CHAPTER 2 Say It Again, Little Wolf
Emma's POV
"Open the door."
Even as I tell myself to deny his command as if in a trance, I find myself obeying. My hand, almost of its own volition, reaches out and unlocks the door.
Before I had the chance to escape the vehicle myself, he slid in the passenger seat beside me.
"Who are you?" His voice sends a chill through me. I'd heard about the Alpha command before, about how no lower ranking wolf could ever fight it. As the daughter of a high ranking Alpha, I knew only the most powerful wolf could compel me.
I grit my teeth, feeling my wolf bristle inside me. "I...my name...is..." I slam my hand over my mouth, fighting to keep the words from escaping.
"Your name, tell me now." He finishes with a growl that sends my wolf cowering. He used the voice of his wolf to command me. I shake with the effort to deny him.
He tilts his head as if intrigued that I have the ability to deny him. He seems to find the challenge amusing. His mouth curls into a cheeky grin, causing dimples to rise in his cheeks. "Come on little wolf, don't you want to please me?"
"No...I don't need to please any wolf." Not even a darkly handsome Alpha with a cheeky grin and dimples. Thinking of how my father had decided my fate from the day I was born without a second thought to my wishes, I doubled down. "I am my own wolf." I stick out my chin in defiance. At first, I think he'll smile again and I wait for those dimples to reappear. Instead, to my regret, his expression hardens.
The Alpha's thick brows farrow. "How are you able to deny me? Why are you so determined to deny me such a simple request as your name?" The alpha's mouth purses. A darkness sweeps over his features. "What are you up to?"
"Me? What am I up to? I'm not the one who forced their way into a locked vehicle."
"Good point, little wolf." The dimples are back. "If you want me out of your car, all you have to do is what you're told."
I'd heard something similar all through my life. Be a good girl. Do as you're told. Well, I'm not a little girl anymore. Nor am I a little wolf. "Since you're so obsessed with names, why don't you tell me yours?"
"I'm Alpha Ethan." He grins, flashing those dimples. "Now that wasn't so difficult, was it? Your turn, my little wolf."
A tingle like a mixture of fire and delicious heat races across my belly at the sound of him calling me his little wolf. I open my mouth to whisper the words he wants to hear. "My name is...I'm..." I dig my nails into the palms of my hands. No, I mustn't give in. "I'm nobody's little wolf!" I finish with a small growl. I cover my hand over my mouth. Did I really just let my wolf growl at such a powerful alpha?
He frowns. "If you won't tell me your name, tell me what you're doing scurrying around in the dark?"
"If you hadn't noticed, I was trying to leave. If you hadn't rudely forced your way into my car, I'd be long gone by now."
"I'm not leaving until you tell me why you're here hanging around in the dark. Are you spying on me?" His expression hardens again. His dark eyes flash amber, meaning that his wolf is near the surface. "Tell me who sent you?"
"No one sent me. I'm here for..." I pause. The power of the alpha command makes me want to tell him every secret I'd ever had. "I'm here against my will." It's the truth but not the truth he wants to hear. I'd been at a party my father made me attend all in the name of forcing me into a marriage I didn't want. And now I'm being held captive in my own car.
Enough is enough! "Get out of my car!"
He looks down and I follow his gaze. My hand is on his thigh, my fingers dig into the hard flesh beneath his jeans.
"Are you so sure you really want me to leave?" His eyes are golden now, shining in the dark.
My own vision expands as my wolf comes to the surface. Lexi wants to meet his wolf and I struggle to push her down deep into my subconscious.
"Yes," I say, though I don't loosen the grip on his thigh. "Leave, please."
The growl that comes out of him has nothing to do with his wolf. There's a deepness to it that goes beyond mere animal hunger. "Say it again, little wolf. Say, 'please'."
"Please," I whisper and then more forcefully, "Please!"
"Please, my Alpha!" He orders.
The words that came out of me are all my own. "Please, my Alpha!"
"Please what, my little wolf? Tell me what you want me to do."
Leave. Get out of my car and leave me alone, I want to say. But my words betray me. "Please, my Alpha...."
"Yes, my little wolf...."
"Please...." I bite down hard enough to taste blood. "Please, my Alpha. Please kiss me."
What am I saying? Is he compelling me to say this? No, I can't feel him doing this. But something, some force, compels me to lean in as he takes my face in his large hands.
"You're free to leave," he says. "I won't make you do anything you don't want, do you understand?"
His hand is under my chin. All I can do is nod, breathlessly fearing I might not even be able to speak.
"Answer me." It's a command, the strength of which makes the hair leap up all across my body. "Do you want to stay? I warn you if you do stay, I won't be able to stop myself from kissing you."
I should leave. He's dangerous, that much I know. Yet, the desire to feel his lips on mine is so strong I shake. So what if I let him have his way? After all, it's only a kiss. What harm could it do?