenched in sweat, my legs wobbled, and my heart was racing. I wanted nothing more than to lose myself in a hot bath. I wanted Enzo to watch me, too.

That’s when I knew there was something wrong with me!

I can’t like him. He’s Faye’s father.

He was older and powerful. He wouldn’t want a loser like me.  He wouldn’t even entertain such thoughts. He was here because I was an inconvenience.

“I just want to go home. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

He snorted. “Most she-wolves know how to handle their heats. Yours was strong for a wolfless. I can’t let you roam around like this. It’ll cause another frenzy.”

My eyes turned to saucers. “Are you going to lock me up? You can’t!”

“Do you know how many wolves your heat attracted?” He paused and winced. “I drove them off, but they could come back.”

I bit my bottom lip. Ellis never told me about these things. I don’t know how to handle it.

Enzo exhaled softly. “Come to my pack house.”

I snapped my head up. “So you can lock me up in your dungeon! Hell no.”

He stepped forward and grabbed my arm. “Maybe I should lock you in my dungeon, that way I won’t have to deal with you! You’ll be safe in my pack house.”

“Where all your wolves live? Worse, Faye?!”

“Faye doesn’t live in the pack house,” Enzo grumbled.

“You can’t deny she goes there often.”

A new wave of heat spread below my belly. I closed my eyes and whimpered.

“Fine, you’re so worried about staying at my pack house, then come stay at my house. I have a private home a few miles from my pack.”

I opened my mouth to respond, then froze. Me and Alpha Enzo alone in his home?

This felt like a recipe for disaster.

“Your heat will last three days tops. You won’t be safe in your little studio. Let the heat pass at my house. I dare anyone to break into my house and attack you.”

“Okay, you have a point— How did you know I lived in a studio apartment?”

He grumbled. “That doesn’t matter. It’s not going to save you from anyone. It’s either you come with me, or you stay here. What’s it going to be, Alexandra?”

I should tell him I’d rather sleep here with the dead than spend another second with him. A wolf howled in the distance, and I jumped.

Enzo chuckled.

***

Enzo dumped his house keys on the coffee table. He flopped on the leather couch. His house was in the centre of nature, hidden among the trees and vibrant flowers. His home, which was warm and cosy like a cottage, definitely lacked a woman’s touch. It lacked colours, any pictures, rugs and curtains!

“What do you need, Alexandra?” Enzo asked.

I wrapped my arms around myself and shivered. Enzo stood inches from me. He breathed heavily. Wait, was that me?

I felt my nipples harden and desire pool between my legs.

I knew he could smell it.

“Alex… what do you want?” He asked, low and firm.

My lips parted, and my tongue darted out to glide over my lips.

“Alex…”

Another step.

“Shower… I need a shower,” I breathed out.

The corners of Enzo’s lips curled. “There’s only one shower in this house, and it’s in my bedroom.”

“W-What? Why?”

“I don’t like guests.”

“Do you even have a guest room?” I gasped.

“No,” he replied.

“Where do you expect me to sleep?”