Chapter 7 Establishing Rules

QqChapter Seven

Alpha Reign's Perspective

...I lasted exactly twenty minutes before I gave up on trying to work. I couldn't lie to myself anymore, so I made the dangerous choice to let my mind drift

I imagined her body pressed against mine, her breathless gasps, the way she'd looked at me with those sharp, defiant eyes even as she surrendered to the bond

And worse-much worse-I kept thinking about what I wanted to do next

I wanted to strip her bare and explore every inch of her. Wanted to taste her skin, feel her come apart under my hand, I wanted to bury myself inside her again and again until neither of us could think straight

I wanted to sink my cock into her pussy and claim her properly this time, I wanted to know how tight she was

No rushed encounter against a door. I wanted her spread out beneath me, screaming my name while I made her mine in every way that mattered

All those thoughts made my dick hardened just thinking about it

I thought about her at breakfast this morning-the way that shirt had clung to her curves, the way I couldn't stop staring at her chest. She had the kind of body that made men stupid. Full breasts that I wanted to palm, to squeeze, to taste-

"Reign?"

I nearly jumped out of my skin as my head whipped to the door

Lorraine stood in the doorway of my office, eyebrows raised, then her gaze dropped

To the very obvious bulge in my pants

Fuck

Her lips curved into a knowing smile "Well, Someone's having dirty thoughts"

I forced a laugh, trying to play it off "Can you blame me? It's been a long day" my fingers raked through my hair

She walked closer, her smile turning playful "I can think of a few ways to help you relax" her hands were already trailing down my chest

The guilt crashed over me so hard I almost staggered

She thought this was about her

She thought I was hard because of her

And I was letting her believe it

I hated myself

Lorraine didn't deserve this. She'd been nothing but good to me, and here I was, lusting after her daughter like some kind of monster

"I-I have a lot of work to finish," I said quickly, stepping back "Rain check?"

She pouted slightly but nodded "Alright. But don't work too late, I'll be waiting for you"

"I won't" I smiled

She left, and I collapsed into my chair, burying my face in my hands

This had to stop

I couldn't keep doing this-couldn't keep betraying Lorraine, couldn't keep losing my mind over Belle

I needed to set boundaries, I needed to make sure last night never happened again

I stood and headed for Belle's room, my resolve firm

We were going to talk and we were going to establish rules...and we were going to keep our distance from each other, mate bond be damned

When I reached her door and raised my hand to knock-

I felt someone crash into my back, swiftly, I turned to see her falling to the ground

My hand shot out and caught her shoulders instinctively, steadying her

She looked up at me, her eyes wide with panic, phone clutched in her trembling hand

"Belle," I said, keeping my voice calm and steady despite the way my wolf was practically purring at having her this close again "We need to talk"

"I-I can't right now," she stammered, trying to pull away

I tightened my grip slightly. Not enough to hurt, just enough to keep her from running "Yes you can, and you will do it now"

"You don't understand-"

"Whatever it is can wait" I steered her back into her room and closed the door behind us

Stupid act

The second we were alone, enclosed in her space that smelled entirely like her, my resolve started cracking

She backed up a step, clutching her phone like a lifeline "Reign, seriously, I need to-"

"What happened last night can't happen again"

The words came out harsher than I intended, and I saw her flinch

Good. Maybe harsh was what we needed

"I know that," she shot back, her defiance returning. "Trust me, I'm not interested in a repeat performance" she even looked disgusted at it

Liar

I could smell her arousal even now, could see the way her pupils dilated when she looked at me...even the way her nipples hardened under that flimsy crop top

I swallowed, willing myself to stay focused

"The mate bond is strong," I continued, still forcing myself to stay focused "But we're not animals, we can control this"

"Can we?" She raised an eyebrow, and damn if that didn't make me want to kiss that smug look right off her face

I stepped closer before I could stop myself "We have to"

"Why?" She tilted her head, watching me with those sharp eyes "Because of my mother? You want me to punish myself for something that is out of my control"

"Because it's the right thing to do" I ignored her last line

"You don't know me well enough Reign, I do not care about doing the right thing?" She moved closer too, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off her body "besides, you certainly weren't thinking about the 'right thing' when you had me pinned over your wall last night"

My control snapped

I grabbed her waist and pulled her flush against me, my hand tangling in her hair "Don't push me, Belle" she laughed

"Or what?" she breathed, her lips inches from mine

Or I'll fuck you right here and forget every reason why I shouldn't

I could feel her heart racing, could see the pulse jumping in her throat. My wolf wanted to mark that spot, wanted everyone to know she was mine

But she wasn't mine

She couldn't be

With every ounce of willpower I had, I forced myself to let her go and step back

"This can't happen," I said again, my voice rough "We stay away from each other as best we can, never come to my office ever again and we can never, be alone together" I said

"So we act like strangers?" She raised a brow, I cohld see the way she struggled too but tried to play it cool

"Yes" she laughed "and what do we tell my mother is the reason we don't get alone?" Right

"Okay, we act like polite strangers under the same roof. Understood?"

She stared at me for a long moment, something unreadable flickering in her eyes

Then she smiled a slow and dangerous smile

"Sure, Reign. Whatever you say, just make sure you don't be thr first to break those rules"

The way she said my name-like a caress and a challenge all at once-sent heat straight to my groin

I turned to leave before I did something stupid

"One more thing," she called out

I paused at the door but didn't turn around

"You might want to take care of that before you go back to my mother"

I looked down

Fuck

I was hard again and painfully so

I heard her soft laugh behind me as I walked out, adjusting myself and trying to think of anything-anything-except the way she'd felt in my arms

And also keep myself from imagining how her tongue wojld feel on my groin

This was going to be harder than I thought

Much, much harder.