Page 22 of Betrayed Bullied Mate

The worst part was that even after touching myself, my body still ached. For him.

I rolled onto my stomach, buried my face in the pillow, and screamed. I did not want him. Not anywhere near me, not naked around me, and certainly not inside me.

Except that I did.

I thought of him that morning, standing at the edge of the bed, looking so sleepy and yet still so confident, telling me I was to stay in the cabin. Bossing me around like I was one of the people on his team, like I answered to him.

To my dismay, I felt a rush of desire at the thought of him telling me what to do.

Bend over, I imagined him saying, his eyes burning like they had been that morning. Goosebumps prickled over my skin, and I put the backs of my hands to my eyes, trying to calm down.

I decided I couldn’t stay in the cabin any longer. Getting up, I pulled my leggings back on, clipped my bra in place, and finger-combed my hair the best I could before tying it back up.

Outside, the sun was shining and birds were hopping around, twittering and poking the ground. A cool breeze rolled through and I crossed my arms over my chest. There was nobody around, and I remembered what Byron had said to Aris: We got the commander on in five.

They must have been having a meeting. About Varun? About what they were planning to do next? I darted across the clearing, coming to a stop outside Byron’s cabin and hearing voices inside.

“What’s the ETA on the backup?” I heard Aris ask.

“I’ll be in touch to let you know.” A voice came through a small speaker, sounding staticky and old.

With a rush, I could feel Aris’s frustration at the situation. I wondered if he was thinking about what to do with me, and I raised a hand to my throat, leaning closer to the door to try and hear what they were saying. Aris gave out instructions, telling Eva to get me some clothes in the next town. I wanted to speak up and ask for a brush and some conditioner, but I couldn’t let Aris know I had directly disobeyed his instructions already. If I moved fast enough, I could make it back to the cabin before he ever found out I left.

“You got it,” I heard Percy’s bright voice come through, then Eva’s.

“Highly trained weapon of death, and I am sent to a fucking Walmart.”

“It’s just for now,” Aris said. “Trust me, I don’t want to be here any more than you do.”

I took a step back, away from the door for a moment. Obviously, Aris didn’t actually want anything to do with me. It was exhausting to have to remind myself of that over and over again, every time I started to think he might be different.

I moved my hand against my throat, and it went quiet inside the cabin before Aris spoke again, his voice strained.

“Ado, you’re back on the perimeter.”

Suddenly, the door flew open, and Ado stepped through, his eyes cooly meeting mine. They were gray and unmoved, and I stood completely still, wondering if he was going to tell Aris what I was doing.

Ado just looked away from me, continuing his march to the perimeter of the clearing. I wanted to let out a sigh of relief, but I knew that would give me away.

“Don’t stare at me, Man,” I heard Aris say.

“You can’t go on like this,” Bigby said, his gruff voice coming through the walls with ease. “I know you think you’re hot shit, but even you can’t resist nature, pure and simple.”

I flushed, thinking about resisting nature and what I had been imagining just moments ago in the bed.

“Fuck you.” Aris sounded genuinely upset. Of course, he would hate the idea of his body wanting me when he didn’t. I could relate.

Bigby laughed, then went suddenly quiet.

“What—”

“That explains it,” Bigby said.

“Get out of here,” Aris said, his voice suddenly full of anger and haste. I took a step back from the door, wondering if I should book it to the big cabin.

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Bigby said, and then, suddenly, Aris was standing in front of me, his eyes pure fire.

Now, Aris slams the door of the cabin behind him after dragging us both inside. The inside of the cabin is shockingly dim compared to the clearing, and I have to blink several times to adjust my eyes.

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