Athindrya

Chapter 8

She must have been waiting for about an hour in the barren room. The bed was a large double bed with simple white sheets. There was a chest of drawers in the corner next to a door, that probably led to a bathroom. Everything was covered in a thin layer of dust. Wonderful, Ivy thought, they couldn’t even put her in a clean room.

What do you expect? They don’t trust us. Came Lilka’s voice of reason.

Since when are you the reasonable one?

I’m always here to reason with you. Ivy could just picture the arrogance on Lilka’s face. She crossed her arms and blocked Lilka out. Where did she get off thinking she was the reasonable one? Ivy was always having to calm her down.

Urgh.

Suddenly Ivy could feel Lilka going crazy in the back of her mind, trying to break through the block. She was clawing and scratching at the mental wall, her whines and howls were giving Ivy a headache.

Finally Ivy brought down her wall.

What the hell Lilka? Calm down.

Lilka was so worked up she didn’t even respond to Ivy’s question. She just kept howling and fighting for control. Ivy was beginning to worry. Lilka had never acted this way. Then suddenly the most intoxicating smell caught her attention.

Ivy closed her eyes as she inhaled. It was a wonderful mix of moss, pine and… the sea? She breathed in it greedily, somehow calming Lilka. The scent was so tranquil and powerful. Ivy could imagine herself floating endlessly.

She was brought out of her daydream by the loud crash of the door being thrown open. Her eyes were having trouble adjusting, all she could see was the silhouette of a man in the doorway. He stood there, unmoving. He was tall and broad. The outline of his muscles called to her. She knew she wasn't a short woman, but she knew she would seem small next to him. Somehow she knew she would fit perfectly in his arms. That inane knowledge scared her more than anything else had ever done.

At the sight, Lilka was back up, jumping around like the crazed wolf she was.

MATE. She screamed. MATE. Ivy’s eyes widened in pure shock.

She had hardly any time to register what was happening when she was pushed against the wall. She tilted her head up and fell into the most beautifully dark eyes. They were swirling with emotions she couldn’t pinpoint.

She let her gaze travel down his ebony face to his lips. Oh dear goddess, his lips! They were strong and kissable. She felt a desire to touch them, but her arms were caged in by her side. So she settled on just letting her eyes travel down. He had unmistakable stubble that coated his chiselled jaw line. She found herself wondering what it would feel like against her skin when his lips made contact with hers.

Shit. What the hell was she thinking. She was here to hunt and gather information. She couldn’t be distracted; not even by the man in front of her.

As if re-entering reality, she forced his arms away from her. Lilka whined loudly in disapproval. Ivy tried to ignore the wolf as she made it to the other side of the room.

The man turned around looking stunned. He growled. Clearly, he didn’t appreciate Ivy’s move either. He took a step forward, then as if rethinking his decision, stopped. He seemed to be discussing something with his wolf. Ivy took the opportunity to discretely shuffle towards the door. It didn’t take long for her to be spotted, and she was forced to still.

“Let’s try that again, shall we?” His voice was smooth and deep. Ivy tried to ignore the butterflies it ignited inside her. “I’m Azai.” He held out a hand for her to shake. His name suited him so perfectly.

“I’m Ivy.” Was her curt reply, lifting an eyebrow at his outstretched hand. It was almost as if she could see a hint of hurt in his eyes, but it was gone all too quickly.

“Why don’t we take a seat?” Ivy could tell he was trying to control his wolf just as much as she was trying to control hers. He sat down on the edge of the bed, looking at her expectantly. When she didn’t move, he chose to continue anyway.

“Now what’s this I hear about you trespassing on my land.” His voice was still calm but held an edge to it. If she had been someone else, she would’ve felt intimidated. All of a sudden, she realised he’d said, ‘his land’. s**t. He was the Alpha. She must have been so concentrated on ignoring her body’s reactions to him, that she’d not noticed the Alpha scent radiating off him.

This is f*****g brilliant, she thought. The man the Council wanted her to spy on and bring back (so they could punish him) was sitting right in front of her and he was her mate.

Realising she still hadn’t answered his question she forced herself to speak.

“Yes. I stumbled across your borders because I was escaping two rogues that attacked me. I was and still am badly injured and I was unable to heal myself. So I did the only thing I could think of; and that was to get to a pack hospital.” She tried to keep her voice level as he was staring right at her.

He seemed to think on that for a while before standing up.

“Very well. You will stay with me until you are fully healed. Then you will be my Luna.” Ivy could feel her eyes widening by the second.

“Excuse you?” She said calmly, hoping she had misheard. There was no way in hell she was staying here and becoming someone’s mate, let alone a Luna. She needed her well earned freedom. She was only doing this last hunt for Marcus’ sake.

“You will heal, then we will formally make you Luna.” He said this as if he were discussing the weather outside. As if he wasn’t just destroying her dreams.

“We can introduce you to the pack tomorrow.” The excitement in his voice was clear. Ivy couldn’t wrap her head around what he had just said. The room felt like it was closing in on her. Her throat began to tighten. Breathing was becoming difficult. Her legs trembled.

She saw the panic in Azai’s eyes as he sprinted forward to catch her from falling to the floor. His arms wrapped around her, holding her close to his chest. His scent helped ease her. She closed her eyes letting his smell float through her.

She soon realised her mistake and her eyes shot open. She struggled to get out of his hold. She stood up, putting as much distance as she could between them. Azai looked at her, confusion churning in his eyes.

“I can’t be yours.” She finally managed to utter out. It was as if time stood still. She hadn’t formally rejected him, but she found it impossible for her to speak those words into existence. Her heart hurt from the words she was able to articulate. Azai’s eyes darkened. He was fighting his wolf for control. His hands clenched into fist as he tilted his head down. She didn’t know how he would react.

When his eyes found hers again, they were cold and emotionless. They weren’t the kind eyes she could loose herself in.

“You will stay here until you are healed, and then I will show you that you are mine.” He growled each word out.

This was turning out to be a huge s**t show of a mission. Marcus better be counting his lucky stars that she wouldn’t give up for him.

“Fine.” She forced herself to spit out. She couldn’t let the mate bond affect her or the job she was sent to do.