The Alpha’s Bullied Mate (Bluebell Valley Wolves #1)

Chapter 13 - Mica

The truth was clear.

He wouldn’t say he would save Echo because he didn’t believe he could. Mica wanted to break down, scream, and beat her fists against the floors. Regret flashed through her mind. Was it because she had laid down the salt perimeter? Could they have prevented this if she hadn’t tried to run away?

“If I had just accepted you at the pack meeting—”

Hayden touched his finger to her lips. “Nothing would have changed. We will try, Mica.”

She let out a ragged sigh. Right now, that was all she needed. There was still so much to do, and no doubt Monroe would be furious that Hayden had saved Elin. At least he, being possessed, wouldn’t be able to get onto the ground.

“It might be a good thing for us, that Echo is possessed,” Hayden told her.

“How can you say that?”

“Because we need to know exactly what’s going on here,” he said. “And now we have a demon that might give us answers.”

Mica shuddered. “You’re not going to torture the information out of her, are you?”

Hayden shook his head, guiding her toward the door once more. “That never works. We will handle the demons, Mica. For now, I need you to keep working to get the pack taken care of. The salt is a good idea, but more must be done.”

“Alright.” Mica pulled herself together as they stepped away from the living room. She had work to do—there wasn’t time to fall apart. Not yet, at least.

***

Monroe sent a messenger to Hayden, demanding Elin’s return. Mica wasn’t part of the discussion, but the messenger left empty-handed. When Mica tried to get a moment alone with Hayden to hear what happened, he only told her that he had a lot to take care of.

The rest of the day went by in a blur. Though Mica’s fingers ached for a physical task to keep herself occupied with, she reminded herself that finding out more about the demons was of the utmost importance. So she spent the rest of the day in front of the computer when the pack wasn’t looking for her to take care of one thing or another.

Her vision was blurring, and she was mentally and emotionally exhausted by the time Hayden came to her. His black hair stood on end like he’d been running his hands through it.

“Bedtime,” he said simply.

Mica’s mind flashed to an image of the two of them tangled together in satin sheets. Her skin heated at the thought, though she tried to shove it from her mind. Hayden had kissed her back before he left for Elin but hadn’t shown any indication when they were alone together that he actually wanted to consummate their mating.

She wasn’t sure if she could take being rejected by him again.

“Does Ryder know about Mom?” she asked as they headed upstairs.

“Yes.” Hayden glanced at her. “He thinks you’ll blame him. Do you?”

“Right now, the only one I blame are the demons,” Mica answered. Though anger at her adoptive brother beat at her ribs, she fought against the idea that this was his fault. What could he have done?

The door to Finn’s room was open; Mica caught sight of Elin inside, her leg propped up on a stool as Finn wrapped it with a tensor bandage. Elin glanced up, but Mica turned away. She didn’t want to speak with her former best friend; it was good enough that she was here, and not in Monroe’s clutches—she just hoped that Monroe wouldn’t look for another woman to be his mate in her place.

“Hayden,” Finn called.

Mica tensed.

“I need to talk to you,” Finn said as he padded out of his room.

Hayden nodded. He gave Mica an apologetic look as they went to the other end of the hallway.

Elin started to stand but yelped and sank back down. “Mica, can I…?”

Reluctantly, Mica stepped into the doorway.

“I… they said they came for me because of you,” Elin said, flinching as she spoke.

Mica nodded once.

“Thank you,” Elin murmured. “And… and I’m sorry.”

“I wasn’t going to let anyone stay in Monroe’s clutches,” Mica answered stiffly. She ignored the apology. It wasn’t good enough, not by a long shot. “Heal quickly. We’re going to need everyone we can.”

Finn and Hayden were finished speaking at this time and Mica hurried back to Hayden’s side. He gave her a questioning look, but she only shook her head. She let out a sigh of relief when they were finally alone in Hayden’s room.

“Thank you,” she blurted before she could lose her nerve.

Hayden dropped to the couch and kicked off his shoes. “For what?”

“Coming back. Trying to help the pack.” Mica wrapped her arms around herself. “Everything, really. We’d be fucked without you. So thank you.”

Hayden’s eyebrows furrowed as he studied her. “I’m not the only one from this pack. And if it weren’t for them, I might not have come back.”

“Do you really believe that?”

He grunted, stretching his legs out in front of him. “Whatever. You’re welcome, I guess.”

Mica took a deep breath, then sat on the couch next to him, close enough that their hands brushed. The touch was electric and she withdrew, unwilling to distract herself. “I thought you were just trying to become Alpha for the power of it. But that’s not what you’re doing. You actually want to help the pack. You want to drive out these demons. Even though it’ll make you the Alpha.”

“I am an Alpha. I’m the Alpha of my team,” he answered swiftly.

“But you don’t want to be the pack's Alpha.”

He narrowed his eyes. “What makes you think that?”

That was a good question. Mica cocked her head, trying to pinpoint where those feelings were coming from. He had always been a natural leader. Whenever the kids in elementary school were going to play games, he was the one to step up and organize it. Even when there were adults around, they often deferred to him.

To Mica, it had always seemed like everyone put that expectation on him. He had never said anything about it. Still, she remembered a handful of times when their group was trying to decide what to do, and everyone looked at him. He’d stared back, as though demanding to know why they assumed he’d take care of all the planning.

He always did, though. Everyone naturally followed his lead. Yet, even though he could have made them do anything he said, he never took advantage of that natural inclination. It was one of the things she loved so much about him back then. He always made sure he watched over everyone, and would adjust their activities to suit the weakest link among them. Usually, that was her, but not always.

The Hayden she knew as a child was one who always stepped up to do what needed to do, even if he didn’t want to do it. And from what she had seen from him so far, that hadn’t changed. Oh, it was hidden beneath a rough exterior but she still sensed that innate compassion from him.

Finally, she shook her head. “I don’t know. I just… know .”

“It’s not that I don’t want to be the Alpha. It’s just that it was never something I actively wanted. But you are right—I care about the pack. I care about you, Mica. I want you to be safe.” He touched her cheek, his eyes darkening as his thumb swept over her cheekbone. “Even if you can’t see it.”

Her skin tingled beneath his touch. Mica leaned into his hands, craving more. She drew nearer, reaching to cup his face with her hand.

Hayden pulled away from her.

The movement scorched her insides. Her shoulder slumped as she berated herself. It didn’t matter if Hayden said he cared; that didn’t mean that he—

“If we start, I won’t want to stop.” Hayden’s voice was husky. “That kiss was almost more than I could take. Do you know what I’ve wanted to do to you all day? But I told you we’d take our time—and after everything, you’re in no state.”

Mica froze. What did he mean? Slowly, she started to understand. He wanted her. He wasn’t pulling away out of disgust. It was because he was being, what, honorable? She searched his gaze, trying to find any sign that he was mocking her, that he was just being polite.

“What… what do you want to do to me?” she asked, her voice barely over a whisper.

Hayden grunted. “You need sleep. You can have the bed tonight.”

He was being honorable .

He picked her up without asking, even though he just assumed that she’d be okay with being his mate. He was waiting for permission all the same. That care touched her. She just didn’t know what to say. Part of her still doubted whether he actually wanted her or if it was just the mate bond doing things to his wolf.

“How is your injury?” she asked. She didn’t want to leave him but could not push the issue. At least, not yet.

A fire burned in her core. She wanted Hayden to touch her. But more than that, she wanted him to want her. For real, and not because of any of this wolfy nonsense. Everyone always talked about the mate bond and how it made everyone else disappear. She needed to know if he’d thought about her at all over the years he was gone.

“My injury?” Hayden repeated.

“When the beast-demon attacked us in the forest. I suppose I need to apologize for that,” she added reluctantly.

His lips twitched into the ghost of a smile. Goddess! Why was he so fucking sexy? Mica had to look away, heat scorching her all over.

“Well?” Hayden pressed.

“Well, what?”

“I’m waiting for my apology.”

Mica shot him a dirty look. “Asshole.”

Hayden laughed. “Hey, you’re the one who brought it up.”

“Just take off your shirt so I can check your injury.”

Hayden smirked. For a moment, she thought he was going to refuse. Or maybe he would tell her that she had to undress him. But he didn’t. He shrugged off the dark jacket he wore, then peeled his t-shirt off. Mica’s mouth went dry as the smooth contours of his torso were revealed.

He didn’t have that veiny muscular look that many of the men in the pack liked to have. No, he looked strong in the way a professional athlete was strong. The planes of his chest and stomach were strong, with distinct muscle tone beneath. His skin looked soft, though. Like velvet over marble.

Mica tore her eyes away from his beauty and checked the bandages on his shoulder. She was surprised to find it was still her torn clothes. When she unwrapped it, she found the skin had sealed over. The scar tissue was fresh and pink but didn’t need to be rebandaged. She poked around the edges, searching for any sign of infection brewing.

“You look like you’re healing nicely,” she said.

Hayden grabbed her waist and spun her around so her back was to him. Mica yelped as his fingers started to probe at her scalp.

“And what about you? Looks like the swelling has gone down a little. Do you have any headaches? Blurry vision?” he asked.

Mica’s scalp prickled as his fingers ran through her hair. “Um. No. Nothing. I kind of forgot I hit my head.”

“Good.”

It had been such a whirlwind of a day. Yet now, in this moment where it was just the two of them and the quiet of the night crept in on them, Mica was forced to admit something she never wanted to. The worst part of when he rejected her all those years ago wasn’t how public it was. It wasn’t how the bullying got worse afterward.

No. It was because she never expected anything different.

And yet now, here she was.

“Why me?” she whispered. “Why did you want me for your mate?”

Hayden’s fingers continued to comb through her hair. “You’re the only one it felt natural to pick.”

Mica couldn’t stop herself. She turned and pressed her mouth to his. A thousand emotions and whirl of thoughts swelled and disappeared. This was what she wanted— he was who she wanted.