Bonded to My Ex's Alpha Brother Chapter 185

Erin's POV

The moonlight streaming through my window revealed Derek standing by my bed. His face, previously calm, darkened as he looked at me.

"Get out of my room right now," I demanded, despite my racing heart. "Or I'll scream for my brother."

Before I could take a breath, Derek moved with incredible speed. His palm covered my mouth, silencing me as he pushed me back onto the bed. In one quick movement, he positioned himself above me, his weight pinning me down.

I felt the heat of his body against mine, his thighs on either side of my hips. The contact sent a wave of heat through me that I didn't want to acknowledge.

My inner wolf stirred immediately, recognizing its mate despite all the reasons I had to hate this man. My pulse quickened, and warmth spread through my body against my will. It was infuriating how easily he could trigger this reaction in me.

I turned my face away, refusing to meet his eyes. I knew what would happen if I looked at him directly—my wolf would want to submit, to bare my throat to him.

I tried to move his hand from my mouth, gripping his wrist and pulling, but he was too strong. An Alpha against an Omega—it wasn't a fair fight.

Derek's eyes moved slowly over my face, looking at every detail. I could feel his gaze like a physical touch, and it made my skin heat up even more.

I turned my head slightly and bit down hard on his palm.

He raised an eyebrow, looking amused. "Is that supposed to hurt, little Omega? You'll need to try harder than that."

His voice was deep and close to my ear, making my stomach tighten involuntarily. His mockery made me bite down harder until I tasted blood.

"Your brother is at the Darkwood Estate handling some work. He's not home," Derek said, sounding completely calm despite my teeth in his flesh. "So he won't hear your screams. Your mother is still asleep, so we should keep our conversation quiet, Erin."

I stopped biting him when he mentioned my mother. I didn't want to wake her and risk her health. He knew exactly what to say to make me stop fighting, and that knowledge irritated me even more.

Derek slowly took his hand away from my mouth, blood running down his arm. I noticed he still hadn't moved off me. His weight held me down, his face just inches from mine.

"Even if Aaron were home," he continued, sounding confident, "he couldn't stop me from coming here." He lifted his bleeding arm to his mouth and sucked on the wound, his eyes never leaving mine.

The sight made heat pool in my stomach. I took a deep breath to calm myself, but that just filled my lungs with his scent. I needed to stay in control.

"Alpha Derek," I said, making my voice cold despite my racing pulse, "may I ask why you're here?"

He lowered his arm, and I saw the wound had already closed, leaving only a smear of blood. Werewolf healing—another reminder of how powerful he was.

"I wanted to see you," he replied simply. "So I came. Why wait until tomorrow?"

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Derek shifted his weight, sitting on the edge of my bed. I immediately moved back, pressing my back against the headboard to get away from him. My body felt suddenly cold without his warmth against it. I stared at him coldly, hoping he couldn't see how confused I felt.

His eyes moved over my face, stopping at my lips. I realized there was blood there—his blood—from when I had bitten him. Without thinking, I licked my lips, and I saw his eyes darken as he watched.

Derek reached forward, his thumb touching the corner of my mouth, wiping away the blood. His finger lingered on my lip, making my breath catch in my throat. Then, slowly and deliberately, he put his thumb in his mouth, sucking off the blood.

My body reacted instantly, a shiver running down my spine. My eyes almost shifted color, and my inner wolf pushed forward, wanting control. The animal part of me knew what sharing blood meant, even in this small way. I fought to stay rational, to remember all the reasons I hated this man.

He looked directly into my eyes, his voice low and intense as he said, "Don't marry him, Erin."

I pushed at Derek's chest, feeling the hard muscle under my palms. I created enough space to get off the bed, needing physical distance to clear my head.

I walked to the wall and turned on the light, ending the intimate darkness that had surrounded us. In the bright light, I could see Derek clearly—his dark hair slightly messy, the intensity in his eyes, the spot on his arm where I had bitten him.

"Leave my room now," I said, glaring at him. I knew he could probably hear my heart still racing, and that made me even more annoyed. "I won't tolerate this disrespect, Derek. I'm no longer just any woman. I'm about to become the mate of the Silverpine Pack."

Derek stayed sitting on my bed, his expression unreadable as he repeated quietly, "Silverpine Pack."

The way he said it, with something like regret or bitterness, made my skin tingle. I pushed the feeling aside.

"I'm sorry?" I raised an eyebrow. "Is there something wrong? Let me guess what offends you... Oh, I know. It's because your business deal with them fell through, isn't it?"

Derek's forehead wrinkled. He seemed to notice how differently I was speaking to him, how much more confident I'd become. A year ago, I would have been afraid of him. Now I stood my ground. He turned away, looking around my bedroom instead of answering me.

"Nice room," he commented, changing the subject.

Derek stood up and walked to the other side of my bed, picking up a photo frame from my nightstand. It was a family portrait—me as a child, with Aaron and my parents, all smiling. One of the few happy memories from my childhood.

I moved quickly, standing in front of him. "Don't touch my things," I snapped, grabbing the frame from his hands.

"I wasn't planning to break it like you broke mine," he replied, reminding me of our first meeting when I'd shattered the picture frame on his desk.

The memory stung, making me remember Mya's mockery afterward and how small Derek had made me feel. My anger grew stronger, and I decided to hit back where it would hurt.

I put the photo down carefully, then turned to face him. We were standing too close. I could see the slight stubble on his jaw, smell his cologne mixed with his natural scent.

"What's the point of keeping a photo in your room to pretend you care about your brother? Bradley doesn't respect you that much. He knows who you really are and warned me about you multiple times."