Page 8 of Bound to Enemy (Wolf Billionaire #3)

CHAPTER 8

ALESSANDRA

T he first thing I felt was a piercing pain on the side of my head. Then it was the loud throbbing of a vein that hit against my skull repeatedly. When I finally was able to sit up, the world felt like it was tilted on its axis.

It was incredibly disorienting, if I was being quite honest.

The room spun from the force of the impact. When I withdrew my hand from the side of my head, I noticed blood coating my palm.

Great.

"Alessandra?" A voice that I recognized as Elliot's penetrated through the ringing in my head.

It took me another second or two to finally come back to the room.

I shook my head and nodded to whatever he had said. I felt like my equilibrium was completely off.

"Ale? Are you okay?" Jason's face came into view. "Can you stand?"

I blinked, my vision coming into better focus. It was then I noticed the large bruise around his neck. "Me? Are you okay?"

Jason opened his mouth to speak, but then he was pulled from where he was crouched down in front of me. He was soon replaced by Daxton, who wore an expression of both shock and regret.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

I simply glared at him for what he had done. The stupid asshole had made me his collateral damage. To be quite honest with you, I was more upset at the fact that I had allowed myself to be thrown like that. He had caught me off guard.

"Alessandra?" Jason came up behind him. His eyes stared at the large gash on the side of my head. "You need a healer."

He tried to reach for me, but Daxton slapped his hand away.

"What the hell is your problem? I'm her aid. I'm trying to help her."

"She doesn't need help when I'm with her. She's fine." Daxton all but growled at Jason, to which he sneered at the alpha.

Jason could not have been more idiotic. Not only would that have looked like a challenge to Daxton's wolf, but that gave him all the leeway to make the first jump.

Daxton stood to his full height and stared down my friend. They were toe to toe, with Daxton winning out by an inch or two.

I scrambled to my feet, wanting to break up their fight, but as soon as I got to my feet, I tumbled back down. Luckily, Elliot was right beside me to catch me.

Jason and Daxton noticed, and they both broke their stare off. They snapped their necks in my direction and had matching worried expressions.

"Can you two stop? You are behaving like pups. This whole outburst was so unnecessary," I scolded both of them like I was their mother. "Jason, I think you need to see a healer about your bruising."

Truthfully, I just wanted him to get out of this room. I knew him, and I knew that whatever tensions had started between him and Jason would only quell once they separated. Him near Daxton would spark another fight.

He wanted to protest, but then I gave him the look that told him that it was not a request. He simply nodded his head and walked out of the room, leaving me with all the men.

"I need to go and get cleaned up," I looked up at Elliot with a thankful smile. He always seemed to be the only voice of reason around here. "Thank you, Elliot."

I stepped out of his hold, trying to steady myself. But just for a split second, I lost balance, and a hand shot out to steady me by my arm. When I trailed up the length of the arm, my eyes connected with Daxton's. His stare was red hot, and it seemed like a million and one emotions were swimming in them.

That was strange. Why did my face suddenly feel hot?

I quickly snapped out of whatever trance I had been plunged into and blinked.

"Don't touch me," I slapped his hand away from me. "I don't need your help. Just point me to the damn bathroom."

Daxton looked like he wanted to argue with me, but then Elliot interjected.

"Third door on your left, Luna."

It was the first time I had heard my title out loud. It threw me for a loop for a second.

"Alessandra?" Elliot called my name this time, and I nodded and walked out of the room, leaving all the men behind.

Whatever had just happened in that room was highly unnecessary and childish. I knew that Daxton had this possessive kick, but he didn't need to take it that far.

Jason was a strong warrior, but not only was Daxton a highly skilled warrior too, but he had the blood of the alpha flowing through his veins. That made him twice as strong as any other regular wolf and made his abilities more heightened, just like mine.

Except for when he was able to throw me to the ground where I cracked my skull wide open.

This was embarrassing, to say the least.

I walked into the small bathroom and went directly to the sink. I turned my head to the side and saw the blood that had dropped down from my temple down my neck. It looked worse than it actually was.

I had only been here a few hours, and I was already injured. Hopefully, I would even make it to my wedding.

I grabbed one of the cloths from the small tray and wet it. But just as I was about to start cleaning up the mess, the door opened and in walked Daxton.

I whirled around, ready to chew into him, but he closed the distance between us, coming up right in front of me.

"Let me help," he reached for the cloth, but I moved my arm so he couldn't grab it. "Dammit, Alessandra. I am sorry I hurt you. I let my anger get the best of me, and I shouldn't have been so reckless, especially with you."

His words caused a small flutter to erupt from my chest.

I stared him down, not sure what game he was playing at. "It's fine. Now please leave."

"Let me help clean the blood."

"No, go away."

He placed his hands on either side of my body against the marble counter. My breath caught in the middle of my throat.

Why did my heart just do a little hop and skip?

"Can you not fight me, dammit?" He grabbed my hips in one swift motion and placed me on the counter. "I'm the one that fucked up your head. At least allow me to help you."

Maybe it was the deep look of sincerity in his eyes that did it for me. Or maybe it was because I was so emotionally and mentally drained from our travels that I just didn't have it in me to fight anymore.

I handed him the towel and allowed him to clean the gash.

I closed my eyes and pressed my back into the cool glass. I felt him move the cloth along the side of my face down to my neck and then back up again.

Even though the rag was cold to the touch, every place he moved to, my skin would heat. I had no idea what was going on with me. I didn't react like this to him. He had quite literally caused a big gash on the side of my head.

"Finished," his thick voice filled the silence and I opened my eyes.

He stared at me with this look that penetrated right down to the very depths of my soul. The hairs on the back of my neck raised as the air grew tense within the confined bathroom.

He was so close I could feel his body heat rolling off of him in large waves.

Were his eyes always that shade of green? But then again they morphed between blue and green and at times would mix the two perfectly to create this kaleidoscope.

He slowly removed the towel from my head, the white cloth now successfully doused in a red tint. The pain was all but gone, and I was sure that my wolf had healed the small gash. But yet he still didn't move away from me. We just held each other's gazes, neither one of us wanting to break contact.

I hated this man and all that he stood for, but in that moment, for a split second of a moment, I felt this undeniable urge to move in closer. I wanted to eradicate the distance between us and cross a line that I had vowed I would never cross.

He dropped the cloth in the sink, his hand came to rest on my exposed thigh. My skin heated from the contact and this wild gush of heat moved from my thigh all the way to my core and settled there.

The air between us sparked to life. There was an undeniable buzz that could be felt on the surface of my skin.

"Does your head still hurt?" he said softly. His tone was such a stark contrast to the usual brashness and coldness.

I shook my head, unable to speak. The tension was so thick you could cut right through it with a knife.

Second after second ticked and neither one of us made a move to pull away. We just held each other's gazes in a heated deadlock. We both knew what we wanted, our bodies were practically purring from need and desire.

His grip on my thigh tightened and with it so did the heat in my blood. I had never felt so... awakened in my life.

"You should move." The words slipped past my lips.

His lips parted and his eyes dilated from desire and hunger. "Do you want me to move?"

That was a question that I was unsure I had an answer to. Did I want him to move? My mind was saying yes, logic told me to step away from him immediately. But the wolf within me, the one that craved the touch of a man and had long yearned to be held, wanted him to stay right where he was.

I could feel my core heating with the seconds that ticked by.

"Alessandra."

The way he said my name was unlike anything I had ever heard before. It rolled off his tongue like sweet honey and tickled my chest.

The logic and passion conflicted with each other in my mind. I was always open to color inside of the lines. I never strayed too far from the boundaries.

I should hate him.

But my body craves him.

He is our enemy.

I will have to fuck him eventually, why not just get a taste.

"Fuck it." I closed the distance between us and crashed my lips onto his.

His body went rigid for a singular beat but that was all it took before he moved into action. He moved his lips against mine, taking command of the rhythm.

Fireworks. That's what it felt like almost instantly.

At first, the touches had been experimental, almost cautious, but then they turned hungrier, darker, and filled with lust and passion.

It was everything I had hoped for and more.

He kissed the way I believed he would. Demanding, fierce, and passionate.

My fingers threaded through his silky strands, pulling on the soft tendrils gently. My actions managed to elicit a low growl from deep within his chest that jolted my wolf forward.

Dear goddess. This man.

His hands found their way to my hips and squeezed gently. My skin heated when his thumbs rubbed against me.

Electricity surged forward and my wolf took momentary control. I placed my hands on his shoulders and pulled him toward me, deepening our kiss. I ground my wet core into his hardened cock and that was enough for him.

He ripped his lips from mine and trailed wet hot kisses down the side of my neck. He sucked on the sensitive part of my neck, deep within the hollow between my neck and shoulder. My nails clawed at his back, my legs winding around his waist and pulling him even closer.

I had picked the wrong day to not wear underwear. My goddess, all I wanted was to feel him in every possible way. I needed more of his kiss, his touch, his taste.

I was so high in my blissful oblivion that I was willing to risk it all.

For a split second, I forgot we were enemies. For a split second, I wanted him to claim me, to have me as his woman.

Then when I felt the elongation of his fangs, the bubble popped and reality poured in.

I shoved him away from me like he was made of fire and hopped off the counter. My eyes were wide as saucers and my lips tingled from the ghost of his touch.

Daxton blinked, the thick haze of lust still clouding his eyes. His fangs were elongated which only added to my bewilderment.

He was about to mark me, and had my mind not caught up to me I would have allowed him to.

Goddess.

I shook my head, my hand coming up to my lips. "I need to go."

I didn't even hear my own words. Maybe I had said them in my mind, but I didn't wait for confirmation. I simply ran out of the bathroom, completely gobsmacked that I had allowed that man to kiss me. But it wasn't the fact that he had kissed me that baffled me. It was the fact that I had lunged for him first and thrown all reason out the door.

I couldn't afford to do that again.

The door slammed behind me as I took off down the hallway, as far away from him as possible. I had no idea what had come over me, but whatever glitch I had in my brain, I needed to sort it out quickly.