Chapter 22 DRAWN TO HER
DAMIEN’S POV
Her skin is butter against mine, and her eyes hold a fire that complements mine, and in this moment, every reason I was certain of about why I care so much all seems questionable.
I know the exact moment she remembers me, and my wolf growls excitedly, with an intensity that has me putting distance between us in a flash.
“You were the wolf that saved me. I knew you looked familiar, I just didn’t know why,” she says with a bright smile.
“How did I look familiar?” I ask playfully, trying to call her bluff, because I knew that she barely looked at me before I dashed off, so I didn’t really expect to be recognized.
When I saw her, I instantly knew who she was, because how could I not, her image hasn’t left my mind since the day I saved her in the woods.
When I realized that she was Derek’s mate, it made sense that I was drawn to her and why I carried her memory like precious cargo in my mind. It’s my duty to protect the Luna, and I explained my magnetism to her.
I held onto this explanation, and I was at peace with it, but now, with the way her eyes impale me to the point of borderline insanity, I don’t know.
“Your eyes,” she starts saying in response, “I never forgot your eyes,” she says genuinely, and I smile as my wolf grunts, pleased with her answer.
“So are you going to appreciate me truly now, or do you want to give me another sarcastic monologue of thanks?” I ask with a smirk, and she chuckles, shaking her head.
“Thank you, I’d have probably died that day,” she says. “Maybe dying wasn’t really a bad idea, I wouldn’t have met Derek,” she adds with a sad sigh.
“No more gloom, Princess. What do you do for fun here?” I ask, trying to lighten the mood again.
“Well, I –” she starts saying, looking around, but stops when her eyes reach the door. “What is that?” she asks, pointing to an envelope in front of the door, and I stand up to check it out.
“A letter.”
“For me?”
“Yeah, from Lucien Snow,” I say, reading the sender's details. “It’s open,” I say, returning to her with it.
She sits erect and takes it from me, “Derek opened it,” she says, and it’s clear that she caught his scent on it.
“He has to, it came from an enemy pack, so he had to be sure that it wasn’t harmful,” I explain, sitting down, seeing that she is getting annoyed, knowing that he most likely read its content.
“Don’t make excuses for him,” she says, not taking her eyes off the letter, and I nod, not wanting to annoy her further.
“I’ll leave you to it then,” I say calmly, standing up, ready to take my leave.
“Why?” She asks, lifting her eyes to me.
“I want to give you your privacy, princess,” I say with a smile, but she frowns.
“I never asked you to leave, though. I’m fine with you here while I read,” she says firmly, which makes me smirk with satisfaction.
“Trust me, Princess, I’d rather stay with you, but the alpha just mind-linked me, saying that he needs me,” I say truthfully. I was going to ignore Derek and stay here with her, but I believe she should have her time alone as she reads her brother’s letter.
“Would you come back?” she asks me with a vulnerability that makes my heart ache for her. She’s being treated as a prisoner in a place where she’s supposed to be a queen.
She’s being kept in isolation in a place where she’s supposed to be the center of attention.
She’s being ignored by a person who is supposed to shower her with more love than exists in the world.
It stings that one looks at her, and I can liken her to a caged bird. The she-wolf I saw in the woods, sinking her claws into a rogue with fire in her eyes, isn’t the same here.
She looks like she’s struggling to keep her fiery spirit and not be broken completely, and it infuriates me that the person meant to take care of her is the cause of this pain.
“I couldn’t stay away even if I wanted to, Princess, and I’d rather stay with you than anyone else here. But next time we won’t be confined within these four walls, I promise,” I say with a bright smile, and she smiles right back, and I’m stunned by the glimmer in her eyes. It’s beautiful.
“Where would you take me to?” she asks cheerfully.
“A garden,” I say with a wink, and she blushes adorably, “For now, I need to go tell your mate what beautiful eyes you have and hope it aggravates him enough to start treating you right,” I say to her, and she laughs. Hard.
“That’s unlikely, but good luck,” she says.
“See you later, Princess.”
“Bye, Damien,” she says, and I shut the door behind myself and begin heading to Derek.
With each step I take towards him, the more infuriated I get at his attitude towards her and the amount of pain he’s causing her.
I get to his office and step in without knocking. On a normal day, I’d do it because we are that close, but today I’m sure he knows I’m doing it because I’m furious.
“What Damien? You talk to her for an hour, and now you have more ammunition for your disdain towards me?” he asks with an impassive tone, not looking up from the computer in front of him.
I’ve never felt like punching him so bad.
“I want to punch you so bad, Derek. You have no idea the harm you’re doing to that lady,” I say, walking closer to him, and this seems to get his attention and trigger him for some reason, and in a flash, he’s right in front of me, gripping my collar and pushing me to a wall fiercely.
“Enough with the disrespect, Damien! I won’t take any more!! You think I don’t feel the pain too?! You think I don’t want to walk into her room and pick her up and keep her by my side, all consequences be damned? But I cannot. My mother died because of her family. My father lost his will to live because of her family. The pack was almost destroyed because of her family. My life as a child is non-existent because of her family; this pack has suffered because of her family, and for years, they have shown no remorse for it. So it might hurt that I isolate her, but she cannot be my eternity, or my pack will crumble. Apples usually don’t fall far from the tree, and I’m not going to risk the safety of thousands for a taste of the forbidden fruit,” he spits, enraged.
“Then you are a fool.”
My statement doesn’t finish when he lands a solid punch on my face, and I feel my nose break upon impact.
What did I say about stupid Alphas?
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HER DEATH THREAT