The Alpha's Mistress

15

Word Count: 1633

~Sienna

Once I've dried off from the bath, I dress quickly before reentering the room.

Onyx is already in my bed, on the side he knows I don't sleep on. I smile weakly at the sight of him nestled amongst the covers, his dark hair thick and lush against the white of my pillows.

He watches me quietly, patiently as I run a brush through my hair and apply all my necessary creams.

Eventually, I join him in bed, feeling a twinge of awkwardness. He quickly puts that to rest, rolling me onto my side before pushing my back flush against his chest, banding his arms around me.

I blow out the candle on my bedside, dousing the room in darkness.

We don't talk for a while. The feeling of his muscled arms around me, the press of his warm skin and the sound of his steady breathing in my air is pure, uninhibited comfort.

"What if it wasn't an accident?" I whisper into the darkness.

He tenses against me. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"I don't know. Something about it seems weird." It's a feeling that's impossible to explain. She clearly fell hard, which seems only possible were she pushed.

"How so?"

"It's just a feeling."

He smooths my hair back from my face in a move that has my skin tingling. His touch is so effortlessly soft. It makes me wonder why I don't demand he lay in my bed every night...

Because I know how that would end.

"I'll look into it," he assures me softly, shifting his hand down so his fingers are brushing gently down my arm. "When you have a gut feeling about something, you're usually right."

I resist the urge to bow against his touch. An innocent girl just died and I'm overcome by the feeling that I want Onyx's hands to continue their exploration downward.

I turn my head toward him, even though I can't see him. "I like that you trust me."

"I trust you more than I trust myself sometimes." I hear the smile in his voice.

I rest back on the pillow, closing my eyes. Images of Elora's body flash unbidden into my mind. Where was I that was so much more important? I shouldn't have been with Kayn, eating and drinking with little care for a girl lying dead for countless hours at the bottom of the stairs.

"What's with the silence?" Onyx's voice wrangles back my drifting attention.

"Nothing."

"There's nothing you could have done about Elora, you know." His breath gusts against my cheek, against my ear. My body tingles in response.

"I know," I whisper. I can't help but wonder what could have been done to stop this...

Onyx's fingertips continue their travels up and down my arm. "I'm saying this pre-emptively because I know how you assume responsibility for everything, even when it has nothing to do with you."

I let out a breath, turning over onto my back.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me," I assure him. "Concentrate on how you're going to address the Pack tomorrow to announce how a wealthy Noble's daughter was found dead in your home."

He collapses back into his pillow, groaning roughly into the air.

"Fuck, don't remind me."

"Sorry."

"I've already got enough pressure going on with Alpha Maren. She's pushing her authority in villages at the edge of my Pack, knowing it's too much of a grey area for me to declare war against her," he vents.