Page 52 of Savage Games

Blake’s meaning is clear.He won’t let me kill them.He doesn’t want to, but he’ll force me to submit or fight me if he has to.

My wolf bristles, rebelling against being told what to do and uneasy at being in the commanding presence of an animal just as powerful as ours.My wolf continues to press forward in defiance, tightening his hold ever so slightly, eliciting a pitiful whimper from the wolf that’s lying prone beneath me.He debates whether it’s worth it to finish this pathetic male and test himself against the giant alpha, too.

Blake stands perfectly still, his power so absolute that he does not need to display it.We both know he could force my submission, but he waits, giving me the dignity of choice.

Calmly, he watches to see what I’ll do, as if he can read my thoughts and is patiently waiting for my decision.He has faith I’ll choose wisely, and I want to prove him right.

Then, in the distance, a howl splits the night.

Soft.Familiar.Pleading.

Naomi.

It calls to something deep in my chest, something stronger than rage, or a thirst for revenge.She’s begging me to come back to her, and killing this wolf is something that could force us apart permanently.

Her howl isn't loud, but it cuts through everything else, including the blood pounding in my ears, the fury clouding my judgment, and the wolf's desire for vengeance.The moment I hear her, the fight drains out of me, my snarl fades, and my teeth retract from Grayson’s torn flesh.

Steel’s gigantic wolf stays in front of me, watching closely as I step back, reluctantly releasing my prize.When he sees my body relax and my wolf give way to my human form, Blake shifts back, standing with arms crossed, his expression neutral and unreadable.Nothing about him would suggest he was seconds away from witnessing a murder and potentially having to put down a dangerous rogue.

“Thanks for not killing anyone,” he says quietly, glancing around at the snapped branches and the marks and grooves in the soil that tell of a fierce fight.

I exhale and tip my head back, letting the cold air chill my sweat-dampened fur and my heated temper.Blood drips down my leg from a shallow scratch, but I barely feel it.All my focus is on Naomi, and what she must think of me.If my feet weren’t rooted to the ground, my wolf waiting for this powerful man to tell me what’s going to happen next, I’d run to her and beg her to see I’m not a crazed rogue.

Or, at least, I don’t think I am.

In the aftermath of my rage, a hollow emptiness settles inside me, accompanied by a sense of shame.Not for what I did, but for enjoying it.For proving, in some small way, that they're right to fear me.I wouldn't have killed Grayson, not really.But for a moment, I wanted to.Wanted to silence all the whispers and sneers, once and for all.

Blake's expression gives nothing away, but there's a certain understanding in his eyes.He's an alpha among alphas.Surely he knows this struggle, the constant battle between the wolf and the man.Between being civilised and controlled, and letting the inner beast out to play.

Blake glances at the bloody carnage around us, then toward the distant tree line where the howl went up.The direction of her.

His jaw ticks.“You need to get a handle on this.Before the next round, ideally.”

I sit back on my haunches and tip my chin up defiantly.

His smirk is knowing, his eyes flicking toward the night sky where the almost full moon hangs low.

“Sort yourself out before your wolf does something you’ll regret.Don’t get yourself banished over a few idiots who are just trying to push your buttons.”

I force my breathing to steady.In and out.

“Sounds easier than it is.I know.”With a tip of his head, he’s gone, leaving me alone to consider his words.

It's a vast understatement.Every sneer, every whisper, every reminder that I don't belong, chips away at the walls I've built to contain my wolf.And now with Naomi, with the promise of what we could be together, and my wolf itching to claim her permanently, the stakes are impossibly high.

Gritting my teeth, I swallow back a growl, my wolf still angry that his fun was cut short, because deep down, I know he’s right.That could have been the end of everything—my chances of winning a pack, my opportunity to help Maddie, and my future with Naomi.

Without being able to mark Naomi, and with another wolf trying to stake his claim on my mate, I’m hanging on by a thread.And I don’t know how much longer I can keep pretending otherwise.

19

Naomi

The fight is long over, yet I pace the tree line, my paws pressing into the damp earth, ears straining for any sound from the clearing beyond.There was only so long I could hold back, so when I felt the ghost of a pain in Wyatt’s flank, it was only a matter of time before I shifted.

Lynn dragged me over to the edge of the forest, away from the gathered crowd, and told me to let my wolf come forward, and that she’d feel better if she was ready to intervene.

Not that she needed to.The vicious snarls died soon after.

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