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PROMPT: "Kissing you is a death wish."

TW: BRIEF MENTIONS OF SUICIDE

Watching my older sister twirl around the room, her white dress whirling around her feet, I couldn't help the twinge of sadness that passed me through. I was going to miss her. It had been lovely having her home, but it was only for a brief period. She had bigger and better things to move on to. It wasn't as if Edward could leave the pack and come here. He was the alpha–he was needed. And he certainly wouldn't want to join my father's pack. It was one of the few remaining who operated on The Old Ways. It meant it was volatile, outdated, and patriarchal. Women were deemed lesser than men–a hard lesson me and all my sisters had to learn. No. She had to leave. To go and get out of this place. We'd be okay. I'd look out for Ness and Alice. Edward had already promised us places in his pack when they were old enough. We only had to wait another 2 more years, and we could leave. It was a day I looked forward to. A day that couldn't come quickly enough.

I could have left when I turned twenty-five but chose not to. I needed to protect my younger sisters. Esme was gone at that point–my father's behaviour was so bad that she threw herself from a cliff to escape him. Bella had been offered the opportunity to go to another pack and study there. How could she refuse? Doing that would keep her safe. So, I had to stay. I needed to make sure that my father behaved. That he didn't break any of the laws. That he left Alice and Ness alone. He was itching to mate us off. That's why Esme had jumped from the cliff. He was trying to force a bond, and she could think of nothing worse. The day she jumped was the day I lost all respect for my father and mother. He didn't think she would do it. He teased her. Told her she didn't have the courage. My mother said nothing. Stood stoically at the side, her eyes unseeing as Esme looked at us. "I love you," she said and then jumped, her entire body clearing the cliff as a scream ripped itself from my throat. Bella had lunged forward like she wanted to grab and stop her. It was too late, though. She was gone. Her body sank into the icy water as it carried her downstream.

My father had sent some of the pack after her but to no avail. They don't think she ever came out. Her death was ruled as a suicide. My father made up some bullshit to the pack that she was desperate to be mated and couldn't stand the thought of being alone anymore. Ha. Esme never wanted to be mated. It pissed me off how much everyone believed him. He was the Alpha. No one dared question him. Not even my own mother. She watched her oldest daughter jump into the sea to escape my father, and all she could do was stand there. It made me hate them both. My father for doing this, and my mother for standing by and not making any attempt to help.

"You have no idea how edible you look, do you?" a deep voice rumbled beside me.

I turned and looked at my father's beta, annoyance growing within me. "Fuck off, James."

I couldn't stand the prick. He was a lying, cheating scumbag who was simply looking to win at everything he did. The only reason my father kept him as his beta was because he would do anything for him. Most wolves didn't follow with blind loyalty–James did.

"Is that anyway to talk to your superior?" His voice was on the cusp of a growl, eyes dark as he moved closer to me. His long hair was pulled back into a bun, and his blue eyes barely masked the wolf beneath as he locked his sights on me. He was the predator–I the prey.

But I wouldn't buckle and bend. Certainly not for him. "Superior? Please. I'm the daughter of an Alpha. I rank way above you." I hoped my voice was enough to dissuade him, the glint of my teeth, my eyes flashing as my wolf raised to the challenge, hackles raised as she prowled, ready to strike.

At my words, a real growl left his mouth, lips pulling back into a snarl as he took a single step towards me, a challenge raising between us.

I didn't step back. I stood tall. I knew he could feel the power radiating from me. Could feel it bursting from every single cell in my body. I met his eyes, daring him to do something.

After a few seconds, he lowered his head and skulked off. I was hoping it would be a while before I saw him again.

"Nicely handled."

My eyes closed, and I breathed in deeply, my wolf basking in the scent that flowed over her. He smelled of the Earth just after it had rained and burning wood. I found it an intoxicating scent. My wolf wanted to rub all over him, scent herself until no one could tell the difference between us. She fucking loved it.

I opened my eyes. "Thanks," I risked a glance at him out of the corner of my eye. He was wearing a dark blue tux with a crisp white shirt. His hair was pulled back into a neat bun, and his hands were tucked into his pockets as he stood tall. He looked good–too good.

Even though I wasn't looking at him, his blue eyes blazed into mine, calling to me.

"How are you doing it?" His voice was strained now. "How are you remaining so fucking composed?"

Looking back at him, I saw him swallow hard–and then I understood why his hands were in his pockets. It was to stop him from grabbing me. To stop him from reaching out and taking me in his arms like every fibre of his being was screaming at him to.

Yes! Yes! My wolf shouted. Let him. You're his, and he's yours…

Her words almost convinced me, almost tempted to fling myself in his direction.

Somehow, I managed to resist, though. It wasn't that simple. My wolf might yearn for him. But he was a fucking bear shifter. I was a wolf–that was problem number one. Problem number two was my duty to my sisters. I couldn't let anything get in the way of that. Problem number three was that my father would kill us both. Members of the pack had disappeared after an unapproved mating. Coincidence? I think not. Then there was problem number four; I wanted the bond. I wanted to be consumed by him. I wanted to feel the power of his bear surging through me. I wanted to be claimed by him.

I'd never felt anything like it. Never felt the pull that so many had described. But I knew. The second I set eyes on him I fucking knew. My sister's saviour was my mate. He had stepped in when my father had sent some wolves after her drugged state. She hadn't been able to fight them. She was too weak, too confused. He was ambling out in his bear form when he found them. His roar alone had caused two of them to flee. The third he dragged off by their tail. I knew the man bore an impressive scar on his back where he had clamped his teeth down and hurled him into the sky. If he hadn't been there, I dread to think what could have happened.

"Because I have to," I told him. Then I let him see. I let my wolf flash in my eyes, her yearning obvious. His bear responded, surging forward, wanting to provide comfort. He felt it, too.

"I can't sleep. I think about you all the time." There was a rawness to his voice, a desperation that made me want to wrap my arms around him. To tell him that I got it. I felt the same. He consumed my dreams–it was easier not to sleep. Then he wasn't there. He wasn't running beside me. He wasn't on top of me, naked body showing me just how right we were for each other. He wasn't next to me, his presence soothing me.

I wanted to sink my canines into his thick neck there and then. I wanted to claim him as mine. I wanted him to wear my mark. And I wanted to wear his.

That thought was it for me. My mouth watered, canines pressing against my gums. A howl echoed through my mind–pained and lonesome. It broke me. My wolf was crying, begging for this torture to end. To have him so close and yet so far away was more than she could take.

"Follow me," I whispered. I was done. I couldn't stand it anymore.

Careful not to hurry and arouse suspicion, I walked out of the main room and down the hallway, knowing exactly where the spare room was. Extra chairs and tables had been stored in here for today.

Once in the room, I whirled around and pressed him against the door the second it was closed. I breathed him in, my nose running along his neck where the scent was strongest. His large hands went to my waist, the fabric of my dress scrunching up in his fingers.

"Emmett," I whispered, his name like a breath of fresh air. The room was dark, but neither of us needed a light on. The perks of being a shifter. His eyes were intense, chest heaving with ragged breaths as he pushed his body against mine.

My hands rested on his chest, loving the power radiating from him. At six foot six, he was an impressive height and just as broad–but I had never felt safer.

"Tell me to stop," his forehead rested against mine, eyes wide open as we drank each other in. "There'll be no going back when I've tasted you. I can't. My bear won't."

Shaking my head, I reached up and cupped the back of his neck. "Kissing you is a death wish." It was. I was asking for trouble. Yet, I couldn't stop. I didn't want to. Not now.

"Then bring on the fucking grim reaper," Emmett mumbled, crashing his lips down onto mine, sweeping me into the sweetest oblivion.