Luckily dinner went on quite peacefully. Leo insisted they were seated beside each other and Gabi was afraid a bit that Dante wasn’t going to stop himself, but alcohol was slowly evaporating from his system and with each passing minute he was becoming more and more his old self. That didn’t stop him though from brushing her exposed leg from time to time with his hand, as if he wanted her to remember their encounter.

Even if he didn’t do that, she was sure she will never forget this. Her heart still was beating like crazy and she was convinced that it could be seen on her face. She was grateful to Ruby and Leo for not mentioning the state they saw them in, but still the little grins plastered on their faces all the time made her feel uncomfortable.

To top it off Dante made sure that she ate plenty, watching her every move and keeping his hand on her leg dangerously close to her intimate areas every time she slowed down with her food. For now, her wolf was overjoyed with the attention Dante was giving them, and Gabi also would be a fool if she didn’t admit that it was making her feel wanted and content at that. But the thought of returning home was looming dangerously over her, as she was sure that this behaviour of his won’t last long.

That’s why every time she saw his lustful gaze he wasn’t really trying to hide, she tried to look the other way, repeating to herself over and over again that it’s just the alcohol in his veins, and that he once more will become the bastard he admitted to be the second they return to his penthouse.

“It’s time for us to go.” When he finally said that, Gabi was so full her eyes were having a hard time trying to be open, as sleepiness started to take over her after this eventful day. She sent a dizzy smile to Ruby who also was trying to keep her eyes open when her head that rested on her hand swayed slowly from side to side. It seemed that the wine she drank finally got up to her. Dante took back his hand some time ago and Gabi knew that meant he was fully sober now. Despite that, she was reluctant to look back at him, afraid of what she would see in his eyes.

Leo only nodded at that and walked them back to the entrance after urging Ruby to go to sleep already. She said her quiet goodbyes and slowly made her way up, swaying with each step even more. Gabi looked after her with a little bit of worry, but Leo only laughed a little.

“Don’t worry about her, her legs know where to go before they collapse.” He said opening the doors. Instantly a gust of fresh, but very cold wind blew through the corridor and Gabi couldn’t help but shudder, as goosebumps rose on her bare legs. “The clothes and accessories we chose with your mate are already in your trunk, we brought them there when you were… busy.” He smirked at Dante but it looked like he didn’t catch his attention, as brown eyes of the other were looking outside with furrowed brows.

“I think I left my coat somewhere in your mansion the last time I was here. Have you found it?” Leo looked at him surprised, but after a few seconds of wondering he finally nodded his head.

“I think I know where it is. I assume you want me to bring it to you?” Dante only nodded his head and Leo quickly disappeared from their sight. While they were waiting Gabi started to shiver even more, as the wind was becoming stronger and stronger.

“Did you pick up some coats?” he asked her, and she finally decided to look at him. As expected, his emotionless mask was once again on its place and she felt a little sting in her heart at that.

“No, Leo doesn’t design such things for women.” She wanted her voice to sound casual, but her chattering teeth successfully ruined the overall image. Dante only furrowed his brows even more at that.

“Found it!” silence was finally broken by Leo who ran up to them with the coat in hand. Dante without a word took it from him and threw it over Gabi’s shoulders. Both of them looked at him shocked.

“Maybe it’s time you should start designing some coats for women too, Leonard.” Dante said to his friend urging Gabi at the same time to step outside.

“Oh, what stupid of me, Danny it’s a great idea!” once more the man turned into a bubbly version of himself and this time Gabi was sure it was his way of getting back at Dante and venting his irritation and anger towards each other without spilling blood. They were both Alphas in the end.

When they almost reached the car, another shout could be heard from Leo.

“Almost forgot, I don’t want to see your fucking face again in the near future Danny! You drank up my finest wines! But you sweetheart come by any time you want; I’ll be sure to prepare something new for you the next time!” Gabi smiled back at him, ignoring low growl from Dante’s throat at the sweet name.

“Thank you!” she only shouted back and waved her hand a little, careful not to throw off her shoulders the coat. Although it was waist length for Dante, it fell to her knees and she already felt warmer because of that. Not to mention that it was still faintly smelling of him, and she wanted to curl up in a ball under it.

In silence they started their way back to London, and soon she felt how weariness was taking the best of her. When she looked at Dante from the corner of her eye, she wondered how could he still be so full of energy, after drinking so much even Ruby was out of it by this time.

Silence, cosiness of the car and the smell of the coat quickly closed her eyes completely, making her fall into a shallow slumber. Soon though she woke up when they turned to another dark and bumpy road, surrounded only by a wall of trees. She sleepily rose her head and upon seeing almost nothing outside her heart picked up its rate.

“Where are we?” she squeaked out in fear, completely forgetting with whom she was.

“I need a run.” He only stated, turning off the engine and taking out the keys from the ignition. He stopped for a second and looked at her with his unemotional eyes. “You can stay and wait for me here or you can go for a run with me.” At this point her eyes became as big as they could get. She wondered why now he wanted to go for a run, but then her own wolf invaded her mind, yipping and begging for her to agree. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea, the last time they could run like that was around five years ago.

“I want to run too.” She finally voiced out, trying to not break the eye contact with Dante. His stance didn’t change, but his voice seemed to be somewhat gentler.

“I’ll go out first and check the area. When you see me, you can go out and change into your wolf. Leave your clothes in the trunk and hide the keys under the wheel arch.” When she nodded, he quickly got out and closed the door. A second later the trunk opened and she had to try very hard not to look back and peep on him while he was taking his clothes off. Soon she heard the trunk closing and bones shattering as he was taking new shape. Gabi winced at that, hating the unpleasant sound from the very beginning she could change.

Waiting for Dante’s sign she waited in total silence, anticipating what was to come. Her mind drifted off, but weirdly she didn’t think right now about all of the confusing things that happened to her today. She predicted she would have her mind blown by the thoughts on tomorrows’ morning.

Hey, don’t fall asleep.

A voice murmured in her mind and she jumped in surprise. Looking around frantically she could spot his red embers in the bushes near the car and her heart started to slow down.

I’m just a little tired. Go deeper into the woods, I’ll get changed. She tried to answer him in her mind, trying to recall the tension in her head when he talked to her. He didn’t answer her, but his eyes disappeared from her sight.

She had to believe he listened to her and won’t peep on her.

Gabi quickly took the keys Dante left on the drivers’ seat and stepped out of the car. When she opened the trunk, she saw his clothes neatly stacked in a pile in one of the corners. Quickly, feeling the unpleasant chilliness on her bare skin, she took off all of her clothes and put them down into a similar pile. After closing the car, she did as he told her to and put the keys on the wheel, just under the wheel arch.

Breathing slowly for the last time she gritted her teeth and prepared for the pain to come. After around thirty seconds she stood there in all her wolf glory, feeling the warmth of her fur and the pleasure of cold ground under her paws. Her nose took on so many new smells that she had to just stand there for some time, trying to name each and every one of them. Subconsciously she felt Dante’s presence near her, but she was grateful that he didn’t come closer to her until she got used to her new body.

When she finally opened her eyes, she quickly spotted his big form just at the entrance to the forest. He was seating gracefully like a majestic beast he was, boring his red eyes into her. This time though she wasn’t afraid of him, despite their previous encounter not being one of the nicest. Her wolf felt no threat from him, and so she slowly approached him with a wagging tail, showing him that she was happy he waited for her.

When she came closer, she could see his features she wasn’t able to notice in her human form. His fur was thick and shiny, falling on his sides in soft waves. Despite their redness, his eyes expressed a sort of calm she had never seen in them before. It was like his soul was becoming completely barred from all of its worries in his wolf skin. She also noticed how his tail was also wagging a little.

Seeing that, her wolf pushed her aside with no problems, as it was much stronger in this form, and Gabi was left watching what was happening. She came up to him and nuzzled her nose into his chest, purring with contentment. Dante’s wolf also seemed to take control of him, as he lowered his head and licked her gently on the nose at the gesture.

The next few minutes they spent sniffing each other and nuzzling from time to time, but when the hoot of an owl somewhere nearby broke the silence of the forest, Gabi suddenly felt the urge to run as quick and as fast as her paws were able to. She felt her wolves’ playful mood and barked at Dante flirtatiously, before sending him a quick message by their mind link.

Catch me if you can.

Without waiting for his response, she darted off to the woods, smirking in her mind at the confused look he had on his snout when she ran away from him. Howling with joy at the feeling of the wind tousling her fur and the fresh scents all over the place, she ran without any sense of where she was going, just enjoying the feeling. Soon though she heard Dante’s paws against the ground as he was quickly catching up to her and she tried to speed up even more.

Unfortunately, as it was expected, his wolves’ physical condition was in much better shape than hers, and soon they were running side by side. Gabi snarled playfully at him and ducked to the side, trying to lose him in the bushes, but he quickly once more caught up to her, jumping and tackling her to the ground. They fought a little when she tried to gain the upper hand, but Dante didn’t let her do it. He pinned her to the ground with her belly up and his eyes were almost glowing; it seemed that he too had fun. He licked her on the snout and that stopped her squirming for a second.

Catch me if you can. He repeated her own words and, in an instant, jumped off of her and sprinted into the woods. Gabi felt rivalry rising up in her chest. Oh no, she wasn’t going to lose to him.

She didn’t know how long they were chasing each other throughout the woods, tackling to the ground and then once more running away, but it didn’t matter for her in that moment. She felt utterly happy just as her wolf and stripped of all her worries. But when once again Dante caught her and trapped her between his body and ground, they both were panting hard, well, maybe she was panting a little bit more.

This time instead of jumping off and running again, Dante rose his snout in the air and sniffed the air.

Time to go back. Soon the sun will rise.

Gabi yipped in disappointment. Already?

When he started to shift back into his human form, she knew that it was over. She soon followed after him, but when she opened her eyes after shifting, she found herself still pinned under him by his strong arms. She looked at him questioningly, trying not to look lower than his muscled torso. He was looking back at her with a mysterious glint in his eyes. Red sparks were now almost non visible as his brown eyes darkened a bit. Gabi shivered under him, not only from this weird situation, but also from the fact that she was quickly becoming cold from the autumn night wind.

“W-why we turned back? Won’t it be faster to return as wolves?” she asked, mesmerized by his eyes. Instead of answering her, Dante lowered his head and rested his head on her temple, making their noses meet in a similar gesture as when they were in their animal forms. Gabi’s breath hitched at that and she felt how her body spontaneously felt hot and all jiggly. She was sure he could hear her heart thumping loudly in her chest, but she couldn’t do anything about this right now.

“Did you have fun?” he murmured lowly, making goosebumps rise on her skin. She couldn’t clearly see his eyes, but the timbre of his voice resonated in her inner core, making her legs tremble. She had the urge to fling her arms around his neck and pull him these few inches lower to kiss her, just as she embarrassingly wished for it for the last few days.

“Yes. It was great to run once again.” She said with trembling voice, trying with all her might to stop the animalistic urges that grew bigger within every second inside her. She shivered uncontrollably at that, not only from the cold, but also from all the emotions he gave her.

“Are you cold?” he asked once more and now Gabi could only shake her head slightly.

“Do you want me to warm you up?” she looked at him with wide eyes, suddenly shocked by his words, but this time Dante didn’t wait for her to answer.

He quickly lowered his head even more and a whole new set of sparks erupted in her whole body when their lips met. Contrary to their first kiss, which was violent and uncaring, this one felt gentler and light, as if he was a bit scared that she would slap him across the face.

Well, she felt she was entitled to do this, but she couldn’t, and in this second, she didn’t want it. His overwhelming scent, the smell of their sweat and the musky taste of his lips mixed with wine he drank a few hours ago made her ecstatic to the point she didn’t know anymore where she was and what was happening.

She let out a quiet mewl into his lips and that made his instincts rise up. He growled possessively into her mouth and pushed his lips even more into hers, harshly demanding with his tongue for her to open them. She obliged with no objections, as her mind was now completely blank and in a state of bliss. Feeling his needy hand gripping her tightly on her waist and bringing her closer to him, she happily moved even closer to his hot body. Something hard brushed on her thigh, making a raspy moan escape her lips, despite Dante’s tongue still fighting with hers. She was so caught up that she didn’t even notice for a second that he freed her hand to grip her waist. With visible pleasure she moved her hand into his black, now tousled hair. They were soft as silk and she couldn’t help but pull them harshly, scraping his scalp a little at that. He growled at that and bit her lip as a punishment, but his feverish kisses mixed with the pain made her want him even more. He saw her reaction and bit her once more, earning a breathy yelp from her.

Gabi couldn’t help the wet stickiness between her thighs. She was in a state that she was able to give him everything he asked for without a fight, even if she would definitely regret it later. Hell, she would even let him mark her right now.

Thinking that she involuntarily put her head on the side, gaining him access to her neck, and that seemed to cool down his emotions. Silence fell between them, interrupted only by their rasped breaths, and when Dante pulled away his lips from her, she slowly opened her eyes and looked at him panicked, feeling how her happy bubble vanished in a second.

His eyes still were ember red, but something hard to describe could be seen in them. It seemed like he was fighting himself over something. After a few seconds he also took away his hand from her waist and suddenly Gabi felt her nakedness even more, as hot emotions slowly died in her body. She looked away embarrassed and sat up when Dante moved away, trying to cover her breasts and intimate areas with her hands and legs.

Moretti stood up and turned his back to her, still breathing heavily. Finally, silence was broken by his low, raspy voice.

“Go back to the car and wait for me there. I’ll be back soon.” He only said and his voice seemed to be heavy with a spectre of various emotions, one of them once more being anger. Without looking at her even once he quickly shifted and vanished in a second between the trees.

Gabi sat there shocked, trying to comprehend what had happened between them. She felt relieved that he didn’t try to go with her all the way and mark her, but at the same time she felt hurt that he stopped only when she showed him his neck. Did he despise her so much? Was she such a burden for him that he fought his instincts so hard? To top it off she also felt embarrassed that despite her resolutions to not get comfortable in this situation and think only of escaping, she still got caught up in her emotions that were more and more frequently betraying her, even if her mind screamed that it was not ok.

Then anger took over her and she violently wiped away the tear that escaped her. He was not the only one who could play this game. She wasn’t going to succumb to him anymore, and the situation like this one, in the future could happen only when she was the one having the upper hand.

With this decision in mind, she stood up and changed into her wolf. Without looking back, she sprinted towards the car.

The way back took her no more than 10 minutes, as anger in her veins almost made her paws grow wings. She quickly unlocked the car. For a second or two she wondered if she should change into her old clothes she was wearing during the day, but the mischievous side of her took over. She wasn’t going to show him that he hurt her or that she was scared of him. She didn’t feel so brave in a long time.

Gabi returned to her seat and for a second wondered on how to behave when Dante shows up. Finally, she decided to act like nothing happened to show him that he wasn’t the only one who didn’t care. Still she draped his coat on her arms, as if to prove some kind of point.

She didn’t have to wait for him long. After 10 minutes or so he showed up in his wolf form and after noticing her in the car he walked up to the trunk and changed. A few minutes later he was back on the driver’s seat with his emotionless face. Still, when he looked at her bare legs that she didn’t even try to hide, a glint of red passed by his dark eyes.

“Aren’t you cold?” he more stated than asked in a dark tone, as if he wanted her to cover her legs right there and now. She looked at him innocently.

“No, it’s perfect for me. Are you cold?” she asked sweetly with a glint of malice in her voice and Dante growled at that unsatisfied.

“It’s fucking perfect.” He almost too harshly turned the engine key and violently turned the car around, driving back to the main road at a dangerous speed. Gabi looked out the window seemingly uninterested in his actions, but truth to be told she gulped quietly. She hated going so fast in a car when she couldn’t do anything in case something happens on the road. After some time, she looked from the corner of her eye at Dante. It was dark in the car, but the dashboard lights slightly lighted up his face. She could see his hard-clenched jaw and his hands gripping the wheel so tight his knuckles turned white. His brows were furrowed and he looked in her direction from time to time with a red glint in his eyes. She quickly turned once more to the window, not wanting for him to notice she was observing him.

Still it was hard for her not to smile in triumph even a little.

When they arrived and Dante parked the car in the garage, she didn’t wait for him and stepped out, slowly walking towards the exit of his own private part. She also made sure to sway her hips with each step lightly, as to make him as uncomfortable as she could. He didn’t say anything, but when he took everything out of the trunk, he closed it violently making a loud bang resonate in the room.

Gabi could feel his angry stare boring into her body but she tried her best to ignore him.

“Do you want me to throw them away?” he barked at her and only then did she turn to him. She gasped, outraged seeing that he was talking about the flowers he brought her earlier. She quickly went to him and took them from him, with a little smile once more smelling them.

She then looked straight into his eyes.

“I’ll take good care of them.” She emphasized the word good and smirked at him, leaving him dumbfounded behind. She heard his growl, but nothing else came out of his mouth.

The rest of the way to the penthouse was spent in total silence. Weirdly Dante chose to stay behind her and only spat out directions to her, but Gabi didn’t feel offended by that. Instead, she felt like a winner for the first time since coming here. She knew he felt flustered and didn’t know what to do or think about her sudden change. And to top it off, she started to play on his man parts too.

When they stepped through the door it was already morning outside and the sun was slowly coming out from between the buildings to look sheepishly inside the apartment. Gabi felt her whole body aching from fatigue, but she still made her time in searching for a glass to put her flowers into. She decided to look for a vase later that day. Dante watched her for a few seconds, but finally snarled under his breath and went upstairs. He left all the bags beside her door and went towards his own bedroom.

“Today you have a day off. On the evening you’ll start your dancing lessons.” She heard him say and she looked back at him.

“All right, Alpha.” She only answered and smiled with innocence. Dante furrowed his brows as if her behaviour confused him even more and without another word went into his room.

Gabi felt satisfaction take over her, and with a pride grin on her lips she suddenly felt hungry. She took one of the apples from the counter and playfully tossed it a few times into the air, before biting into it with appetite.

She was finally done with being the scaredy cat she always was. At this point she didn’t know anymore what she wanted from life, but she definitely knew one thing – she wasn’t going to lose any more battles, and she was going to win this war, no matter the outcome.