Chapter 17 Dangerous Lessons
~Sage~
A note was waiting for me when I woke, slipped under my door sometime before dawn.
Training room. One hour. Come alone. - K
His handwriting was sharp, aggressive, like everything about him. I traced the K with my fingertip, my body already responding to just his initial. Pathetic. I was absolutely pathetic.
I dragged myself to the mirror and winced. Light bruises dotted my hips where Keith had gripped me, and there was a faint mark on my neck where his teeth had scraped. Nothing visible if I wore my hair down, but I could see them.
I dragged myself to the bathroom, knowing that I would soon be called out for breakfast. The cold shower did nothing to calm my nerves. Every drop of water felt like his fingers on my skin. I chose my training clothes carefully: high-necked sports bra to hide the marks, loose pants that wouldn't show how affected I was by his proximity. As if that would help. As if anything could help the way my body betrayed me around him.
Breakfast was a special kind of torture. King Damon sat at the head of the table, discussing pack business with his advisors while I pushed eggs around my plate. He barely looked at me until the end, when he stood to leave.
"I'll be gone for two days," he announced to the table, though his eyes were on me. "Border disputes with the Crimson Pack need addressing." His hand landed on my shoulder, possessive and heavy. "Keith will oversee things here. Try not to miss me too much, my dear."
He kissed my forehead, and I fought not to flinch. Across the table, Keith's knuckles were red around his coffee mug.
"Natalie will keep you company," the King added, and my stomach dropped. "She'll help you prepare for your new role."
Natalie smiled sweetly from her seat, her eyes sharp as broken glass. "It would be my honor, Alpha king."
Twenty minutes later, I stood outside the training room. The door was already open when I got there.
Keith was there, shirtless because of course he was, wrapping his hands with black tape. He didn't look up when I entered, but I saw the tension in his shoulders.
"You came," he said quietly.
"You knew I would."
He finally looked at me then, and the heat in his eyes made my knees weak. "We need to work on your defensive stance."
"Is that what we're calling this?"
A ghost of a smile. "Would you prefer I call it what it really is?"
"Which is?"
He moved toward me slowly, predatory. "The only excuse I could think of to put my hands on you without raising suspicion."
My breath caught. "Keith—"
"You need to learn to control your scent," he said, circling me now. "Every time you get aroused, every time you want something, everyone can smell it. It's going to get us killed."
"I can't help it," I admitted, tracking his movement. "My wolf has never been this... responsive before."
"She's awakening." He stopped behind me, close enough that I could feel his body heat. "Growing stronger. The question is why now."
I knew why. We both did. But neither of us would say it.
"First position," he instructed, his voice dropping lower. "Feet shoulder-width apart."
I complied, and his hands immediately went to my hips, adjusting my stance. The touch was clinical, instructional, but my body didn't care. Heat pooled low in my belly.
"Better," he murmured, his breath against my ear. "Now, if someone grabs you from behind..."
His arm wrapped around my throat, not tight, just resting there. A demonstration. But having his body pressed against my back, his arm across my chest, was anything but academic.
"You drop your center of gravity," he continued, his other hand on my stomach, pushing slightly to show me the movement. "Then you turn into the attacker, not away."
I turned as he instructed, which brought us face to face, my hands on his chest to maintain balance. We froze, breathing hard, and not from exertion.
"Good," he whispered, neither of us moving. "Again."
We continued like that for an hour, each defensive move an excuse to touch each other. He showed me how to break a hold, his hands sliding along my arms. How to use an attacker's weight against them, which required him to demonstrate by pinning me to the wall, his thigh between mine. How to escape from the ground, which led to him hovering over me on the mat, both of us panting.
"Someone could walk in," I gasped as he adjusted my leg position, his hand lingering on my thigh.
"Let them." His eyes were wild, amber bleeding through. "Let them see me training my father's bride to defend herself. Nothing inappropriate about that."
The word 'inappropriate' made me laugh, breathless and slightly hysterical. "Nothing at all."
He leaned closer, his lips almost brushing mine. "Sage—"
"Well, isn't this cozy?"
We sprang apart. Natalie stood in the doorway, looking immaculate in a cream dress, not a hair out of place.
"Natalie," Keith said, voice impressively steady as he stood, offering me a hand up. "Sage needed to learn basic defense."
"How thoughtful of you." Her smile was razor-sharp. "Though I would think the Alpha's bride wouldn't need such... hands-on instruction."
"Everyone needs to know how to protect themselves," I said, proud when my voice didn't shake.
"Of course." She looked between us, and I could see her cataloging every detail: our flushed faces, the sweat, the way Keith had positioned himself slightly in front of me. "Well, I hate to interrupt, but the Alpha asked me to begin your Luna preparation today."
"Now?"
"No time like the present." Her smile widened. "We have so much to cover before the marking ceremony. The proper way to present yourself, the words you'll need to say, what to expect from the... consummation."
Keith went rigid beside me.
"I need to shower first," I said.
"Of course. I'll wait." She settled onto a bench like she had all the time in the world. "Keith, don't you have matters to attend to? As acting Alpha?"
It was a dismissal, and we all knew it. Keith looked at me, a muscle jumping in his jaw, before walking out without a word.
Natalie waited until his footsteps faded before standing. "A word of advice? You might want to shower in cold water. Your scent is... overwhelming."
Heat flooded my face.
"Oh, don't be embarrassed," she continued, moving closer. "It's natural to be attracted to power. Though I wonder what the Alpha would think if he knew his bride got this worked up during training with his son."
"It's not—"
"I can smell him all over you," she interrupted softly. "Even through your shower this morning. Even through the perfume you tried to mask it with." She leaned in, her voice dropping to a whisper. "His scent is practically embedded in your skin. Funny how that happens, isn't it? When a wolf is around someone they're particularly... drawn to."
My heart was racing, but I forced myself to meet her eyes. "What do you want?"
"Want? Nothing. I'm here to help you become the perfect Luna." She stepped back, her smile returning. "Speaking of which, we should discuss the marking ceremony. Has anyone explained what happens after the Alpha bites you?"
"The bond forms."
"Yes, but do you understand what that means? You'll feel everything he feels. Every emotion, every desire. And he'll feel yours." Her eyes glittered. "Imagine that. The Alpha knowing every single thing you're thinking. Feeling. Wanting."
The implications hit me like cold water. If Damon marked me, he'd know. He'd feel my revulsion for him, my desire for Keith. Everything.
"Shower," Natalie said brightly. "Then meet me in the Blue Salon. We have six hours of etiquette to cover."
The rest of the day was torture. Natalie drilled me on everything from the proper way to host a pack dinner to the hierarchy of allied packs. But worse were her casual observations, dropped like bombs between lessons.
"You'll need to work on your composure. You flinch every time someone mentions the Alpha."
"Your scent spikes with anxiety whenever we discuss the marking. The pack will notice."
"Has Keith been helping you with other... preparations? He seems very invested in your training."
By evening, I was exhausted, overwhelmed, and desperately craving something I couldn't have. When Natalie finally released me, I practically ran to my room, locking the door and sliding down it.
Two more days of this. Then the King would return, and I'd have five days until the marking ceremony. Five days until I belonged to a man who made my skin crawl.