Moon Dancer - Hidden Wolf 1

Ares

The car shot over the dirt road leading to Grayson's house, my grip white-knuckled.

Ryker was linked with all three of us, giving us a front-row seat of Grayson beneath him. Her mind was a mess, and the only thing keeping her with us was Ryker's dominance.

Naturally, Omegas and Gypsies were submissive creatures. But Grayson fought her instincts. So when she got overwhelmed like this, as Ryker had just learned a few minutes ago, the best way to calm her down was to take control.

Take control and ground her with an orgasm. Force her to submit. Force her out of her own head with physical bliss.

My teeth ground against each other as I clenched my jaw harder.

I force myself not to pay attention to all of the delicious sounds coming from Gray's lips. I force myself not to watch through Ryker's eyes as he finger-fucks our girl. I force myself not to watch her come apart over his hand.

I don't deserve to see it.

My anxiety had always been bad. But what my father had done to my mom in front of my face changed me forever. When we had first become a pack, and the bond was established, I would freak out whenever one of my friends was out of my sight. It was like this panic had been seared into my brain. Seeing my mom forcefully ripped from my arms and dragged away only to be beaten to death by my father caused something in me to break.

It's like my subconscious was convinced that if I let my friends out of sight, that I would turn the corner and their bodies would be broken on the floor. Or maybe I would be forced to watch. Again.

But with Grayson, that panic was tripled. At least.

I don't know if it was the mating bond or what. But I was determined to figure myself the fuck out.

I hated when she was hurt. I hated when I knew I was the one who hurt her.

In my panic, my mind reeling for anything to grab on to, the image of my mother's broken and mangled body flashing in my mind, her screams echoing through me... but still.

It doesn't matter. There was no excuse.

I was a sad excuse for an Alpha. For a wolf.

For a mate.

My mind flashed between my mom being ripped out of my hands to my hands brushing against Grayson's skin as Larkin mangled her. I had been so close.

I shake my head to try and clear my thoughts, focusing instead on the road, driving as fast as I could to Grayson. I could tell through Ryker's link that she was calm and sated now, but her earlier panic still echoed in my mind.

Ryker had found out that Larkin could talk in Grayson's mind. Like a mindlink. But how the fuck was that possible? Was it magic?

We didn't know all that much about Gypsy magic and powers.

I frowned.

Maybe we should learn.

Gray was a Gypsy after all. Like Royals, her powers came with the wolf inside of her, amplified into their full form on our first shift. But Grayson's connection to her wolf wasn't normal. She didn't have the luxury of shifting whenever she wanted.

The luxury.

Like it wasn't a damn right.

We were approaching the house in the middle of the woods fast. I met Jagger and Finn's eyes. "I need to secure the perimeter before she comes outside. You two head in to meet her."

They nodded without complaint. I knew that if I pulled one of them to help me, they would refuse. They were dying to see and hold Gray. There was no stopping them either.

I saw the distinct shine of Ryker's shield around the pale blue house, and my stomach dropped at it's appearance. This is where Grayson had been living? She would have rather returned here, to the place she was taken advantage of, than stay in a house with me?

Not for the first time, I thought about how much happier she would be with just three mates.

And like all the other times I thought about that, the memory of her hurt when I walked ricocheted through me. I had left her when she needed me to hold her.

I couldn't give up on myself.

I couldn't give up on the mating bond.

I couldn't let myself think about me not being in the picture, because, somehow, Grayson was my mate.

It would only make things worse if I completely gave up on everything now. There might still be something that I can contribute. There might still be something that Gray will find in me. Some use I can be to her.

If I leave and something bad happens that I could have helped, I would never forgive myself.

No more running.

It scared the shit out of me. How I felt about this girl.

Those feelings might end up hurting me more than anything in the end. They would probably destroy me.

But how did any of that matter if Grayson needed me?

Even if it's just to make meals.

Even if it's just to be there in the background.

I couldn't offer her the completed mate bond. Not right now. Not when my head was a mess. Maybe one day, when I heal enough, I will be able to take that step with her. Or maybe I will never be okay enough to mark her. But I will stay. I will try.

The tires screech to a stop, dirt kicking up around the jeep. Jagger had already thrown his door open, Ry's shield bending to let him sprint the short distance to the house. What I don't expect - and honestly I really should have - is Grayson throwing the door to the house open and jumping down the stairs into Jagger's awaiting arms.

"Shit!" I curse, stepping out of the truck, scanning the open forest around me. "Get her in the truck!" I tell Finn.

I keep Grayson in my sights, just in case. Walking around the house, I see her wrap her legs around Jagger's middle and her arms wrap around his neck to pull him close. For a long moment, they stay like that. As much as I hate the idea of them out in the open, I want to give them this moment together.

As Ryker steps out of the house, his brown eyes glowing and immediately scanning the forest, I feel comfortable enough to round the back of the house.

Ryker made it seem like Larkin was close by.

But I didn't sense anybody except for my pack and my mate. There were not even lingering traces of Larkin's smell around here anymore.

I bared my teeth. I wanted this man dead. I needed this man dead.