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Chapter One
Dom
I cursed under my breath, tired of dealing with the idiot principal and his red tape. I crossed the open field, wondering what the hell this meeting was going to be about….no doubt the principal wanted to offer suggestions for our defense or he’d have some new form we needed the players to sign holding us harmless if they got a bruise on school property.
I shoved the double doors open in to the 400 hall since it was the shortest path to the office. The florescent light above me flickered annoyingly before finally going out. I sighed heavily at the additional annoyance, even as I reminded myself to stop by maintenance on my way back.
The soft squeak of a sneaker on the linoleum floor brought my head up and I watched as a girl checked a piece of paper in her hand before squinting at the doors. Woman, I corrected myself as I noted her subtle curves. I scrubbed my hand over my face, feeling skeevy, even though I knew I probably wasn’t even six years older than her. I walked a fine line working at the school as I kept an eye on Caleb, but so far I hadn’t found myself attracted to a student.
Until today, I admitted to myself, my gaze skimming over her once again as she wandered closer, still unaware of my presence. I knew I should probably announce myself since I wasn’t someone most people wanted to bump into in a dark hallway, especially when they happened to be a woman.
I inhaled as I prepared to announce myself, and her scent hit me, my body tightening uncomfortably as it recognized what she was before my brain could process the impossibility of it, and I growled, “What are you doing here?”
My question came out more as an accusation, startling her and she let out a high pitched squeal, somewhere between a shriek and a scream, the sound piercing to my sensitive hearing. I crossed my arms, knowing I must appear intimidating to her but not caring as my mind scrambled to figure out how she’d gotten here. I didn’t recognize her and I had assumed, wrongfully it appeared, that I knew all of the Hanleys.
“You scared the shit out of me,” she snapped, her breaths coming in short pants as fear upped her heart rate. I breathed shallowly through my mouth, trying to minimize her potent scent.
It didn’t help. Instead, the taste of her coated my tongue as her presence threatened to overwhelm me, and I widened my stance, trying to get comfortable as my body reacted to her.
Her eyes swept over me, coming to an abrupt stop when our eyes met and I could see when the primitive part of her registered me as dangerous. Her breath came quicker as her pupils dilated, and her heart rate doubled. My wolf mistook her fear as arousal and it took all of my control not to lunge for her.
“Class,” she stammered. “I’m trying to find my class.” She waved the paper in her hand as some sort of evidence, but I didn’t take my gaze off her, knowing I appeared grim and off-putting, but at the moment it was for her own safety. “412 is my homeroom.”
“You don’t go to this school,” I stated, absolutely certain of this fact and she shook her head as if agreeing with my statement.
“I do,” she disagreed in the next second, adding, “Go to this school.” I gave her a doubtful stare, wondering what kind of trick this was or what I’d done to deserve this – my own personal version of hell in the form of a beautiful teenager. She looked flustered and then mad, stating, “I’m a new student. Hence the looking for my classroom.” Again, she held up a piece of paper and this time I recognized the school secretary’s messy scrawl. “Jess Carter.”
I relaxed slightly when she said her name, glad it wasn’t Hanley, but still perplexed by her presence. Breeding females were rare and to have one show up without a Pack or a shifter to protect her was unheard of. She definitely didn’t recognize me, I noted when I stepped forward and she took an automatic step back.
My size was naturally daunting and I hadn’t made the best first impression, I admitted to myself as I flicked my wrist to the door on my left.
“412,” I muttered, turning and going back the way I’d come. My meeting with the principal could wait. I needed to clear my head of her scent before I did something truly unforgiveable, like claim her.
***
“What’s got you all knotted up, brother?”
The question wasn’t wholly unexpected, but as I took a shuddering breath, I found myself reluctant to answer. My arms and shoulders strained under the weights and Caleb whistled when he saw how much I was benching. “Seriously, what’s her name?”
