Chapter 2

Jaxson's POV

The noise inside the grand hall had become insufferable. The heavy clinking of glass, the booming laughter of pack elders, and the sweet, cloying perfume of unbonded females looking for a quick rise in status were all suffocating me.

I stood near the elevated hearth, a silver goblet of honeyed mead held loosely in my hand, but I wasn't tasting a single drop of it.

My mind, my body, and my wolf were all anchored to the kitchen doors on the far side of the room.

She’s still in there, my wolf growled, pacing back and forth behind my ribs, restless and sharp-edged. Go to her. Pull her out.

"Jaxson, my boy," Elder Thomas boomed, stepping into my peripheral vision and heavy-handedly patting my shoulder. "A magnificent feast. Your father built a strong foundation, but under your reign, Blood moon will double its territory.

We just need to secure that northern alliance with Alpha Vane. His daughter Valerie seemed quite eager to get your attention tonight."

"Valerie is an idiot," I said flatly, not bothering to sweeten my words. I took a slow drink from my goblet, my golden eyes scanning the crowd once more. "And she lacks composure."

Elder Thomas let out a nervous laugh, adjusting his wool cloak. "Well, she’s high-born, Jaxson. Omegas and servants bring us nothing, but an Alpha female from the North brings two hundred trained guards to our border."

I didn't answer him. The mention of Omegas made the muscle in my jaw tick until my teeth back-ached. I couldn't get the sight of Sienna out of my head.

Five minutes ago, she had been on her knees on the cold, wet floorboards, her small hands trembling, her soft brown hair falling over her collarbone while Valerie shrieked at her like a wild bird.

Seeing Sienna down there, vulnerable and bowing her head to a lesser female, had set my blood on fire. A strange, dangerous heat had rushed through my veins, an instinct so primitive and violent that I had almost snapped Valerie’s neck where she stood just for speaking to Sienna in that tone.

And then I had looked directly into Sienna’s eyes.

She had looked up at me through her eyelashes, her pale lips parted, her pulse hammering wildly against the delicate skin of her throat.

In that split second, her scent—fresh mint, rain, and sweet honey—had hit my lungs with the force of a battering ram. It had completely overridden the smell of roasted meat and heavy ale in the hall. My wolf had slammed against my consciousness, howling so loudly it had made my head ache.

I set my goblet down on a high stone ledge with enough force to crack the thick glass bottom.

"Excuse me, Elder," I grunted, cutting off Thomas mid-sentence.

"Jaxson? The toast is in ten minutes!" he called after me, but I was already moving.

I pushed through the crowd, my heavy boots thumping against the timber floor. My presence forced warriors and elders alike to step back, clearing a wide path for me without me having to say a single word. I didn't head toward the grand staircase, nor did I head toward the main entrance where my father was speaking with the border captains.

I headed straight for the service corridor behind the kitchen.

The air grew cooler as I stepped out of the warm, noisy hall and into the quiet stone hallway that led toward the servants' quarters and the rear exit. The loud chatter faded into a distant, dull roar behind the thick oak doors. Torchlight flickered along the stone walls, casting long, dancing shadows across the narrow hallway.

And there, halfway down the corridor, was Sienna.

She was walking away from the kitchen, carrying a small bundle of folded white linens against her chest. Her tunic was still damp near the hem from the spilled wine, her small shoulders curved inward as if she were trying to make herself as invisible as possible. She moved silently, her light steps making no sound against the cold flags.

The second my boots hit the stone floor, she stopped.

Her shoulders locked up tight. I watched the back of her neck flush a deep, delicate rose color before she even turned around. She knew it was me. Her body recognized mine before her eyes ever did.

"Sienna," I growled, the sound coming out far deeper and rougher than I intended.

She turned around slowly, clutching the stack of linens against her ribs like a wooden shield. She kept her chin down, her wide brown eyes staring at the top button of my dark vest.

"Alpha Jaxson," she said softly, her breath catching in her throat. "I... I washed the floor as you asked. I am taking these towels down to the laundry washrooms."

I didn't answer her. I kept walking toward her, closing the distance between us with long, deliberate strides. With every step I took, her scent grew stronger, flooding the narrow corridor until I felt like I was drowning in it. It wasn't just sweet; it was magnetic.

It pulled at the dark ancestral tattoos wrapped around my wrists, making my skin prickle with a strange, static energy that made my core ache.

Sienna took a small step back, her heel hitting the base of a heavy stone archway that led into a recessed window alcove.

"Alpha?" she whispered, her voice trembling slightly. "Did... did Lady Valerie complain again? I can apologize to her directly if—"

Before she could finish the sentence, I reached out.

My fingers wrapped around the soft fabric of her sleeve, and with a single, smooth pull, I dragged her out of the open corridor and back into the dark, shadowed depths of the alcove.

Sienna let out a soft, sharp gasp as her back hit the cool stone wall inside the alcove. The stack of clean linens slipped from her hands, hitting the floor with a quiet thud, but neither of us looked down.

I followed her right into the alcove, stepping so close that my chest slammed against her soft form, trapping her completely between the stone wall and my broad frame. I planted one hand against the rough wall right beside her ear, leaning over her until my shadow consumed her entirely.

"Jaxson," she breathed, using my name instead of my title for the very first time tonight.

The sound of my name on her soft lips hit me like a physical blow. A heavy, white-hot spark erupted deep in my chest, shooting down my limbs like lightning. My wolf roared in absolute triumph, surging to the front of my mind and forcing my eyes to flare a bright, molten gold in the dim light of the alcove.

Mine, my wolf screamed, the word echoing in my skull with enough authority to shatter mountains. She is ours.

The full force of the mate bond slammed into us both at the exact same time.

It wasn't a gentle realization; it was a violent collision. A wave of raw, electric heat surged between our pressed bodies, making Sienna’s back arch off the wall. She let out a low, needy whimpering sound, her hands flying up instinctively to press against my broad chest.

Her small fingers dug through the thin silk of my shirt, her palms burning white-hot against my skin as if her touch were branding me.

"You feel it," I snarled low, my voice thick with an overwhelming, possessive hunger that I had kept locked away for years. "Tell me you feel that, Sienna."

"I... I can't," she gasped, her head falling back against the stone pillar, exposing the long, delicate curve of her neck to me. Her chest was heaving, her small breasts pressing firmly against my chest with every frantic breath she took. "Jaxson, please... you're the Alpha-elect. I'm just an Omega. This is... this isn't allowed."

"To hell with what's allowed," I growled against her skin.

I couldn't control myself anymore. The years of watching her from across the training yard, the years of seeing her serve meals to men who didn't deserve to look at her, the years of suppressing this dark, violent pull—it all shattered into dust in a single second.

I brought my free hand up, my large, calloused fingers wrapping firmly around the back of her neck. My thumb rested right against her jawline, holding her head steady as I lowered my face into the sweet, warm curve where her neck met her shoulder.

I buried my nose against her skin and took a deep, harsh breath.

Sienna shuddered violently, a long, quiet moan spilling from her lips as my warm breath brushed across her sensitive skin. Her hands shifted from my chest to my shoulders, her fingers gripping my thick leather vest tightly, holding onto me as if her knees were about to give out completely.

And they were—I could feel the way her legs were trembling, the way her entire body was melting into mine, completely helpless against the sheer power of the bond pulling us together.

"Your scent is driving me insane," I muttered, dragging my lips slowly along the delicate line of her pulse point. I could feel her heart hammering against her skin, fast and wild, beating at the exact same frantic rhythm as my own. "It's been driving me mad for months. Every time you walked into the hall... every time you looked at me."

"Jaxson... please," she whimpered, though she didn't pull away. Instead, her fingers dug deeper into my shoulders, her hips tilting up slightly, her instinct searching for the hard warmth of my body. "We can't... the pack... your father..."

"Let them talk," I hissed, my lips tracing a path up to the sharp curve of her jaw line. I pressed my hips firmly against hers, locking her lower body against mine so she could feel exactly what she was doing to me. She was so small, so soft, so completely dwarfed by my frame, yet she held absolute power over me in this shadow. "My father doesn't own this pack anymore. I do. And my wolf wants you."

Sienna let out a soft, broken breath, her dark brown eyes fluttering open to meet mine in the dim light. They were wide, shiny with unshed tears, and swimming with a mixture of raw, undeniable desire and deep, terrifying fear.

"You're going to break me," she whispered, her voice breaking on the last word. "You're an Alpha, Jaxson. You'll take what you want tonight because the bond is loud, but tomorrow... tomorrow you'll look at me and remember that I'm nobody."

Her words hit me like a splash of ice water, but my wolf refused to back down. The mate bond between us was humming so loudly it sounded like thunder in my ears, making the air in the narrow alcove feel thick and heavy, charging the space between our lips with pure static energy.

"Look at me," I commanded softly, my thumb pressing gently against her chin, tilting her face up until she had no choice but to stare directly into my glowing gold eyes. "Look at me, Sienna. I am not going to break you."

I slid my hand down from her neck, my large palm settling heavily on the curve of her hip, my fingers gripping the soft leather of her belt. I pulled her half an inch closer, eliminating every tiny sliver of air left between us until I could feel every shudder that ran through her body.

"I've been watching you for five years," I confessed, the dark truth spilling out of me before I could stop it. "You think you're invisible in this pack? You think I don't see you standing in the shadows while everyone else yells? I see every single breath you take, Sienna."

Her lips parted in shock, a soft gasp leaving her mouth, her warm breath brushing directly across my lips.

That was all it took. The last thin thread of my control snapped cleanly in half.

I lowered my head and brought my mouth down onto hers.