The Biker Alpha's Obession

Chapter-4 Never Again

Hope’s POV

“Hope, darling, is that you?” Mom called from the dining room just as I tried to sneak upstairs.

I froze.

I hadn't come home last night, and my phone had died hours ago. I was honestly surprised they hadn't sent out a search party.

“Come in here,” Mom added. I closed my eyes and grimaced.

God save me.

My parents and Gabriel were already at the dining table, halfway through breakfast. All three of them looked up as I walked in, and oddly enough, everyone looked...calm.

“Did you have fun at Harper’s?” Mom smiled. “Just text us next time, sweetheart. We were worried sick until Gabriel told us you were okay.”

Oh.

I glanced at my brother, and he gave me a fake smile.

“Yeah, Harper called me last night since your phone was dead. You should really get a power bank, sis.”

I ignored the sarcasm.

“Yeah, right... Sorry. I’ll be more careful next time.”

“It’s alright,” Dad smiled, gazing up at me from beneath his glasses. “Come sit, have breakfast.”

“I am not really hungry,” I muttered. “And I need to take a shower…I will eat something later when I feel like it…”

"But..." my mother began.

"I promise I'll eat later. Bye!"

Before she could stop me, I hurried out of the dining room. My mind was still a mess after everything that had happened last night, and I just needed to be alone for a while.

“Hope, wait,” I closed my eyes and swore inwardly before turning around.

Gabriel was waiting for me, arms crossed and eyes narrowed.

I braced myself as he strode toward me, his expression making it clear I wasn't getting out of this conversation.

“I saved your ass in front of mom and dad but…you’re not getting away,” he said. “Where were you last night?”

"With Harper. We went clubbing. I was with her when you called,” Gabriel’s eyes narrowed further. He wasn’t buying it.

“And after that?”

“Wh…what do you mean? I was with her the entire night,” I pressed. “Really, I swear.” His lips pressed into a thin line.

“Don’t lie to me, princess. Neither Harper nor you were picking up my call the entire night. And I am not a kid, Hope. I can take a look and tell…”

“Am I interrupting something?” Gabriel stopped mid-sentence, and we both turned toward the voice.

What?

“Surprise!” Ryder’s ocean blue eyes twinkled as he smiled brightly at us.

“Ryder!” Gabriel exclaimed. “Why didn’t you tell me you were returning? I could have tried to free my schedule somehow if I had known.”

“I wanted to surprise you guys,” Ryder grinned.

Finally releasing my brother, he turned to me, and I threw my arms around him, squealing in delight as he twirled me around. He'd always been one of my favorite people.

“You look older since I last saw you,” he smiled. “And prettier.” I blushed at the compliment and nodded.

“I guess not dying does wonders for a girl,” I joked.

“Hope…” Gabriel warned, and I flinched, inwardly kicking myself. Too soon to make a joke out of it.

“Sorry,” I muttered, squeezing his hand.

"The moment Harper told me your transplant had been successful, I came home," Ryder said, ruffling my hair. "I'm just glad you're okay."

“Thanks,” I smiled back. “Are you here to stay now? Done with adventuring around the country on your fancy motorcycle?”

“He wasn’t adventuring around; that’s his job,” Gabriel said, making a face. I wasn’t sure what Ryder did for a living, but whatever he did, Gabriel didn’t approve much. And neither did my parents.

“I’m here until my next assignment,” he said, ignoring my brother. “Say, Hope, now that you are strong and have your wolf, do you want me to train you in combat? You know I am better than your brother.”

Gabriel snorted at that while my eyes widened in delight.

Ever since I was little, I'd watched Gabriel and Ryder train while I sat on the sidelines, too weak to join them. But that had changed. I finally had a wolf, and she desperately needed training—both in combat and in keeping her mouth shut.

And if anyone was going to teach me, I'd choose Ryder. He was the better fighter, and far more patient than my brother.

"I'd love to!" I beamed. "Can we start today? If you're free, I can shower and be right back."

“You got it,” Ryder winked. “I will wait for you at the rear grounds.”

“Thank you! You’re the best,” I gave him a quick hug and scampered upstairs.

“You wait here, young lady…we aren’t finished yet,” Gabriel called out.

I ignored him. There was no way I was sticking around for that conversation. I had no desire to find out what my overprotective brother thought about my drunken one-night stand with a stranger.

“Mate…” my wolf corrected. I slammed the bedroom door shut behind me and sighed.

“Yeah, right,” I grimaced, pulling out my dress. “Some mate he is…calling me by another woman’s name while he was inside me…I have never felt this humiliated in my entire life.”

I felt a fresh wave of anger at the memory. Who was Evelyn? Had he mistaken me for her from the very beginning? The thought made my stomach twist. Finding my mate should have been the happiest moment of my life. And it was, until he turned it into my greatest humiliation.

“f**k it,” I grimaced and stomped into the shower.

I stepped under the warm torrents and sighed as the water hit my weirdly sensitive skin.

Shaking my head, I scrubbed my skin with harsh, frantic motions, desperate to wash away every lingering trace of him. But the moment I closed my eyes, the warm water faded, replaced by memories of the night before.

I could still feel his heavy body pressing into mine, his calloused hands dragging over my hips, his lips burning across my skin. My breath hitched in the rising steam.

My fingers slipped down my stomach, sliding between my thighs. I slicked my fingers and pushed them inside, a breathless moan spilling out as my body instantly remembered that fullness.

"Shh... trust me..."

His gravelly voice echoed so clearly it sent a shiver straight down my spine. I arched under the hot stream, my fingers moving faster as I surrendered to the memory.

I hated how instantly my body betrayed me, craving a man I barely knew.

"We should find him," my wolf chimed in softly, purring at the sensation. "He is our mate, Hope. I know a small part of you wants to see him again."

I opened my eyes sharply. “Absolutely not.”

Whatever this bond was doing to me, I refused to let it make me chase after a man who had mistaken me for someone else.

Mate or not, I was never going to see him again.