Free Web NovelChapter 127: Chapter 127 Sober Restraint
Hudson’s POV
The room felt too hot, too small. Christina lay beneath him, her breathing shallow, her hands still exploring under his shirt. Every touch sent fire through his nerves, but something cold was settling in his chest.
He needed to know. He had to be sure.
A beat passed.
Then, "I... don’t remember."
The fire in his veins turned to ice.
He could have continued. He could have taken what she was offering and let her wake tomorrow thinking it was entirely her idea.
But he wouldn’t. Not with her. Never with her.
Hudson wanted her fully conscious, fully aware. He wanted her to choose him with clear eyes and a clear mind, to say his name with that sharp tongue and those clever lips of hers while knowing exactly what she was doing.
"Fucking hell," Lycaon growled. "She’s our mate."
"And that’s precisely why we wait," Hudson replied silently.
He exhaled slowly and pushed himself up, his arms aching from holding back.
His skin burned wherever hers had touched it. The evidence of his desire strained painfully against his pants, but he ignored it.
Hudson picked up the blanket from the floor and covered Christina’s body, leaving only her face showing. She said something he couldn’t understand, trying to roll away.
He tucked the blanket tight under her shoulders, then her sides, then under her legs. He wrapped her up like she was something precious that needed protection.
She finally stopped moving. Her breathing got deeper.
Hudson watched her face, waiting to see if she was really asleep. When her eyelashes rested against her cheeks and her breathing became steady, he finally stepped away.
He stood up, fixing his clothes and running a hand through his messy hair.
Christina’s phone rang from inside her bag.
He waited, then went to get it. No name showed up, just a number he didn’t know. freewebnoveℓ.com
Hudson turned off the sound and put the phone down.
The screen went dark for three seconds before lighting up again with the same number.
Once could be someone calling the wrong number. Twice meant someone really needed to reach her.
He looked at Christina. She was curled up under the blanket with one arm free, her fingers moving slightly against the pillow.
Hudson took the phone and walked out of the bedroom, closing the door quietly behind him.
The third call came right away. He answered.
"Christina! Finally! I’ve been trying to reach you. It’s Niall!"
Hudson’s jaw got tight when he heard that voice.
"You blocked my number," Niall continued, talking loud and fast. "This is a new one. We need to talk."
"Then talk to me," Hudson said coldly.
Silence.
Then, "Hudson Laurent?"
Niall’s voice got angry. "Why do you have Christina’s phone?"
"Because she’s my wife. Is that a problem?"
Niall swore loudly. "Put her on. Now."
Hudson leaned against the wall in the hallway. "She’s sleeping. Whatever you want to say, say it to me or don’t say it at all."
Another long quiet moment. "She’s sleeping? At your place?"
Hudson laughed, but it wasn’t a happy sound. "She’s my wife, Niall. Where else would she sleep?"
He added, enjoying the lie, "She’s in our bed right now."
He should have hung up the moment he heard Niall’s voice. Usually, he would have.
Tonight, he wanted to hear the man suffer.
Hudson looked down at his body, still feeling the effects of what had almost happened with Christina.
There was a grinding sound on the phone. Niall was grinding his teeth in anger.
"What’s so important that you needed to call my wife this late?" Hudson asked, trying to sound casual.
"I’m not talking to you," Niall said angrily. "I need to see her. In person. Tell her that."
"I’ll make sure to give her the message."
Hudson ended the call, deleted it from the phone, and blocked the number.
He went back to the bedroom and put the phone on the table next to the bed.
Christina hadn’t moved. One cheek was still red from the alcohol, her lips slightly open as she slept. ƒrēewebnovel.com
He stood watching her longer than he meant to.
Then he turned away.
Hudson went downstairs to his home gym, his body tight with frustration and no way to get rid of it.
He sent a message to Dominic,
[Niall Granger has too much free time. Give the Frostpelt Pack’s businesses some problems to deal with.]
He had worked hard to push through Niall and Beatrice’s wedding, thinking that once Niall married the woman he had betrayed Christina for, he would shut up and stay in line.
But he hadn’t expected Jace to show up. He also hadn’t expected how big Beatrice’s lies were. And he definitely hadn’t expected the consequences that followed.
Now here it was again. Niall trying to get close to Christina again, after everything.
Hudson wouldn’t let it happen. The Sabreridge pack Alpha protected what was his, and Christina was his in every way that mattered.
He hit the punching bag for thirty minutes without stopping, until his hands hurt and sweat soaked through his shirt.
Then he took the coldest shower of his life.
As the ice cold water hit his skin, Hudson thought about the moment Christina had looked up at him with those cloudy blue eyes and said, "I have feelings for you."
Even drunk, she had felt something between them.
One day, he promised himself, she would recognize him as her fated mate. Her hurt wolf would get better, and Akira would know Lycaon. Until then, he would wait.
No matter how long it took.
