The Pack (The Pack 1)

My eyes shot to his at the admission and I could see the struggle it took him to maintain his distance. His arms were solid iron braced above me, but they weren’t there to hold me captive, but to make sure he didn’t touch.

“You’ll wait after school,” he stated it as fact, but the words were softer somehow, uncertain and I nodded so he’d know I’d wait. “You should go,” he whispered, his jaw taut as he maintained a control I could only admire.

I quickly rattled off a string of numbers and his eyebrows lowered. I said them again, slower and his face cleared as he realized I was giving him my phone number.

“How good is your control?” I whispered, my eyes darting to either side to check we were still alone.

“Better than I thought,” he admitted reluctantly, before his eyes hooded in suspicion. “Why?”

I didn’t bother with an answer, lifting up on my toes instead to brush my lips against his. The touch was brief but scalding and I could swear I felt his groan down to my toes. A fire lit in his eyes and the wooden shelf above me creaked as he tightened his grip.

“Run,” he murmured his low voice raspy. “Run, little girl, and hide while you still have a chance.”

I spun and darted down the stack, my steps light and soundless. I grabbed everything from the table I’d been at, not bothering to take the time to shove it in my backpack as I did exactly what he told me to do and ran.

Luckily, the weather had warmed up so sitting in the bleachers while the team scrimmaged wasn’t as miserable as I’d imagined. I was surprised to find I wasn’t the only one in the stands watching. There were several students and the cheerleaders were down on the field. Some teachers had even lingered, primarily the young, single ones whose eyes never left the giant standing above the other athletes.

Unconsciously, I rubbed the skin near Dominic’s mark, and when one of my fingers brushed over it, he stilled. I froze, my eyes watching him as he turned to stare at me, and heat flashed in his eyes, both a warning and a promise. I lowered my shaking hand and he turned back to the field. I glanced around to see if anyone had caught the small interaction, only to find Ms. Nichols staring at me. I cursed under my breath, fed up with her obsession. Ms. Nichols clearly had a thing for Dominic or maybe just a dislike of me, but whatever it was, it was becoming inconvenient.

I smiled at her, baring my teeth, and she flinched, her gaze skittering away. I clenched my fist around the strap of my backpack, resisting the urge to hurl it at her. A dark chuckle escaped me as I thought about what her reaction would be if she knew, I’d kissed Dominic, a fact I was still trying to wrap my head around.

I knew better. He was older. A teacher. And dangerous. All excellent reasons not to tempt the beast, and what did I do?

Waved a flag in his face.

I snorted at my stupidity and one of the freshman sitting on the next row glanced at me. I arched an eyebrow at him and he flushed, averting his gaze. I rubbed my hands on my jeans, trying to ease some of the tension coiling inside me. Walking home with Dominic seemed like such a bad idea now, and my gaze strayed to the spot in the woods where the path led home. It was only my earlier promise to Dominic that kept me seated.

I might be occasionally stupid, but I wasn’t suicidal. Recent events had confirmed the Hanleys were dangerous and going off on my own would endanger more than just myself. My gaze was drawn to Dominic once again, knowing he’d put himself at risk to save me.

It wasn’t long before the game was over, our team the uncontested winners, and no wonder why with a coach like Dominic driving them. I stayed in the bleachers, figuring they’d come out when they were finished with whatever it was guys did after a game.

People filed out of the bleachers slowly, talking among themselves, and I took out my phone to occupy me while I settled in to wait.

“Waiting for someone?” The brittle voice interrupted me after a few minutes of reading on my phone and I glanced up to find Ms. Nichols staring at me.

“I am,” I answered easily, before glancing back down at my phone in a clear dismissal.

“Your actions have grown increasingly embarrassing, Jess. It’s growing noticeable, in fact.”

I lifted my head at her words and stared at her until the satisfied expression on her face slowly faded.

“I’m warning you for your own good,” she blustered, trying to regain the upper hand. It was a losing battle since she had nothing on my mother, who was the undisputed queen of cutting someone down.