Storm!
1595 Words
Louve was drenched….utterly, miserably drenched.
Water streamed from her hair down the back of her neck, her shirt glued to her body like wet paper. Her breath was shaky, her chest rising and falling unevenly as she climbed the stairs. The elevator had gone out just as the lights flickered and died.
“Of course,” she muttered, her voice tight with frustration. “Just perfect.”
Thunder cracked overhead, shaking the building’s bones. The stairwell was hot and stuffy. Rainwater soaked through her clothes, but it was hard to tell if she was sweating or if the heat came from inside. Her cheeks flushed. Her feet dragged. Each stair felt like a mountain.
She huffed, brushing the wet hair from her eyes. “How unlucky, damn that Alpha. Why did he come over with his minions?”
Her tongue rolled over her dry lips. She sighed again, lips parting in exhaustion.
“It’s all his fault, he’s too shameless and despicable” she whispered. “Shamelessly touching me like that… What was that supposed to mean?”
She pressed a hand against her chest, feeling the rapid pulse beneath her fingertips.
Her voice dropped. “And I bet the others noticed, great. I probably looked like a complete i***t….ugh…stupid.”
“They won’t dare say a word even if they do notice.” Suddenly, a voice echoed through the stairwell.
Louve was stunned, she stopped. Her foot hovered midair on the step, her eyes fell to his feet first. A pair of clean, black leather shoes stood just steps away. She slowly raised her head.
“Alpha… Alpha” Her voice was barely above a whisper.
She took a step back. Her wet shoe squeaked slightly against the stairs.
“You don’t look pleased to see me.”
She shook her head quickly, heat rushing to her face. “Haha, Alpha…. That’s not what I meant….I just didn’t expect…”
He descended a step, slow and steady. “You’re very disappointed that I’m here?”
The man’s gaze was getting colder with each step forward and, with a flick of his finger, the thunder roared again louder this time. Louve instinctively stepped back again.
“Alpha, what are you talking about?” Louve was flustered.
“You’re acting like I caught you doing something naughty,” Bardulf said i a low and teasing voice.
She looked away, biting her lip.
“You always run,” he added. “Even when I don’t move. It’s amusing.”
Louve frowned. “You’re reading too much into things.”
“Am I?” His smirk deepened as he stepped down again.
She retreated until her back was almost pressed flat against the cold concrete wall. Her breathing quickened. Her hands were clammy, and water still dripped from her chin.
“You’re trembling,” he said quietly.
“I’m cold.”
“You’re blushing.”
“That’s the heat.”
“You’re lying.”
Louve’s head snapped up. “Excuse me?”
He raised one brow, a flicker of amusement in his eyes. “You're quite a performer, Louve. One minute shy and soft-spoken. The next, snapping like you’ve got fangs. And now it seems you like to pretend clueless!”
“You’re making things up. Wow, the power has been restored.... probably the elevator is fixed.....let’s take the elevator” she smiled stiffly, turned around and was about to escape. Reading her mind, he tilted his head, stepping down the last stairs between them.
She tried to turn away, but he caught her wrist in one swift motion.
Then, with the quiet strength only an Alpha could wield, he snapped her gently but firmly against the wall, his hand flattening her arm above her head. Her back hit the wall with a soft thump. Rainwater smeared the concrete behind her.
Her eyes widened. Her lips parted.
“B-Bardulf…”
Thunder rolled again, low and deep like a beast growling in the sky.
He smirked and leaned in slowly, closing the distance between him and the startled Louve… his warm breath grazing her cheek, mouth hovering dangerously close to hers. His chest nearly touched hers. The scent of his cologne….clean, masculine, slightly woodsy….mixed with the heat of his breath.
“Is it uncomfortable,” he murmured, “wearing wet clothes like that?”
His gaze was no longer cold and dark but now wild and full of desire. Louve’s heart raced. She could feel every heartbeat in her throat, her ears, and her chest.
Bardulf's gaze dropped. He took in the curve of her chest beneath the soaked fabric. She followed his eyes, then gasped, crossing her arms over herself. She had just realized that her black underwear underneath her white clothes was transparent.
“Don’t look!....let’s get back to the room and eat” she whispered, cheeks flaming.
He grinned, unrepentant. “Too late, tell me Louve; are you purposely avoiding me?” he said as he swept the hair away from her cheek.
She tembled and avoided his touch. “Don’t do this, Alpha.”
Seeing her avoiding his touch, the man chuckled and leaned over. His lips gently tickled her ear. “You’re running away from me, right?”
“No, it’s not what you thin….”
Before she could finish her words, Bardulf lifted her chin and kissed her passionately. She wanted to escape, but she was pinned down by a strong force. He was annoyed by the way she was avoiding him like a plague.
“Stop acting shamelessly, someone might come. Other students will see, most people will be taking the stairs.” Her voice came out in a rush, soft and scolding.
He brushed a strand of wet hair behind her ear, his finger lingering at the shell of it. “Let them come.”
Louve’s mind was in chaos, and she was about to cry. The elevator is broken. Thus, most people will likely be taking the stairs. But right now, this man was acting shamelessly with her in the corridor….
“Who am I to you?” His lips moved away from hers.
She licked her lips nervously. Her voice came out quietly. “You…” she stammered, trying to breathe through the growing warmth flooding her chest. “You’re my friend’s brother… and the Alpha of Blueblood pack.”
The man frowned unhappily. He leaned in until his breath hit her lips, his voice a deep rasp. “That’s what you keep telling yourself?”
Her eyes flicked up to him, wide, uncertain.
“Do you want to know what I remember, Louve?” His tone dropped a note, his fingers brushing lightly along her wrist. “That night….when you were pressed against me…. Your skin was on fire; You weren’t calling me your friend’s brother then.”
Louve’s face flamed. “That was because I didn’t know who you were then.”
Her lips parted, but no sound came. Her eyes darted away again.
“I remember your lips,” Bardulf continued, his voice dangerously close to her mouth. " You trembled just like you’re trembling now. I touched your waist, and you leaned into me like you were born to fit there.”
“Stop…” she whispered, her face fully crimson now, her eyes desperate.
He smirked wider, his voice low and teasing. “I didn’t imagine the way you moaned against my neck,” he added, voice dipped in velvet. “Or the way your nails dragged down my back when….”
She slapped her palm gently against his chest. “You’re shameless!”
He chuckled. A rich, deep sound echoed between the walls of the stairwell. His body still hovered just inches from hers.
“Stop saying those things. Someone will hear,” she said quickly, hands clutched together at her chest. Her voice was soft, breathless, but her eyes held fire now.
He tilted his head. “Let them.”
Her breath caught. “You’re unbelievable…”
He dipped his head closer, lips brushing the shell of her ear as he whispered, “Say what you really want to call me.”
She trembled, her legs pressing tightly together. “You’re the Alpha…”
He leaned closer. “Mmm. And?”
“You’re… my friend’s brother,” she repeated, barely beyond a whisper, looking anywhere but his face.
“Still lying.” His voice darkened slightly. “You didn’t look at me like a friend’s brother that night. You didn’t kiss me like one either.”
“I wasn’t thinking straight….. And I f*****g didn’t know you were Marissa’s brother. It’s just a one-night stand.”
“You were thinking perfectly clearly when you were screaming.”
She shook her head, hiding behind her hands, cheeks on fire. “Bardulf, stop…”
His finger slipped under her chin, tilting her face up gently. “Look at me.”
She hesitated, then met his gaze. His eyes burned with hunger, with something raw and possessive that made her knees buckle.
“Say it,” he murmured. “What I am to you.”
She swallowed hard, lips trembling. “I don’t know….”
“Yes, you do.”
Her body was so warm she felt fevered, her skin prickling under his stare. Her breath caught in her throat. His nearness was overwhelming.
“Say it,” he whispered again, brushing his nose against hers.
“I…” she began, her voice barely a breath.
He leaned in closer, lips ghosting just over hers. “Say I am your man, your mate.”
- Writer
