Chapter 41

I kicked my bedroom door open and walked in. Behind me, I heard loud footsteps. I waited for the door to slam shut. I walked to the middle of my room and turned to face a smirky Nicholas.

He walked up to me and looked at me intently. His eyes were staring into mine like he was trying to look into my soul. He licked his lips and crossed his arms. His eyes flickered to my lips for a slight moment.

“So? What now?” His voice was serious.

I took a deep breath in trying to digest the seriousness in Nicholas’s voice.

I looked at his face and the devilish smirk that he had playing on his lips. I couldn’t hold it in anymore, and I burst out laughing. My laugh filled the room. 

“Cmon, dude, did you have to be so dramatic?” I tried containing my laughter but was failing miserably.

“Oh, come on! Way to ruin the moment! I was just getting into character here. Couldn’t you keep it in for ten more minutes?” Nicholas threw his hands in the air and rolled his eyes. He walked over to my bed and sat down on the edge.

“Yeah, no! You are so dramatic! You were meant just to flirt, to make it seem like I’m still as heartless as before. Did you really have to hurt my feelings and make me some fucking trophy?!”

Nicholas got up and walked back over to me.“It's interesting how if I say you're a trophy every guy wants, it hurts your feelings. But when males out there say it, you don’t care. Can I ask why?”

“Because I don’t care what others think of me. Why should I care? They don’t pay my bills or put food on my table. They don’t get a say in my life and my actions. Just because they think it or say, it doesn’t mean it’s true. I’m confident in my skin. My close friends and family know me. They know what I’m like and what they think of me is what matters. As for you, you know what I’m like. So yes, what you think of me matters.”

“You know most girls would find it insulting. That people think such things about them.”

“I’m not most girls, Nicholas. You already know that” I watched as a small smile formed on Nicholas’s face. His genuine smile.

“I knew that about you the moment we met. You are an extraordinary lady, Alexandria. I just wish I could make you the special lady in my life” he reached over and tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear.

After dad, he may be the only person that used my full name. Clark used it a few times when he was angry. But out of Nicholas’s mouth, it was sending shivers through my body.

That small gesture sent my heart racing.

I pushed back the emotions bubbling in me. Why had I taken Shiloh’s warnings so lightly?

I cleared my throat.

“See, so dramatic. Nick, your obsession with me is cute and all, but grow up. You will find a mate one day. What’s going to happen then, huh?” I chuckled.

He grabbed my arms and pulled me closer to him. I was pressed up against his warm chest, staring up into his burning eyes.

“How much longer are we going to keep pretending there’s no pull between us? Tell me, Alex! How much longer are we meant to stay, just friends?!” He was suddenly angry. His eyes started to get darker, and his grip on my arms got tighter.

“My blood has been boiling from the day you told me about what this Duke guy is up to. He's using you. He's taken advantage of you. He robbed you of the simple pleasures of a mate! I should have done something about us earlier. I shouldn’t have waited this long to figure out what our connection is. I was letting things between us slide because at least I had you as a friend, and that was better than not having you at all. Now, knowing that someone magically blinded you enough to keep you away from me, I will not let it slide. Knowing that someone has taken advantage of you behind my back makes me very angry. I want to know what this pull is between us, and I swear, I’ll break any neck that gets in my way.” His eyes were burning with anger.

“Nicholas, calm down. You will ruin my entire plan if you start acting like this. You and I are both at fault. You always felt the pull, and when I finally did, I got so scared and confused, I ran away from it. If both of us had done something earlier, maybe we would have spotted all these plans Duke had. However, now is not the time to be sentimental.” I put my hands on both sides of his neck and watched as his anger simmered down.

“You obviously know something I don’t” he opened his eyes, and they were his usual green.

“Maybe I do. But right now, I was hoping you could get me out of Angel Falls to find Sensei Gideon. Jeremy said that Clark was looking for him, and they don’t know where he is” I dropped my hands to the side and turned away from Nicholas.

“Well then, I can definitely help you there. How would you like your Gideon? Tied with a pretty bow or served of a platter?”

I turned back towards Nicholas so fast I could have had whiplash.

“You know where he is?!” I was shocked.

“Sure do. I’ve been the one hiding him. A few months back, Gideon and some other Sensei’s came to visit me. They said that they had a student at the school that was particularly weird. They found him going through old student records as well as any valuables that were left behind. He got super violent when they kicked him out, so I got some boys to escort him off the campus. He was the same guy you were looking for. The trespasser. I’d need to bring in Noah to verify if Clark was the guy that came to bail Erik out. I brought you the file on them, though. Gideon brought Erik’s student documents to me, but that was after Clark had bailed him out. Once we discovered that Erik had lied on the school documents, Gideon got scared and asked for protection because all the information that Erik was trying to go through on-campus was connected to Gideon.”

I felt so relieved to hear that Sensei Gideon was safe. When Jeremy had said that Clark was looking for Gideon, I had this dreadful guy feeling something wrong would happen.

“Oh, I’m so happy. Can we go to Slate Falls to see him, please? Will you permit me?”

“Hmm, what’s in it for me? Why should I permit you to come into my land?” Nicholas smirked at me.

I rolled my eyes. Nicholas's devilish smirks never affected me as much as they did now.

“Boy, don’t test my patience. Are you taking me or not? Because I can make this into an official business, and I don’t need permission for that bitch” I snapped at him.

Nicholas laughed loudly.

“Fine, fine. I’ll take you. Besides, Gideon isn’t in Slate Falls. The last thing I want is you roaming the West alone and getting yourself into more trouble. It seems like trouble is following you around right now. Plus, I’ll get to spend some alone time with you” he winked at me, making me laugh.

“Consolation prize, huh?”

“You will always have first place in my heart.” Nicholas took a step closer to me.

I held my breath, trying to even out my heartbeat. Nicholas could hear my racing heart, and the last thing I needed right now was both of us getting weak.

“Yeah yeah. I’ll let dad know you and I are going to your pack for a visit, but he will tell everyone we’re going to HQ. How long should I pack for?”

“Oh darling, you can pack for as long as you’d like. You are welcome to stay there permanently. Shall I get a room cleaned out for you?” Nicholas laughed.

“Room cleaned out? I wouldn’t be sharing a room with you like the other woman if I decided to stay there permanently?” I pouted and gave Nicholas my best puppy dog eyes.

Nicholas let out a loud deafening growl. His eyes turned pitch black, and he clenched his jaws. He closed the distance between us again and roughly grabbed my hips. I could feel the anger radiating off him. It was so hot seeing him so worked up. His fingers were digging into my hips and starting to hurt with how tightly he was holding me. I did not expect this reaction from him.

“It’s no secret that I’ve had many different girls on my bed. Everyone knows what a man whore I am, and honestly, I could care less. But you need to understand something. You, Alex, you will never be another random girl on my bed. You will never be a girl I fuck just to satisfy my needs. You will always be treated and respected like the Queen you are. So no, you will not share a room with me until I know for sure that you and I have a connection. I will not ruin our friendship with sex. Don’t take me wrong, I would love to fuck you. The amount of times I’ve fantasied about that is creepy. But sex with you needs to be more than just a way of relieving frustration.” His voice was low yet filled with so many emotions it made my heartache.

I looked into his pitch-black eyes, and I could see my reflection in them. What the hell was wrong with this boy? He wasn’t even sure if I was his mate, yet here he was, treating me like I was his world.

“Nick, you really need to dial it down a notch. I was just kidding. See what I mean, you are so dramatic.” He was still holding me tightly.

“I’m not kidding, Alex. I’m 24, and I want my mate now. If there’s a chance it’s you; I will not ruin it. Now, shall we get a move on? It’s a 10-hour drive, and if we leave now, we should get to our destination by 7 pm” he finally let go of me and looked at the time on his watch.

“Are we taking Noah and Matt?” He ran his hands through his hair.

“Matt needs to stay here with Natalie. I’ll see if Ash wants to tag along if you are taking Noah.”

“You know what, they can all stay here. How about just you and me go on this drive? I’m sure we can protect ourselves if something happens,” he chuckled.

“I’m sure we will be fine. I’ll just quickly pack, and I’ll see you downstairs?”

Nicholas nodded and headed for the door.

He stopped in front of the shut door and messed up his hair a little. He pulled off his shoes and made his t-shirt look a little crinkled.

“What the hell are you doing?” I looked at him like he was crazy.

“I need to have a just fucked look in case someone sees me. That’s what we were doing in here, remember. Gotta stay in character” he laughed and opened the door, walking out.

I couldn’t help but laugh as well. This was going to be an exciting trip with Nicholas. I was very eager to meet Sensei Gideon. It had been 2 years since I last saw him. The man had so much knowledge about the white wolf and I hoped he had an insight about the legend. Dad had said we needed to understand the legend more before proceeding. Roy had mentioned the legend and the uprising, but I was sure the Goddness had a way to make sure our people were safe.  I just prayed we didn’t run into any trouble...