Now he was stuck here, stewing in desire as his omega stepped into the water. She sighed in relief as the heat eased her muscles. As the scent of her ever-present guilt shifted into relaxed contentment.
Maddox had hoped that he'd be the one to rip that last burden away. The dual scents of shame and guilt had been pouring out of Hope since the moment she'd woken up in his bed, almost as if they were reflexive.
Those weren't emotions Maddox had much experience with. They'd always struck him as a waste of time.
What was done was done. It wasn't natural to dwell in the past. Guilt and shame—those were emotions that had to be taught.
And he could guess who her teachers had been. Those bastard parents she'd hinted at earlier.
So, she had a fucked up family. No surprise there. As far as Maddox knew, all families were fucked up. That's why people were better off on their own.
Without anyone else around, an alpha didn't have to worry about guilt, or shame, or chaining himself to a tree to save the life of an ungrateful stranger.
Maddox listened to the sound of Hope's even, steady breaths. Five minutes passed…ten…fifteen.
Fucking hell, was she going to stay in there all day? He could tell she wasn't doing anything. The water was still. She wasn't washing or scrubbing. She was just sitting there.
It was just his luck that God would curse him with a lazy, guilt-ridden, easily-spooked omega.
Maddox tried to rile up some anger at her actions, but for some reason, he couldn't. Something inside him stubbornly refused to be upset with her.
Sure, he was annoyed as hell at her refusal to free him…but he was also looking forward to paying her back in kind the second he was free.
Strapping her hands and feet to the posts of his bed and keeping her there, naked and dripping with slick, for five days straight.
Maddox licked his lips at the thought. His cock surged in his pants. Metal clanked as he adjusted the heavy chain around his neck.
And then he froze, the fire in his blood turning to ice in the space of a heartbeat.
In the distance, he heard a tree branch break. A second later, the unmistakable sound of a footfall on dried pine needles.
Maddox lifted his head. As the wind shifted, the faint scent of fear, pungent and foreign, made its way to his nose.
He should've caught the smell before, but he'd been too engrossed by the fantasy continually playing in his head. He'd been distracted…by her.
And now there was an outsider—a beta—dangerously close to his property line.
Near his omega.
"Hope!" Maddox called her name before he realized what he was doing. He couldn't help it.
He knew she'd heard him. The water around her burbled as she spun toward the sound of his voice. In an instant, the fear rushed back into her scent.
He called her name again. "Hope. Come here now."
More water splashed as she stood, but she still didn't answer.
Maddox didn't have time for her stubbornness. He strained against the chain around his neck. His muscles tightened against the force, but the links still bit into his flesh. The tree behind him groaned but didn't give.
Fuck. He had to get through to her...and fast.
"There's someone in the woods," he yelled.
That did it. This time, she moved. Water splashed as Hope climbed from the spring. She didn't even stop to grab clothes. She just rushed to him.
As her instincts demanded.
Maddox sucked in another breath as she rounded the corner of the house—naked, wet, and glistening in the diffused morning light. She was gorgeous. Perfect.
And someone out there wanted to take her away from him.
Over his dead body.
Maddox's chest expanded. He pulled even harder against his bindings.
"Who is it?" Hope asked, stopping just far enough away that he couldn't quite get to her. Couldn't reach out and touch what he wanted—what he needed—most. "Who's out there?"
"Who do you think?" he growled in response. There was only one logical answer.
Her eyes were wide with fear. "The man who shot me?"
Maddox closed his eyes and threw back his head. It was easier to sense the intruder now that he was closer. His scent was marked with fear, but also with reckless bravado.
Not the same man…but one with the same intentions.
"Not him. One of his friends."
The color drained from Hope's face. The panic in her eyes, the scent of pure dread and terror pouring from her skin were enough to make Maddox forget about her nakedness. He barely noticed the single drop of water glistening on her taut nipple.
"Where is he?" Hope scanned the tree line, but Maddox knew she wouldn't be able to see a thing. Not with an omega's eyes.
"About a mile away," Maddox said. "And coming closer."
"What are we going to do?" Her lower lip began to tremble. Fear surrounded her like a fog, making her blind to the obvious.
"Get the key," he commanded her. "Unlock me."
Hope's eyes snapped to his. In a heartbeat, everything inside her shifted. All her fear, all her anxiety, focused on him.
"T-There has to be some other way," she sputtered. "There are weapons all over this place. Tell me what to do, and I'll take care of him myself."
Maddox shook his head. "The man out there knows what he's doing. He'll put a bullet through your head before you can draw back a bowstring."
"But…"
Maddox narrowed his gaze. He might not be able to grab her and physically bend her to his will, but he was still an alpha. Her alpha.
He would make her obey.
"There's no more time," he said. "Get. The. Key."
* * *
Hope couldn't believe she was doing this, but what choice did she have?
None.
She could either die from a gunshot to the head or be ripped apart by an angry, lust-driven
