First Clash on the Pitch

I wanted to hurt him the second I saw him step onto the field.

Sweat already stung my eyes as I lined up across from Jude Stone in the pre-season scrimmage. The whistle had not even blown yet and my wolf was clawing at my ribs, screaming for blood.

"You really showed up," I growled across the line of scrimmage, voice low enough that only he could hear. "Thought you might have run back to your mountains after draft night."

Jude's golden eyes locked on mine, slit pupils narrowing. His crimson-streaked hair was tied back but a few strands stuck to his sweat-damp forehead. "And miss the chance to knock the great Jax Cole on his ass? Not a chance."

The ball snapped.

I exploded forward, shoulder lowered, aiming straight for him. Our bodies collided with a crack that echoed across the training pitch. He did not go down easy. Jude twisted mid-air, scales flashing along his arms as he used those damn wings for half a second of glide. His elbow caught me hard in the ribs.

"Too slow, Alpha," he spat, breath hot against my ear as we tangled on the turf.

I grabbed his jersey, yanking him closer. "Keep flying, dragon. I will clip those wings myself."

We scrambled up. The play continued but everything else blurred. Every time he touched the ball I was there, slamming into him with everything I had. Raw power against that impossible grace. He hit back just as hard. One tackle sent us both sliding across the grass, his body pinned under mine for a dangerous second.

"Get off me," Jude hissed, but his hands gripped my arms like he did not really want me to move.

"Make me." My voice came out rough, almost broken. His scent was everywhere. Smoke and ozone and something dangerously sweet. My wolf stirred hard. I hated it. I wanted more.

Jake's voice cut through from the sidelines. "Jax! Focus!"

I rolled off Jude, chest heaving. But the dragon was already up, smirking like he knew exactly what he was doing to me. We went at it for three more brutal plays. Each hit felt more personal. Each growl carried more than just rivalry.

On the fourth down, I saw my opening. Jude went up for an aerial catch, wings flaring. I launched myself and took him down hard. We crashed together, my full weight driving him into the ground. The impact rattled my bones.

For a moment we just lay there, breathing hard, faces inches apart.

"You hit like you hate me," Jude said, voice strained but eyes burning. "But you do not pull away either. What is that about, Cole?"

I pressed my forearm across his chest, keeping him down. "I do hate you. Everything you stand for. Everything your kind took from mine."

"Yeah?" His breath hitched as I shifted against him. "Then why the hell are you hard right now?"

The words hit like a slap. I shoved off him fast, anger and shame twisting together in my gut. "Shut your mouth."

Jude got up slowly, scales shimmering brighter along his neck. He wiped blood from his split lip and laughed, low and rough. "Truth hurts, does it not? Big bad Alpha wants to fuck the enemy."

"Keep talking and I will—" 

"You will what?" He stepped closer, ignoring the coaches yelling at us to reset. "Break me? Claim me? Or are you scared you will like it too much?"

My hands fisted at my sides. The wolf inside wanted to pin him down right there. Claim. Fight. Fuck. All of it at once. I hated how much I wanted it. "You are dangerous."

"You are obsessed," he shot back, voice dropping. "I see the way you watch me. Even when you are trying to take my head off."

Jake suddenly appeared between us, pushing me back. "Enough! Both of you. Save it for the real games or you will both get benched."

Jude held my gaze a second longer, something raw and hungry flashing across his face, then turned and jogged back to his team's huddle. His wings folded tight against his back.

Jake rounded on me, eyes wide with worry. "What the fuck was that, Jax? You were practically grinding on him in front of everyone."

"I was not—" The denial died in my throat. I ran a hand through my sweaty hair, trying to steady my breathing. "He is under my skin, Jake. I cannot think straight when he is near me."

Jake glanced over at the Ember Drakes sideline where Jude was getting water poured over his head. "This is bad. Really bad. You know what happens if an Alpha gets tangled with a dragon. The packs will lose their minds. The old clans are already stirring."

"I know." My voice cracked. "But when he looks at me... God, Jake. I want to kill him. I want to kiss him. I do not know which one is stronger anymore."

Jake gripped my shoulder hard. "You need to shut this down. Now. Before it destroys everything you have built."

The rest of the scrimmage passed in a blur of violence and stolen glances. Every time Jude made a play I felt it in my chest. When he scored on us, that triumphant shout he let out made my stomach flip with equal parts rage and want.

By the time the coaches called it, I was exhausted, bruised, and aching in ways that had nothing to do with the hits.

I avoided the locker room showers. Instead I sat on the empty bench outside, staring at the field where it all happened. The sun had gone down, leaving the pitch bathed in floodlights. My mind would not stop replaying every second of contact. The way his body felt under mine. The heat of his breath. That damn smirk.

Jake found me there an hour later. He sat down heavily beside me, tossing me a bottle of water.

"You smell like him again," he said quietly. No judgment this time. Just worry. "It is getting stronger, Jax."

"I cannot help it." I crushed the plastic bottle in my fist. "Every time he opens his mouth I want to shut him up. Every time he moves I want to pin him down. This is not normal hate, Jake. This feels like..."

"Like what?" Jake pressed when I did not finish.

"Like fate is laughing at me." I laughed bitterly. "The one person who makes me feel alive is the one I should want dead."

Jake stayed quiet for a long moment. "You need to be careful. I saw how he looked at you too. He is not just playing the game out there. He is playing you."

I stood up, restlessness clawing at me. "I know. And the scariest part? I think I am letting him."

Later that night I lay in my bed at the training facility, staring at the ceiling. Sleep would not come. Every time I closed my eyes I saw Jude's face. Those golden eyes. The shimmer of scales when he got angry. The way his body had arched under me during that last tackle.

I could still smell him on my skin even after showering. Smoke and fire and want.

"Damn you," I whispered into the dark room. "What are you doing to me?"

My phone buzzed on the nightstand. I knew who it was without checking.

I opened the message.

**You hit hard today, Alpha. Almost felt like you meant it.**

My heart slammed against my ribs. I typed back with shaking fingers.

**I did mean it.**

The reply came fast.

**Liar. I felt how much you did not want to let go. Come find me tomorrow after practice. We need to settle this.**

He was a threat to everything I was.

And I was already too far gone to walk away.

I threw my phone across the room and buried my face in my hands.

What the hell had I gotten myself into?