Chapter 10
958 Words
The safe house sat hidden among towering evergreens, its cedar walls blending seamlessly with the forest shadows. Emma's fingers traced the smooth wooden banister as Lex led her up the front steps, her skin still buzzing from the memory of his touch in the parking garage.
"This belongs to the pack—my family," Lex said, producing an ornate brass key. The lock clicked open with practiced ease. "No one will find you here."
Pack. The word sent an odd flutter through her chest. She'd grown up alone, bouncing between foster homes after her adoption fell through at age twelve. The concept of belonging to something larger felt foreign yet strangely appealing.
The interior smelled of pine and leather, with underlying notes of something wild and untamed—like the scent that clung to Lex's skin. A stone fireplace dominated one wall, flanked by bookshelves filled with leather-bound volumes. Emma wandered toward them, her environmental consultant's eye noting the absence of electric lighting in favor of oil lamps and candles.
"Off the grid," she observed, running her finger along a book spine. "Smart, considering what's hunting me."
Lex moved behind her, close enough that his body heat warmed her back. "We've learned to be careful over the years."
She turned to face him, miscalculating the distance. Her chest nearly brushed his, and the air between them crackled with unspoken tension. His steel-gray eyes held flecks of gold that seemed to pulse in the lamplight.
"What exactly are you careful of?" Her voice came out breathier than intended.
His jaw tightened, the scar there catching the shadows. "Threats to what we protect."
"And what do you protect, Alexander Steele?"
The question hung between them like a challenge. Lex's nostrils flared slightly, as if he were scenting her, and Emma felt heat pool low in her belly. She'd never reacted to a man this way—as if her body recognized something her mind couldn't grasp.
"You should rest." His voice roughened. "There's a bedroom upstairs."
But neither of them moved. Emma's pulse hammered against her throat, and she watched his gaze drop to the rapid flutter there. When he looked back up, those gold flecks had intensified.
"I'm not tired." The admission slipped out before she could stop it.
Something predatory flickered across his features. "Emma." Her name sounded like a warning.
"What?" She stepped closer, drawn by an instinct she didn't understand. "What are you warning me against?"
His hands came up to frame her face, thumbs tracing her cheekbones with surprising gentleness. "You have no idea what you're asking for."
"Then show me."
The words seemed to unlock something in him. His grip tightened, tilting her face up as he lowered his head. Emma's eyes fluttered closed, every nerve ending alive with anticipation. She could feel the warmth of his breath against her lips, smell the intoxicating scent of cedar and something purely masculine that made her knees weak.
"Lex." His name escaped as barely a whisper.
A low growl rumbled in his chest, and Emma's eyes snapped open. The sound hadn't come from his throat—it was deeper, more primal, as if something wild lived beneath his human exterior.
Before she could process what she'd heard, his mouth claimed hers.
The kiss was nothing like the polite pecks she'd shared with previous boyfriends. This was possession, hunger, and desperate need rolled into one searing connection. Lex's lips moved against hers with practiced skill, coaxing responses from her body she didn't know existed. When his tongue swept across her lower lip, she opened for him instinctively.
Heat exploded through her system. Her hands fisted in his shirt, pulling him closer as he backed her against the bookshelf. Books tumbled to the floor, forgotten, as his body pressed against hers. She could feel every hard plane of muscle, the rapid beat of his heart matching her own frantic rhythm.
His scent surrounded her—pine forests and mountain air and something indefinably wild that made her want to bare her throat to him. The thought should have terrified her. Instead, it sent liquid fire racing through her veins.
"Emma," he groaned against her mouth, and she felt the vibration all the way to her toes.
Her response died in her throat as heavy footsteps thundered up the front steps. Lex jerked away from her, his eyes blazing with that strange golden light, his breathing harsh and uneven.
The front door burst open without ceremony.
"Alpha." Marcus Cole's voice carried urgent tension as he strode into the room, then stopped short at the sight of them. Books scattered on the floor, Emma's hair mussed, Lex's shirt wrinkled from her grip—the evidence of their interrupted moment was unmistakable.
Marcus's warm brown eyes flicked between them, and Emma caught a flash of something that looked almost like approval before his expression turned grim.
"We have a problem," Marcus continued, his tone carefully neutral. "The elders are demanding an emergency council meeting. Tonight."
Lex's entire body went rigid. "About what?"
"About her." Marcus's gaze settled on Emma with something that might have been sympathy. "They know about the scent evidence, about her connection to the Rosewood m******e. They want her brought before the council for questioning."
"Absolutely not." The words exploded from Lex with such force that Emma took an involuntary step back. "I won't hand her over to—"
"Hand me over to who?" Emma's voice cut through their exchange like a blade. "What council? What the hell are you two talking about?"
The silence stretched taut as Marcus and Lex exchanged loaded glances. Finally, Marcus spoke, his voice heavy with reluctance.
"The pack elders, Emma. They want to judge whether you're a threat to the pack."
- Writer
