Sweet, warm, addictive.
Emily.
My eyes shoot towards Emily, who has Sofia joining her. She’s wearing a baggy grey tee shirt, knotted at the side and leggings painted onto her petite curves. I swallow a growl. I know exactly how her ass looks under those.
My eyes linger too long. She shouldn’t be this beautiful—or I shouldn’t be seeing her as being so beautiful. Not when she’s still figuring out how to feel safe. My wolf doesn’t care. But I do. Or at least I'm trying to.
As the girls get closer, Sofia spots Luca and rolls her eyes. “What’s he doing here?” She grumbles to Emily. Emily shrugs and grabs her hand as if she thinks Sofia will bolt. I’m not sure if Luca has ever noticed, but Sofia only comes to training when he isn’t here. And she works her butt off, so it’s definitely not laziness that causes her to avoid training on his days.
I want to ask Luca when their resentment and ire started, but I don’t think he even knows the answer. I settle for shoving his shoulder and giving him a pointed look that hopefully communicatesplay nice.
“I could ask the same question, Sofia. It’s not like you to turn up for training. Don’t you have other things to do, like prancing around and teasing the pack warriors?” Luca taunts her. She snaps back at him, and within seconds, they’re tearing into each other. They fight like siblings except I don't think there's any love underneath the arguments anymore.
I ignore them both and turn my attention back to Emily. “Well, seeing as we have some extra bodies, I guess Luca and Sofia can help with your training today.”
“The Beta and Delta? Both giving me private lessons? Seems a tad excessive for one little omega,” Emily says, a slight quiver in her voice, and her hands tremble ever so slightly.
Her scent, previously a delicious blend of sweet and rich, is now subtly marred by a hint of fear. A sharp, metallic tang, like the scent of blood, cutting through the sweetness of her usual scent. What does that mean? Is she afraid of me because of what happened yesterday?
“Oh, it’s not a big deal. We’re a close-knit pack around here,” I say as she side-eyes the two enemies, verbally tearing each other to shreds. “Plus, seems you might want a buffer today.”
“Um, yeah. That’s probably a good idea.” She is looking anywhere but at me, her gaze fixed on the floor as if it holds all the answers. The tension in the air is palpable, and I can feel the weight of unspoken words hanging heavily between us. The events of yesterday have left us both unsure of how to proceed.
I know how Iwantto move forward. But this is an obvious reminder; she’s not ready.
Yet.
Fuck, I want to be the one to help her get there. But I can’t push it too hard.
“You guys done bickering?” I ask Luca and Sofia, who are glaring at each other, chests heaving. Like they’re going to either rip each other apart or rip each other’s clothes off. Huh. Why have I never noticed the sexual tension between them before? I guess it makes sense.
“Actually, it’s perfect that you are both here. This way we can demonstrate for Emily and then she can try to repeat the movements. You want to go with me, Sofia?”
I know that there’s a genuine risk Sofia will murder me in my sleep if I pair her up with Luca. She looks at Emily before smirking and saying that it probably makes the most sense for Emily’s training to remain consistent with me. I grin as relief hits me. My wolf might have lost it if Luca put his hands on Emily.
I try not to read into Emily’s wide eyes too much or the filthy glare she throws in Sofia’s direction.
We work on moving out of various holds, and I’m relieved that Emily seems pretty unafraid of me, even after what happened in our last training session. She’s still comfortable enough to meet my eyes. That matters.
Then we move on to getting out of a hold where your attacker has grabbed you by the hair. Sofia and Luca demonstrate, and I have to stifle a laugh when she twists in his hold and knees him in the balls. Luca crumples to the ground while groaning and clutching at himself.
“Oops, I didn’t hurt you, did I? Surely not when I’m only a weak little girl,” she says in a saccharine sweet voice.
I can’t hold the laughter in as Luca groans in the fetal position. I laugh so hard that there are tears in my eyes. But when I glance at Emily—everything in me stills.
She’s wringing her hands. The color has drained from her face, leaving her ghostly and lifeless. Every movement she makes seems weak, as if her body has become fragile under the weight of her emotions. The scent of fear emanating from her is almost palpable, as if a cloud of unease surrounds her. It’s a distinct smell—a mixture of adrenaline and sweat, creating a slightly acrid and metallic aroma. Nothing like what she should smell like.
“Hey, he’s fine. I’m sure his balls will descend again at some point,” I try to joke, forcing lightness into my voice.
“But… he’ll be so angry,” she whispers, her fearful eyes darting between Luca and Sofia like she’s waiting for Luca to jump up and retaliate. I glance at Sofia, her expression softer than what I’m used to seeing from her. She walks over to Emily and grips her arms firmly, squatting down slightly to make eye contact, reassuring her that everything is okay, that Luca won’t retaliate against her, that he won’t use this as an excuse to hurt her.
“I promise, sweetie. Luca won’t physically hurt me. Not now. Not ever.”
“Of course I wouldn’t fucking hurt her,” Luca growls, still on the floor, clutching his balls. He stares at Emily, an intensity in his eyes. “What the fuck went on in your last pack?”
Emily shrinks even further, and tears fill her eyes.
“For the love of the Moon Goddess herself, please shut the fuck up, Luca,” Sofia snarls at him as I watch on in horror.
