Give me a name...

**BLANCA**
It had been so long since I'd eaten chicken, I simply could not chew slowly. I *meant* to eat like a lady. I *tried* to nibble and chew, but the moment I tasted the savory goodness of the meat against my tongue, it was over. I inhaled the three pieces on my plate and two pieces off of Max's. I was actually surprised he let me have them. Maybe all is not lost after all.
"Have some wine," he says a deep voice laced with something that sounds dangerously like lust.
I've never had wine, but I do as told. Taking a deep drink before choking on the near bitter end of it. "Oh," I say, feeling the drink warm me as it travels down my throat and into my tummy.
"Did you like it?"
I want to be polite, but I don't want to drink more of it. "It's different. I think I prefer water though."
He laughs and I notice for the first time that he has dimples. My eyes fall down the corded muscles of his neck then up again before I force myself to look away. He has obviously showered and his scent is even more potent now. I'm having a hard time keeping myself from sniffing him outright. I can't even truly point my finger on the smell, but I know that I love it. It reminds me of pine forests after the rain. Something I have always loved dearly.
My body begins to heat a bit and I'm suddenly so tired I could pass out in this chair.
"Time for bed," he says suddenly. "We have an early morning."
"Am I sleeping in here?" I ask. "In your big gigantic room?"
"Yes," he says, standing up and heading across the room to turn down the covers.
I walk toward him, swaying slightly as I get close. He reaches out and grabs me around the waist, then deposits me on the far side of the bed.
"Oh," I moan, when my head hits a pillow so soft that it must be a cloud. Even the mattress beneath me is too soft to be real and I find myself moaning again as I wiggle my legs against the sheets.
The lights go out and I'm suddenly bathed in shadow, the only glow coming from the unshaded window on the far side of the room. When I hear the door lock, I think I'm alone and I sit up in disappointment.
"I didn't even get to say good night," I whisper to myself, trying not to let it get to me.
"You can say it now," Max says, his voice husky.
I flinch, my head jerking to the left in search of him. "You are sleeping in here too?" My entire body begins to prickle with heat as I ponder what this might mean.
"Of course I am," he snaps, from the darkness. "This is my room and how else am I going to be sure you don't escape?"
"Of course," I reply. "I apologize, Alpha. I just didn't think you'd want to have to share a bed with me."
I can't entirely see him yet, but just as my eyes are becoming adjusted I notice he's stripped down to his underwear and every muscle I own clenches tight.
I was right. *He's beautiful.*
The bulging muscles of his powerful chest and arms are decorated in dark swirling tattoos that I can't quite make out in the dim light, but that doesn't stop them from affecting me. My eyes trace every contour, dip, groove, and flex of his chiseled form as he climbs into the bed next to me and for the second time since I've met him, I feel a pulse between my legs. I don't know what it means, but I do know that it wants something and the giant bulge fighting against Max's boxers is pulsing in much the same way.
*He is supposed to be mine.*
*But he doesn't want to be.*
It's that last thought that sobers me as I tear my eyes away. Laying back down on the pillow, I turn onto my side to face the wall. Max's scent is so wonderfully abundant in this room that before I know it, I am dozing. With a sigh, I bury my face and nose into the pillow and inhale as much Max as I can.
"This is so nice," I say sleepily. "I wish it could last forever."
Max's voice floats toward my back, his tone full of warning, "You need to understand something, Blanca. Are you listening?"
My eyes fly open and my body stiffens. "Yes."
"You are enslaved to me for the life that you stole. You are supposed to suffer, not enjoy. That means you are *forbidden* from taking any lovers."
"Yes Alpha," is all I can think to say.
"Good," he whispers.
As my eyes begin to close again, I feel something tugging on my hair. So, I smile choosing to imagine it is Max playing with my long white locks as I fall asleep.
"Tell me something, Blanca," he coos.
"Okay Alpha,"I whisper, on the brink of passing out.
"Did you see the people who threw the stones tonight?"
My chest aches suddenly and a burning sob lodges in my throat. I drag in a shuddering breath and clear my throat. "Not all of them."
My head tugs a bit as a few strands of my hair are pulled in Max's direction and I realize that he must be running his fingers through it. I sigh deeply, edging my body just a bit closer to where I assume his hand might be.
"Did you see who started it? Did you see who threw the first stone?" Max asks quietly.
"Why?" I whisper, tears filling my vision.
"Did you see them or not?" he snaps harshly and the tugging on my hair stops.
"I did," I admit as the drops beneath my lids prepare to fall.
"Give me a name. I need to know who to watch out for and who to keep away from you. I won't have troublemakers interfering with your duties. So, tell me. Who was it?"
Although what he said reassures me, the tears still break free when I answer him, "Beth Ceuran."
*My mother.*