Chapter 17: Alpha-Less
Vivian Grey’s POV
I was starting to understand that being around Zaliver meant preparing myself for the unexpected, for the intensity, and for the differences between us. He came from a world I didn’t fully grasp, a life filled with truths I hadn’t even begun to uncover. Truths about this world. Maybe even about myself. I narrowed my eyes at him, lips pressed tightly together, but held back from pressing further.
"So, what happens now with this whole mate thing?" I asked, sarcasm lacing my voice as I planted my hands on my hips. "Are we supposed to just stay on opposite ends of this island? You take your side, and I take mine?"
I caught the flicker of amusement on his face, the way his lips curved slightly. My wolf stirred restlessly inside me, uncertain whether we should respond to that smile or resist it.
"Technically," he began, "both sides are mine, I do own the island, after all. But if it makes you feel better, no. You’ll be wherever I am." He tilted his head slightly, as if considering something deeper. "I won’t deny our bond. We are mates. But what we are, it’s a mystery even to me. The big bad wolf god and an eighteen-year-old pup. What an unlikely match."
He closed his eyes, voice drifting into something thoughtful, soft almost. It was rare to see him like that. For a moment, I wondered if he realized he was lowering his guard, even just a little. It made me feel like I was seeing a piece of him not many ever did.
"Is that supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing?" I asked carefully. "Because here’s the deal, I’m no Juliet. If you can’t accept me as I am because of something you refuse to explain, I’ll go find my own Romeo."
His eyes snapped open. Gone was the blue, replaced by a void of black that sent a jolt through me. Before I could blink, he was in front of me. I yelped as he pressed forward, backing me up until something cushioned the back of my knees. I stumbled slightly, falling back onto what I assumed was a couch. He leaned over me, his scent surrounding me, his presence swallowing the room.
"Let that be the last time you even joke about another man," he growled, his voice low and fierce. "I don’t share, little one. If someone even thinks of touching what’s mine, I’ll tear him apart in front of you. So you never forget who you belong to."
His face was inches from mine, pupils retracting as burning blue took over.
"And then," he whispered, voice like wildfire against my skin, "I’ll make sure you remember whose touch you crave."
Oh. My. Goddess.
I lay there for a second after he pulled back, genuinely unable to move. Not out of fear, though there was plenty of that underneath everything, but because my entire body had just staged a full mutiny. Heart hammering, cheeks burning, fingertips tingling where I’d gripped the couch cushion. I was five seconds away from doing something I absolutely could not take back, and some tiny, barely functioning part of my brain was the only thing that had stopped me.
When he finally walked away and settled back onto the other couch, I nearly sagged in relief. I needed a moment, just a single moment, to push down the flush in my cheeks, to pretend I hadn’t been five seconds from throwing myself at him. My body was not on the same page as my brain. While I tried to act calm, it was screaming, "Claim me. Right now."
I should’ve been terrified by his threat. Maybe part of me even wanted to be. But the bigger truth? I found comfort in his possessiveness. Not in an unhealthy way. It was something primal, deeply wolf. He didn’t want to let me go. And my wolf, she liked that.
"Well," he said, dusting off his hands like we’d just handled something trivial. "Now that we’ve got that settled—"
"Wait." I shot up, waving a hand. "What exactly am I supposed to do here? And what about my family?"
His expression shifted, emptying out like someone pulled the curtain closed behind his eyes. My chest tightened.
Did that mean I wouldn’t see them again?
"I guess tomorrow, you can spend the day with me," he said casually, like he hadn’t just sent my thoughts into a tailspin. "As for your family, I’ll consider it."
"Consider it?" I echoed in disbelief.
He ignored my tone, standing and making his way toward me. He offered his hand. I stared at it for a second, then took it, letting him pull me to my feet. We started walking down the hallway, slow and quiet, toward what I assumed would be my room.
Though that raised another issue. I remembered very clearly saying I would not be sleeping in the same bed as him. Not because I thought he’d cross a line, but because I was terrified I would. Honestly, if anyone would be getting handsy, it would be me. I was trying to save myself from doing something embarrassingly bold. Judging by how often he’d touched me lately, I wasn’t even sure he’d stop me if I tried.
The hallway felt longer than it had before. Or maybe I was just more aware of him beside me, the warmth of his hand around mine, the quiet between us that wasn’t quite comfortable but wasn’t hostile either. It was something in between that I didn’t have a name for yet.
"And the girls?" I asked, keeping my voice steady. "The ones taken by this pack. Lily. What happened to them?"
"They were returned," he said without emotion. "Once it was clear they weren’t my mate, I sent them back to their packs. Sometimes one of my men would find his mate among them. In those cases, I’d allow the girl to stay." His tone darkened slightly. "As for your cousin, I’ve been told she’s doing fine. Or as fine as an alpha-less pack can be."
I stopped walking.
Alpha-less.
The word landed like a stone dropped into still water, the ripples spreading out slow and cold through my chest. Gwen’s pack had lost their Alpha in the attack. The same attack that had brought me here. The same night everything had changed. And while I’d been arguing about college and stealing Zaliver’s underwear and winning Wii dance battles, Gwen had been holding together a fractured pack without a leader.
I stared at the floor for a moment, jaw tight, throat thicker than I wanted it to be.
"Is she safe?" I asked, quieter now.
He glanced at me sideways. "She’s alive."
It wasn’t the same thing, and we both knew it. But it was all he offered, and for now, it had to be enough.
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