Don’t come back here, Lily

Chapter 5

Andre’s POV

Flickering Flames

I would be lying if I said I’d imagined this moment before. It was strange, and I hated strange. It made me feel like I was losing control. But since I saw her at the race with the guys a year ago, I knew that control had eluded me.

I’d felt it in every inch of my bones.

And she was here now.

From the expression on her face, I could tell that she knew. Lily knew and was going to fight every bit of it, because that was what she did best.

Fight.

“No.”

No one else could hear her, but I did. I watched her lips move, her head shake, the way she took a slow step backwards. And I didn’t bother helping her, because I had the exact same reaction.

My Beta got off the pavement we were sprawled across, sauntering across. “Lost, pretty thing?”

She was appalled. Goosebumps scattered on her arms, and she wrapped them across her frame. "Get lost." Her voice was defiant, despite the various feelings I was certain were coursing through her.

Feelings that coursed through me as well.

And despite the situation, my upper lip curled into a smirk. My girl was feisty. Damn. I couldn’t believe I was already thinking of her as my girl when there was a whole enmity between my pack and hers.

My beta hollered as he got closer to her. Unconsciously, I scooted to the edge of the pavement, watching. No one knew yet. It was just between Lily and me. And I knew that it would be dangerous to interfere.

Yet, I couldn’t help it.

“I’m going to ask again, Pretty,” my beta drawled, angling his head. “And be sure to answer me correctly this time because your daddy isn’t here to rescue you. And even if he was, Andre would beat him to a pulp. It's neutral grounds.”

“Is this all you are made of?”

My beta paused, his brows arching.

“I mean,” my mate folded her arms across her chest, her eyes flashing defiantly. “All you’ve managed to prove since I got here is that you can’t do anything on your own. You can’t even touch me without alluding to your Alpha. Do you have any strength of your own, or does the entirety of the bloodfangs depend on their Alpha?”

She was speaking like I wasn’t right there. I didn’t know whether to be cross or humoured. I chose the former.

“Let her be, Jake.”

He turned to look at me, but the expression on my face killed any argument that might have fallen off his lips. Jake gave Lily one last look.

“You should be grateful Alpha Andre asked us not to touch you last night,” he said, his voice dropping into a whisper. “I would have loved to rip you into shreds.”

That did it.

“Jake!” I snapped, getting on my feet. “Let her be!”

“Sorry, Alpha,” he murmured, moving away from her.

“And I don’t want to see you in a two-mile radius from her. Lily is off-limits until I say otherwise.”

I knew what it sounded like; what it felt like. The eyes of the bikers stared back at me, confusion etched on their faces. But they knew better than to question me.

“And you,” I muttered, reaching her. “Follow me.”

I wasn’t sure if she would, but I walked out either way, ensuring to take the hidden paths behind the Academy. It was one thing to tell my friends to back off when it came to Lily, but it was another letting the whole pack see me together with her.

Not after all that happened yesterday and the pact that existed between us.

I jumped up the landing that didn’t have stairs to get to, walking further in until I reached my favorite spot in the school. I thought I would hear her struggle to get up behind me, but she lifted herself easily, not moving an inch further.

“What did you do to Phil?”

I turned around slowly. “I thought I asked you to f**k off, Lily.”

“You asked me to leave your pack. This is neutral grounds, and I can be wherever the hell I want to be.”

The ghost of a smile appeared on my face. “You should watch your tongue around me, little biker. Men have died for far less.”

“You won’t hurt me. My father won’t let you.”

Lily was right about one thing. I wouldn’t hurt her, but I didn’t need her to know that. And it f*****g didn’t have anything to do with her lame ass father, who was screwing her best friend, Irina.

But Lily was too focused on Phil to pay attention to anything else. The mere thought left a bile taste on my tongue.

“You mistake me for someone who actually dotes on you, Lily,” I muttered without any bit of emotion, leaning on the wall. “I’m not a member of your pack. I’m not spineless.”

“Making everyone scared of you is what makes you spineless,” she shot back, and a muscle ticked in my jaw. “Look at what you’ve done to Phil. He broke up with me… If that can be called a break-up… But I’m certain you had everything to do with it. What the hell did you tell him?”

“Nothing I shouldn’t have.”

“Urghh!” She groaned in anger and frustration. In the entire region, only Lily had ever spoken to me in this manner. And surprisingly, I realized I wasn’t overwhelmed with the need to put her in her place.

In fact, I enjoyed the way she concentrated so hard on me each time I riled her up, just like last night.

Fucking ethereal.

Fucking wrong.

“Fix this, Andre. Tell Phil that it was a big mix-up. That you didn’t mean to take him. Tell him that he should get back together with me.”

I stood straight, easily towering over her. She saw it. She knew that. But my mate had so much defiance ingrained in her that she stood her ground.

And that s**t almost made me pull her roughly into my arms. I wondered if, close up, she smelled like the wafts of honey that teased my nostrils right now.

“What gives you the impression that I actually took, Phil?” I muttered, leaning into her side, my lips grazing her left ear. “He could have walked into the bloodfang territory by himself.”

“Phil wouldn’t have done that!” Lily bit back.

“Wouldn’t he?”

Her lips parted slightly and then slapped shut.

I took the chance. “I hope you loved my gift. Happy birthday, Lily.”

It was him!