Page 23 of Curvy Alpha Bride (Wolfshade Brides-for-Hire #4)

“Mabel, you have to get inside now!” Finnah screams, trying to drag me into the hall.

“No!” I yell back. “I’m not going anywhere until I know Xavier’s okay! What the fuck is going on out there?”

“I don’t know,” Finnah answers. “But it’s bad.”

“We can’t just leave them out there! They need help.”

“Mabel,” Finnah says frantically, “we can’t help them. Especially not you. If we don’t get you to safety, all is lost.”

“The only truly safe place is the cabin,” I say, hearing my voice unravel. “I’m not going back there without Xavier!”

“Honey, we don’t even know if he’s still alive.”

“Don’t say that!” I scream at her. “Don’t you dare fucking say that! I just heard him howl—he’s coming for me!”

Finnah’s eyes fill with tears, and she throws her arms around me, squeezing me as hard as she can. Her body heaves with sobs as she finally begins to lose control.

“No one loves that boy more than me,” she gasps. “But he’d never forgive me if I let harm come to you! Get in the truck! I’ll drive you—”

“What about the others?” I ask, pulling back from her. “Lyssa and the other girls have to come with us.”

“No, Mabel,” Lyssa’s quiet voice comes from behind me, and I turn around to see the other young women standing together, holding hands. “We have to stay here.”

“What?” I cry, starting to lose it. “Why?”

“Because the witch will be coming for you,” Lyssa says. “And if we stay here, we might be able to distract her long enough for you to get away.”

“I’m not going to let you use yourselves as bait!” I yell, lunging forward to grab Lyssa’s hand. “I’m not losing you, no fucking way! Get your ass in gear and get in the truck, right fucking now!”

Tears run down Lyssa’s face, and she shakes her head, hugging me.

“It’s not just a question of how much we love you, even though we do,” she whispers.

“All of us would happily sacrifice ourselves for you. But this is about so much more than that. If Ivarra gets you, then she gets all of us—then the next town, and the next. We can’t let her feed on the blood of a luna. ”

“No,” I say despairingly, holding on to her. “No. I can’t let you do this.”

Lyssa hugs me extra hard, then pulls back, shoving me at Finnah. “Get her out of here!”

Finnah nods and starts dragging me out of the hall. The logic of the situation isn’t lost on me, but emotionally, I can’t bear it, and I struggle with Finnah as I fight to get back to the girls.

Wolves suddenly pour into the courtyard, the entire pack returning. I see Xavier, unmistakable with his night-dark coat edged with patterns of copper swirls. He races straight towards me, shifting in one motion to grab me and almost pick me up in his hurry to get to the truck.

“Get out of here, boy!” Finnah yells. “Take her to safety, don’t worry about us!”

“I will be back,” he swears, his voice thick and guttural with a mixture of determination and rage. “Once I get Mabel to safety, I will return to fight with you!”

“Don’t be a fool, boy!” Serra screams, ushering the others inside. “The witch is playing by new rules now, and we can’t risk her getting you. Stay in the cabin!”

Xavier nods, but I know his affirmation is a lie and that he’ll return as quickly as he can. The strength goes out of me as he shoves me into the truck, and I crumple down in the seat, panting to get my breath back as he pulls out onto the dirt track.

“Are you alright?” he asks. “Did you get hurt?”

“I’m fine,” I mumble, wiping my nose. “What happened?”

“She killed the scouts,” he says, viciously slamming the truck into high gear. “And she threw their bodies down in front of the sentries as if she was putting on a display.”

“Oh my God, Xavier. I’m so sorry.”

“I really thought it would work,” he says. “I know the others can help if we could just contact them.”

Tears pour down my face, and I don’t even try to stop them.

“Maybe the townsfolk are right,” I whisper. “We have to keep Ivarra trapped here and never let her get beyond the valley. This is our burden to bear.”

“Why?” he snaps. “What ancient decree says we should suffer this alone? I won’t accept it. I can’t!”

“But what are we going to do now?” I ask. “She’s coming… for us—both of us!”

“I’m going to get you to the cabin,” he says. “Then I’m going after that bitch.”

I don’t bother to argue with him. Instead, I just curl up in my seat, staring miserably out the window. The beautiful light of the full moon illuminates the landscape, almost as bright as midday. It should comfort me, but all I feel is dread.

By the time we reach the cabin, my fear has worn down, but Xavier seems even more frantic than before. He shoves me inside, then turns to leave.

“Xavier, you can’t,” I protest.

“The hell I can’t. No one will stop me from going back and joining the fight!”

“They won’t be fighting,” I say miserably. “They’ll be locked underground by now. Anyone left outside the bunker will be dead.”

“You don’t know that,” he mutters, trying to push past me.

“Okay then, I’ll tell you what I do know!

” I yell in his face, shoving him away from the door.

“The other women stayed behind to make sure Ivarra couldn’t get me—they were prepared to sacrifice themselves to save me, and the entire Range!

I won’t let that be in vain, Xavier! Don’t be so stupid and reckless that you let the witch take you—because then everyone dies! ”

He glares at me, his chest heaving with the effort of holding back his rage. I see a terrible look of resignation cross his face, followed by a deep, ripping loss.

I turn around and shut the door, closing the deadbolt. Behind me, there is a sharp crack as Xavier punches the dining room table.

“I can’t just sit here,” he growls. “I can’t let them die.”

I go to him, putting my hands on his cheeks to force him to look into my eyes. “We won’t let it be in vain,” I say, my voice steady. “That is all we have here—lesser evil. I hate it, too, but we have no choice but to spend some lives to ensure the survival of the pack.”

“Maybe we can get out,” he says, rambling. “Take the whole pack through the mountain. Evacuate—”

“Xavier, my love, there are not enough hours of sunlight to get us through the woods to the Pass. You know that.”

“The other alphas will come for us—”

“I pray they do not,” I say. “The witch will be waiting. She may attack when they try to enter the valley.”

He sags against me, clinging to my arms.

“All is lost,” he murmurs. “This is the darkest hour I have ever seen, and I don’t know how to live through it.”

I feel an unbelievable compulsion to tell him my secret—the words I’ve been so desperately needing to say—but I know that right now, it would only hurt him more.

Instead of giving him hope, it could crush him that he’s trapped out here with me, and he can’t protect his child. He can’t even send him to safety, like his father did with him.

“Xavier,” I whisper, bringing my face even closer to his. “Kiss me.”

The doubt and conflict in his eyes clears a little, and he leans forward to briefly touch his lips to mine. When he pulls back again, I grab him around the neck and force him back to me, kissing him deeply.

“Mabel,” he gasps. “I don’t know if this is the right time.”

“Let us take what pleasure we can!” I cry, a note of desperation in my voice. “We are in hell, my love, but we have been granted a brief reprieve, right here and now. I want you, I need you—and we should take this moment, in case we never have the chance again.”

Something clears in his eyes, as if my words struck a chord in him. Suddenly, he leans forward and grabs me around the waist, yanking me against him and kissing me hard.

I moan into his mouth as lust flows through me, an incandescent fire that obliterates all else. I spent years holding back my desire for this man, denying my heart, and pretending that good sense could prevail over love. But now I see all I did was waste precious time.

He’s not perfect—and neither am I. None of that matters now. I see the man he truly is, and I know he never wanted to hurt me.

“Mabel,” he mutters through our kiss. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry—”

“Shh, my love,” I whisper, putting my fingers on his lips. “It’s okay, I understand.”

“How can you?” he asks. “When I don’t. I wasn’t in my right mind when I left the Lock. My entire world had been pulled up by the roots, and I thought it would be easier on you if I just made a clean break.”

“Why?” I ask, something deep in my soul yearning for this answer, as it has every second since he left me alone on his front lawn, watching him drive away.

“Because I knew you didn’t love me,” he says, his tone too even for such an earth-shattering confession.

“It was just some fun at a party, and I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up that you’d actually want to be with me.

I know I fucked up when I told you, but I had to get out of there before you broke my heart.

I couldn’t take it. Not on top of everything else I’d just learned. ”

“You stupid goddamn fucking fool,” I chide, kissing him. “I’ve loved you for longer than I care to think about, and that was the best night of my life.”

“No,” he whispers. “God, don’t say that!”

“It’s alright,” I say, kissing him again. “We’re here together, and that’s all that matters now.”

Xavier lets me kiss him, and I can feel him trembling under my hands. Suddenly, he wraps his arms around my waist, lifts me up, and carries me to the couch. I stretch out under him, pulling him down on top of me and wrapping my legs around him.

I tilt my head back, inviting him to deepen the kiss, and I feel his tongue stroking mine. His big, strong hands roam over my body, groping and squeezing until I’m writhing under him, thrusting my hips against him as I cling to his shoulders.

Xavier pulls back, looking into my eyes, and I see a powerful hunger in him, a ferocious look so intense that it’s almost frightening. With a low growl, he grabs my skirt and shoves it up my thighs as he lowers his head between my legs.

The point of his tongue strokes my throbbing, hot clit, and a scream pours from my mouth. He moans, gripping my thighs and pushing my legs further apart so he can lick all the way down to my pussy, using his tongue and lips to caress every slick fold.

I reach down and grab his hair, thrusting my hips back and forth as he pleasures me with his mouth. The aching deep inside me intensifies until it almost hurts, and at exactly the right moment, Xavier puts his lips around my clit, strokes it with his tongue, and sucks on it.

The orgasm roars through me, making me buck underneath him, still clinging to a fistful of his hair. Xavier moans, gripping my thighs and plunging his mouth down again to lap deeply into my pussy, making me come again.

I’m shivering when he finally raises his head, the aching between my legs getting worse when he undresses, and I see how big and hard his cock is. He crawls up my body slowly, rubbing his body against mine as he opens my dress with one hand to squeeze my breasts and tease my nipples.

I grab his hips, thrusting up wildly as I feel his cock pressed against my throbbing lower lips. Xavier braces himself against me, teasing my pussy with his cock as he attacks my nipples with his mouth.

I go crazy under him, grabbing his shoulders and digging my nails in as I try to slide him inside me.

He laughs softly as he turns his face towards mine and kisses me, pressing his hips forward as our lips touch.

I feel his hard cock slam into me, all the way to the hilt, and my scream of release is muffled by his mouth covering mine.

Xavier pulls back, just a little, and his blue eyes are so dark, they almost look black. He touches my cheek, very gently.

“I love you,” he says. “I’m sorry I didn’t say it sooner.”

“I love you, too,” I answer. “And ditto.”

He smiles and kisses me gently before he starts to thrust. He braces his hands under my arms, digs his knees into the couch, and starts ramming me as hard and as fast as he can.

The ache between my legs explodes into waves of pleasure and release that renew with his every stroke, leaving me clinging to him, holding on to him as if he is the only point of safety in a cruel and dangerous world.