Chapter Four: Where He Touches, Where She Disappears
744 Words
The bond always sang loudest at night.
Faye lay on her back, staring at the ceiling as moonlight spilled through the tall windows of the Alpha’s bedroom. Gabriel’s arm rested heavy across her waist, possessive even in sleep. His presence filled the room—Alpha power steady, immovable, like stone.
She breathed carefully, shallow enough not to wake him.
Do you feel that? her wolf murmured.
Faye stiffened.
The voice had been faint before—instinct, emotion, flashes of unease. This was different. Clearer. Intentional.
Feel what? she asked silently, afraid even her thoughts might carry.
The way he takes up all the space, her wolf replied. There is no room left for us.
Faye swallowed.
This is what mates do, she answered, repeating the words she’d been given like a shield. We’re safe.
Her wolf huffed softly, a sound of deep skepticism. Safe things don’t feel like cages.
Gabriel shifted, fingers flexing against her stomach. The bond warmed instantly, a reflexive response that made her breath catch despite herself.
“Turn over,” he murmured, not quite awake.
It wasn’t a request.
She obeyed.
He touched her with practiced certainty, hands confident, mouth demanding. There was no cruelty in it—no pain, no force.
That almost made it worse.
He kissed her like he owned the right. Like her body existed for this purpose, and this purpose alone. The bond flared in response, flooding her senses with heat and submission until her thoughts blurred.
This isn’t choice, her wolf whispered urgently. This is command.
Faye squeezed her eyes shut.
She tried to lean into the feeling, to let the bond carry her the way it used to. She tried to want what he wanted.
But somewhere between his grip tightening on her wrists and his voice murmuring approval at her stillness, something inside her slipped away.
She went quiet.
Still.
He finished satisfied, pressing a kiss to her shoulder—careful of the mark—and pulling her against his chest.
“Good,” he murmured. “You’re learning.”
Her wolf growled low and furious.
The next morning, Faye woke with resolve heavy in her chest.
It was small. Fragile.
But it was there.
When Gabriel left for patrol meetings, she stood in the center of the house, the silence ringing in her ears. For once, the bond did not pull at her, distracted by distance and duty.
Now, her wolf urged.
Now what? Faye asked.
We breathe.
She stepped outside.
The air felt sharper beyond the threshold, like she’d crossed an invisible line. The bond tugged faintly—questioning, not commanding.
She kept walking.
Past the gardens. Past the patrol paths. Toward the edge of the trees.
Her heart hammered with each step, fear and exhilaration tangling together.
He didn’t say you couldn’t, her wolf said quietly.
Faye stopped just short of the tree line, chest heaving.
She hadn’t disobeyed.
She had… interpreted.
The realization sent a shiver through her.
For the first time in weeks, she smiled.
It didn’t last.
The bond snapped tight an hour later, sharp enough to make her gasp.
Where are you? Gabriel’s voice cut into her mind, edged with irritation.
She turned back immediately, pulse racing—not from fear this time, but from the strange, defiant spark still burning in her chest.
Coming, she answered.
When she returned, Gabriel was waiting.
He didn’t raise his voice. He didn’t touch her.
“I felt you pull away,” he said calmly.
“I went for a walk,” she replied. Her hands trembled, but she kept her chin lifted. “I needed air.”
He studied her for a long moment, eyes searching her face like he was looking for cracks.
Then he smiled.
“That’s fine,” he said. “Just tell me next time.”
Relief washed over her—but her wolf bristled.
He felt it, she warned. He always will.
That night, as Faye lay awake beside him once more, she placed a hand over her heart.
Why can I hear you now? she asked her wolf softly.
There was a pause. Then—
Because you’re finally listening.
A warmth stirred deep in her chest, unfamiliar and steady—not the bond, not Gabriel.
Something older.
Stronger.
It pulsed once, like a distant drumbeat answering her heartbeat.
Faye’s breath caught.
What is that? she whispered.
Her wolf’s voice was reverent now.
That, she said, is us remembering who we are.
- Writer
