And I don’t know what the fuck to do.
Walking Through the Woods
Skyla
Smoked,dark cherries.
That’s what this alpha smells like. Or… at least I think that’s what he smells like.
It’s hard to tell with the drugs still fogging everything up. My nose feels like it’s filled with cotton, and my brain’s not much better. Suddenly, a rush of his scent hits me all at once, sharp and sweet and a little rough, but then it’s gone again—like I imagined it. LikeI’mimagining all of this.
Still, I let myself sneak a glance at him—at my new pack alpha.Knox.
Just once, before I look away as fast as I can.
I don’t know why I’m scared to look at him—I’m not doing anything wrong—but there’s something about this alpha that makes my stomach twist, like I’m already in trouble, waiting for my beating.
I peek at the alpha again, taking in his wild black hair and trim beard. And he’s big. He doesn’t look angry, exactly—justintense. Too solid, too steady. He feels like something rooted deep in the earth. Permanent. Unshakeable.
I can’t decide if that’s comforting or terrifying.
The red-haired alpha—Alex, I think?—keeps staring at me. His eyes are a deep, dark blue. They narrow as his gaze falls to the bandage on my neck. Or maybe he’s not really lookingatme. Maybe he’s just now seeing what’s left of me. What Brayden left behind.
He’s probably disgusted at the thought of bonding with me, scenting me and touching my neck. No alpha wants to lay a hand anywhere near another male’s mating bite. It’s...taboo. Disgusting, even. Like stepping into another man’s territory with your bare feet.
Alphas are possessive by nature, and the thought of touching a mark that isn't their pack’s, especially in a place as intimate as the neck? It makes their skin crawl.
And my neck…it’s ruined.
Brayden didn’t just mark me once. He bit me over and over, on both sides, as if he thought he could force a bond by inflicting enough pain.
And now this new pack is stuck with me.
“Dakota?” Knox says. His voice is deeper, calm but firm—clearly an alpha used to being obeyed.
“Yeah?” The beta jogs up from behind, shoes squishing into the slick earth.
“Do you have anything that Skyla can wear?”
“Yeah,” Dakota says quickly, eager—too eager. Trying to be helpful. Trying to please. Is Knox the kind of alpha who expects fast answers? Who snaps when he doesn’t get what he wants?
“I didn’t think to buy her anything,” Dakota adds, a little sheepishly. “But I’ve got a clean pair of joggers and another hoodie.”
“Perfect,” Knox replies, sounding pleased. But I don’t dare look at his face.
I keep my head down, heart thudding.I have to do this all over again.
A new house. A new pack. A whole new set of rules to memorize.
Brayden was so particular in the way he wanted me to act at all times. Martin was more aloof, but he was always watching me. Even Douglas, my old beta, had expectations. He liked the house kept a certain way—tidy, sterile, everything in its place.
I had to remember how they liked the food plated, what they expected to hear when they walked through the door, the things they wanted me to do in the bedroom and what they didn’t.
It was a constant guessing game—exhausting, humiliating, and terrifying.Especially when I guessed wrong.
And now I have to do it all over again.
I have to learnthesealphas.
