Dimitri’s POV
My heart was racing and I had to use so much of my strength to keep Skol from taking over and killing Seth.
‘Will you stop it?!’ I growled at him. ‘I need to focus on her and bring her home safe. You are distracting me.’
Skol growled but stopped pressing to be released.
‘Did you see his arms around her?’ Skol growled. ‘He touched her. He touched what’s ours.’
I tightened my jaw and forced myself to breathe as deeply as I could.
I saw that and I wanted to rip his arms off. He shouldn’t have touched her. He wasn’t allowed to touch her. No one was allowed to touch her.
I tightened my arms around her and focused on her scent. I knew it would calm me down. And I needed to calm down before I turned around and snapped Seth’s neck.
‘Mine,’ Skol growled quietly.
I focused on my mate in my arms and I noticed her shivering.
A growl escaped me, making Maddie look at me confused.
“You are cold,” I said as I stopped walking and put her down.
I started taking my jacket off, but she stopped me.
“I am fine, Alpha,” she said, looking up at me.
Staring at her big, green eyes made my knees buckle. Her skin was pale, but her lips, cheeks, and the tip of her nose were red because of the cold. She looked adorable and I wished that I could capture her lips with mine.
“You are cold,” I repeated, my voice quiet and raspy.
I took my jacket off, wrapped it around her, and picked her back up again. I could tell that she didn’t want me to carry her, but I didn’t give a shit. She put herself in danger. While I was running and trying to find her, I kept imagining her hurt. I needed to hold her to remind myself that she was okay.
A small smile spread across my face as I lifted her. She was wearing my jacket and I could smell my scent on her. Other males would be able to do the same. Other males would be able to smell me on her and they would know to back the fuck off. It wouldn’t last long, though. Not until I marked her. After I did, my scent would be on her for the rest of our lives. Everyone would know that she was mine. No one would dare to touch her or take her away from me.
I heard Seth behind us and the anger hit me like a train. I forgot that he was there for a moment.
“What the fuck were you thinking, Seth?” I asked again. “What if something happened? She is cold. She could have fallen. She could have hurt herself.”
“I would never let that happen, Alpha,” Seth mumbled. “I was taking good care of her.”
I saw red. He touched her more than once, didn’t he? He helped her more than once, didn’t he? What exactly did he do? What exactly did he touch?
“He is right,” my princess added, making me look down at her. “I wasn’t in danger, Alpha. Mike shouldn’t have sent you after me.”
Oh, my princess.
He didn’t send me after her. I went after her because she was my entire life. I went after her because she was the most important person in my life. I went after her because just the thought of losing her made me sick. It made me want to scream and claw at my chest. I couldn’t lose her. I couldn’t let anything happen to her.
But I couldn’t let her know that. I had to let her think that Mike sent me after her.
“Of course he did,” I mumbled. “He was worried that something could happen, Maddie.”
She glanced at Seth and sighed.
“We can go on another hike, Seth,” she said, making jealousy and anger explode inside me. “Maybe there is another trail that isn’t as dangerous and Mike won’t worry about me.”
I gulped and forced Skol back.
‘NO!’ he screamed. ‘Mine!’
I gritted my teeth and focused on breathing. I couldn’t let a growl escape me.
“Sure, Mads,” Seth said softly. “We can go over the weekend.”
No.
No, no, no, no.
The fear and the jealousy would kill me.
“It’s winter, Maddie,” I said, trying to keep my voice from trembling. “It’s not the time to go on hikes.”
I tightened my jaw and kept my eyes on the trail ahead of us. I had to control my anger. I couldn’t let her see how fucking pissed off I was. I didn’t want her to be alone with him. He liked her and I was terrified that she would start to like him too. He was probably hoping that she was his mate. He wasn’t a Lycan wolf and even if she was his mate, he wouldn’t be able to know until she got her wolf.
But she wasn’t his. She was mine.
Maddie didn’t say anything else.
‘We need to tell Seth that she is our mate and order him to stay the fuck away from her,’ Skol growled. ‘I will go fucking insane if she leaves with him again.’
I believed him. I would go insane too.
‘We can’t do that, Skol,’ I mumbled. ‘He could still tell her.’
You could go against Alpha’s command, but it was very painful to do it. Some wolves even died from the consequences of going against it. I couldn’t risk it, though. I couldn’t risk Seth telling her.
‘He won’t do it,’ Skol growled. ‘Tell him and command him not to tell her.’
I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.
‘We should tell everyone,’ Skol continued. ‘Everyone should know that she belongs to us.’
I gulped. There was nothing I wanted more, but I had to think about her. She was my priority, not the jealousy and the fear I felt.
‘How would she feel if she found out that everyone knew before she did?’ I asked him. ‘She would be devastated, Skol. Finding your mate is such a special and beautiful thing. I am not taking it away from her. I am not telling anyone. I am not risking it.’
‘Seth wouldn’t go against your command,’ Skol said stubbornly.
I ignored him. I wasn’t going to risk it. I didn’t even know Seth that well and I couldn’t be sure that he wouldn’t try to tell her.
I looked down at my princess and I took a deep breath, letting her scent overwhelm me. I couldn’t wait until I was lying next to her again. I could wait to hold her and kiss her soft cheek.
I was sure that my fear and anger would disappear as soon as I would lay next to her. Nothing else would help. She was my cure for everything.
