Daughter of the Alpha

Chapter thirteen

AJ woke early. The gray morning sun peeked in through the shabby old curtains, but she could still hear the patter on the windows from the remnant of the storm last night. Reaching up to pull the corner of the fabric aside, she saw the dark clouds floating across the sky through the treetops. A glimmer of sun behind them, promising a clear day once they left. She propped herself up on her elbows, peering down at the sleeping form next to her.

Dylan had been right, it was a tight fit in the bed, but she wouldn't have had it any other way. She had to stop herself from giggling, thinking back to the night before. It seemed so surreal. Like it only happened in her head. But there she was, naked under a sheet, next to an equally as naked man. A man who had his arm draped around her waist, and his legs tucked under hers. His hair was everywhere, she almost laughed at the sight but managed to strangle it. When she moved, he grunted and tightened his hold on her, burrowing his head deeper into the flat pillow they had shared.

Gently pushing his arm from her waist, she slowly lifted her legs out of the bed and sat up on the edge. He grunted again and rolled over onto his back, still sleeping, a few snores escaped him and she held back another laugh. She stood up, stretching her arms above her head. She was a little sore. In a good way. A welcome soreness. As if she had been exercising or exhausted herself from hard labor. It felt good.

The fire was out, a few embers remained but they would die soon. She found Dylan's stupid flannel shirt hanging on the chair and slipped it on, wondering where on earth her underwear had gotten to. She found her bra on the floor, covered in soot from the fireplace. Damn. And just where were her panties? She wasn't sure how that had supposed to go. Showing up seducing him in sexy underwear, well that worked out. Although, just who seduced who was a little unclear to her. But she had no idea how long that underwear was supposed to stay on. If she had known he was just going to tear it off her the very second she showed him, she would probably have opted for more comfortable stuff.

"Where do you think you're going?" Dylan mumbled from the bed, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

"I have to go," AJ spat out in surprise, dropping the bra to the floor again. Why was she suddenly nervous?

"Stay," he groaned, shielding his eyes from what little light came in through the window. "It's too early. Come back," he urged her, reaching out his hand for her. She didn't move. A quick glimpse at the old, cracked clock on the wall made him groan again. "It's five in the morning, Allie. Get back in here."

She bit her lip and picked up the bra again. "I have to get back before anyone notices that I'm gone, Lily can't cover for me forever." She couldn't go back to that bed, for some reason she felt embarrassed. Everything had been so easy during the night, the darkness had sheltered her, given her a false sense of bravery. The morning light told a different story and she almost blushed at the things she had said, the things she had done. "Thank you for last night," she stuttered, feeling a little awkward.

"Please don't thank me," he quickly said. He would never forget the moment he thought he had hurt her, it was etched in his mind, and he would never forgive himself for that. "I should be thanking you for trusting me." Dylan sat up, still rubbing his tired eyes and trying to get his bedhead in control. Or at least get it out of his eyes. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

AJ shrugged. "I'm Ok, nothing much out of the ordinary. I can feel I did something last night, but it's not bad," she answered matter of factly, tapping her finger on her chin. Biting her lip before she continued, "I thought I'd feel different. Like a new person. It sounds dumb, but I imagined it would be like breaking a seal, you know? And then I'd be a new AJ, but no, same old same old." She sighed heavily. She hadn't known what to expect. While it had been fun last night, and she had enjoyed it, it was like a dream. A faraway dream. A dream in which she didn't have responsibilities and duties. A dream where she was someone different. And now everything was crashing down on her, the reality of what she had done and everything waiting for her back home.