Sentenced to The Ruthless Alpha

Chapter 18: Scent, Fangs, and Lies

Thora POV

Her nerves spiked. Her heart hammered in her chest. Thora didn’t know what came over her. She hadn’t meant to look but somehow, she had shamelessly gawked at a naked man. Heat blossomed on her cheeks first, before the embarrassment overwhelmed her.

“I’m so sorry. I…I d-didn’t mean to stare.” She heard him shuffling behind her and hoped he was putting on some clothes. “I was just looking for some Lunara moss. Matilda sent me. She said to follow the sounds, or was it the smells?” She bit down on her lips. “I can’t remember which one.”

When he ranged himself in front of her, water was still sluicing down his hairy chest. His hair was still wet and wild. Flushed, Thora dipped her eyes again. To her relief, the lower part of his body was hidden behind snug pants. But the wet outline between his legs didn’t help the dirty images already crystalized in her brain. She tore her eyes off his groin and lowered them to her feet.

“Sundown is never a good time for a human to be in this forest. You could run into wolves going for a run or a hunt. Even worse, you could stumble on a naked man bathing in the river.”

She swallowed a lump in her throat. “Sorry about that.”

He tipped his head at her basket. She watched his feet retreat to the river, but she was too afraid to turn around still, in case he took off his pants again. A minute later, he returned and placed a fresh pick of what she recognized as Lunara moss right inside her basket. Bending, he grabbed her flashlight and passed it to her too.

“Now, head back. Be quick on your feet. Everyone can smell you.”

Thora gasped, sniffing herself. She had been working all day but surely, she didn’t smell that bad. Regan’s arched his brow.

“That’s not what I meant.” His eyes dilated. “Oh, there’s so much you don’t know about us rabid dogs.”

She fixed him with a bold gaze now. He had been throwing that line quite a lot lately and though he was right, she dared to choose that moment to say what she had in mind.

“You’re right. There’s so much I don’t know about your kind or your laws. I don’t even know what law was responsible for forcing me on the alpha. Can you really blame me for thinking of your kind as rabid dogs?” Her heart pounded when annoyance flitted across his eyes.

“All I am trying to say is that if you’re going to keep me here for a year and expect me to adapt and behave, don’t you think it will help if I am brought up to speed with your laws and your practices?”

Regan’s rigid stance shifted. “Human, what are you asking me?”

“I want you to help me learn your ways, your laws. I know I can be useful around here.”

“You’re useful enough.” He turned and she followed closely behind, hugging her basket.

“I don’t even know how to address people in here and hierarchy seems to be a big thing. I don’t know which areas of the mansion I am forbidden from going into and why. I don’t know how to comport myself. I don’t know what these plants are or how to recognize and pick them efficiently for Matilda. I don’t know why wolves detest humans or feel threatened by us…”

She halted and inched back when he paused abruptly. His eyes glistened with ego.

“We are not threatened by humans. It’s the other way around actually.”

“Then, what is it?”

He resumed walking. “Our very natures clash at the very root. By design, humans are not built to comprehend what we are. You are simple beings while we are complex in a way you could never fathom. Humans have a habit of fearing and destroying what they don’t understand. That’s why we choose to hide our true nature.”

Thora swallowed. “This is what I am talking about. I have a million questions and with more understanding, maybe we can get to a midpoint of seeing each other for what we are.”

She paused when he wouldn’t stop walking. “Teach me about werewolves. Convince me that you’re not rabid dogs but superior creatures. In return, I’d show you that humans aren’t worthless or embarrassing.”

That stopped him. He craned his neck at her. “I go to the city from time to time. I have dealings with human friends and business associates there. What could you possibly have to teach me that I can’t just learn from studying them?”

Thora balanced the basket on her hip. “Well, for starters, those associates don’t know werewolves exist. They’ve never been thrust into a world that contradicts everything they ever believed was possible. They haven’t had to go through each day in fear, wondering which of their new housemates will s***h their throat in their sleep and get applauded for it.” She hated that her voice quivered with the last statement. Regan clenched his jaw.

She expelled a deep breath. “My perception of life has broadened due to my harrowing experience in here. I can give you, raw, unfiltered opinions about your world. Is that really something a curious person like yourself would pass up?”

Regan leaned on the bark of a tree. “For all I know, you’re just trying to garner information on us to facilitate your escape.”

“I already tried that once, it didn’t work. Now, I just have to trust the alpha to keep his promise to let me go after our divorce.”

A small smile worked its way into the corner of Regan’s mouth. He walked up to her, and leaned forward.

“Well then, here’s your first lesson on wolves, human. Never lie to one. We have super hearing and just now, I noticed the spike in your heart rate when you lied about not wanting to attempt an escape again.”

Her cheeks flushed. He turned and continued walking. Grabbing the basket tighter, she called after him.

“Wait, is that a yes?”

***

As much as she was glad to have come to some kind of understanding with Regan, Thora couldn’t stop thinking about all he had told her.

The fact that he had smelt her from a mile away. The fact that everyone could smell her but it wasn’t like the smell she thought. Did that mean she had a smell unique to her? Was that the same with every other wolf or just humans?

She tossed and turned all night, eager to learn more. Did she emit this smell everywhere she entered? So, if she had taken Dax’s phone, he could easily have traced her by scent?

Then she thought about his super hearing. It astounded her, and yet, with everything she had seen in the past few weeks, she shouldn’t still be surprised by the wolves anymore. Yet, she was certain that her jaws would drop with the information Regan was going to share.

“Scent.” She murmured into the dark. “Everyone can smell me. They probably can smell me before I enter a room and after I leave.” She raked a hand in her hair. “They have super hearing. They can even hear my heartbeat.”

She continued to whisper the small crumbs of knowledge Regan had shared with her earlier, because she didn’t have anything to write with. She had to rely on her brain never to forget. She repeated it a couple of times till she dozed off.

Later that night, she dreamt of the river. This time, she was standing in it, the cool water lapping at her bare thighs as moonlight spilled across the surface.

Regan stood behind her, his skin glistening with droplets, his hands rising to cup her breasts with gentle reverence. She leaned into his touch, a soft sigh escaping her lips as she pressed back against him. Her bare ass brushed over the hard length of his c**k in slow, teasing circles. His mouth found her neck, pressing warm, lingering kisses along the curve of her throat, each one sending a shiver through her.

When she turned her head to find his lips, Roman’s dark eyes met hers instead, intense and unreadable as usual. His mouth claimed hers in a kiss that stole her breath. The alpha’s presence wrapped around her like heat, his hands steady on her hips as the water swirled between them.

He left a trail of kisses to her neck, pulled back enough for her to see sharp fangs spear out of his gum. She screamed in pain when he buried those fangs between her neck.

Thora jerked awake in the dark, her heart pounding against her ribs. Trembling, she hugged her knees and bit down on her lower lip to suppress the urge to cry. Knowing the wolves could probably hear her racing heart, she tried to even her breath, and to blank her mind of the horrific dream.

Then she felt it.

A dull, insistent throb at the curve of her neck, right where Roman's fangs had sunk into her in the dream. Her fingers flew to the spot before she could stop herself. But all she found was smooth skin. There was no wound, blood or scar.

But the ache was real, pulsing in time with her own heartbeat. Worse still, beneath her palm she swore she could feel something faint and warm humming just under the surface, like a second pulse that wasn't hers.

A floorboard creaked outside her door. Thora went still; her breath caught in her throat. The wolves didn't creak floorboards, never at that hour.

Someone or something, was standing just outside her room!