Mated To The Alpha Of The North
Chapter 61

Willow

I continued to struggle with coming back down from the mountain peak that Jax had rocketed my fatigued body to at a heretofore unparalleled rate, but in the back of my mind, my wolf jumped for joy as his growled words managed to register through my utter state of bliss.

I felt the stirring they induced in my already overexerted body, only compounding further with the heat that had arisen from the wicked look in his mesmerizing eyes as he had cleaned my sticky juices from his calloused hand, but he had only tugged me tighter into his side when he was done, pressing a tender k**s against my temple as my eyes lazily drifted shut in pure serenity.

I found myself both excited and nervous for when we would irrevocably clinch our mating, the enticing scent emanating from the crook of his neck, where I had nuzzled my nose into subconsciously, abetting in muddying my senses further.

Nonetheless, my tired state prevented me from getting too entangled in all of the competing stimuli, and at some point, I must have slipped off into dreamland without willfully being aware of it.

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The Next Morning…

I had not bothered asking about the travel arrangements formerly, but I was kind of wishing that I had when I perceived Jax nudging me awake well before the sun had risen even halfway to its zenith, high in the sky.

The first rays of light were barely visible through the sheer fabric of the curtains as the sky began to gradually morph colors, but the dusky indigo that foreshadowed the bright sky blue, which would in due course take its place, had left the room dimly lit without an overhead light on, at least for a while longer.

I knew he had said that we would have an early start, but damn, this was not what had come to mind at the time. I had become used to the luxury of being able to sleep in, and I was loath to peel myself away from the comfort of my mate’s embrace.

However, all too soon, he was pulling away, sending a cool breeze shooting over the exposed surfaces of my body as he lifted the covers to begin the day.

Consequently, his quick action caused me to curl up into a ball under the blanket as he whirled around the room, tying up the last loose ends before we left for the Northern Province.

“Come on, sweetheart. You can go back to sleep in the car, but you need to get up for now.”

I could not help the g***n that had escaped in reaction, but I hauled myself out of the cozy bed after another few minutes had elapsed, regardless, finding that it was not all that appealing without my mate’s presence in it right beside me. His words had also piqued my interest, despite my half-awake state slackening my thought process.

I had arrived here in the South on four legs after fleeing for my life through the forest, but for some reason, I had never hesitated to consider how I would be leaving it.

It had literally been years since I had stepped foot inside of a vehicle, but I was relieved that I would be able to continue resting while we traveled home. I felt amazing physically, but I continued to battle the exhaustion that had been a near constant for so long in the recent past.

Rather than waste the extra energy asking questions that would undoubtedly be answered shortly anyway, I plodded over to the pile of clothes that Jax had left out for me, having already packed the remnants of our belongings while I had been delaying getting out of the bed.

I was pleased when I realized that he had left out exactly the outfit that I would have chosen for myself, right down to one of his soft t-shirts laying at the very top of the stack.

I grabbed the clothing and stumbled my way into the bathroom as I noted Jax collecting the bags to lug downstairs. I proceeded to get ready swiftly, not bothering to brush my long tresses and opting instead to twist the thick, ropelike length into a makeshift bun for the time being.

After glancing around the room to make sure that I had everything, I exited the bathroom and carried on down the steps to join my mate in the kitchen below where he was pouring himself a steaming cup of joe in a disposable cup.

“Hey baby, I think I got everything else from upstairs, but we can always have Ronnie send us anything we forget.” I said as I tucked the last items into the backpack sitting by the door.

“That should be the rest of it, love, and Theo should be here any minute with the car. If you want coffee or have anything else to take care of before we leave, you should probably get it out of the way now so that we can get on the road before the whole town wakes up.”

He had not said as much, but I got the impression that my mate did not want a lot of people knowing that we were departing the territory this morning, which kind of explained the early hour now that I had considered the possibility.

I fleetingly pondered interrogating him presently over the matter, but I ultimately decided to postpone my questioning until we were not as constrained for time, feeling deep down in my soul that I could trust Jax to get me where I needed to go safely.

My wolf readily agreed with my assertion, already accepting all of the aspects that accompanied being mated whole-heartedly, including the part where he had sworn to never allow Zeke or anyone else to harm us again.

I decided to heed my mate’s advice, walking with purpose to the still steaming machine to make my own cup of caffeine, even if I did plan on dozing most of the trip away. I could not pass on the creamy delicacy, especially when I recalled that I had picked up a small container of creamer at the store yesterday.

In no time at all, my wolf’s sensitive hearing picked up on the low rumble of a vehicle’s engine pulling up outside while I finished making my coffee and returned the creamer to the fridge.

Jax had apparently heard the same thing because he was opening the door and shouldering our luggage to take out to the car before the other male had the opportunity to knock on the door.

I debated with myself internally for a moment before I rapidly darted upstairs to snatch up the pillow that Jax had used last night off of the bed, placing it under my arm as I met the others outside.

After a brief conversation and well wishes, we were on our way without further delay, streaks of pink and bright orange just beginning to highlight to sky to the east and not a word said about my pilfered pillow thankfully.

I waited until we had been driving for a while, enjoying the beautiful sunrise, warm beverage, and pleasant company, to broach the topic of my queries.

“So, did we have to leave so early because we are sneaking away?”

Jax’s deep chuckle reverberated through the small space momentarily before he replied, “I guess you could say that in a sense. Reese and Theo followed Zeke’s trail as far as they were able before it eventually disappeared, but all signs pointed towards him heading in our current direction. We are taking a circuitous route in case we are followed, but I preferred to add in the extra security measure, nevertheless.”

His easy manner when speaking informed me that he was not worried about any possible interceptions, notwithstanding his added precautions, putting to bed any restlessness the disturbing news had managed to generate.

I knew that Jax could hold his own, and I did not discount my own abilities when threatened either, so I allowed the minor worry to float out of my mind as I flashed a beaming smile his way.

We talked at intervals throughout the long drive, with me napping in between our bouts of conversation, but I reveled in the new intimacy that seemed to develop as we discussed all of our hidden secrets and desires, leaving no stone unturned by the time our journey was finished.

The trip was mostly uneventful, yet each time we had stopped, I could not help the slinking sensation that someone was watching me, only to feel paranoia sneak in when I was unsuccessful at locating the eyes that I had discerned on me.

I did not want to worry Jax about my probable imaginings so I never mentioned the suspicious feelings, but maybe if I had, we would have had more time to prepare for the upcoming sequence of events.

In spite of that, my uneasiness during the trip was long forgotten the moment I was startled awake from my impromptu nap, and my head swiveled around briefly before I zoned in on Jax, who I now noticed had just shifted the car into park.

His spellbinding eyes held my own chocolate colored orbs captive as he stated in his deep baritone, “Welcome home, sweetheart.”