The Alpha's Queen

Chapter 2: Stupid, Stupid, Stupid

Devany

The clink of glass bottles echoed in the empty alley as I dropped the last garbage bag into the dumpster. I shoved my chilly hands into the pockets of my jacket as soon as I dropped the lid. There was no need for me to go back inside. Tara lived in an apartment above the bar, so she always locked up, but as exhausted as I was, I dragged my feet to my rusted up pickup truck in the parking lot.

I glanced at my watch. 2:28. I'd told Beckett 2:30, but since I shouldn't even be entertaining the idea of a hookup with a complete stranger–even if he had soaked my panties with a single glance–I wouldn't wait around the two extra minutes to see if he showed up.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid," I muttered while fishing my keys out of my pocket.

"What's stupid?"

The keys hit the ground as I screamed and leapt away from the car. Leaning against the driver's side door, Beckett smirked at me as I picked up the keys.

"How did you get there? You weren't there two seconds ago."

The smirk fell into a frown. "I was. You must not have been paying close attention."

The car groaned as he pushed it off of it and approached me. His broad shoulders blocked out most of the light from the single street lamp in the parking lot, and the winter chill on my skin melted away as the heat from his body washed over me.

"You should always be aware of your surroundings," he whispered, threading his arms around my waist and spinning me so my back was against the car. His knee pushed between my thighs.

No longer in the mood to protest that I was always careful at night, I gripped his shoulders and hissed. Electricity shot between us, reminding me of the time I touched a live wire when I was a kid. Only this was a lot more pleasurable.

Beckett brushed a piece of hair behind my ear. His hand drifted behind my head and curled around the thick braid of purple hair that ended just above my butt. It was the reason Dennis called me Rapunzel.

"Do you want to hear about all the things I've thought about doing to you while I hold on to this hair?"

"This is crazy," I whispered, even as I nodded yes.

"What's crazy about it?" He pulled hard, forcing my head back and holding me in place. His mouth hovered inches above mine. "Where I come from, when two people feel like this about the other, they do something about it. At the end of the day, we're just animals acting on instinct."

"Well, where I come from, there are consequences when people act like animals."

Beckett's lips thinned. "I won't do anything you don't want me to, Devany, and I promise, we can make each other feel really good in a way that won't get either of us in trouble."

With that, he raised his knee and pushed me down, putting pressure in the perfect place and pulling a gasp from me. Instinctively, I rolled my hips, seeking friction on the bundle of nerves between my legs. Beckett growled in approval and let go of my hair to hold my hips, urging me to move faster.

"Holy sh–" I moaned, my climax nearing already. The man hadn't even kissed me yet, and I was going to come. "Beckett–"

Suddenly, he released me and spun around to peer into the darkness. Aching and cold, I clung to my truck, too frustrated to wonder what he'd heard or seen to warrant such a reaction.

"Devany, get in your truck and get home. Do you understand me?"

"What..." I stood up and straightened my clothes. Shame coursed through me as desire faded. "What's going on? What's out there?"

"Go," he said, stepping into the shadows and vanishing.

Rubbing my eyes, I stared at the spot where Beckett had been seconds before, not entirely sure if I was shocked or not. Over the years of pursuing answers about my past, I'd touched upon the edges of the supernatural word. At least, enough to believe it existed, but what did it say about me that I wasn't afraid right now? The man who almost got me off with just his leg had disappeared in front of my eyes, and all I could think about was how he just got impossibly more attractive.

Then a darker thought crept in. What was out there that had spooked him? If it was bad enough to drive him away, then I should probably do as I was told. The heavy metal door whined when I opened it, and I had one foot raised to climb in when I someone threw me across the parking lot.

Striking asphalt, I rolled three times before coming to a stop, and I laid on my back, blinking blood out of my eyes as pain spread through my limbs. A shadow fell over my body. With blurry vision, I couldn't make out his face, but the outline was enough to tell me it wasn't Beckett. He was too short and slender.

"Please don't," I whimpered when he reached for me with a snarl.

"Where's the attitude now, princess?"

"Jack?"

"Right in one." He yanked me up by my tank, ripping the fabric and exposing my bra. "If I'd known you were such a little whore, I might have been nicer. Oh well. I can still have my fun."

"Stop."

Calling on my failing strength, I raked my claws over his face. Grim satisfaction settled in my bones as his skin built up under my nails. That was bound to leave a mark.

"You little bitch!" Jack screamed, shoving me hard enough into the side of my truck that it bent beneath me. The world spun and pulsed as I slid to the ground. "Human scum. You should be in chains."

"Enough."

Beckett stepped between me and Jack. Long claws protruded from the place where his fingertips should be. Instead of being terrified by the sight, I waited for him to end the other man.

"Are you going to fight me, Alpha? Do you want to start a war?"

Becket growled and moved forward. Jack, for all his bravado, wavered and stepped back. "Don't you know that's the only reason I haven't ripped your head from your body? But don't think I won't seek punishment. Attacking humans unprovoked–"

 A gust of wind whipped through the parking lot, swallowing the rest of his words and pulling his attention to me. Eyes wide and nostrils flaring, Beckett dropped to his knees at my side. Tender fingers prodded at the gash on my head, and when he pulled away, I could see the bright red stain if blood.

 It was all I could see. Everything on the edges of my vision faded.

"She's not human," Beckett said, his voice finding me in the darkness. "She's a wolf."