ECHO

"...You. Are. Mine."

I froze.

That's not possible.

I looked at Arlo and then turned my gaze to Molly hoping somebody would give me some answers. But she only looked at me with...pity in her eyes.

I frantically shook my head in disbelief, "No, no, no."

"What do you mean by-"

The Alpha took a step in my direction, but I held up my hands to stop him. Anger left his face only to be replaced my hurt and pain. It broke my heart to see him like that, but what he was saying wasn't possible. It couldn't be.

"I-I am s-sorry, but this can't be," was all I said before I ran out the front door as fast as I could.

When I stepped out I could see a couple of the pack members standing, trying to block my way.

I ran away from my pack to stay away from werewolves and not be a part of any pack. It wasn't going to stop now.

I knew that when I left my pack, my life would be more chaotic with being on the run all the time. But it was a fate that I had accepted.

Being someone's mate was not part of the plan.

How was that even possible? My wolf was dead. I felt her wither away. I endured the pain and loss of her.

Nothing made sense and nobody seemed to have any answers for me.

I looked up at the night sky and prayed to the Moon Goddess to guide me too because I had nowhere else to go.

The pack members backed away and created a clear path for me. My eyes widened when they bowed their heads. I figured that by now everyone in the pack would be aware that the Alpha had found his mate.

That information had me more scared because if the rumours were true about him being the most ruthless of all, he wasn't going to stop at anything to get his mate.

My friends should've just let me go last night. I was a fool to stay and now I have endangered their lives too.

They might be rogues, but they aren't selfish. They will try to protect me; always.

But tonight, it was my turn.

I will not put their lives at risk anymore.

With a quick pace, I jogged over to where Arlo parked his bike. I climbed over, turned on the ignition and the beast roared to life. I was glad that he taught me how to ride a motorcycle even though I always whined.

Not giving the club a second glance, I hightailed out of there.

The wind whipped my hair, but the coldness was welcoming.

So much had happened tonight. I tried to get his face out of my head, but I couldn't. The look of hurt and pain on his face mocked me.

If it were another world or another lifetime, maybe I would've stayed.

My thoughts were travelling at a hundred miles per minutes. I couldn't hold on to anything and just think for a moment. Everything was so jumbled up that it made no sense, but there was this voice at the back of my head that whispered something about staying.

But, I couldn't do that.

And I won't.

With the house in view, I quickly parked the motorcycle in the driveway and rushed inside.

Not bothering to switch on the lights, I headed straight for the stairs. I took two steps at a time.

The quicker I got to my room, the faster I would be out of everyone's life and for their safety.

"But is that what you really want, Echo?" Questioned my subconscious.

I shook away that thought and focused on the task at hand.

Upon entering my room, I looked for my duffel bag. As always, it was already packed.

I took a moment to calm my breathing. I hadn't realized that my entire body was shaking.

My decision to leave would hurt my friends, but what other choice did I have? I was torn between staying and leaving and it was a constant fucking loop.

"Ugh!" I grabbed the chair and flung it across the room.

I was furious – mad at myself, at my parents and especially the Moon Goddess.

"Why did I have to be put in such a position? WHY?" I asked the Moon Goddess.

Sliding down on the floor, with my head in my hands, I finally broke down. Tears streamed down my cheeks and I did nothing to wipe them away.

I was a fucking coward who let her wolf die.

I was a coward for running away.

I was a coward for not being able to protect my friends.

"No, you are not a coward," said a deep voice.

I jerked my head in the direction of the voice.

He stood in the doorway with darkness surrounding him. The only thing that burned was his blue eyes. It was something about them that pulled me towards him.

When he entered my room, I backed away. But with luck as bad as mine, I had nowhere to go as my back hit the bed.

He held up his hand and spoke, "I am not going to hurt you. You have nothing to be afraid of."

"Yeah, right," I scoffed, but soon realized my mistake.

"I didn't...I mean...that's not..."

He bloody laughed - a deep rumble that did something to my insides, again.

I was dumbstruck.

He crouched down before me.

I couldn't see him properly because I hadn't switched on any lights. For some reason, I desperately wanted to see him. Even back at the club, I couldn't because those darn dim lights.

When he was at eye-level, his face inched closer to mine and I let out a small gasp. I didn't know what he was going to do, but I didn't think I was going to stop him.

What the hell was wrong with me?

"Stay," he said in a husky voice.

I opened my mouth to reply, but he shushed me by placing his index finger on my lips.

When his finger touched my skin, it burned. I felt a tingling sensation take over my body. It was prickly, but a welcoming one and I wanted more. That's why I was a little disappointed when he moved his finger away.

But my disappointment only lasted for mere seconds. What he did next had me shocked.

With the pad of his thumbs, he wiped away my tears, but it felt more than that, like he wanted to take away my pain too.

I surely must be crazy if I thought a ruthless Alpha cared about someone else, especially me – mate or not.

"You don't have to give me an answer right now, but at least consider staying. You and I both have a lot of questions, but perhaps together we can figure out the answers. Don't reject our bond just yet."

And there was that feeling again. Something wanted out and I had no idea what that was.

He was like a magnet to my weird sensations and that clawing feeling.

My head hurt with all the crying and my throat felt sore.

I licked my dry lips and saw his eyes darken to a shade of deep blue with golden flecks.

What he said made a whole lot of sense than my stupid decision of running away. However, that still didn't change the fact that everyone's lives were at stake, especially that of my friends.

I was lost in my thoughts that I hadn't noticed him get up and just as he was about to leave and a small look of disappointment, I called out.

"Wait!"

He raised an eyebrow at me, urging me to continue.

"What is your name?" I asked.

He seemed taken aback as if I had a stupid question and I probably did because I was in his territory and I knew nothing about him or his pack.

He quickly recovered and smirked.

Extending his right hand forward, he introduced himself, "Alpha Jax."

Jax...hmm, I kinda liked the name.

"Echo," I said as I placed my hand in his which fit perfectly.

His hold tightened and he jerked me forward.

I gasped.

Leaning down, he whispered in my and it send shivers down my spine.

"You will always be mine, Echo."

Holy fuck.

-

A/N:

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Love,
Grace Clarke xo