Marked by the Alpha Team (Luna Merrick) novel Chapter 3

Chapter 3

LUNA

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I pushed through the dorm doors and stepped into the parking lot, the cool night air hitting my face in the best way possible. My sneakers crunched on loose gravel as I scanned the lot, and there they were.

Five tall figures leaning against a sleek black SUV that was parked under the farthest light, and even from this distance, I picked out Ryder right away with his dirty–blond hair catching the light, his arms crossed, and that same cocky stance from the field this morning. The others were also standing close and talking in low voices, but I couldn’t make out faces yet, just their tall, broad shapes that took up too much space.

The second I spotted them, something weird happened to me.

I felt a pull right in the center of my chest like an invisible string aggressively pulled me forward and then snapped tight. My feet stopped moving without me telling them to, and I just stood there, frozen on the edge of the sidewalk, and staring.

And then the smell hit me.

That same spicy scent from earlier, woodsmoke, pine, and something dark and wild, rolled across the parking lot even though there were still twenty, maybe thirty feet between us, and it flooded my lungs, wrapped around me, and sank straight into my skin. My body answered in a way I didn’t understand, and heat bloomed under my ribs, spread down my arms, and pooled low in my stomach.

My cheeks burned all of a sudden, and my heartbeat kicked hard, like I’d just finished a sprint.

What the hell?

I shook my head hard, my curls bouncing against my shoulders. Get it together, Luna. They’re just guys, arrogant, annoying guys who think they own the school.

I forced my feet to move again, frowning so deep it probably looked permanent, and as I got closer, all five of them straightened up at the same time. Their heads turned toward me like they’d been waiting for this exact moment, and then, just like they had this morning, they froze, going completely still with their eyes locked on me and their mouths half–open like they were seeing me for the first time all over again.

I stopped a few feet away, my hands shoved in my jacket pockets to hide that they were shaking a little.

I opened my mouth to demand what gave them the right to text me like that, and how the hell they even got my number, but before a single word came out, they moved.

All five of them.

They stepped forward at once, closing the distance fast, and then… with no warning at all, they started sniffing me, actually sniffing like a bunch of dogs with their heads tilting, and noses flaring as they leaned in close like they were trying to catch every bit of scent coming off my skin, my hair, and my clothes.

One circled halfway behind me, and another dipped his head near my neck, and the spicy smell was everywhere now, so thick I could almost taste it. My body got hotter, the warmth turning into an ache I didn’t understand, and my knees feli weak.

I stumbled back, my heart slamming against my ribs.

“What the fuck are you doing?” I hissed, my voice coming out louder than I meant, sharp and appalled. “Why are you acting like wild animals?”

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2:41 pm PPPP

Chapter 3

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They stopped, but only barely. They were still too close for my liking and still breathing hard with their eyes darker than before, their pupils huge.

The one with the jet–black hair and storm–gray eyes, who was standing closest to me was the one I expected to speak up and say something to make sense of their animalistic behavior, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, the guy with the tattoos covering his thick arms, short dark hair, and blue eyes that looked ready to burn holes in something did the talking first.

“She doesn’t know,” he blurted out, staring at the others like this was the worst news possible.

I blinked at him, then at the rest of them. “Doesn’t know what? Are you guys on drugs or something?” I looked around the circle, my voice rising. “You realize athletes doing drugs is illegal, right? Like, career–ending illegal?”

The captain–looking one, with black hair and broad shoulders, the same guy who’d warned me off the field this morning. finally spoke. His voice was low and controlled, but there was an edge to it that made my skin prickle.

“What the hell are you?” he questioned.

I stared back at him in complete disbelief, then I looked around the empty parking lot like someone might pop out with a hidden camera, and tell me that this was all some kind of elaborate prank. When no one did, I turned back to them.

“Pretty sure I’m the one who gets to ask that question,” I said. “If you’re trying to get back at me for beating your friend in one stupid race, you’re a lot more pathetic than you look, and I’m honestly disappointed. I thought Blackridge was supposed to be prestic not a daycare for losers with fragile egos.”

Much

nce, and for a second, nobody moved. I could hear my own breathing, harsh and fast, and I could hear nd rougher.

one spoke up, the one with longish dark brown hair falling over silver glasses, and eyes that seemed to see

We know we look weird right now,” he said calmly, like he was trying to smooth everything over. “But we had to check something.”

I wanted to scream, actually scream, but the last thing I needed on my first day was more attention, more videos, more gossiping, and more viral bullshit. So I swallowed it down and glared at him instead.

“Check what?” I asked through clenched teeth. “What could you possibly need to check that involves sniffing me like a bunch of dogs?”

Ryder snarled, actually snarled, his lips pulling back a little, and a low growl rumbling in his chest.

“We’re not dogs,” he hissed. “Don’t talk to us like that.”

I scoffed, my anger overriding whatever weird heat was still vibrating under my skin. “You sure act like it. Look, just because you have nothing better to do with your time than play creepy games doesn’t mean I have to stand here and put up with it. If that’s all the idiotic stuff you’ve got to say, I’m leaving.”

I turned on my heel, ready to march straight back to the dorm and lock the door behind me. I was not only angry at them for wasting my time, I was also angry at myself for coming down here in the first place. What was I thinking? That I’d prove something? That they’d apologize? Stupid.

I made it three steps.

“Wait…” one of them started, and behind me, Ryder’s voice rang out. loud and cocky again.

“You’ll be seeing us a lot,” he said, and I could almost picture the smug look on his face. “So get ready for it, track girl.”

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2:41 pm P P P P

Chapter 3

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