The Alpha I shouldn't crave
We sat like that for long minutes, the forest quiet around us except for wind through branches and our synchronized breathing, and I felt something in my chest crack open, some defense I'd been maintaining since the moment Damon rejected me.
Then reality crashed back in with the memory of Damon's suspicious eyes, Vanessa's cruel smile, the footage Marcus still held over my head.
I shoved him away, stumbling to my feet, anger and shame burning through the temporary peace. "We can't do this again."
Marcus stood slowly, his expression carefully neutral. "Do what?"
"You know exactly what I'm talking about," I snapped, wrapping my arms around myself like I could hold the pieces together through p