Alpha Bully (16 page)

“I’m not going away to college.”

Her eyes filled with tears, and he claimed her lips,
sliding his tongue in deep into her mouth. She moaned. The salty scent of her
tears undid him. Gripping her hands, he pressed them above her head. “You don’t
need to cry for me.” They’d been doing this a lot more often. Scarlett allowed
him to touch her, explore her beautiful body.

“You’re not going away to college.”

He shook his head. “I can’t go away to college.”

“Why?”

Squeezing her hands, Marshall closed his eyes as he
tried to force his wolf down. He couldn’t let him out otherwise he’d have
exposed his secret to Scarlett.

She needs to find out the truth.

“I just can’t. It’s too dangerous for my kind.”

“Your kind?
I don’t know what this is supposed to mean.” Her tears were falling
thick and fast. “You’ve made me care about you and now you’re telling me you’re
not even going to try to be with me.”

He hated doing this to her. If his wolf wasn’t so
close he would have given in to the need to cry, but he couldn’t do it. There
was no way for him to go away with her, and he couldn’t ask her to stay with
him.
Why not? You love her. You’ll give
her a much better life than any other male out there.

Trey had moved onto different friends and rarely spent
any time with Scarlett anymore. Marshall didn’t mind the loss of his
friendship. He’d done what he set out to do and that was
get
the bastard away from his girl.

“This isn’t what has happened, Scarlett. There are
things about me you don’t know.”

“You asked me to trust you about the fact this wasn’t
a joke. I’ve done that, and now you’re not even going to try to go to college?
I’m confused, Marshall. Do you even care about me?”

She was getting upset, and he truly didn’t know what
to do. His wolf was pacing, ready to claim her, to bite her, and make her
belong to him.

“I care about you, Scarlett. Fuck, I’m in love with
you, but there is shit you don’t know. Shit I’ve not told you
about,
and I can’t.”

Letting her go, Marshall ran fingers through his hair,
trying to bring some control to his chaotic world. His wolf demanded release,
and Marshall was so desperate to claim her that he couldn’t keep control of
himself. He didn’t know what to do, and so he panicked.

“Run,” he said, yelling the word so that she’d be
afraid enough to run.

“No. I’m not running away from you.”

“Damn, Scarlett, I’m dangerous. Run!”

He bent over as his wolf pounced at him. The thin
thread of control he held snapped. When he looked back at Scarlett, his eyes
were different. He was starting to change, and no matter what he did, he
couldn’t stop it.

“Marshall? What’s going on? What’s happening?” She
wasn’t running away, but he scented her fear. All of his senses were on the
alert, and he could smell her. He wanted to bask in her scent, drown in
everything that was his mate. The need to fuck, bite, and claim her was strong.

“Get away,” he said, growling each word out.

“You’re scaring me.”

Bending down, he collapsed onto the floor as his bones
started to break, snap, demand the change. His wolf was on a mission and that
to take what was theirs.

“Marshall?”

If she didn’t run soon, he was going to do something
he would regret. He loved her, and he hoped to whoever was looking down on him
that they got her out of here.

****

Marshall was turning to a wolf before her very eyes.
She couldn’t believe this was happening. It shouldn’t be happening, but his
eyes were the exact amber that she’d been dreaming about. She couldn’t walk
away from him as his bones started to break apart. What she witnessed terrified
her, and yet she wasn’t afraid of what he was turning into. This was what she’d
been seeing all of these months. Marshall was a wolf, and she wasn’t afraid. His
skin split to be replaced by fur. Scarlett winced with each crack and snap,
wishing with all of her heart that she could take this unbearable pain away.
She could do neither to help him.

Screaming his name once again, she waited for him to
respond.

“Scarlett, you must step behind me.”

Glancing back she saw Luke, Marshall’s father was
there.

“What’s going on? What’s happening?” she asked, tears
fell from her eyes. Marshall was in pain, and she couldn’t bear to see him in
pain.
 
For some strange reason, seeing Marshall
turn
into a wolf didn’t terrify her. It did exactly
the opposite. She felt at peace. This was what was supposed to happen all
along.

Mate.

“I need you to step behind me.”

“I’m not leaving him. Do you hear me?”

“My son is very new to this, and you are his destined
mate. When his wolf takes over and he’s fully changed, there is no guarantee
that he’ll be stable enough not to hurt you. I need you to come behind me. When
Marshall changes to discover he hurt you, it will destroy him.”

“Mate?
He’s a wolf?” she asked.

“Yes. We’re all wolves, and you’re Marshall’s mate.
The one the fates gifted him with.”

Tears spilled down her cheeks, and she took several
steps toward Luke. Marshall
howled,
the sound so full
of pain and yearning that she stopped. When she glanced behind her, she saw the
transition to wolf was almost complete. Staring into Marshall’s eyes that were
so much like his own yet tinted amber made her pause. He wouldn’t hurt her. He’d
made her a promise to never hurt her again.

She couldn’t walk away from him. The need to comfort
him was strong. Scarlett ignored Luke and stepped closer to Marshall.

“Scarlett, stop.”

Ignoring him, she closed the distance between her and
Marshall. The wolf stared up at her, waiting patiently.

“Hey,” she said. Her hands shook as she reached out.
Pressing her open palm to his nuzzle, she felt him inhale her skin. She
remembered all of the other times during class, long walks, sitting in the
lunchroom, Marshall would always sniff her. “You
were
sniffing me, you little liar.” She couldn’t help but chuckle.
This was right, perfect, and her dreams made more sense than ever before.

“Scarlett?” Luke asked.

“I dreamed about him.” She was amazed at the beauty of
the wolf before her. The dreams she’d had were telling her about him, preparing
her. This wasn’t a shock to her, and at least he was no longer in any pain.

“What do you mean?”

Marshall sniffed her wrist moving up until she didn’t
have a choice but to pet him. Chuckling, she bent down and started to stroke
his long fur.

“I’ve been having dreams about a wolf exactly like
this. I didn’t know he was real. Part of me
wished
he was real, even though I thought wolves didn’t really exist, but you do.” She
pressed her face against his fur, inhaling his musky, woodsy scent. Scarlett
felt at peace; she felt at home. “Is that normal?”

Luke sat a few feet away from them, clearly staying in
case his son decided to attack. “The other packs that I’ve spoken to who have
mated with humans, they’ve mentioned the humans felt attuned to the wolf.” Luke
ran a hand down his face. “When they saw their mate change into a wolf, it
helped them to not run away. If you ran, Scarlett, he’d have chased you.”

“He’s not going to hurt me.” She continued to stroke
Marshall’s back, feeling him hum. “I also heard the word ‘mate’. It was like an
echo wherever I went.”

Scarlett stared back at Luke to find him smiling. “I
didn’t believe the women when they told me about that. I figured it was wishful
thinking.”

“I should be scared right now, but I’m not. He’s not
going to hurt me. I know Marshall. He’d never hurt me.” They were past the
bullying. She loved him, and then it struck her. Moments before he changed, he’d
told her that he loved her. “I love you, too.” She pressed a kiss to the back
of his neck, smiling as he snuggled in deeper against him. This was perfect,
and for the first time in a long time, Scarlett was happy, contented.

“You can’t tell anyone. Our secret must remain,” Luke
said.

“I wouldn’t tell anyone, Mr. Briggs.” She looked up at
the other man. “Who would even want to believe me? Everyone would think I was
crazy.” Glancing at Marshall, she smiled. “This is why you can’t go to college,
right?”

“He can hear you.”

She smiled. “That’s okay. There are perfectly good
colleges online. I can stick around if you’d like.” His paw landed on her lap.
It was like having a giant dog in her company. Laughing, she snuggled up
against him, loving this new side to him, relishing the opportunities it
brought them. Wolves existed, and Marshall, her man, was a wolf.

The time passed. She didn’t know how much, nor did she
care.

Luke stayed with them, watching. By the time night had
fallen, Marshall slowly changed back. Scarlett was stroking fur and then in the
next instant, his hair.

Looking down, she smiled as Marshall was smiling back
at her.

“You’ve got to be the strangest girl I’ve ever known,”
he said.

“Coming from the
guy who was furry a moment ago.”

“I’m going to leave you two alone. Actually, do you
want to come to the house?” Luke asked.

Scarlett saw Marshall was completely naked, but then
she’d already seen his clothing torn to shreds during his change. Everything
had happened so fast she’d not given much thought about his naked state.

“Yes.”

“Marshall, go on ahead. I’ll follow in a second with
Scarlett.”

She watched Marshall’s pale ass disappear. This had been
a really weird day.

“He loves you,” Luke said.

Scarlett smiled. “I love him, too. I’ve never felt
anything like this before. Your secret is safe with me.”

Luke took her hand leading her back to the house. Carla
was waiting for her and pulled her into a hug before she could protest. “I’m so
proud of you.”

Smiling, she hugged Carla back.

Seconds later Marshall came back downstairs. “I think
Scarlett and I need to talk.”

He reached out to take her hand, and she placed hers
within his, accepting him instantly. They walked up toward his bedroom, and he
closed the door behind him.

“So, you’re a wolf.” She kept her hands together in
front of her. “I, erm—”

“You dreamt about me?”

“You heard that?”

“I heard everything you said. It’s not hard. You told
me you dreamt about wolves but not what kind of wolf.”

“Well, I didn’t really know you were a wolf. It’s okay.
I won’t tell anyone.” Scarlett stopped as Marshall went down on one knee before
her.

“Scarlett Fields, you amaze me. You’re wonderful,
adorable, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Would you do me the
honor of becoming my wife?”

She froze.

What the hell was she supposed to do?

He took hold of her hands and slid a ring on her
finger.

“I will love you for the rest of my life. I will follow
you to the ends of the earth, and I will go wherever you go.”

“But college?
Exposure?”

“I don’t care. I want you. I love you.”

“I’ve just seen you turn into a wolf.”

“And you didn’t care. We’re meant for each other,
Scarlett. When I’m around you I know I belong. Don’t you feel that, too?”

Tears filled her eyes once again as she stared into
his eyes. She nodded.

“You’re proposing?”

“Yes. I love you. I was once your bully, but I swear
to you, baby, I’ll be the man who’d gladly die for you.”

“I don’t need you to die for me.”

He pressed her hand to his heart. “Do you feel that?
That’s how you make me feel. I love you. I don’t ever want to let you go.”

“We’ve not even had sex yet.”

“So, you’ll be my virgin bride.” He smiled. “I will
give you everything your heart desires.”

“I only desire you.” She’d
been
wanting
to go further when they’d been making out. Scarlett had turned
eighteen over three months ago and didn’t want to remain a virgin forever. He’d
held back, refusing to go any further than light touching.

She craved his touch as if it was a drug and she an
addict.

“Say you’ll marry me. Marry me, Scarlett, and I
promise you, you’ll want for nothing.”

“Yes, Marshall, I’ll marry you, but you’ve got to tell
my parents. Not about you being a wolf. You’ve got to tell them we’re getting
married,” she said. There was no way she’d ever be able to tell her parents
that she was getting married. The very thought filled her with dread. “I’m not
going to tell them you’re a wolf. They don’t need to know.”