Promise. Not threat.
"I'm not running anywhere." Hope turned around to face him. The burning in her cheeks only grew when she saw his face. Damn, she'd just spent the last five days screwing non-stop. She would have thought she'd gotten all the girlish blushes out of her system. Apparently, not. "I looked everywhere for you, but you weren't around."
His thick brows flattened. "You looked in three places," he said, holding up his fingers to punctuate the words.
"Wait," she said. "You knew I was out here looking for you, but you didn't say anything?"
"I was trying to hunt, but you made so much noise that it scared off all the animals."
"Then I don't see why you're so upset that I was leaving," she shot back. "In just a couple of minutes, you'll have all the peace and quiet you could hope for."
Maddox crossed his arms in front of his massive chest. It was clear he wasn't budging. "You never answered my question," he said. "Where do you think you're going?"
Hope let out a sigh. "I need to find a phone."
His eyes narrowed. "Why?"
"Because I need to tell the police about the men who shot me," she said.
The tension in Maddox's shoulders quickly relaxed. It was obvious that he'd feared she was going to say something else. Maybe that she wanted to tell her family where she was. Or that she wanted someone to come and get her.
"You don't need to worry about them," he said dismissively. "If more come, I'll kill them. Just like I did with the others. There's no reason to involve the beta authorities."
Hope bit into her lip. "Actually, there is," she said.
"Why?"
She didn't tell him that she was hoping that the police would arrest the narcos before Maddox turned them into bloody heaps on the ground. Somehow, she instinctually knew that her version of justice and his would always be a world apart.
"Because before they shot me, those men killed two of my friends," she said. "Dave and Sandra. Their bodies are still by the lake where we camped, and I want them to have proper burials."
Maddox stood still for a long moment before letting out a slow breath.
"I understand," he said, though it was clear from his annoyed tone he found the idea of talking with the beta world irritating. "Though the closest phone is over fifteen miles away at Evander's Bar. You can't walk there and back. I'll have to drive you."
Hope let out a sigh of relief. Some of the weight slid from her shoulders. "Thank you," she said.
Without thinking, she rushed forward and wrapped her arms around his waist…at least, she tried to. He was far too wide for her to clasp her hands on the other side, but she did her best.
A sense of serenity flowed through her veins at the feel of him. Sure, Maddox might be a little rough and heavy-handed, but deep down, he was a decent man. This proved it.
Pulling back, she lifted herself up on tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his cheek. Then she started back the way she came.
"Where are you going now?" he asked.
"To that old truck that's in front of the house," she answered. It was old and rusted through in a couple places, but she hadn't seen any other vehicles on the property. If he was driving here anywhere, Hope figured it was in that.
"I didn't say I was taking you to Evander's today," he said. "I meant that I'd drive you there next time I needed to go."
Hope froze. Her face fell as she spun around to face him. "And when would that be?"
Maddox shrugged. "Probably at the end of next month.
Next month? Was he kidding? Of course, he wasn't. Alphas never joked around. It wasn't in their nature.
But apparently, being a stone-cold bastard was.
"This is important," she said, trying to reason with him. "It can't wait until next month."
Maddox shook his head. His dark hair rustled in the wind. "You said your friends were dead. That means they're not going anywhere."
Hope strode right back to his side. This time instead of wrapping her arms around him, she pulled back her fist and hit him in the arm. She hissed in pain as her hand skidded off his rock hard muscle. Somehow she'd hurt herself punching him.
"Just so you know, the last person who hit me lost their hand," he said.
Hope raised her chin, knowing that if she had half a brain, she'd be trembling in fear right now and begging for her life, but for some reason, she couldn't even muster up the slightest tremble.
Something inside her had changed. Something big.
She knew that Maddox wasn't going to hurt her.
Hold her down? Yes. Tie her up? Sure. Fuck her senseless? You bet.
But hurt her? Kill her? Never. Maybe back when she'd been a beta, but not now.
Now they were linked together by unbreakable bonds. Killing her would mean killing himself. They might not understand each other. Hell, right now, they didn't even seem to like each other. But they would never harm the other.
"And the last people who gave two shits about me are in a shallow grave in the middle of nowhere," she spat at him. "They deserve better than that. Their families deserve closure. They deserve to grieve with dignity and in peace."
His cola-black eyes narrowed. "They weren't the last people to care about you," he growled possessively. "You have me now."
A dark laugh erupted out of Hope's throat. "Oh, give me a break," she said. "You don't care about me."
Maddox's lips flattened, his mouth turning into a hard line that held back a world of restrained emotion. "I've killed for you. I've risked my life for you."
True. But the way he acted, Hope couldn't help but think those were just regular parts of his day.
"Yes, but what do you know about me? Really know?" she said. "In the five days you had me tied up, you never once asked me
