Chapter 51 051
SCOTT
I walked briskly down the passageway with an ointment clutched tightly in my hand, my boots echoing against the polished floor. I ignored the greetings the maids threw at me as I passed; I didn’t have the patience to respond. My mind was elsewhere....on her. I couldn’t settle knowing that
Amanda had been hurt. Yes, I was aware that as shapeshifters we healed far faster than humans ever could, but that knowledge did nothing to calm the restless unease clawing at my chest.
“I don’t even know if she can properly take care of herself,” I muttered under my breath, frustration seeping into my voice. My eyes darkened as anger simmered beneath my skin. The rogues we had captured would pay for even thinking of attacking our pack. They were the cause of this chaos, the reason she had gotten hurt in the first place. And I was not in a forgiving mood.
“Hey, crazy girl, are you okay?” I called out as I barged into her room without bothering to knock. The urgency clouding my mind overrode every ounce of proper decorum I had ever been taught.
But the sight that greeted me froze me mid-step, and I swallowed hard in shock. Amanda had just stepped out of the bathroom, water droplets glistening on her bare skin as they trailed down her body.
She was completely undressed, her damp hair clinging to her shoulders, and for a moment my brain refused to function. My breath hitched painfully in my throat.
“Can you please close the door behind you?” she said calmly, her voice slicing through my daze and dragging me back to reality. Heat rushed to my face as I realized how inappropriate my intrusion was.
“I am sorry!” I blurted out hurriedly, tearing my eyes away from her and stumbling backward. I exited the room quickly and slammed the door shut behind me, my heart racing uncontrollably. I leaned against the wall outside, trying to steady my breathing, but it only grew worse the more the image replayed in my mind. The curve of her shoulders, the droplets sliding over her skin....it was torture.
“Why are you like this, Scott?” I muttered harshly to myself.
“You’ve seen her shift before. Why are you suddenly so nervous?” I tried to calm my erratic heartbeat, but then her voice floated from inside the room.
“You can come in now.”
I inhaled deeply, exhaled slowly, and forced myself to regain control before stepping back inside. She was dressed this time, though the faint scent of soap and something uniquely hers lingered in the air.
For some inexplicable reason, I felt even hotter than before. ‘I’m hot too,’ my wolf chimed in teasingly, and I snorted under my breath at his obvious implication.
“Are you okay now?” I asked, deliberately keeping my gaze anywhere but directly on her. I studied the walls, the furniture, even the floor....anything to avoid looking at her too long. She chuckled softly at my obvious discomfort.
“What’s wrong, Beta? Are you suddenly shy?” she teased, tilting her head with an amused smile.
“I don’t see you as the shy type, so what’s going on?” There was something about the way she spoke....playful yet warm....that always managed to put me at ease.
“Shy? Why would I be shy?” I replied, forcing a smirk.
“It’s not like I haven’t seen everything earlier.” I expected her to get offended by my boldness, but instead she surprised me by lightly slapping my arm.
“That’s the spirit, General,” she said with a grin as she sat on the edge of her bed. There was only one chair in the room, and it was too far away, so I found myself sitting beside her without thinking too much about it. Strangely, I didn’t feel awkward around her. Over the past few days, we had grown comfortable with each other. She never made me feel judged or guarded; being around her felt… easy.
“I brought this ointment for you,” I said, handing it to her.
“I saw that you got hurt.” She looked at the small container in her hand, then back at me with an incredulous expression.
“Are you giving a shapeshifter ointment for a simple cut?” she asked with a raised brow. I sighed, feeling slightly foolish. Maybe I had overreacted.
“Then I guess I’ll take my leave,” I said quickly, rising from the bed in an attempt to escape my embarrassment. But before I could step away, she reached out and placed her hand on my arm.
“Since it’s a kind gesture, I’ll accept it,” she said softly, taking the ointment from me. Our fingers brushed in the exchange, and the simple contact sent a jolt of heat through my entire body. It felt as if my skin had been set on fire. I found myself staring into her eyes, unable to look away. The air between us thickened, heavy and charged. We both seemed frozen in place, drawn closer by something neither of us could deny. Time felt suspended, the world outside her room ceasing to exist.
Our lips grazed, hesitant at first, as though testing a boundary neither of us had clearly defined. The next second, restraint shattered. I pressed my lips firmly against hers, and she inhaled sharply, her breath mingling with mine. The kiss deepened, fueled by weeks of unspoken tension and stolen glances. She responded, her hands gripping my shirt as if grounding herself. My thoughts blurred, drowned out by the intoxicating sensation of her warmth and the softness of her lips. I pulled her closer, and she yielded, though I felt a faint tremor in her body.
In my haste, I backed her against the wall, and she let out a small wince that barely registered through the haze clouding my mind. I was acting purely on instinct, overwhelmed by desire and the overwhelming need to claim what had been silently building between us. Her soft sounds only drove me further, making it harder to think clearly.
My hands moved impulsively, holding her too tightly, forgetting for a moment that she had been hurt earlier.
“Scott, you are…” she began, but I silenced her with another desperate kiss, unwilling to let the moment slip away.
Then a sharp knock sounded at the door.
The noise shattered the trance I had been trapped in. Reality crashed down on me like a bucket of ice water. I pulled away instantly, my breathing ragged, my mind finally catching up to my actions.
“Oh.... I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have… I…” My words stumbled over each other, turning me into a stuttering mess. I stared at her, horrified by my own lack of control. When had I become this reckless? This impulsive? I had always prided myself on discipline, on control. Yet here I was, behaving like some hormone-driven fool.
He felt unreal.
“No, it’s fine, I’m sure....” she started, but I cut her off quickly, shame flooding my veins. “No, it’s not fine. I did something distasteful, and it should never have happened… not with you.” The moment the words left my mouth, I regretted them.
They sounded wrong....harsh, insulting even....when that wasn’t what I meant at all.
“Distasteful? Not with me?” she repeated, her voice tightening. I shook my head frantically.
“That’s not what I meant. It was a misunderstanding. I didn’t mean....”
“Get out!” she snapped, her eyes flashing with anger I had never seen directed at me before. The sharpness in her tone sliced deeper than any blade could. I opened my mouth to argue, to explain myself properly, but the tension radiating from her made it clear that staying would only make things worse.
“I’m sorry,” I said quietly.
“I’ll come back when you’re less angry.” She scoffed bitterly.
“Don’t ever come back. We don’t need you doing another distasteful thing.” The door slammed behind me the moment I stepped out, the sound echoing down the corridor like a final verdict.
I stood there for a long moment, staring at the closed door, a heavy sigh escaping my lips. Guilt twisted painfully in my chest. I had ruined everything in a matter of minutes. I never meant to hurt her, never meant to disrespect her. But intentions didn’t matter when the damage had already been done. I rubbed my face in frustration, my wolf uncharacteristically silent inside me. I was scared....truly scared....and that realization unsettled me more than anything else.
But what exactly was I afraid of? That she wouldn’t forgive me? Or that I had just jeopardized something far more important than I had been willing to admit?