SCARLETT

"Good! And again! Keep going!"

I grunted, whacking at the punching bag hanging from the gymnasium ceiling that was swinging viciously as I continued my assault on it. My fists were burning underneath the boxing gloves, the skin feeling broken and raw.

I didn't want to stop, though. I was exhausting every ounce of frustration I had onto the bag, pretending it was the person up above who decided to curse me with the 'honour' of being born a gifted wolf.

Erica beamed at me, nodding her head in satisfaction. "Someone's got some pent up anger stowed away in there." A small laugh escaped her mouth, but all I could do was wipe the sweat dripping down from my forehead and gesture for her to start the timer again.

I wanted to beat my personal best for the amount of punches I could do in a minute, and I wasn't going to stop until I did.

My thoughts drifted back to that day in the city, guilt swarming my body.

I had been so close to escaping - to leaving and never coming back. But seeing that young gifted wolf be tracked down and dragged away by a member of the Enclave clan lit some kind of fire inside of my belly. It infuriated me. We had all spent so long running, and nothing was going to change unless someone did something about it.

I had to be that person - because no one else was going to be.

I had made my way back to the boutique before Erica became too worried, and I lied and told her that I had rushed off to the bathroom because I wasn't feeling well. She didn't see a reason to tell Roman about it - too engrossed in bridesmaid dress shopping to find him and let him know, since I claimed I was feeling better.

We hadn't found the one. Apparently, none of the dresses 'spoke' to Erica, and she planned for us to take another trip to look for one in the near future. That meant another chance to escape if I needed to. It was important I kept my options open just in case, I told myself.

But the idea of leaving Roman made me nauseous. And as much as I didn't want to leave him, I had considered it anyway. If it hadn't been for that gifted wolf being taken, I wasn't sure what I would have done. Would I have hopped on that bus and left the city? Or would I have changed my mind anyway?

I didn't know, and the guilt I felt from it was heart-shattering.

I never believed I was a good person, but this just scribed it into stone for me.

"Scarlett, are you crying?"

Erica's voice snapped me from my own mind, and I turned to her with big brown eyes, my throat running dry. I yanked off the glove covering my unmarked hand, touching my face to feel a small salty tear falling from one of my eyes.

I immediately shook my head, forcing a chuckle.

"It happens when I don't blink for a while." I lied, positioning my body away from her after hearing her hum, and she let me know that I had beaten my previous punching record. Pride blossomed within my chest, momentarily distracting me.

The smell of musk and slightly salty vanilla reached my nose, and I breathed in the scent hungrily. Greedily. As if I was a starved woman. Roman waltzed into the gymnasium, followed closely by his younger brother. His eyes quickly settled on me, and I picked up on a hint of curiosity within his glowing irises before he averted them and smiled at Erica.

"How's training going?" God, his voice was like butter.

"I mean, Scarlett could fill a small swimming pool with the amount of sweat she's produced, so I'd say it's going well," Brandon said, chuckling.

"Are you both here to train?" I questioned, gulping at the thought of how deadly my mate could be. Looking at his size, he would be able to snap a neck in a split second.

"We have a couple of hours spare, so we thought we'd come down for a little bit," Roman responded, and he took a step closer to me. "I wasn't expecting your sweat to smell like that."

I cocked my head. "Like what?"

"Good." The words left Roman's lips before it looked like he had a chance to comprehend what he was saying, and he quickly cleared his throat, stealing a glance at Erica and Brandon who were too busy giggling with each other about something to notice.

Wow, if I thought my self restraint wasn't great before, it's practically non-existent now.

"Want me to give you some pointers?" Roman moved closer to me. I was able to relax somewhat since my marked hand was covered, and I nodded, quickly slipping my other boxing glove back on.

He stood behind me, his back flush with mine. He was so close. I could feel his heart beating through my back, the placidity of it calming me. Grounding me. Nothing felt wrong when I was touching him.

"Angle your fist this way when you make contact with the bag." His voice was soft, not condescending or passive aggressive. Instead, he was gentle as he watched me hit the bag, humming in approval when I followed his advice.

However, it appeared it wasn't enough for him, and he took my fist in his large calloused hand, guiding it towards the bag and showing me exactly how to land a deadly punch with little pain.

It was a struggle to focus on anything other than our connected bodies. I sensed that Erica and Brandon had slipped away into another corner of the gym, but as far as I was concerned, nobody else was here.

It was just Roman and I. Together. No problem in the world that could knock us down from our high.

Except there was. I was yanked down from the clouds by my own jealousy, forcing me into a pit of anxiety and despair - because right next to us, helping herself to a couple of dumbbells, was Olive.

Her mousy brown hair was pulled back into a neat braid, and her slender body was dressed in a cute sage green matching workout set. I couldn't lie, it looked phenomenal on her.

"Just ignore her," Roman soothed me, swiping his thumb over my upper arm calmingly, nodding towards the punching bag again to try and recapture my focus. I couldn't keep my eyes off Olive, though. And she couldn't keep hers off me.

I growled under my breath, shrugging my shoulders in an attempt to rid myself of the tension she caused me.

"Roman," called Brandon from across the gym as he held up his phone, nodding towards the exit. "I've got an Alpha on the phone here who wants to speak with you about a possible alliance."

"Is it okay if I -"

I nodded. "I'll be fine, Roman. Go and answer the call."

I couldn't help but desire to listen in on it, but even I understood that would raise suspicion. Roman disappeared out of the gymnasium with Brandon, and Erica clutched at her growing belly, complaining about her sudden need to pee before rushing off towards the bathroom.

Landing punch after punch, I smiled to myself, satisfied with Roman's advice. It hurt my knuckles a whole lot less, and it felt like I could continue subjecting the bag to my intense abuse for days without issues.

"Scarlett." I turned at the sound of Olive's small voice, readying myself for what was about to come. The last time I had seen her was at Wyatt's party, when I had cut open my wrist by accident, and she had barged in on me to spot the blood.

"Yes?" I kept my face neutral. I refused to be horrible to the girl. It wouldn't benefit me in any way. She had backed off from Roman, so I had no desire to berate her.

"I just wanted to ask you if you were okay?" I was surprised by her words. "At Wyatt's party," Olive gulped awkwardly, "your dress was ripped and you were...bleeding. I'm sorry for any part I played in your issues. If you're hurting yourself, then I would -"

"Hurting myself?" I widened my eyes, shaking my head. "Oh no, Olive. I didn't do that to myself. I honestly just fell over because of my heels. But I appreciate the apology."

I wasn't sure what had caused Olive's sudden change of heart, but I wondered if it had something to do with the fact that she believed I was staying here for good and she wasn't going to be able to change Roman's mind.

Perhaps she had seen the way Roman acted around me, and she decided it wasn't worth it anymore? Or maybe she had met her own mate?

I wasn't using my powers on her by mistake, was I? I tapped into my own mind. No, I definitely wasn't.

"I don't like awkwardness," Olive stated. "You appearing out of nowhere was a shock to me, and although Roman and I were never anything, I think I had just convinced myself that we would be because it was what our parents both wanted. That was foolish of me though. I can see you're both very happy together, and I don't wish to get in the way of that."

I couldn't fathom what she was saying. Was this some kind of trick?

"Oh, um, thank you, Olive. And thank you for checking up on me." I smiled at her, and she nodded, turning away from me to continue her workout, making her way over to the other side of the gym.

I continued to attack the punching bag, wafting my long baggy t-shirt free of sweat, blowing out a gust of air before taking a sip from my water bottle.

"Did anything happen?" Roman suddenly asked from behind me, and I gasped, realising I hadn't noticed him sneak up on me. He chuckled. "Sorry, baby."

Fuck, that nickname.

He moved closer to me, and I studied him, wanting to do nothing but tangle my hands in his soft hair and pull his lips to my own. Gymnasium sex sounded pretty hot. My arousal bloomed.

It dawned on me again just how much stronger my mate was than me. Not just physically, but mentally - I lost control around him. To the point where my inner demons had to wreak havoc in my mind, reminding me to ensure that I was able to manipulate him just in case things turned south.

If he was to find out what was and turn on me, I needed to be able to control him for a short period of time so I could make a run for it.

I had decided I was going to stay, so I needed to do it. It was time to start training my mind as well as my body

My mind zapped as I tried my best to push out just a little bit of joy onto Roman. I wanted to stay away from the negative emotions while I was practising. I hated the idea of making him feel unnecessary anger or sadness.

Roman didn't react. He simply tilted his head at me in curiosity.

He didn't look overly joyful, so I pushed out a little more. He was an Alpha, and it was clear it was going to take a little bit more to penetrate his mind. My brain zapped at me, uncomfortable with the amount of power I was using after such an intense workout, but I ignored it, propelling more of the emotion towards Roman.

He wasn't smiling though. Instead, he took a step back, his eyes dark and stormy, and he flexed his jaw, grinding his teeth together. He looked the opposite of happy. There wasn't an ounce of delight or elation in his eyes.

Only sorrow. Anguish. Anger.

"I've got to go and do some work," he told me, looking me over once more with knitted brows and a downturned mouth before slipping out of the gymnasium door, leaving me standing there, bewildered and disorientated.

What the hell was that?