Page 68 of Bonds of Pain
The gate rises with a mechanical groan, and Ares drives through. He pulls over just a few hundred feet past the checkpoint and cuts the engine. Without looking at me, he exits the vehicle, slamming the door behind him.
I take a deep breath, steadying myself. This isn’t going according to plan. I’m supposed to be figuring out a way to fracture this pack, undermine Logan’s position, not turn them against me.
I climb out of the car and follow Ares, who stands at the edge of a steep drop-off I hadn’t noticed from the road. Beyond it stretches a vast, untamed wilderness with mountains in the distance and forests below.
The view is breathtaking, even as I struggle to appreciate it as little more than further evidence of just how trapped I am here.
“What is that?” I ask, not really expecting a response.
“The edge of the Outlands,” he says after a long beat of silence. “Most of the territory in that direction is contested despite the unification. It isn’t safe to go any further than this without an armed escort.”
As far as he can take me.
I asked and he delivered.
I stare out at the wild expanse, feeling the wind whip my hair across my face. The silence between us stretches until I can’t stand it anymore.
“I’m not going to apologize,” I say, still looking at the horizon rather than at Ares.
To my surprise, he chuckles. “I don’t expect you to.”
“Good, because you’ve treated me like a pretty plaything since the moment I arrived. Making crude jokes about my body, talking about passing me around the pack like I’m some kind of party favor. I can’t just forget all that.”
Ares leans against the hood of the vehicle, crossing his arms. “Things have changed.”
“Have they?” I turn to face him. “Or do you only feel that way now because Logan claimed me? Because now you’re stuck with me.”
His jaw tightens, green eyes flashing with genuine annoyance. “You think I feel trapped? No. I can walk away from this pack at any time I want. I stay because this is where I want to be.”
“What makes this pack so special?” I ask, genuinely curious despite myself. “What makes Logan so worthy of your loyalty?”
“Logan might be the greatest military strategist in the history of Melilla. He saved my life when I served in the Outlands. Not just mine and not just once,” Ares says simply, but with so muchconviction that I know he believes it. “He protects what’s his. He is fair in all the ways that matter.” His voice softens as he stares off into the trees. “And beneath all that royal bullshit, he actually gives a damn about making things better.”
“Too bad I can’t join the military, then,” I scoff. “Because the Logan I’ve seen is selfish, controlling, and violent.”
“He is under a kind of pressure that you can’t even imagine,” Ares counters. “It’s his job to be a perfect Alpha, especially now that every eye in the kingdom is on him. The more you challenge him, the more aggressively he’ll feel compelled to respond.”
“So, it’s my fault?”
“I didn’t say that.” Ares runs a hand through his curls. “You always seem to bring out the worst in him.” At the look on my face, he rushes to finish before I can say anything. “Which is his own shit to deal with, I know. But some growing pains are normal in new Alpha-Omega relationships.”
“Growing pains?” I repeat incredulously. “Is that what you call forcing a bond on someone?”
Ares sighs. “Look, I’m not saying everything he’s done is right. But I’ve known Logan for years. He’s not the monster you think he is.”
I open my mouth to tell him everything—about Cillian being an Omega, about the true nature of my shared bond, about Logan’s deception. The words hover on the tip of my tongue. With this one revelation, I could shatter Logan’s carefully constructed façade and turn his most loyal enforcer against him.
But something stops me. Maybe it’s the genuine belief in Ares’ eyes, or maybe it’s the realization that I’m not ready to play this card yet. Once I say the words, I won’t be able to take them back.
Instead, I turn back toward the wilderness. “Thanks for the advice.”
Without warning, Ares pulls me into a tight hug. His massive arms wrap around me, enveloping my entire body against his chest. My first instinct is to push away. I don’t want his comfort, his warmth, his touch.
But I freeze instead. My head barely reaches his chest, and I can hear the steady thump of his heart beneath my ear. His body is like a furnace, radiating heat that seeps through my clothes and into my skin. His scent surrounds me completely. I can’t help that it’s become as familiar as my own at this point. Too familiar. Too reminiscent of the home I’ve never had.
I should pull away. I should maintain the distance I’ve been carefully cultivating.
But I don’t.
