Alpha Leo and the Heart of Fire

41. You Don’t Know the Pain

LEO.

“Leo…”

She walked over to me, and the moment she touched my back, sending a rush of sparks through me, I felt a wave of calmness washi over me,

The fucking bond.

“I didn‘t mean it in a bad way. You know. Hrowing up, everyone called me a freak because I was born with the help of magic, so they found the word fitting. There were even a few people in the pack who refused to acknowledge me because of it. Heck, some still exist.... as I got older, I stopped telling my family because I didn‘t want to always cause them trouble...” She sighed, and I did my best to remain calm. Flaring anger rushed through me, and I wondered if that was why she was so cheerful because inside she was dealing with a lot.

“I know you always say I‘m the daughter of an Elite. Although my life is nowhere as harrowing as I‘m sure yours has been, I just wanted to let you know that things aren‘t always what they seem.” She moved in front of me, her hand running along my waist, before she placed it on my chest. “It‘s ok to be afraid. I sometimes am... like right now. I don‘t know how this will work... with this baby... us... What will we tell our child? Why aren‘t we together?”

She placed her hand on her stomach, and that intense urge to touch it once more tempted me, but I didn‘t.

“We‘ll figure it out...” I said quietly. We would... I would figure it out for all of you...

I saw the vulnerability in her eyes when she had told me her situation.

Tonight had felt like a snippet of the life that maybe we could have… Her, Corrado... our unborn pup... She‘d be the mother Corrado would love. Even if she wasn‘t what I would have expected, somehow, she had won him over, the perfect balance of wild, cheeky and mature...

I reached up, brushing her silky locks back. Her eyes fluttered shut for a second as my fingers grazed her skin ever so lightly.

These sparks... What were they?

So unexplainable…

She leaned into my touch, her head tilting up slightly, and that intense tension returned.

I wanted her.

“Yeah... maybe we will.” She responded quietly. We fell silent, but I didn‘t remove my hand from her hair, my thumb caressing her jaw. 1 knew what I was afraid of, but I‘d never speak it out loud... I was fucking afraid of us letting our guards down once more, only to be cast aside like always...

her heart

have forgotten... I sighed, looking

me as it did with Marcel and the others. I was just someone she never wanted to lose, yet someone she hated... I was only a pup who wouldn‘t be able to do any damage to her anyway, for now. But I saw it all, the beatings, the torture, the dark magic... Her sacrificing our own kind... her feeding the scraps of our people to our own. Creating the wendigos... it

a cigarette right now. “There is good in this world.”

pack and caused more suffering. I get the reasons, I fucking do. I know the pain when one‘s mate is hurt, but then I realised violence is dealt with, with violence. Was there a difference between good and evil when those views and beliefs became distorted and justifiable when

her struggling to free herself, and so I had secretly unlocked the cell and cleared the escape route for

I snuck her food I‘d get punished if I was caught, but

I didn‘t really know.

wrong were blurred into

tie me up, and all I remember is the excruciating pain that she inflicted on me. I would wake up bleeding after blacking out on the floor, and I would just get up and get back to my sorry life.” I was unable to hide the pain and bitterness from my voice. “Do you know how it felt to drag the dead body of my mother to try to bury her? A body that I couldn‘t even recognise after her transformation into a Wendigo?” 4 She reached up cupping my face, her heart pounding and her eyes full of anger and pain. I was unable to stop myself from grabbing hold of her waist. My own emotions were a fucking storm, I had never told anyone that

decade ago. You had a hand in saving

fucking ideas. I did that because no child deserved to be without his or her parents... I did it because it was the right fucking thing to do... not because of the

good heart... just like

no matter what I did, it was never

told me to speak to my parents, and I think you need to do the same... But regardless of that... Do you know what I see? I see an incredible human before me, a true leader, one with compassion, strength, and justice. Hell, I can‘t believe I‘m saying this. Did you put something in the

I‘m lucky that you are the father of my child. He or she will be lucky to have you.” I fucking wasn‘t expecting her to say

would that child

they mean it. You don‘t need to be chums with them... but maybe putting it behind you will help you

do I give? When someone betrays you that deeply, there‘s no way to forgive that.” I replied, coldly glancing down into her dazzling silver eyes. 2 “There is, if you truly

meet your half–brother, right? When he was just an innocent part

widening with surprise,

“Are you challenging me?”

just trying to show

shit isn‘t enough.” She raised her eyebrow, her nails digging into my neck. What the fuck was with this girl and violence? 2 “Fine, I‘ll visit her grave... I will speak my mind and I will

lesson. You‘re fucking violent.” I growled, gripping her wrists and yanking her hands away from where she had drawn blood, I pulled her hands against my chest glaring down at her. “Don‘t change the subject Leo, are you really a scaredy cat?” She taunted. “You were

that easy.” I shot back, gripping her

grabbed my shoulders in reflex. Her heart pounded and my dick throbbed at the feel of her

for what you did to me... I‘m dealing with the fact that you‘re only being nice to me because of this pup! I‘m trying, and all I‘m saying to you is to try as

I stared down

Try...