11. Then I Better Fix This

Rayna~

Gods be damned.

It shouldn’t be this hard to stand across from without thinking with my aching pussy.

I shoved the thought of his mouth capturing mine to the furthest part of my mind and instead blurted out a ridiculous statement before my brain caught up.

“You mean the same Venus that was straddling you?”

His smile etched lazily at the corner of his mouth,

“The one and only.”

He was egging me on, I bit the insides of my cheeks to stop myself from clawing at this bastard’s perfect face.

He wanted me to fight her? Really? Of all the wolves in this cursed pack, it just so conveniently had to be the one who hates me.

“Tell me you're joking.”

Sven lounged at the edge of the bed, one ankle propped over his knee, rolling the words around like they amused him.

“Don’t be ungrateful, menace. This is your chance.”

My body shuddered at the sound of his nickname for me, one he hadn’t used all day not that it mattered.

I scoffed, though it came out shaky. “Ungrateful? You’re feeding me to the wolf. Quite literally might I add.”

For a moment something flickered across his face. Not pity, maybe reconsideration? And I hoped to the goddess it was.

“You underestimate yourself, Rayna.”

My laugh cracked like a hyena surrounded by lions. “I’m being realistic here, Sven. Your Delta has the upper hand here, I’ve never been to a battle before and in case you forgot.” I point to myself “wolf less!”

The mattress dipped as he leaned over the board, elbows on his knees, his voice low enough to drag against my spine. “Wolfless or not, Menace I want to see what you’re capable of. Don’t fucking disappoint.”

My muscles knotted, there was no winning here. If I won, father would ship me off to that greasy old bastard, Alpha Williams and if I lost, the pack wouldn’t respect me or accept me as their Luna—and I already knew what it felt like to be surrounded by people who hated your guts.

I shuddered at the memory. I was trapped.

“Fine,” I bit out, “But I’ll need time to prepare.”

If I can manage to get my wolf to awake in time then I should be able to one up Venus.

Sven’s lips curved to a slow satisfied smirk. He leaned back stretching like a predator, broad shoulders pressing into the thigh.

He looked magnificent in this position, if only he wasn’t such a jackass.

“That’s more like it, princess.”

I rolled my eyes, a question burning through my mind. One I should have swallowed down but didn’t.

“So you’re one of those who keeps it in their inner courts?”

One brow arched. “Come again?”

“You and your delta.”

This earned me deep hearty a laugh, “You think there’s something going on between us?”

Yes.

“No,” I lied, voice barely audible. “But I think there’s history.”

The air shifted, his hand stilled against his knee—a new expression replacing the smirk in his face.

“Of course there's history, princess.” He cooed, that was not what I meant.

I was talking about how she wanted him, like they had something the rest of us, me—couldn’t have with him.

“Venus is known for her utmost affection, but it's nothing too serious I can promise, princess.”

Was he playing dumb or did he not actually notice the lovey eyes she sent his way?

He was close now, so close I could see the little flecks of silver in his irises, smell the heat rolling off his skin.

I should have pulled back, instead, my body swayed forward, needing him closer than he was.

He noticed. Of course he did. His nostrils flared, the tiniest hiss slipping past his teeth before he dragged a hand down his face like he was physically forcing himself to stop.

“Come down for dinner.” His tone came out clipped, like every word was a nail hammered unto my chest.

Fuck, I needed to find a way out of this heat situation before it put me in serious trouble.

“I’m not hungry,” I snorted, trying to sound calm. “Reeves made sure to keep me well fed.”

His eyes darkened further, a muscle jumping in his jaw. “I don’t care about Reeves or how much food he pumped into your stomach.” His fingers grazed my jaw, I leaned in. Unable to help ignore shiver running down my spine.

“Until the ruling of the fight you’ll be my acting Luna, and just so you're aware I take family meals important.”

The Alpha in him was pressing now, all dominance and expectation. “Get dressed,” he said, softer but no less dangerous.

I could have refused. Should have. Instead I swallowed hard, stood, and muttered, “Fine.”

By the time I made it down to the dining hall, the noise of voices and clinking cutlery wrapped around me like a living thing.

And there they were. Reeves on one side, grinning from ear to ear, and Venus on the other, sitting straight-backed like the fucking bitch she was.

I took the empty seat next to Reeves without a word, ignoring the way Venus’s eyes rolled so hard you could probably hear it.

Reeves leaned toward me, voice pitched low and teasing. “Brave move sitting next to me.”

“I was told to come to dinner,” I muttered. “Not told where to sit.”

He chuckled, the sound warm but cunning. So he loved poking the bear too.

“Fair enough.”

I caught myself relaxing under the sound, almost forgetting the burn of Sven’s gaze on me from the head of the table. His eyes were a weight on my skin, a slow drag that made everything inside me ache.

So I distracted myself, trying to get refocus my mind on something other than the burn in my thighs. “Does the library here have any books on wolves?”

Reeves smirked. “On wolves? You mean on us? That’s a sillt question, Luna.”

It was but I couldn't mention that I was researching on ways to get my wolf back.

I jabbed my elbow into his side. “Rude.”

He laughed, soft and the sound loosened something in my chest. This was what attracted me to Reeves in the first place, he was easy to talk to, easy to be around and easy to be myself.

“Im just pointing out the obvious. I'll show you the section tomorrow.”

But not enough to forget Sven’s glare, and i knew if I didn't stop what I was doing with Reeves, innocent or not. He'd snap his head in a second.

Venus's voice cut through the sharp and fucking poisonous, “I find it ironic that a wolfless omega is interested in wolves.”

I didn't give her the benefit of a reaction, she was a child and I didn't entertain childish banters.

Reeves’s grin faltered, but I caught the way his knee nudged mine under the table, in a silent solidarity.

————————————-

I was halfway laughing at Reeves’ dumb joke about one of the junior wolves who fell asleep on duty and the silly prank they pulled on him when it dawned on me that Sven hadn't uttered a word.

Just the glares that drove me bunkers, it sent my heart pounding in a rhythm that I didn't know existed for wolves.

Shit!

An ache hit me, low in my abdomen and heat spread across my body.

My breath hitched the second my eyes met with Sven’s dark ones.

This was his fault!

Reeves shifted suddenly beside me, his easy expression flickering into something darker, pupils blown wide as his nostrils flared.

Holy fuck.

“Reese,” I hisses under my breath, standing up from the table.

Before the panic could rise eveb, Sven was on his feet, chair screeching back as his Alpha aura swept the room like a blade.

“Out.” His voice thundered. “Everyone out. Now.”

Chairs scraped, plates clattered, the hall emptied in seconds.

By the time the last wolf slipped through the door, Sven was already at my side, his hands gripping my arms like iron.

“You said Reeves wasn’t affected!” he snarled, the sound more beast than man.

“I— He—” my words broke into a gasp as his grip tightened, every inch of him melting me to a puddle, my treacherous body leaned closer to him.

I rubbed against him shameless, desperate trying to itch the unbearable ache crawling through my skin.

“You caused this,” I hissed through clenched teeth, glaring up at him even though my lips parted for air, “glaring at me like that.”

His gaze dropped to my mouth, then back up with a slow deathly grin. “Oh? So this is my fault?”

“Yes,” I breathed out, my chest heaving.

His jaw flexed, dragging the table cloth off the dinning, letting the dishes clatter into pieces.

“Then I better fix this, princess.”