Mated To The Alpha Bully

13

"You must miss him a lot," I managed to say. Even if I was a tiny bit jealous of Mira, I still hated that the Leos were using Aiden against her.

"I do." She finally shoved the dresses in the closet. "But enough about me—tell me what happened to you after the Convergence. Have you been here with the Leos all this time?"

"No, that only happened recently." I sat on the edge of the bed. We really did have a lot to catch up on. “After Aiden dragged you away and the Pisces pack left me for dead, I was taken by the Ophiuchus pack. They rescued me from certain death, and even though they didn’t trust me at first, they trained me.”

Mira blinked at me, the look on her face one of disbelief. "The Ophiuchus pack—you mean those people who showed up at the Convergence out of the blue? I didn't even know they were real before that night."

"They're definitely real. They've been in hiding all this time, but they've been planning to go up against the Zodiac Wolves for years. The Ophiuchus pack might be the only ones with the guts and the power to stand up to the Leos.”

"Wow." Mira sat next to me, her eyes wide. "Tell me everything. What were they like?"

"They were..." I drew in a breath as another wave of homesickness filled me. "They were not what I expected at all. Determined, resilient, mysterious, passionate...but accepting too. They've taken in many of the Zodiac Wolves' outcasts over the years, and they allowed me to become part of their pack too, once I proved myself."

I lifted the sleeve of my shirt a bit higher so Mira could see the pack mark there. She reached out and touched it like she couldn't believe it was real.

"And their alpha?" Mira asked, raising her eyebrows. "I saw him at the Convergence. He seemed intense...and hot."

"Kaden,” I said, unable to keep the emotion out of my voice as I said his name. "He wants revenge on the Leos for killing his parents, and he trained me to fight. He..." My throat tightened. "He's the best alpha I've ever known."

She sat back, studying me. "You say his name like a benediction. What happened, did you fall in love with him?”

Damn, was it that obvious? "No, it's...complicated. I have feelings for him, but we can't be together because we aren’t mates.”

"Yeah, but Jordan rejected you at the Convergence," she pointed out. "Although now it seems like he's changed his mind."

I snorted. “Trust me, I’m just as confused about his change of heart as you are."

"How did you end up here?"

I looked down, staring at my hands as I relived the awful memory. "The Ophiuchus pack was attacked by the Leos and the Sun Witches. Kaden managed to defeat the Leo alpha, but the pack was still in danger. I agreed to come with Jordan to save them. He's been holding me prisoner ever since."

"And now he's brought me here to show you what a good guy he is," Mira said, rolling her eyes.

"Exactly. I don't want to be with him, but every day it gets harder to resist the mate bond."

Mira leaned forward, meeting my eyes. "I know this sounds crazy, but hear me out. Are you sure you should resist it? Even when everything was terrible, the mate bond was the only thing that made sense to me."

"I can't be with Jordan. I hate him." I frowned as I said the words. Did I still hate him? I couldn't trust my own feelings anymore. "And even if I didn't, something about our mate bond is wrong. I can't explain it, but you have to believe me." I sat up straighter and held my hands out to Mira, who took them, even though she looked a bit confused. “I just need to escape and get back to the Ophiuchus pack. Then I can figure this out.”

Mira squeezed my hands. “I’ll help you however I can.”

“No." As nice as it would be to have Mira backing me, I couldn’t risk it. “That will put you and Aiden in danger. I can’t ask you to do that.”

She let out a huff. “No matter what happens with Aiden, you’re my sister. We’ve known each other since birth and I’ve always been there for you. I’m not going to stop now, just because it’s getting a bit scary.”

A swell of gratitude went through me. Of course she wouldn’t let me do this alone. She never had before. “There might be a way. I recently learned I have Moon Witch magic from my mom. It’s the only thing that saved me at the Convergence. I can teleport in the moonlight, and I used it to get away from Jordan. Maybe I can use it to help us escape.”

Mira nodded, not doubting me at all. “I know you’ll figure something out. I’m right there with you, the moment you decide you want to go.”

I squeezed her hands tight again and sent a silent prayer up to the moon goddess Selene, or anyone who would listen. Please, let us escape from this place. Before it's too late.

Chapter Six

I spent the next hour searching the house for any cameras or microphones—I wanted to make sure Jordan couldn't listen in on our conversations or watch me in the shower like some creepy perv. I found nothing, which made me feel a little better, although every time I looked out the window I saw one of the ever-present guards on patrol, reminding me I was still in a prison, even if this one was a lot nicer.That afternoon, a woman arrived with all sorts of clothes in my size, plus shoes, underwear, bras, nightgowns, and even a few hats. When I asked where they came from, she simply smiled and said they were a gift from Jordan. About fifteen minutes after that, another female shifter showed up and filled our fridge and pantry with every food I could possibly think of, ranging from frozen pizzas to watermelon to wine.