Chapter 9
1039 Words
Marcus avoided her for exactly two days.
Not completely.
Just enough to make her notice.
He still joined them for breakfast.
He still asked if they'd slept well.
He still sat across from her at dinner, discussing pack business with Lena as if nothing had changed.
But he never stayed.
The conversations ended too quickly.
His eyes found hers less often.
Whenever they accidentally ended up alone in the same room, he always seemed to remember somewhere else he needed to be.
It was subtle.
No one else would have noticed.
Ivy noticed every single time.
She told herself this was what they'd agreed on.
Careful.
Responsible.
Necessary.
So why did it hurt?
By the second afternoon she caught herself listening for his footsteps in the hallway.
Waiting to hear his voice.
Looking toward every doorway without meaning to.
It was becoming ridiculous.
"You've been acting weird."
Lena was sprawled across Ivy's bed while workers downstairs removed the last of the holiday decorations.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean you've been staring into space for two days."
"I'm tired."
"Mmm."
Lena narrowed her eyes.
"I don't buy it."
Ivy folded another sweater into her suitcase.
"You don't have to."
"I know you."
Lena rolled onto her stomach.
"Something happened."
"Nothing happened."
The lie came far too easily.
Lena frowned.
"It's a guy, isn't it?"
Ivy nearly dropped the sweater.
"What?"
"There's a guy."
"There isn't."
"You're smiling at absolutely nothing every five minutes."
"I do not."
"You absolutely do."
Lena pointed dramatically.
"Who is he?"
"No one."
"Is he cute?"
Ivy looked away before her face could betray her.
"It's nobody."
Lena sighed dramatically.
"You're no fun."
She flopped backward across the bed.
"Fine. Keep your mysterious secret man."
If only it were that simple.
---
A loud shout echoed from downstairs.
Both women looked toward the bedroom door.
Another voice followed.
Then another.
That wasn't normal.
Lena sat up immediately.
"Dad."
She was already halfway to the door.
Ivy followed without thinking.
By the time they reached the front entrance, several pack guards had gathered outside.
One man knelt on the gravel drive.
His face was bruised.
Blood stained the sleeve of his jacket.
Marcus stood a few feet away, every inch the Alpha again.
"What happened?" Lena asked quietly.
One of the guards answered.
"We caught him crossing the northern border."
"He says he got lost."
"He didn't."
Marcus's voice was calm.
Too calm.
"Search the vehicle."
"If there's anything suspicious, hold it until council arrives."
The captured man glared.
"This means nothing."
Marcus didn't even look at him.
"It means you trespassed."
"Escort him out."
The guards obeyed immediately.
Only then did Ivy notice the blood.
Not on the prisoner.
On Marcus.
His shirt sleeve had been torn open near the forearm.
A narrow cut stretched beneath it.
It wasn't deep.
But it was still bleeding.
"You've been hurt."
The words escaped before she thought about them.
Marcus glanced down.
"It's nothing."
She ignored him.
"It needs cleaning."
"It'll heal."
"I know."
She stepped closer anyway.
"But it'll heal cleaner if you stop pretending you're invincible."
For a second...
He almost smiled.
"Lena," Marcus said without taking his eyes off Ivy, "could you check on the patrol?"
"Make sure nobody else crossed."
"Sure."
Lena nodded and headed toward the gates without another thought.
The moment she disappeared from view, Ivy looked back at Marcus.
"Study."
He raised an eyebrow.
"That wasn't a request."
He gave a quiet laugh.
"Apparently not."
---
The study smelled faintly of cedar and old books.
Marcus sat in one of the leather chairs while Ivy opened the first-aid kit she'd found in the kitchen.
"You really don't have to do this."
"I know."
She soaked a piece of gauze with antiseptic.
"But I'm doing it anyway."
He watched her quietly.
She gently cleaned the cut.
He didn't even flinch.
"You've had worse."
"A few."
"A few?"
He smiled.
"You don't become Alpha without collecting scars."
She glanced up.
"I don't like that."
"No?"
"No."
She dabbed at the last trace of blood.
"I'd rather you stopped getting injured."
"I'll see what I can do."
"You won't."
"Probably not."
Silence settled between them again.
Comfortable.
Dangerous.
She wrapped the clean bandage around his arm.
Only when she finished did she realize how close they were sitting.
She stepped back.
Marcus caught her wrist gently.
Not enough to stop her.
Just enough to keep her there.
"Ivy."
She looked at him.
"I owe you an apology."
"For what?"
"The last two days."
She swallowed.
"I noticed."
"I know."
His eyes held hers.
"I was trying."
"To avoid me."
"To protect us."
She smiled sadly.
"How's that working out?"
A quiet laugh escaped him.
"Poorly."
"I missed you."
The words came out before she could stop them.
She froze.
Marcus didn't.
"I missed you too."
The honesty in his voice stole the air from her lungs.
"I kept telling myself distance would make this easier."
"It didn't."
"No."
He shook his head.
"It only made me think about you more."
She laughed softly.
"I thought I was the only one."
"Not even close."
For a moment neither of them spoke.
The room felt impossibly small.
"So what do we do?" she whispered.
Marcus looked down at their hands.
Still touching.
"I don't know."
"You're the Alpha."
"I'm discovering that's not particularly useful here."
She smiled.
"I thought Alphas always had answers."
"Apparently not where you're concerned."
She laughed.
A real laugh this time.
The sound seemed to surprise him.
It made him smile too.
"I don't know how to stay away from you."
His confession was almost painfully quiet.
She looked at him for a long moment before answering.
"Then maybe we stop pretending that's the solution."
His eyes searched hers.
"You think so?"
"I think..."
She took a slow breath.
"...distance isn't fixing anything."
"It isn't."
"It's just making us miserable."
Marcus closed his eyes briefly before opening them again.
"I think you're right."
She squeezed his hand once before letting go.
"Then we'll figure out another way."
"A better way."
He nodded.
"Together."
It was the first time either of them had said the word aloud.
Neither of them took it back.
- Writer
