Bonded to My Ex's Alpha Brother Chapter 196

Erin's POV

"Of course not," I replied sharply. "My man will be enough for me. But if my future husband were someone like you, I definitely would."

Derek's jaw tightened, and he pressed harder on the accelerator, sending the car speeding deeper into the forest. The sudden acceleration pushed me back against the seat, and I gripped the door handle for stability. The surge of speed matched the tension building between us.

I glanced around, taking in the increasingly dense trees. My phone showed full bars of signal, which was somewhat reassuring. If he really was planning to abandon me in the middle of nowhere, at least I could call for help. I closed my eyes and forced myself to take deep breaths, trying to calm the rage simmering just beneath my skin.

After about twenty minutes of driving, the car slowed. I opened my eyes as we turned onto a hidden driveway barely visible among the trees. The narrow path opened into a clearing, and I couldn't hold back a gasp.

Before us stood a stunning modern cabin—though "cabin" hardly described the massive, architectural marvel nestled against the backdrop of ancient trees. Large windows reflected the sunlight, and a meticulously maintained garden surrounded the structure, complete with a small fountain bubbling peacefully in the front.

Derek parked the car and got out, coming around to open my door. He extended his hand to help me, but I ignored it and climbed out on my own. His closeness made my pulse quicken, and I stepped away quickly, needing space to think clearly.

"What is this place?" I asked, unable to hide my awe as I stared at the house.

"I built this place a few years ago, right after I became Alpha of the Darkwood Pack," Derek explained, his voice holding a note of pride I rarely heard.

The more I looked, the more I found myself drawn to the beauty of the house and its surroundings. It seemed impossible that such a place existed hidden within the forest, yet here it was—perfect and private. A place where we were completely alone, away from everyone and everything. The realization made my heart race.

Derek moved toward the front door, pulling out a key. He opened it and stepped aside, gesturing for me to enter. I hesitated at the threshold, suddenly nervous about crossing into this private domain of his.

"What's wrong? Don't you trust me?" he asked, a hint of amusement in his voice. His eyes traveled over me slowly, making me intensely aware of my body.

"No," I answered honestly, though my voice wasn't as firm as I'd intended.

"I don't believe that. If you didn't trust me at all, you wouldn't have come with me in the first place." His voice lowered, almost intimate, and I felt my resistance wavering despite myself.

"You were holding my transfer certificate hostage," I reminded him, and myself.

"I'm good at reading people," he said. "Now, are you coming in or are you going to stand outside all day?"

Curiosity won out over caution. I stepped past him into the house, close enough to feel the heat radiating from his body. The interior was even more impressive than the exterior—high ceilings with exposed wooden beams, floor-to-ceiling windows that brought the forest inside, and tasteful, expensive furnishings that somehow managed to look both luxurious and comfortable.

"It's a decent place to live," I said, trying to sound unimpressed despite my genuine admiration.

"I've never brought anyone here before," Derek said, closing the door behind us with a soft click that seemed to emphasize our isolation. "Not even my parents."

"Then why bring me here?" I asked, genuinely confused, my voice softer than I'd intended.

Derek moved closer, taking my hand in his. The touch sent a shock of heat up my arm and through my body. My inner wolf surged forward, recognizing her mate despite all my efforts to deny him. I wanted to pull away but found myself frozen, caught between conflicting desires.

"I wish we could live here together," he said, his voice dropping lower, his thumb brushing lightly over my knuckles. "Just you and me."

---

The simple touch made it hard to breathe. I could feel my pulse hammering in my throat, in my wrists, everywhere. With effort, I snatched my hand away, taking a step back, needing distance to clear my head.

"If I had agreed to be your mistress back then, would you have brought me here?" I asked, my tone deliberately mocking, trying to break the tension building between us. "So why bring me here now? Is it to sleep with me?"

Derek's eyebrows rose, and his expression shifted to something unreadable as he studied me in silence. I could feel the weight of his gaze like a physical touch, and it took everything I had to stand my ground and not look away. I couldn't help the cold smirk that formed on my lips, a defensive mask for the confusion I felt inside.

"I brought you here to spend the day with me," he said. "I have no other intentions."

"Why? What's the point of spending a day here? I'm not your friend, and I'm not your fiancée Mya... I have my own man... My binding ceremony is in just a few days... And yet you, my Pack Alpha, want to waste my time."

Derek walked past me toward what appeared to be the kitchen area. I caught another wave of his scent as he passed, and my inner wolf stirred restlessly. "I don't want to hear anything about your binding ceremony. Let's not talk about that. You're with me today, so let's put everything aside and enjoy our time together."

I stared at him in disbelief. "You can't be serious. What am I supposed to do with you all day?"

"I'm hungry," he said simply. "Why don't you make me something to eat?"

The casual command made my temper flare anew. "Are you kidding me? You brought me all the way out here to cook for you? You're treating me like a maid. Why would I cook for my enemy?"

Derek didn't respond immediately. Instead, he walked to the living room area and removed his suit jacket, draping it carefully over the back of a sofa. Then he began rolling up the sleeves of his white dress shirt, exposing his forearms—muscled and tan against the crisp fabric.

Despite my anger, I couldn't help watching the methodical way his fingers worked each button at his wrists, then folded the fabric back with practiced precision. Each movement revealed more of his skin, and I found myself staring at the defined muscles of his forearms, the light dusting of dark hair, the subtle shift of tendons as his hands moved.

The simple act transformed him, making him look less like the untouchable Alpha and more like an ordinary man. A very attractive ordinary man. His scent seemed to intensify as he moved, filling my nostrils with that maddening combination that never failed to affect me.

My inner wolf stirred, responding to the proximity of her mate in a way my human side resented. The heat that pooled low in my belly was unwelcome but impossible to ignore.

I was so caught up in my conflicted reactions that I nearly missed seeing Derek walk into the kitchen and open a cabinet. When he turned back toward me, I blinked in surprise.

Derek Stone, the Alpha of the Darkwood Pack and CEO of Stone Group, was wearing an apron.

"What are you doing?" I asked, unable to hide my confusion, yet still disturbingly aware of how the fabric of his shirt stretched across his chest as he moved.