The Return of the Prodigal Alpha

11. New temptation

DAVINA

I spent the whole weekend locked in my room of the university’s residential house, brewing healing potions. I poured the essence into a soothing balm and poulticed my injured hands. The injuries were all over my palms, wrists, almost reaching the elbows. The compress had to be exchanged every few hours, so I spent the majority of nights being awake. The burning pain of dead skin tissues couldn’t be ignored and hence my sleepless nights.

I was bullied in the past, but never like this. Other girls pushed me around or made disrespectful comments about me being a half witch. But using nature elements against me? That had never happened before. Brenda could have killed me if I hadn’t sacrificed my poor hands. If her flames reached my face. The thought of it made me squeak in desperation. Just why did she hate me so much? She had already won. Elliot chose her over me and I did not stand in their way. I didn’t make a public scene, nor did I flirt with him to steal him from her. I couldn’t care less about Elliot. He was the past.

I changed the compress shortly before I had to leave to Black Forest. Agrimonia, aloe vera and centella asiatica were the main ingredients of the healing balm I made. It seemed to help significantly. The wounds were healing, even though very slowly. I was glad the damage was not that harsh, despite its horrible first appearance. I still had the sensitivity in my hands. That was good.

The driver noticed bandages all over my hands but did not ask. I was pleased with his silence. I didn’t want to talk about it. I felt embarrassed. I was aware that Theresa would demand answers and there was no point avoiding that topic. No point in lying. But how could I explain to Aiden? If he saw me hurt, he would most probably go rogue. Werewolves were overprotective of their mates and even minor harm could boil their blood with rage. They were short-tempered and dealt with many mood swings.

Therefore, I was hoping to avoid him for a few more days. I wasn’t quite happy about that. I missed him. Not seeing him for almost a week made me feel lonely. I assumed that bond thing was somehow working. I felt more and more attached to him. I still wasn’t ready for something permanent, but why not try four months of romance? I was certain my parents would not approve of him, and I was also clear about my future plans. I wanted to be a successful witch and I wanted to work for the Ministry. And maybe I wanted to be part of the coven.

My head lowered down, I walked through the main hall of Black Forest’s mansion. The curious eyes of Omega servants made me nervous. They must have wondered what happened to the witch. Why was she bandaged like a mummy? In moments like this, I was glad that I did not have any friends to whom I had to report myself and explain all the drama.

I chose the usual path to Theresa’s office. Down the hall, across the living room and enter the west wing. But while I was passing through the living room, I had to stop. Something caught my eye. Something truly extraordinary.

There she was. A unique beauty. Middlemist’s Red. I never saw that flower live. They were so rare, that only few samples existed in the whole world. It was very strange to find one of them here, in a rural place of Yukon. I was amazed and probably stared at the red petals with my mouth open.

“Do you like flowers?” I flinched when the male’s voice approached me from behind. I didn’t know him, yet he sounded familiar. I turned around, meeting the pair of green eyes. Same green shade as… my mate. Hm, green was most probably the most common eye color among werewolves. Humans had brown, wolves had green. Or was I wrong?

“I love them. They are elegant in form, charming and delicate. They hold powerful substances, and their scent can trigger happy emotions even in the most broken souls.” I didn’t know why I spoke so openly in front of the stranger. Though, it felt so natural. He got closer to me. A handsome man with blond hair. He was a werewolf, about that I was certain. But there was something more. Something I could not identify yet.

“What happened to your hands?” He touched the bandages gently, not putting any pressure on my injured hands. I didn’t know why, but being this close to him brought me strange comfort.

“It’s nothing.”

“Don’t lie to me.” A slight warning laced his voice, yet the tone remained soft. He lifted his hand and brushed the back of it against my cheek. I closed my eyes, enjoying the tingling feeling of our skins touching. Who was this man and why did I feel bewitched by him? He had almost the same effect on me as Aiden.

“Who are you?” I heard my own voice speaking with my eyes still shut. I was afraid to open them. What if I drowned in those green depths? This was so wrong. All of it. I thought I was already dating Aiden. Sort of. Yet, my body refused to resist new temptation.

“Someone who was made for you.” He whispered and I could feel his breath on my lips. The lips parted for him, my mind not thinking straight. And soon I was able to experience the taste of his lips.

This kiss was completely different to the one with Aiden. The stranger’s kiss was filled with desperate urgency. As if it was the only time, we could have locked our mouths. As if it was the very last time we saw each other. What a bizarre situation I suddenly appeared in. I had merely wished to look at his face again, so I peeked with one eye. I was expecting the expression of aesthetic delight I might have found would correspond to what I already knew. But I did not even catch a glimpse of his face, so instantaneous and urgent was his tongue. The hot tongue overpowered my senses. It wiggled, it pulsated, and made contortive sweeps of my mouth’s vault. The dominance of the stranger’s kiss forced me to press my body against his, where I lolled helpless with my eyes clenched shut, in a trance of tongue.

I moaned softly, getting more and more aroused as his teeth nibbled at my bottom lip. His chest lifted up and down quickly, he must have been as heated as me. My hands rested, as I wasn’t able to contribute to any touching. His hands, on the contrary, were all over me. They travelled from my back to my butt, squeezing it lightly. It was not such a rushed and possessive squeeze as Aiden's. This man explored me in great detail. Gently but swiftly because time was running out.

A powerful growl filled the air of the living room. A growl which carried the utmost rage. I recognized the owner right away. I pulled away from the stranger, trying to collect my sanity. Oh, he was angry. He was boiling with wrath and hatred. He looked like someone ready to kill. Someone who would begin a c.arnage.

“Aiden…” I whispered his name when the shame took over. How could I do this to him? How could I cheat on him like this? Was it cheating though? I knew we were mates, but we were not exclusive yet. I did not accept him yet. Still, how could I be kissing someone else? Someone whom I didn’t even know?!

“That’s quite s.hitty timing to interrupt a hell of a hot kiss.” The blond stranger mumbled. It wasn’t very wise of him to provoke the pissed alpha male.

In the blink of an eye, Aiden shifted to his black wolf and jumped on the stranger. I shrieked when I watched how he bit the guy’s shoulder, making him hiss out of pain. My fear must have distracted Aiden’s wolf for a second, which was the opportunity for his opponent to punch him in his head. He pushed the black wolf and rolled away.

What happened next, was difficult for my brain to process. Everything played in front of my eyes at super speed. The stranger shifted to his wolf as well. His fur was light-grey, almost silver. He jumped on the black wolf with his claws fully extracted, but Aiden’s wolf was faster and dodged him. He tried to bite the silver wolf’s tail, but before he could have managed, the silver wolf stretched his rear legs and kicked him into his muzzle.

They both rotated themselves and faced each other. None of them hesitated and they both jumped high, aiming for the opponent’s neck.

“Stop it, please!!!” I screamed from the top of my lungs, but they were too feral to listen. Tears streamed down my cheeks as I realized it was me who caused all this chaos. They were about to kill each other, and it was all my fault.