Page 14 of Bullied Alpha Bride (Wolfshade Brides-for-Hire #2)

Lexa squirms on top of me, her fingers digging into my shoulders as she braces her knees against my hips. Her mouth is hot and eager on mine as she presses me to the ground, kissing me even harder.

This! Oh, God, yes, this!

I’d closed this memory off, locked it somewhere deep in my mind. It was too awful to contemplate never feeling this way again. As Lexa rocks back and forth on me, I slip my hands under her shirt and run my hands across her skin, the light touch thrilling me to the bone.

Suddenly, she shivers, a shudder that runs through her from her shoulders right to her toes. She gasps, almost as if she’s in shock, then flings herself away from me.

I lay on the ground for a second, so stunned that I couldn’t even move. As I sit up slowly, I look across at Lexa, where she’s sitting under a tree with her arms wrapped around her knees.

“Lexa, are you okay? Did I do something wrong?”

She shakes her head, and that only makes me more confused. I shuffle across the ground to get a bit closer to her, and she looks up at me, a hard glare that stops me as if I’ve hit a force field.

Her eyes were always so soft and gray, like a sweet snowfall with pale, fluffy clouds. Now they’re violent blizzards, with dark sky and chips of ice.

“Can I do something?”

She shakes her head, her lips pressed together. I cross my legs and sit comfortably on the ground, deciding that I won’t leave her unless she really wants me to.

“I’m right here, okay? Tell me what you need. If you want me to go away, I will.”

It’s hard to speak calmly while my body still rages with red-hot lust, but I rein myself in, refusing to let my desire for her get in the way of taking care of her.

It was my selfishness that got me into this mess. I won’t make that mistake again.

Lexa looks up, then her eyes dart furtively around, looking into the trees.

“No,” she whispers. “Don’t go.”

“Okay,” I answer, nodding. “Do you think we should go back home? You look like you could use a rest.”

“Uh-uh,” she mutters, shaking her head and wiping her nose. “The last thing I want to do is just get stuck between four walls, locked in with my thoughts. I need a distraction.”

“How about we go out?” I suggest.

“Out? I don’t think I could deal with people right now.”

“We’ll go to a movie. Nice and dark and cozy, no interaction. We can get takeout for dinner.”

For a moment, her face is fairly blank, then a smile slowly creeps over her face.

“Okay, Kit. That sounds like a great idea. Thank you.”

I stand up quickly, reaching out to her. Joy surges through me at the knowledge that I’ve finally done something right, something good.

Lexa looks up at me and takes my hand, letting me help her up. She carefully dusts off her clothes, and I notice the deep blush of red across her cheeks.

Thinking about how all the dirt and dry leaves got there, maybe.

Lust threatens to rise in me again, but I hold it back. As wonderful as our time in the woods was, it doesn’t mean she forgives me or that I have a free pass. I still have a lot of work to do.

And secrets to keep.

When we walk over to the movie theater, the streets are fairly empty. Lexa looks comfortable with me, which is a good thing. If the town suspects the match isn’t a good one, then the elders can contest it.

Like Loretta is already doing. I still have to decide on a punishment for her.

We stop outside the theater to check out the showings. I point out a couple of foreign films that catch my eye.

“This Polish one, I’ve been wanting to see it. It’s a historical piece about a poet and the development of literature.”

Lexa looks at me like I’ve grown a second head. “Are you kidding me right now?”

“What do you mean?”

“That is not my idea of fun, Kit. I’ll be bored as hell.”

“Okay, well, what about this one?” I point to another showing. “It’s a modern film, with main themes of the survival of the human spirit, the meaning of true courage—”

“Kit,” Lexa says, crossing her arms, “if you want to go to the movies with me, these are your choices.” She walks over to the last two posters and points to them with a big flourish. One of them is apparently about machine guns and monster trucks, and the other is about a lake monster.

“Are you serious?” I mutter.

“Completely,” Lexa answers. “Action or creature feature. I’d argue that the creature feature has all those elements you like—the meaning of courage, I think you said?”

“I don’t see how—”

Lexa giggles. “This was your idea. Are you with me or not?”

The sound of her laughter is so sweet to me, and the smile on her face touches me so deeply, it hurts.

All I want is to make her happy.

“Okay,” I say. “Monster trucks, it is.”

I buy our tickets, and we hit the concession stand. Lexa seems hesitant to spend a lot of money, but with my encouragement, she orders popcorn, candy, soda, and ice cream. We practically waddle to our seats, our arms full of junk food.

I prepare myself for two hours of absolute hell, telling myself anything is worth it just to be with Lexa. To my surprise, I get into the movie, enjoying the tale of guys caught in a corrupt demolition derby and how they shoot their way out of it in the end with a big machine gun battle.

“You seemed to enjoy that,” Lexa laughs as the credits begin to roll.

“I did,” I answer. “It was really fun.”

“Good, I’m glad you liked it. Should we get some dinner now?”

“I’d love to! There’s a French restaurant not far from here.”

Lexa sighs. “Not what I had in mind, Kit.”

“Italian? Thai?”

Lexa sighs, her breath rattling from deep inside her chest, sounding a bit like a tired horse.

“Is there a food truck in town?”

“Food… truck?” I try not to gag on the words.

“Yeah. Something that sells burgers, fries, and corn dogs. That kind of thing.”

My stomach shrivels up, but I nod and try not to let my disgust show. “By the park. In… West End.”

“Oh, cool,” she says enthusiastically. “That’s Harry. I used to go there a lot. It’s so cool that he’s still operating.”

As we head out of the theatre, I wrestle with both my reluctance to eat any kind of food from a burger truck and sheer relief that Lexa did not react to my “West End” comment.

It’s where the poor live. It’s always spoken of in derogatory terms by the elders and first families. Grandfather would have burned it to the ground, but if he did, he’d have fewer people to rule.

I drive out to the park. When we arrive, Lexa bounces out of the car, hurrying over to the truck.

She’s definitely distracted, and that’s all that matters. I can cope with anything, so long as I can make her happy.

“Harry!” Lexa cries, jumping up at the middle-aged man in the truck window. “How have you been?”

“Lord, Lexa, is that you?” the man replies after a moment. “You’ve changed a bit, lil’ bub.”

Lexa laughs. “Not a bub anymore, old man.”

“You’ll always be a bub to me, lil’ girl. You want your usual?”

Lexa raises her eyebrows. “You still remember it, after all this time?”

“Of course I do! You’re a loyal customer. Hell, you’re practically family.”

“Cool, then make me the usual, and a beef special for my… date.”

Her hesitation over how to introduce me could have triggered me a little, if Harry wasn’t staring at me with massive, wide eyes and a slack jaw.

“Alpha!” he gasps. “It’s an honor to serve you.”

Please don’t fear me. I’m not my grandfather.

“Good evening,” I answer, unable to stop the affected tone that creeps into my voice or the noble posture. “It’s an honor to visit your establishment.”

Lexa looks at me in complete shock, her mouth twisted into a tight line. “Don’t embarrass me!” she mutters.

I look down at her, more confused than I’ve ever been in my whole life.

I can’t stop myself from using a commanding tone or threatening body language. Grandfather beat it into me from the time I was five.

“It’s okay, Harry,” Lexa says, a slight drawl echoing at the edge of her words. “He’s my mate. You didn’t hear?”

“Nah,” Harry answers, still watching me warily. “No one thought to tell old Harry.”

“Well, now you know. It’s all good, old friend. We’re just here for dinner.”

I feel like shouting out loud that I’m not going to murder his whole family if the burger is undercooked.

“One chicken supreme and a beef special, coming right up!” Harry waves his spatula and disappears around the corner, and I hear the grill start up.

“That didn’t go as expected,” Lexa remarks. “Is the whole town that scared of you?”

“Probably,” I sigh, shaking my head. “Except the north side.”

“Maybe you should do something about that,” she muses, tilting her head. The intense look in her eye is slightly mischievous, and I grin back.

“I think I will,” I answer. “Things are out of balance in this town, and it’s time to set it right.”

I thought I’d done enough to undo Grandfather’s reign of terror. Now I know I’ve barely scratched the surface.

“Order up!” Harry calls.

We hurry to the window to get our food, and I manage to pay without frightening the old man. I leave a big tip for him, and Lexa leads me over to the picnic tables in the park.

When we sit down, Lexa immediately opens up the little cardboard boxes and starts stuffing fries into her mouth. I open mine to reveal a huge burger and a mountain of fries.

“So what, exactly, am I about to put in my mouth?” I ask warily.

“It’s a bacon cheeseburger. Trust me, you’ll love it.”

“Hmm,” I mutter, picking it up. There’s not a shred of salad in sight, and grease drips from the side of the bun to run down my hands.

“I’m going to get this junk all over my shirt!” I complain.

Lexa laughs. “I think you can handle a little grease and dirt on you—besides, is it really that hard for you to buy a new shirt?”

“No,” I answer, suddenly realizing how ridiculous it is to care so much about temporary things. “It’s not. Okay, I’m going in. Let’s see how this goes.”

Lexa watches me with amusement, starting on her own burger. I have to squish it a little and open my mouth wide, but I manage to get a big bite without the whole thing falling apart.

I chew carefully, waiting to be assaulted by disgusting flavors. To my surprise, the meat is just nicely charred, on top of crisp bacon and melted tasty cheese. With barbecue sauce on the bottom bun and mayo on the top, the entire burger is a symphony of flavor.

“Oh my God,” I mumble. “This is fucking fantastic.”

“I told you!” Lexa laughs, looking truly pleased. She keeps watching me as I finish the burger, enjoying my sounds of satisfaction and surprise as I make my way through it.

“My lord,” I mutter, wiping my mouth with a napkin. “The fried onions hidden in the top bun with a spot of mustard really pushed it over the top. Thank you, Lexa. I’ve never had food like this before.”

“My pleasure,” she says, finishing her own food. “But the night isn’t done yet.”

“Oh?”

“We’re going to the bar for shots.”

“We are?”

“It’s the only way to round up a night like this.”

“Okay.”

We throw our trash in the bin and hurry back to the car. I turn towards the north side, but Lexa directs me back to the West End.

We pull up outside a very dark, dirty bar with covered windows. It had a bright sign once, but now the words are so broken, it’s impossible to tell what they might have said.

“Are you sure about this?” I ask hesitantly.

“Yep,” she answers. “It’s a good place. We used to sneak in when we were sixteen, and Carly would give us glasses of champagne—that we later found out was apple juice and mineral water.”

“Nice trick,” I chuckle. “Carly’s the owner?”

“Yeah. It’s family-run.”

Lexa leads me through the front door, and the place is even worse than I imagined from seeing the state of the outside. It’s extremely dark, with crowded tables almost completely hidden against the walls and corners. The air is lined with shifting waves of smoke.

I stumble along behind Lexa, knowing that if she weren’t holding my hand, I’d probably turn around and run.

“Hey, hey!” Lexa says, sitting down on a bar stool. “Is that you, Bobby?”

“Is that you , Lexa?”

A short, dark-haired woman shuffles over, and they briefly hug over the bar. I sit down awkwardly, trying not to draw attention to myself.

“So you’re back. The rumors are true,” Bobby flicks her eyes in my direction. “How’s married life?”

“Just fine,” Lexa answers, shoving the topic aside. “We’re celebrating. Pour some shots of bourbon, will you?”

“Yeah, I could definitely use some Jim Beam,” I say without thinking.

Both girls look at me with amused expressions.

“What did he just say?” Bobby asks.

“No idea,” Lexa shakes her head. “Must be a foreign language.”

“What?” I mumble, completely lost.

Bobby leans down and grabs two shot glasses. She smacks them down on the bar, then turns to get a tall bottle without a label, half filled with incredibly dark liquid.

“Raw bourbon,” she announces, pouring two shots. “Off-label. We can’t afford any name brands down here.”

“I didn’t know such a thing existed,” I say, picking up the small glass to look deeply into it.

Lexa grabs hers, downs it in one gulp, and smacks her glass on the table. My hand trembles a little as I bring the shot to my lips.

Is this stuff going to send me blind?

There’s no time for fear—the girls are staring at me, ready to pass judgment. I slam down the alcohol and drop the glass to the counter, waiting for the ill effects.

To my surprise, there are none. The bourbon doesn’t burn as much as I thought it would, and complex flavors dance across my tongue.

“Another?” Bobby asks, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah,” I answer. “That stuff is really good!”

“You’d be surprised, kid,” Bobby says. “There are all kinds of special gems you can find down here in the West End.”

Neither one of us looks at Lexa, but I know that’s what Bobby means from the way her eyes dart to the younger woman.

“Don’t worry, Bobby,” I say. “I know I’ve found some extremely valuable things down here, and I’ll treat them with care and respect.”

“See that you do,” Bobby answers, filling the glasses again. “Now, let’s see how many of these we can get into you.”

I tilt my head back, letting the sweet, spicy rush of bourbon flow across my tongue. “You’re on, Bobby,” I gasp, smacking my glass down. “My wallet is open, so you just keep ’em coming.”

“Dangerous words, son,” Bobby says, grinning as she pours another shot. “I’ll teach you to challenge me!”

I wink at her, toasting with my glass before I slam the shot down. I look over at Lexa, and I see her eyes sparking with amusement, a big smile on her face as she tries to hold in her giggles.

Seeing Lexa so happy has lifted my spirit, and I feel more connected to her than I ever have before.

I had no idea there was so much fun to be had on the wrong side of the tracks.

I’m having the time of my fucking life!