Page 9 of Bound to Enemy (Wolf Billionaire #3)

CHAPTER 9

ALESSANDRA

S tupid. Stupid. Stupid.

I repeated that word in my head over and over again until it finally stuck. I could not believe that I had kissed that man, and what was worse was that I liked it. Well, at least for the seconds that my lips had been connected to his. After the sense returned to my body, I had immediately been repulsed by the very sight of him as I should have always been.

I shook my head as I entered the shower, trying to rid my body of all the nonsense. The water was scathingly hot, a contrast to the usual ice-cold plunge I took. I needed to sear away my stupidity from the night before.

It had been a spur of the moment, and my wolf had egged me forward.

I knew better than to allow her to lead me. But I had craved it in ways I had never craved anything before.

The water poured down onto my skin, scorching me and turning it red. The steam filled the room, misting the clear glass and encapsulating me in a small bubble.

I hadn't slept all night; I could feel the fatigue coating my muscles and brain. My lips still tingled from his kiss. The electricity had surged through every fiber and nerve ending in my body.

His touch...his taste...his kiss...

My eyes snapped open, plunging me back to reality.

No, I could not be thinking of him like that.

I closed the water to the shower and hopped out and got dressed for my day. It was a training day, so I opted for some workout gear.

Punching something would surely get my head to stop thinking about, you know who.

When I walked out the door, I was met by Jason, who was leaning against the opposite wall of the marble hallway.

"Morning," I breezed past him and started toward the stairs. He quickly fell into step with me as we made our way down the stairs toward the training grounds. "Where are Lily and Alex?"

But my question was soon answered when I saw them waiting in the grand foyer. They were dressed in similar black attire.

"Morning, Luna." They both inclined their heads in greeting.

"Stop," I grumbled as I walked past them. The little brats had the audacity to giggle at my obvious discomfort.

I was still trying to get used to the title that I had been awarded since coming to this place. Though I was not officially the Luna of BloodMoon, I technically held the rank anyway.

Jason leaned toward me as he followed me out the front door of the mansion. "Are you okay? You seem a little off."

My heart jumped but only for a moment before I forced down any unwanted thoughts.

"I'm fine," I cleared my throat, "probably just because I have to sleep in a new bed."

He didn't look convinced, but he didn't press me further.

We walked out into the open air, which was nowhere near as crisp as my homeland. But what it lacked in natural beauty they had made up for in their facilities.

Daxton lived in a castle, and that was not an exaggeration. His mansion was made out of the whitest marble I had ever seen. The fields were lush and green, and the pine trees hung proudly around the area.

I was impressed by what they had built. But what they had in material, we had in nature. It was why my people were more connected to our natural way of life. Blood Moon sought to modify and better, while we preferred the natural order of things.

We walked toward the training ground in complete and utter silence until we got to the pits.

I had toured some of the compound a little before the meeting yesterday, and I was impressed. State-of-the-art gyms and fields to practice wolf maneuvers. I understood why they had such great warriors. They prepped them well.

As soon as we got to the sand pits that were a few meters away from the large gym warehouse with all the weights, every wolf present went silent.

When I first arrived yesterday, there were no wolves present here. But now, in the bright morning light, it seemed dozens of wolves had found their way to the training ground.

Every single pair of eyes looked our way. There were varying looks of disgust and hatred all mixed in with their pupils. Their hatred was so strong it was palpable on my tongue.

They were dressed in dark blue while my aids and I were in all black attire. We stuck out like sore thumbs.

"Well," Lily muttered under her breath. "This isn't awkward at all."

I knew that I would not be met with open arms. I didn't like them, and they likely already had their preconceived notions about me. But for the sake of peace, I knew that it was best to simply make peace.

"Follow my lead," I whispered to the three people behind me. I stepped forward and faced the wolves who were still staring at me. "Many of you may know of me, but for those who don't, my name is Alessandra Fraser, and I am to be your new Luna."

A thick silence fell upon the area. All that could be heard were the chirping of the birds in the pine branches around us. The wind picked up a little, blowing through my strands.

"We know who you are," a rather tall blonde spoke up first, her eyes moved up and down the length of my body, sizing me up. "We just don't care."

She was a feisty little thing, but I had dealt with much worse in my lifetime.

"You all don't like me, clearly." I looked over the crowd, "It's fine, I'm not here to win your favor. I am here to train. You can go about your day and not mind us."

They all stared at me like I was speaking Mandarin. Were they hard of hearing?

"Okay then," I clapped my hands together and stepped forward, but then I stopped when someone spoke.

"You need to earn your rank in our pack, Luna." The dumb blonde quipped from the front of the crowd. "We can't just allow a simple outsider to come and lay claim to us and our future. We boast the best training grounds in the country. It is a privilege to even stand on these grounds. Mutts, I mean outsiders, can't just be let in."

I balled my fists at my side and stared at her. I could feel my wolf stirring from deep within my body. She felt disrespected by Blondie and wanted to reprimand her herself.

Calm, I tried to tell my wolf.

She will pay for her insolence.

I knew my wolf well, and I didn't want her to do anything that could cause more tensions between me and this pack. I was in foreign land, and I couldn't risk someone trying to kill me, or worse, one of my aides.

Jason stepped forward, always ready to come to my defense. "Need I remind you that this is your Luna-to-be."

The blonde jutted her chin up in defiance. "To be, that means that she is not yet the Luna and thus holds no rank here. If she wants to train with us, then she must prove herself a decent warrior."

It took all my willpower not to roll my eyes and pounce on her. She had no idea what she was trying to talk herself into. Not only did I have greater strength and speed, but my recovery days were probably her full day of training.

I huffed, feeling bored of all her chatter. "If you want to put your money where your mouth is, then please. Let's have a go, shall we? Strictly hand to hand, my wolf is of course bigger and faster than yours since I carry the wolf gene and you are likely a mutt."

Pink tinted her cheeks and the rage roared in her brown eyes loudly. "I will have you know that my father was one of the greatest warriors that this pack has?—"

"I don't care," I interrupted her. "Get into the pit."

I took off my hoodie and handed it to Jason. He looked at me with a calculated level of concern, but I knew that it was not directed at me. He knew how good of a fighter I was. I had taken on three rogues once before and lived to tell the tale. No other wolf in living existence had ever done that. Except for one, of course, Daxton Vale, my betrothed and a formidable warrior.

I walked to the large sand pit, but then Jason grabbed my elbow and pulled me to a stop.

"Ale," his tone told me all I needed to know.

"I won't kill her," I breathed. "You and I both know that I can't let this shit slide."

We stared at each other for a long moment, neither one of us letting up.

"Trust me."

He looked over my face, searching for something, and when he was satisfied, he nodded and let go of my elbow.

I walked into the pit and readied myself. Blonde was already on the other side of the pit, her shirt gone, leaving her in just her sports bra and tights. I could tell that she was fit, but looking strong and actually being strong were two very different things.

She glared at me with a fury that would have been hot enough to burn plastic. But unfortunately for her, she was more chihuahua than a fearsome lion.

The wolves in the training ground all came to gather by the pit. To my left, I could see Jason looking on pensively. While Lily and Alex stood behind him with excited smiles. They were always the ones who wanted me to show my strength while Jason was all about practicing restraint.

"Come at me, bitch," I taunted her.

Her left eye twitched and she surged at me with a loud cry.

Foolish.

I easily dodged her and she flew right past me. She swiveled back and lunged for me again, and I dodged her attack. Punch after punch she threw my way, and I dodged her every time, not even having to lift my arms to block her attacks.

"Stop," swing, "moving." Another swing.

The crowd around us looked on.

"Maybe you should learn basic techniques before trying to compete with an actual warrior, pup." This time I grabbed her wrist and pulled her arm behind her back. She screamed in agony and tried to swivel out of my hold, but I just held onto her tighter. I pulled her arm to the point where I heard a sickening crack move through the air and everyone gasped.

Oh shit.

Blonde let out a loud wail when her bone broke and I dropped her arm. I made sure to school my features to keep me from showing any real kind of emotion.

Had I meant to break her arm? No. Did I feel bad? Not really. But I also knew that I couldn't look overly happy with what I had done.

Blonde looked over her shoulder with her arm hanging limply at her side in a fit of rage. "Kill her!"

Before I could ever react, I was stormed by three wolves who came from behind. They had shifted into their wolf forms and had managed to nick me in the back. I let out a loud shrill cry and my aides took a step toward me, but I shook my head at them.

My chest heaved up and down heavily as I stared at them. "They're mine."

The three wolves stood baring their teeth at me while they protected their 'fearless' leader.

My wolf surged forward, my eyes coming into focus as her power filled my veins. I could taste the blood I was about to rip into within seconds.

I focused on each of their faces, making sure to remember them as I ended their lives. Not only had they charged me without warning, but they also wanted to kill me.

They had drawn the line and now it was my duty to end what they had started.

"You die today," I said to them, and they simply growled.

I leaped into the air and shifted into my white wolf before I landed on my paws. The fear in their eyes was instant and I knew why. I was bigger than all of them, but not only that, my fur was white. White fur on a wolf was incredibly rare and those who had white fur were believed to be favored by the moon goddess. We were touched by her holy light.

My wolf growled, her teeth itching to clench into flesh.

Easy girl, not yet.

But she didn't want to hear any of that, she dug her paws into the ground and readied for a lunge. But before any momentum could be had, a pair of blue-green eyes filled my line of sight.

"No, Alessandra," my betrothed spoke into the thick tension. "No blood."

Unfortunately for him, I was in no mood to hear any kind of reason. I had been disrespected by these mutts and I would have retribution.

My wolf snapped at him, a clear sign of defiance. Everyone knew that you are to never snap at an alpha for fear of the wrath. But I was an alpha too and I refused to submit.

If he wanted this to end, then it would end with my blood.