The Alpha's pretend mate

chapter 7

KHYRIX

"Mate," my wolf—Torin—growled as I stepped through the crowd, the familiar scent hitting my nose. Wild jasmine, the scent of the girl that serves me with a scowl on her face every morning.

Torin pounded against my chest, urging me to be faster in my search for her. I moved through the crowd without slowing, wolves parting for me.

I spotted her in the distance, right beside Natalia.

"We warned her to stay away," my wolf growled.

She stood there, completely unaware.

Her wolf was supposed to be dormant, not nonexistent.

And yet the bond thrummed against my chest angrily while she stood there, her usual scowl on, as though I were nothing more than her Alpha.

Nothing more.

I stopped just in front of her, eyes wide as she stared at me. I could feel her pulse jump.

Good. She felt it too.

I leaned down, close enough that my mouth brushed her ear. “Mate.”

Her breath hitched.

The reaction was immediate: her fingers twitched, her pupils dilated, and the air between us thickened.

Mine.

The urge to pull her against me, to mark her, to erase every other scent from her skin slammed into me with violent clarity.

I stepped back, trying my best to control myself. She stared up at me, confusion flooding her expression. She didn’t understand.

She didn’t know.

Interesting.

I took her hand in mine. It was soft, my wolf purred in satisfaction. “She belongs with us.”

Her fingers trembled in mine as I guided her away from the crowd. She walked beside me stiffly, eyes lowered like always, that careful, guarded posture she always wore like armor.

But her reaction always betrayed her.

Even now, her pulse jumped as I wrapped my hand around hers.

When we reached my room, her trembling became more apparent. I chuckled, unable to control it, the girl that had boldly asked me to train her was shaking at the thought of living in the same room with me.

“What?” she questioned, her innocent eyes looking around to find the source of the amusement.

“It’s nothing,” I replied, I pushed open the door and urged her to enter.

“Um,” she whispered, barely audible. I walked into the room, a groan escaping me immediately.

“I can help you clean up,” Avelora offered as she looked around and took in the condition of the room.

My jaw tightened.

The lace garment draped over the armrest, Torin bristled, a low snarl vibrating in my chest. “Remove it.” I crossed the room without speaking, picked up the fabric with two fingers, and tossed it into the far corner.

“The one who left it will clean it,” I said flatly.

Avelora’s eyes flicked to me, slowly assessing me. That was new.

Before silence settled between us, her scent grew stronger, filling the room and slowly pushing out the remnants of another.

“Close the door,” I said.

She hesitated for a second before doing so. The click of the lock echoed louder than it should have. Her breathing changed. Her body was aware of everything, and so was mine.

I removed my jacket slowly, placing it over the desk. Her gaze followed, lingering on my body before she caught herself and quickly looked away.

My wolf approved. “She reacts,”

I stepped closer, closing the space between us.

I studied her face, the faint mark still visible along her cheek from earlier. My chest tightened involuntarily.

My wolf growled low. “Harm her again and we end him.”

I reached out slowly, my finger hovering over her jaw. She froze.

“I’ll get something,” i said to break the tension that wrapped around us.

“Your stuff will be brought here by evening,” I continued as I rummaged through the cabinet, looking for something to put on her wound.

“Am I allowed out of the room?” she asked as I approached her with the first-aid box. She was already sitting on my bed, focused on the picture on the wall.

“Is this place some kind of prison?” I opened the lid to the ointment. She turned slightly to face me without asking many questions.

“I just thought you wouldn’t want me wandering around.” She winced as I applied the gel. Heat shot through my hand straight to my spine at the contact. I withdrew immediately.

Her eyes widened as she slowly shifted away from me.

“I’m sorry,” she muttered. “I can apply it myself.” She sounded skeptical.

“What about the training? When do we start?” I wanted to clear the misunderstanding, but I decided against it.

“Tomorrow.” Her eyebrow knitted.

“That fast?” It was as if she was looking for an excuse to run away from the world, and I was giving her all the wrong answers.

“Yeah, I need my mate strong, as fast as I can.” No. I just wanted to make sure we were together as much as possible.

“Okay,” she breathed before looking around again. “Where do I sleep?”

I tapped the bed. “Right here.”

She grimaced, shaking her head no. “Unless, of course, you want to take the floor.” Torin was against that. I was too.

“A gentleman offers the lady the bed,” she muttered under her breath as she went to sit on the floor beside my bed.

“There might be insects or rodents, bare with it for this night. I’ll call pest control tomorrow.”

Her pretty eyes widened in shock. She jumped up and sat on the other side of the bed. “Keep your hands to yourself,” she finally said.

“Girls want my hand on them, I don’t chase them with it.” She stared at me, eyes wide with disbelief.

“Not me. I’m not like…” I cut her off.

“…what? other girls?” I moved close to her, my hand on either side of her.

“One week, Avelora. One week, and you’ll be begging for my touch.”

She stiffened, eyes sparkling and wide.

“Is that a promise?” she asked with a bravery I definitely didn’t know she possessed, extending her pinky.

“You won’t win this, Alpha Khyrix,” She promised with a smile.

My urge was barely contained as I took her finger.