Taming the Wicked Rogue

Try it on me

They say unexpected experiences, more often than not, lead to discovering something new about one’s self. I’d like to believe that was the case. Except this one discovery had earned me confused and wide-eyed looks from the crowd. A human just broke the hand of an adult shifter. I could imagine the shock coursing through their system.

“You can get off me now,” I murmured to Hammer. The grumpy man didn’t listen and made no move to extricate himself. A hushed silence cloaked the entire place. Aside from the gasps of the pain of the shifter on the ground, no one made a sound.

“What are you?” Glenn’s question stunned me. I stared back at his perplexed light blue eyes. Reflected on those orbs were unusually bright eyes with fading specks of multi-colored lights.

Was that me?

My heart beat slammed on my chest.

“I’m pregnant, and a werewolf is crushing me.” I hissed, feeling my back protest against Hammer’s weight.

The heaviness was lifted in an instant. I breathed a relieved sigh and glanced down at the man whose hand was broken. He scampered away, making me want to laugh, except almost everyone had solemn expressions, which would probably make me look crazy.

“Have you ever heard of an adrenaline rush?” I asked, albeit not even believing the lousy attempt at a cover-up. The truth was, I had no idea what had happened. It might have been the force, but dread was absent in its wake and instead made me feel alive.

“Are you sure it’s you?” Olah asked cautiously.

I couldn’t blame her for suspecting the force had overtaken me again. But my mind was clear, and I hadn’t felt this energized.

“I’m me,” I assured her and strode over the counter. She stared at me dead in the eye and sighed. “You’re just full of surprises.”

A customer stood up and made a beeline towards the exit. Still, Jiro had already stepped in front of it with a frosty expression.

“Nobody leaves.”

“What the f**k?” The man was shocked and then enraged. “Who are you to hold us in here?”

Instead of answering, Jiro shoved the man back. The diner’s door opened, bringing with it the sharp tinkling of bells. Rhys stepped inside. Anger seeped from his whole body. Golden specks danced in his eyes that immediately sought mine. Then, without another word, he strode deeper into the diner, hauled the man with broken bones by the collar of his shirt, and drove a fist to the man’s abdomen. No one made a sound. Rhys threw the man to the ground and bent over to grab his other hand. The sound of bones breaking echoed in the quiet establishment.

“Don’t kill him,” I reminded him calmly that several people whipped their heads to me.

Rhys rose up, his eyes sharply roving the whole room.

“Nobody leave this diner.” He announced, voice booming despite it not being loud.

A courageous one with a pallid face dared ask, “Why should we listen to you? You’re not Alpha yet!”

Rhys growled low in his throat.

“I will be soon.” His declaration made the man tremble.

I knew it was out of place, but he looked dangerous and hot when angry. He strode over to me and looked deep into my eyes. He didn’t ask if it was me, and I had a feeling he already knew it.

“Call out everyone.” He turned to Olah and then wheeled me toward the second floor.

“You can hold them but not me,” Glenn called out.

Rhys didn’t break his stride. “Wait on the court. We’ll settle this today.”

I had a sinking feeling what I showed everyone today wasn’t meant to be seen by everyone. “Am I in trouble?” I asked as soon as we entered the bedroom. His eyes were back to their usual silver color.

“The Alpha Selection would have happened sooner or later.” His explanation was once again vague.

I decided I was having none of it today. “Stop pushing me out every time! I had the right to know. Are I and the baby still safe or not?”

He was silent for a long while. “I would never let anything happen to you or the baby. What you just did defies the natural law. Nobody likes the unknown.”

He approached me slowly. “Try it on me.”

I gawked at him. “Are you crazy?”

The world spun, and I was pinned to the bed before I knew it. His hands gripped my wrists over my head, his lower body pressed to mine.

“What are you-“

“Try to get me off of you.”

I squirmed under him, but his grip was iron-clad. He didn't even look like he was putting much effort into pinning me down, which infuriated me. One day, I'll have him on his back. That was a crazy thought and mired in delusions. I was human. At least I thought I was.

“I can’t! This is so stupid! What if it’s the force in me?” A part of me refuted my words. I always know if it was the force within me. It had a distinctive feel. Cold will slither under my skin like a snake coiling, entrapping me within. Then the weightlessness, the suffocation will creep from my toes to my head until I lose all feeling. But this one was entirely different. The power was gentle and warm.

“You told Olah it wasn’t,” he countered. And I didn't know how he knew that.

“I could’ve been lying! Maybe it made me do it!”

He leaned closer until the tip of his nose touched mine, and his hot breath fanned my face. My brain short circuited, thoughts trembling to a stop. I could only focus on his red lips and how close they were. If I tipped my chin a little bit, our lips would touch. Alarm bells rang in my head as I saw his silver eyes darken as if he could read my mind.

“Get off.” My voice had turned hoarse.

Being this close to him in this posture is bad. Succumbing to the attraction would make everything worse. I felt a surge of power from my belly, bringing in warmth and strength. One moment Rhys was pinning me down. The next, I managed to push him away, just barely enough to slip out of his hold. I tumbled down from the bed and rolled to my feet in one swoop.

Did I just do that?

The power receded, leaving me feeling drained as if I had run a marathon. “I did it?” I asked him, dumbfounded, sliding to the ground.

He scooped me into his arms, a ghost of a smile curling over the corners of his lips.

“You did well.”

“I don’t understand it.” I held on to my drifting consciousness. “Am I still human?” I waited for his answer until my back touched the bed, but he didn’t reply. Something warm and soft touched my lips. Hard as I tried to c***k my eyes open but my lids felt like they weighed a ton. I had become boneless, I couldn’t even lift a finger.

His low voice drifted in my ears. “Sleep for a bit.” I wanted to tell him it was no time for rest, not when a diner full of people and the Alpha Selection was to happen. Yet, everything in me heeded his words.

I tumbled headfirst into the darkness.