4

JAX

Aurora’s cry broke through the quiet forest like something tearing apart. The sound reached me from the trees and sent a sharp jolt through my chest.

Legs moved fast as I ran toward the place where she had gone to meet Damon. Waiting earlier had been a mistake. Staying back had given him time alone with her.

Something had gone terribly wrong.

Years spent training with the wolves of the Ironwood Pack had taught me to understand their voices. Their howls carried meaning. Pain sounded different from anger. Fear sounded different from warning.

Aurora’s cry sounded like pure agony.

It twisted inside my chest.

Hold on. I'm coming.

The clearing where she had met Damon appeared ahead. I stepped into it quickly.

Empty.

No Damon. No Aurora.

But she wasn’t far.

Her wolf was whining somewhere ahead between the trees.

Damn it.

Night vision goggles would have helped right now. Human sight, even perfect sight, couldn’t match a wolf’s ability to see in the dark.

Still, there was one advantage.

The gun.

My hand moved behind my back and pulled it from the holster hidden at my waist. Being half blind in the dark didn’t mean walking in without protection. If Damon had done something to her, he wouldn’t leave here alive.

The sound of her whimpers guided me forward.

Branches brushed past my arms as I pushed deeper through the trees. The ground dipped suddenly, and my foot nearly hit something.

Aurora.

She lay on the forest floor, naked and curled tightly into herself.

“What the hell…”

Dropping beside her, I quickly scanned the area again. No movement. No Damon hiding nearby.

Her hair covered part of her face.

I brushed it away.

“Jax,” she whispered weakly.

“What did he do to you?” My hands moved quickly over her body. “Where are you hurt?”

Nothing.

No cuts. No blood. No wounds.

Yet the sounds she made still cut through my ears like blades.

“In-inside,” she stammered. A deep tremor ran through her body.

“Inside where?”

It didn’t make sense. No injuries anywhere. Yet she sounded like she was in unbearable pain.

“Not like that,” she cried. Her arms tightened around her stomach as she hugged herself. “I need your help.”

“Tell me how.” The words came fast. “Anything you need. I’m here.”

Damon would pay for this if he had anything to do with it.

Aurora’s eyes suddenly widened.

Her body stiffened all at once.

Then a scream ripped out of her.

“Shit.”

That scream would travel through the night. Security could hear it. Maybe others too.

We couldn’t stay here.

Arms slid beneath her and lifted her off the ground. Turning away from the clearing, I carried her deeper into the woods.

The dorms weren’t an option. Too many people. Too many questions neither of us could answer.

“Hold on,” I said quietly. “I’ll get you somewhere safe. Then we’ll deal with this.”

A moment later the truth hit me.

The new moon.

Her heat.

And the worst possible timing.

Only one thing could stop the pain she was feeling.

“Have to do something now,” she groaned against my arm.

“Not until we’re safe.”

“Can’t wait,” she gasped. “Now.”

“Aurora.”

My voice turned firm. A bit of command slipped into it. It wasn’t the same as an alpha wolf’s power, but it had worked before when I trained her human control.

“Listen to me,” I said. “Focus on my voice. Remember your training.”

A rough sound escaped her.

“I didn’t train for this shit.”

Even now, the corner of my mouth almost lifted.

There was nothing funny about this moment. Still, her stubbornness had always been part of her.

“We didn’t,” I agreed. “But you’re an alpha. Alphas don’t give up when things get hard.”

“I hate you.”

“No, you don’t.”

The truth between us had always been complicated. Feelings neither of us were supposed to admit.

Guardians were forbidden from crossing that line with the wolves they protected.

“I will if you don’t help me,” she said through clenched teeth. The anger in her voice couldn’t hide the pain in her eyes. “Please.”

“We’re almost there.”

Instinct pushed me faster. A decision I had made months ago suddenly seemed like a very good one.

The trees opened up ahead.

We stepped into a quiet stretch of land far away from the busy campus.

The administration buildings out here were dark tonight. Friday meant most people had already left.

Even better, the cameras in this area answered to me.

“Jax stop!” Aurora cried. “I can’t take another second.”

Her voice shook.

I kept moving.

The heat from her body burned through my shirt. Her scent filled the air around us.

“We’re almost there,” I forced out. “Two hundred feet. You can handle that.”

Truth was, I wasn’t sure I could.

Her pheromones were hitting me hard too.

An image flashed through my mind without warning. Throwing her down on the ground. Taking her from behind. Watching her come apart beneath me.

The picture was painfully clear.

My hand reached into my pocket and pulled out the SUV keys. The unlock button clicked.

The vehicle waited just ahead.

The door came into reach.

Just as I reached for it, Aurora twisted in my arms.

Her body pressed down, rubbing against my hand.

Warm.

Wet.

My mind nearly stopped.

God.

How many nights had that exact moment played in my head?

How many cold showers had followed after seeing her with Damon?

“Fuck, Aurora.”

Thinking clearly was getting harder.

“Please, Jax,” she begged softly. “Gods… I’m going to die.”

The door finally opened.

Getting us inside took effort while she kept moving against my hand.

The door shut behind us.

In the next second she pushed me backward onto the seat.

She climbed onto me, straddling my legs.

“I want you,” she breathed. “So bad.”

“But we—”

“Don’t say we can’t.”

Her voice cut me off.

“How many times have you touched yourself and said my name?”

That caught me off guard.

“You heard that?”

There was no real effort to move her away. Truth was, I didn’t want to.

Rules had built the wall between us. Structure mattered.

Except when it came to her.

“I hear everything,” she said quietly.

Her claws slid down my legs and tore my jeans open.

“You weren’t the only one wanting this,” she continued. “Every time you wanted me, I wanted you just as much. That hasn’t changed.”

Her hand slowly moved toward my cock.

Breathing became difficult.

“What are you saying?”

The answer mattered more than anything.

“This.”

Her claws pressed into my hips, just enough to sting.

“You have to fuck me,” she whispered. “I need you.”

My hand moved up and gripped the back of her neck, pulling her closer.

Her eyes were wide and dark with need.

Still, she had to hear this.

“If we do this,” I said quietly, “there’s no going back.”

“Okay,” she panted.

“You’re not understanding.”

My grip tightened slightly.

“Once I’m inside you, you’re mine.”

“But I have to mate with—”

“I don’t care.”

The words came out rough and certain.

“You’ll still belong to me too. Walking away isn’t something I do. Backing down isn’t something I know. And once I start touching you, I won’t stop.”

My forehead touched hers.

“You’re it for me,” I said. “All or nothing.”

Maybe the heat clouded her thinking.

Didn’t matter.

Those words needed to be said.

“O-okay,” she breathed again.

A small smile touched my lips.

“Okay?” I murmured. “Try again, my love.”

Her chest rose and fell quickly.

Then she looked straight at me.

“Yes, Jax,” Aurora said softly.

“You belong to me.”