Marked by the Alpha Team (Luna Merrick) novel Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Luna’s POV

I woke up slowly, like my body didn’t belong to me yet. Everything felt heavy, like I had been pushed down into a deep sleep and was only just starting to come back up. The first thing I noticed was warmth, not just normal warmth, but something that felt quite steady and real, like I was pressed against something solid that was giving off heat.

My arm felt wrapped around something firm, and at the same time, I could feel an arm wrapped tightly around my back, holding me in place like I had been clinging to it all night. For a few seconds, I didn’t understand what was happening. My eyes stayed closed, my mind still slow, trying to piece things together, but nothing made sense.

When I finally forced my eyes open, everything felt too bright at first, and I had to blink a few times before my vision cleared. The first thing I saw was skin, a wide, bare chest right in front of my face, rising and falling slowly with steady breaths. My brain lagged behind what I was seeing, like it refused to accept it, and I just stared at it for a moment, confused.

Then it hit me all at once, and my eyes snapped upward to the face above me. The second I saw him, really saw him, my heart jumped so hard it felt like it slammed into my ribs.

Ryder Graves.

A short and loud scream left my mouth before I could stop it, and I jerked backward so fast that I almost wrapped myself around the sheets. My body moved on pure instinct, pushing away from him like he had burned me. I scrambled off the bed, my breathing already picking up, my heart racing like I had just run a full sprint without warming up first. My mind was spinning, trying to understand how I had gone from my dorm room to… this. To his bed, and to him holding me like that.

Ryder’s eyes flew open the moment I screamed, his whole body tensing as he woke up suddenly. He looked just as confused for a second, his brows pulling together like he was trying to remember where he was, but I didn’t care about any of that. The moment my feet hit the floor and I fully stood up, I realized something that made everything ten times worse. I wasn’t fully dressed.

I looked down at myself, and my stomach dropped. I was in my underwear, just my panties and a bra that was definitely not mine. It was too colorful, too bright, and I knew right away that it wasn’t anything I owned. A cold wave of horror rushed through me so fast it made my hands shake. My chest tightened, and my throat felt dry as I looked back up at Ryder like I was seeing him for the first time.

“What the hell did you do to me?” I snapped, my voice louder than I expected, shaking with anger and panic at the same

time.

I didn’t wait for an answer before grabbing the duvet from the bed, yanking it up and wrapping it tightly around my body like it could protect me from whatever had happened. My mind was running in circles, jumping from one terrible thought to another, and none of them made me feel any better. I didn’t feel any pain where it would matter, but that didn’t mean anything. I had never been with anyone before, so how was I supposed to know what I should or shouldn’t feel?

“Answer me!” I yelled again, my voice sharper now as I pointed at him. “What did you do to me, you fucking pervert?”

Ryder blinked at me, still sitting on the bed, clearly not fully awake yet. He ran a hand through his messy hair, letting out a slow breath like he was trying to calm himself down before speaking. “Can you calm down for a second?” he said, his voice low but firm. “And stop yelling. No one in this house can know you’re here.”

I stared at him like he had just said the most stupid thing possible, my anger rising even higher “Are you serious right now?” I snapped, tightening my hold on the duvet. “Do you even hear yourself? I wake up half naked in your bed with no memory of how I got here, and your main concern is that I’m being too loud?”

He didn’t answer right away, and that only made me more frustrated. My chest was rising and falling fast, my hands gripping the duvet so tightly that my fingers were starting to hurt. “You better have a really good explanation for this,” I added, my voice dropping but still filled with anger. “Because if you don’t, I swear I will report you for sexual harrassment. I don’t care who you are!

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12:41 Sat, May 30 MMM.

Chapter 43

Ryder let out a quiet scoff, shaking his head slightly like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “I didn’t touch you.” Ke said, his tone flat, like he was already tired of the conversation. “And if anyone got s

sexually harassed here, it was me, not you.”

1 froze for a second, my brows pulling together in confusion at what he just said. “What?” Lasked, my voice softer now but

still tense.

He leaned back slightly, looking at me more seriously now.

you

not remember anything from last night?” he asked

I frowned. trying to think back, but everything felt blur bered being in

my room. I remembered feeling hot ke

my body was on fire, and how hard it was to even breathe properly I remembered lying down because I couldn’t take it anymore, and then… nothing. It was like everything after that had been erased.

“I remember feeling sick.” I said slowly, my voice uncertain as I tried to piece things together. “I remember feeling really hot, like something was wrong, and then I fell asleep. That’s it.” I looked back at him, my eyes narrowing slightly. “So how did I end up here? With you?”

Ryder sighed, rubbing the back of his neck like this was already getting exhausting for him. “You didn’t just fall asleep,” he said. “You started to scream and were barely conscious, and your friend, Ivy, called me because she didn’t know what else to do, and I had to come get you before things got worse.”

I stared at him, trying to process what he was saying, but it still didn’t fully make sense. “So you’re telling me,” I said slowly, *that I was so sick that my friend called you, of all people, and you somehow ended up bringing me here?” My voice was filled with doubt, and I didn’t bother hiding it.

“Yes,” he said simply.

I shook my head slightly, still not fully convinced. “And the clothes?” I asked, glancing down at myself again. “Why am I dressed like this?”

Ryder hesitated for a second before answering, and that alone made my stomach twist again. “You were overheating.” he said finally. “Your body temperature was way too high, and we had to cool you down. That’s all.”

I didn’t know why, but something about the way he said it made me feel uneasy, like there was more he wasn’t saying. Still, I couldn’t deny that what he was describing matched how I had felt before I blacked out. The heat, the pain, the way my body didn’t feel like mine anymore… it had all been real.

I looked at him again, really looked at him this time, trying to see if he was lying, but his expression didn’t change. He looked tired, more serious than usual, and not at all like someone who had done something wrong and was trying to hide it.

“You expect me to just believe that?” I asked quietly.

He shrugged slightly. “You don’t have to believe anything,” he said. “But your disbelief doesn’t change the truth.”

I stood there for a few seconds, my mind still spinning, my emotions all over the place. I didn’t know what to think anymore. Part of me was still angry, still scared, but another part of me… that part remembered how I had felt before everything went black, and it knew that something wasn’t right.

I tightened the duvet around myself again, suddenly feeling very exposed despite being covered. “So what now?” I asked, my voice quieter now, but still unsure.

Ryder looked at me for a moment before answering, and for the first time since I woke up, his expression softened just a little. “Now,” he said slowly, “you start accepting that something is wrong and that you’re going to need help whether you like

it or not?

I didn’t respond right away. I just stood there, staring at him, feeling like my entire world had shifted without me even realizing it.

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12:41 Sat, May 30 MM M

Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Luna’s POV

I woke up slowly, like my body didn’t belong to me yet. Everything felt heavy, like I had been pushed down into a deep sleep and was only just starting to come back up. The first thing I noticed was warmth, not just normal warmth, but fomething that felt quite steady and real. like I was pressed against something solid that was giving off heat.

My arm felt wrapped around something firm, and at the same time, I could feel an arm wrapped tightly around my back. holding me in place like I had been clinging to it all night. For a few seconds, I didn’t understand what was happening. My eyes stayed closed, my mind still slow, trying to piece things–together, but nothing made sense.

When I finally forced my eyes open, everything felt too bright at first, and I had to blink a few times before my vision cleared. The first thing I saw was skin, a wide, bare chest right in front of my face, rising and falling slowly with steady breaths. My brain lagged behind what I was seeing, like it refused to accept it, and I just stared at it for a moment, confused.

Then it hit me all at once, and my eyes snapped upward to the face above me. The second I saw him, really saw him, my heart jumped so hard it felt like it slammed into my ribs.

Ryder Graves.

A short and loud scream left my mouth before I could stop it, and I jerked backward so fast that I almost wrapped myself around the sheets. My body moved on pure instinct, pushing away from him like he had burned me. I scrambled off the bed, my breathing already picking up, my heart racing like I had just run a full sprint without warming up first. My mind was spinning, trying to understand how I had gone from my dorm room to… this. To his bed, and to him holding me like that.

Ryder’s eyes flew open the moment I screamed, his whole body tensing as he woke up suddenly. He looked just as confused for a second, his brows pulling together like he was trying to remember where he was, but I didn’t care about any of that. The moment my feet hit the floor and I fully stood up, I realized something that made everything ten times worse. I wasn’t fully dressed.

I looked down at myself, and my stomach dropped. I was in my underwear, just my panties and a bra that was definitely not mine. It was too colorful, too bright, and I knew right away that it wasn’t anything I owned. A cold wave of horror rushed through me so fast it made my hands shake. My chest tightened, and my throat felt dry as I looked back up at Ryder like I was seeing him for the first time.

“What the hell did you do to me?” I snapped, my voice louder than I expected, shaking with anger and panic at the same

time.

I didn’t wait for an answer before grabbing the duvet from the bed, yanking it up and wrapping it tightly around my body like it could protect me from whatever had happened. My mind was running in circles, jumping from one terrible thought to another, and none of them made me feel any better. I didn’t feel any pain where it would matter, but that didn’t mean anything. I had never been with anyone before, so how was I supposed to know what I should or shouldn’t feel?

“Answer me!” I yelled again, my voice sharper now as I pointed at him. “What did you do to me, you fucking pervert?”

Ryder blinked at me, still sitting on the bed, clearly not fully awake yet. He ran a hand through his messy hair, letting out a slow breath like he was trying to calm himself down before speaking. “Can you calm down for a second?” he said, his voice low but firm. “And stop yelling. No one in this house can know you’re here.”

I stared at him like he had just said the most stupid thing possible, my anger rising even higher. “Are you serious right now?” I snapped, tightening my hold on the duvet. “Do you even hear yourself? I wake up half naked in your bed with no memory of how I got here, and your main concern is that I’m being too loud?”

He didn’t answer right away, and that only made me more frustrated. My chest was rising and falling fast, my hands gripping the duvet so tightly that may fingers were starting to hurt. “You better have a really good explanation for this.” I added, my voice dropping but still filled with anger. “Because if you don’t, I swear I will report you for sexual harrassinent. I don’t care who you are.

30 OOGT

12:41 Sat, May 30 MMM.

Chapter 48

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