70. Chapter 70

Chapter 70

J ackson forced his eyes to open and immediately searched for Layla's scent.

But it wasn't her scent that filled his nose. The sickly sweet smell was familiar and too close to him. Way too close.

He turned his head to the source and found Dylan's friend lying in bed next to him, looking down at him with that come-hither smile she'd had on her face when they had been introduced. The buttons of her shirt were undone so her breasts were showing. He'd been right about her intentions, after all.

He sat up quickly and regretted it instantly. Sleeping had helped him heal more, but he wasn't back to his full capabilities yet. He was still too weak to fight this woman off.

"Get the fuck out of my bedroom," he snarled.

Just the fact that she was lying down on Layla's side made him fume. Only Layla was meant to be there. They'd have to burn these sheets so he never had to smell that scent again.

And he knew this was another sign that he was already screwed. Though he could feel his wolf somewhere in his head recovering from their ordeal, these thoughts were his alone. There could never be anyone else in his bed again.

"I heard you were awake and came to see if I could help you to bring your spirits up," Amber smiled.

Before Layla, he would have encouraged her. He would have had two or three of her friends in the bed at the same time, but those days were over.

"I told you to stay out of my house," he growled. Just because Dylan trusted her, it didn't mean he did. Despite her sob story, she had been sitting beside the man who'd made a deal with the witch who wanted Layla dead.

"I know, but I want you to see how helpful I am, Alpha," she said as she inched closer to him.

"I'm not now, nor will I ever be your Alpha," he snarled.

The woman wasn't as scared as she should have been. Everyone knew what he was capable of, but the woman was so confident in her abilities that she treated him like a little kitten. If she really was a warrior in Kendrick's pack, then maybe she had sensed how weak he was.

But he was more inclined to believe she knew what that bite had done to him, which meant she had known what Alpha Kendrick was doing all along.

Amber stopped moving and lowered her gaze.

"I apologise, Your Majesty. Alpha Kendrick often made us... Ah... I assumed I would have to do the same to earn a place," she said.

She seemed sincere, but he didn't know how that was possible. His head was clearer so he could focus—he didn't hear or sense any deception in her voice or see it in her body language. And yet his alarm bells were still ringing. There was something wrong with this woman.

Whether that statement was true or not was none of his business. It didn't give her the right to lie beside him while he was asleep. Where the hell were his warriors? How had she gone past them?

"I have no interest in being in the same room as you, Amber, and even less in fucking you. Leave."

He had much bigger things to worry about now, like finding where his mate was and why he could feel those desperate emotions from her. He could sense that she was still close, but why the hell had she left the room when he'd told her she couldn't trust anyone?

Unless someone had taken her?

"Your Majesty, please... I can't go back to my pack," Amber whispered.

And she inched even closer like she hadn't heard what he'd said.

"Then go somewhere else. You're not welcome here."

He focused and tried to sense Layla's location. Her heart was pounding, but she normally did that when she was out of the bedroom. He couldn't feel any danger around her.

And she seemed to be coming back upstairs.

He let out a breath of relief and lay back down, only to have the woman put her hand on his chest. His bare chest. Her touch made his skin crawl and repelled every cell in his body. Amber confidently trailed her fingers on his chest, and that smile was still on her face. He was naked under the sheets, something he was sure Amber was well aware of.

"I will not survive without a pack. I can't go rogue, Your Majesty. As my king, it's your duty—"

"Don't presume to know my duties," he growled as he grabbed the hand on his chest.

Amber didn't budge, and he was too weak to push her off. What a mighty king he was, to just lie there and let someone violate him.

The door opened, and when he turned to it, he saw Layla stopping in her tracks as she took in the sight before her. He didn't just feel her heart breaking; it was almost as if he also heard it. A loud, soul-destroying sound that ripped through him and caused him physical pain.

And the next thing he felt was her anger. It felt as strong as her pain as her eyes focused on the hand touching him. He'd only felt such violent thoughts when Cain pushed them on him when he was ready to rip people apart for hurting his fragile feelings. Feeling the same thing from Layla took his focus from anything else.

His poor mate would have no idea why she was feeling like this, why she wanted to kill Amber just for touching him.

Her fists clenched, and the corner of her lip rose as if she was about to snarl.

"Why are you in my bedroom?" Layla asked.

Her voice was calm, but he felt the storm brewing. If Layla decided to fight Amber, she wouldn't stand a chance. She had wolf blood, but her human side was still in control, and Amber was a warrior.

Amber chuckled but didn't move her hand away.

"Your room?" she asked. "This is Jackson's room—"

"Mine," Layla said.

A simple word, and yet everything inside him reacted as if she had branded him. He sucked in a breath and let his hand fall from Amber's as he watched his mate. She seemed... more than she usually was. Her presence filled the room. It was like looking at a different person.

She wouldn't know what she had done, but he had never felt so... whole.

"Excuse me? From what I heard—"

"Leave," Layla said. "If you ever step foot in here again, I will feed you your entrails and then throw your useless body away like trash."

Amber chuckled again and then looked down at him. He felt her scrutiny even though he only had eyes for his mate.

"Your Majesty—"

"I already told you to leave," he cut in. "Everything in this room belongs to Layla."

Amber slid off the bed and walked towards the door. And as she approached his mate, he was sure he saw something in Layla's eyes. They brightened, just like the red wolf's eyes in the forest.

"I apologise, Jackson," Amber said, turning around to face him. "I'll go and make myself useful somewhere else."

He wanted to tell her to leave his territory altogether, but Layla was already advancing. When she straddled his hips and lowered her lips to his, he knew what she was doing.

Publicly claiming him.

Marking him for Amber to see.

And every part of his body wished that this could be real.