Chapter 13

These butterflies.

I immediately received a kiss in return from him.

He had his arms around my waist and mine around his neck. I extended the kiss as well. We had sex for a long time before I needed oxygen. I took a step back and turned my head to look away from him, but he was staring back at me.

Even though I enjoyed the kiss, you haven't been able to get me to forget about your bruises, Ares said, casting an accusing glance my way.

".

"I did not make any effort to do anything.

I resisted moving.

Oh sure you weren't, he scoffed at me and said.

".

I answered, "Okay, maybe a little," in a low voice.

".

"Fine.

The word "this" was growled out before he continued, "Now tell me who did this to you.

No, that area.

I'll let you know later.

I tried to divert him so I wouldn't have to tell him the truth.

He did not answer; he just took hold of my arm and walked out of the shop.

"Where are we going, Ares?" asked Ares.

He ignored my question and kept up with me as I walked. When I looked at his face, I must admit that he seemed frightening. He had his jaw so clenched shut that I was afraid it was hurting him. He had completely black eyes, and his other hand was clenched. The pain, however, was probably not even felt by him. Simply trying to control his rage, he said. Despite his frightening appearance, I'm surprised to say that I'm not afraid of him; instead, I'm worried that his rage might make him hurt himself. He picked me up and made me sit inside his car as soon as we got there. He then took the wheel and fixed me with a tender look.

And why are we over here?

I gently questioned him.

Instead of speaking normally, he said, "So that you could explain to me who the fuck did that to you," in a manner that masked his extremely dangerous anger.

My hand moved slowly up his arm. He looked at me when I touched his arm.

I held his hand while he opened his fisted hand, saying softly, "Calm down, Ares.". My presence calmed his agitation. He closed his eyes and took several deep breaths as I continued to rub his arm with one hand while the other was entwined with his fingers.

"Tell me right now who hurt you after I've calmed down.

".

Simply put, nothing happened, and I passed out.

I'm not too sure-footed.

Trying to laugh, I muttered. He was looking at me in shock when I turned to face him.

"And you really think I'd agree to that nonsense?".

Huh?".

I exhaled heavily.

Why don't you just forget about that?

I'm sure you think that I would look at you with disgust right?" he yelled and stopped to look at me. "You know I'm so angry at you too for not telling me about this, but how am I going to forget that my girlfriend has these huge bruises on her and she had to bear this pain alone and I can't do a damn thing about that. Do you believe I won't be able to defend you?

Or that you didn't feel confident enough in me to tell me?

No, I don't think you'd be wrong to assume that I'd find you repulsive.

My face dropped when he finished speaking.

Incredulous, he shook his head and said, "Look at me, Alana," in a much softer voice. Do you think I would look at you differently, with disgust?

I asked hesitantly.

"Baby, I can never and never will be able to look at you with disdain or anything other than awe. It doesn't matter how you look because I know what a wonderful person you are inside. You are, in my opinion, the most beautiful girl in the world, and nothing can change my feelings about you. You are also incredibly resilient, compassionate, and charming. You have no idea about how fortunate I am to have a girlfriend like you, he murmured as he finished. My cheeks turned dark red, and I felt an endless stream of butterflies in my stomach as he gave me an incredibly emotional look. He then gently kissed my other cheek while leaning in and holding that spot for a brief period of time. I kept my eyes closed the entire time to enjoy the experience.

I swung around and said, "Yes. ". Instead, he simply hugged me and kissed me deeply. We turned to face him and backed away, which puzzled me.

I apologize, Mi Amor, but I had to do it.

You don't have my rage.

The one who injured you has my ire, and I'm angry. I'm even more disappointed because you didn't confide in me enough to tell me about that. That doesn't mean it could never be, though. It wasn't the reason, I tried to correct him by saying.

It will eventually be you who informs me of it.

Although I'm confident in that, for the time being, I want to caution you not to approach the person who is abusing you. When he finished, I was quite moved. He treats me with a level of respect and comprehension I have never witnessed. My mother was the only person who had ever treated me with this degree of deference and understanding before she passed away.

I looked at him and then wrapped my arms around him in a tight hug. He hugged me back and took a breath of my neck. After a short while, we started to pull back, and I stared into his breathtaking, forest green eyes. Standing on my tiptoes, I kissed him on the lips.

"Goodbye, Ares. I asked him hesitantly, "Will you meet me tomorrow?".

I'll miss you, Sweetheart. I'd come meet you tomorrow, of course," he replied with a smile.

He remained until I arrived, then closed the door as I turned to go home.

I saw that he had arrived as I was preparing dinner for him when the door finally opened after some time.

"What are you cooking today, bitch?" he asked with a scowl.

I murmured, "I'm making spaghetti with meatballs.

".

"Fine.

If it takes longer than 15 minutes, you'll get some good punishment today, he said.

Fortunately, despite my hasty preparations, it was ready in less than 15 minutes.

When I put it in a dish, I covered it. He went back to his room and knocked on the door.

After he yelled "What," I retorted, "Sir, dinner is ready.". ". I was not allowed to enter his room, but one day I made the mistake of entering while he was away, which led to several injuries, including severely broken ribs, a concussion, bruises all over my face, and more. I went into his room to hear what he was saying, but that was two years ago, and I haven't gone in since. If I had, I would have had to keep seeing my body the same way I did back then.

I shook my head and tried to forget about that horrible incident. I then went to my room and lay down while considering Ares and wishing for a sound night's sleep.

I'll be better off running.

I was supported in my thinking by my wolf. I parked my car in the woods near her house and changed into my enormous reddish-brown wolf. While I was running, a variety of emotions were crashing into me, including anger when I noticed the bruises, sadness when she refused to reveal who had done that to her, frustration at being helpless to stop it, and sadness over being a bad partner. I drove myself forward by utilizing all of these feelings. To move so quickly that, while I would be nothing more than a passing wind to humans, I would be just a brown blur to any other wolves.

After hours of running, I went back to the packhouse. While I was running, I decided to do a little research on her, and I told my sweetheart that I would wait for her to reply, but I can't help but think about it and feel useless. I'll take a quick look around and make a list of people I doubt would harm her, just to make sure she won't get hurt any more. I'll wait for her to tell me who it is and the whole story, which I know she will, while simultaneously making sure she doesn't.

The words "Bren, I need you to look for people near Alana and it should be finished by tomorrow" were spoken, but not in the Alpha voice.

".

Naturally, I concur with Alpha. But what happened to our Luna? Is she all right?" Bren questioned in full Beta form.

She's not, no. I sighed as she was struck once more and refused to tell me who struck her.

Ares would tell you, I'm sure. Brother, have faith," he said softly, patting my back. He is now unquestionably my best friend.

"I know, but I just hope she'll tell me soon so I can stop being hurt. Because I can't defend her, I'm practically dying inside. I wish I could take action. I said, burying my head in my hands, "I feel like the worst partner anyone could have.

You are conscious of the fact that you are a good friend. In fact, your ability to keep your cool and control your anger shows what a good partner you are. I was consoled by Bren's friend Macy, who had apparently joined our conversation, who said, "I'm actually proud of you.

I asked huskily, "Are you?".

I'm sure I am. You're a fantastic partner. I'm sure Alana will feel the same way when she finds out that we exist and that you are her mate. She would count herself fortunate to have a good partner, as I do, and I count Been as one of my greatest blessings. Everything will be fine, she assured me while grinning and hugging me. I drew back and hugged her again,

and Bren gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek.

After that, not long.

Ares delivered me back to my house. He was surprisingly quiet, but he did sneak glances at me now and then. I asked him about it, but he said, "Nothing, just thinking," so I didn't say anything. Additionally, the ride to my house was very quiet. We got there, and I was relieved to see that he was still away because the driveway was empty.

I had already gotten out of the car and was about to walk away when I heard Ares calling.