His Stray

Chapter 11

Present Day

Lucas had barely slept. His mind had been too full of Celia. He kept seeing the look on her face when she opened her bedroom door, how her eyes had gone soft with wanting and pain all at once. He hated himself for putting that look there. Hated how he craved her anyway.

He’d dragged himself out of bed before dawn to help with training. Running drill and sparring usually cleared his head, but not today. Every time he caught a faint trace of her scent on the wind, it was like a hook under his ribs.

When training ended, he hadn’t even gotten a chance to shower before his father’s beta found him and told him Alpha Marcus wanted him and Landon in his office. His father had spent the better part of an hour lecturing them both about expectations, responsibilities and the timeline for Lucas to start taking over pack affairs. Lucas mostly nodded, only half listening, his thoughts still tangled up on bright blue eyes and honey hair.

Then Celia walked in.

He’d barely glanced up when the door opened, expecting one of the omegas. But it was her. She’d stood there in the doorway, blinking wide eyes at him, her skin going pale. Lucas’s pulse jumped. He swallowed hard, throat working. He hadn’t expected to see her again so soon. And certainly not here.

Landon leaned back in his chair with that same smug smirk that made Lucas want to punch him. Celia apologized, looking like she might bolt, and their father dismissed them both.

Lucas reluctantly got up. He didn’t want to leave her alone with his father, even when common sense told him that nothing was going to happen. His father had never been violent with pack members. Only with members of his own family.

Still Lucas lingered outside the door, wandering into the stairwell, but unable to get too far. He heard the stairwell door open above him and her scent wafted down to him, making his heart clench.

Before he could think better of it, he reached out, grabbing her wrist and pulling her back into the dim space under the stairs.

“Lucas,” Celia gasped, but he didn’t give her time to say anything else. He cupped her face and kissed her. Hard.

She made a soft sound, somewhere between a gasp and a whimper, her hands fisting in his shirt. That was all it took for control to snap. Lucas pressed her back against the wall, kissing her deeper, tasting the faint salt of tears or sweat on lips. His hands slid to her waist, needing to feel the solid, perfect shape of her under his palms.

Her mouth opened under his, letting him deepen the kiss, tongues tangling. Goddess, he had missed this. Missed her.

“Lucas, we can’t,” she whispered when they finally pulled apart, breathless.

He kissed her again, swallowing whatever protest she had left. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and he ground his hips against hers, needing her to feel just how much he wanted her. Just how badly he always had.

“You drive me crazy,” he murmured against her lip. “You always did.”

Her eyes were dark and wet, pupils blown wide. Her mouth parted like she wanted to say something else, but then a sharp voice cut through the haze.

“What the hell is this?”

Lucas turned, teeth bared on instinct. Landon stood at the top of the landing, glaring down at them, his expression twisted somewhere between anger and disgust.

Celia shoved hard at Lucas’s chest. He let her go, but it physically hurt to do it. She ducked past Landon and ran, her footsteps echoing down the hall.

Landon waited until she was gone, then stepped down the stairs, crowding into Lucas’s space. “What the f**k is wrong with you? You think you can just sneak around with her again? You’re not kids anymore.”

Lucas’s chest heaved. He scrubbed a hand over his face. “Stay out of it.”

“Out of it?” Landon laughed, but there was no humor in it. “You’re supposed to be the future alpha. You need to be worrying about finding your fated mate, not chasing after some stray.”

Lucas stiffened, but it was too late. Something in his face must have given him away.

Landon’s eyes narrowed. His nostrils flared. “Holy s**t. You already found her, didn’t you? It’s her. Celia is your fated mate.”

Lucas didn’t answer. He couldn’t. The truth was too big, too raw.

Landon’s face went red. He actually took a step back, shaking his head like he couldn’t believe it. “Unbelievable. Of all people…”

His mouth worked, like he wanted to say something else, but nothing came out.

“What the hell does that mean?” Lucas snarled. A deep growl started in his chest. His wolf was already on edge, bristling at the threat.

“It means you’re a f*****g i***t if you think this going to end well,” Landon snapped. “For you or for her.”

Lucas surged forward, close enough that they were nearly chest to chest. “Stay out if, Landon. This is between me and her.”

“No,” Landon shot back. His voice was low and cold. “It’s about all of us. About this pack. And if you think Dad is going to let you claim her, you’re even more clueless than I thought.”

“Why do you even care?” Lucas spit out. “I think you’d be happy to watch me suffer.”

Something indiscernible flashed in Landon’s eyes before his gaze turned cold and hard. “You’re going to break her, you realize that? Worse than you already have.”

Lucas held his stare for another long second, then shoved past him. He needed air. Needed distance. If he stayed, he was going to end up punching his brother.

Behind him, Landon’s voice echoed off the walls. “You think this is love? Watch what happens when Dad finds out. Watch how fast everything burns down around her.”

Lucas’s wolf howled inside him, wanting nothing more than to turn back and rip into Landon for even suggesting Celia could be hurt. But Lucas kept walking, jaw tight, hands fisted at his sides.

He didn’t know how, or when, or what the hell the future was going to look like. But one things was clear as day. He was not letting Celia go. Not again.