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Her orgasm crashed through her violently, her body convulsing around him, her cry ringing through the cabin. The scent of her pleasure, the way her muscles locked around him, sent his own release surging to the brink. His vision blurred, his wolf surging forward?—

Mine. Now.

His teeth grazed her neck, a half-bite, a warning—before his human mind wrenched control back at the last second. He tore his mouth away, pulling out of her just as his own climax threatened to consume him, spilling himself against her thigh instead of inside her.

Panting, he stared at the small trickle of blood on her neck, his stomach twisting.

Shit.

He hadn't asked. He hadn't warned her. His wolf had nearly taken what wasn't fully his to claim—not yet.

Maya blinked at him, dazed, her chest rising and falling rapidly. "Kieran?" Her fingers brushed the bite mark on her neck, coming away with a faint smear of red. "Did you just?—?"

He caught her wrist before she could touch it again, his grip firm but careful. "I didn't mean to." His voice was rough, laced with a growl he couldn't suppress. "My wolf got too close."

She studied him, her green eyes searching his face. "But you stopped."

"Barely." He exhaled sharply, his thumb tracing the edge of the bite. "It's not a full mark."

He hadn't meant to do it—his primal instincts took over. But he'd stopped himself before it was too late. Maybe. He wasn't sure. The bite wasn't deep, but it was enough to leave a mark, and enough to make him worry.

Maya frowned, her fingers touching the spot on her neck. "Is this… part of the whole mate thing?"

Kieran nodded, his jaw tight. "Yeah. My wolf wanted to claim you. To mark you as mine."

She was quiet for a moment, her eyes searching his. "And you didn't want to?"

"I did," he admitted, his voice rough. "More than anything. But I wanted it to be your choice. Not something I forced on you."

Maya's expression softened, and she leaned forward, brushing her lips against his. "It's okay, Kieran."

Her words soothed the storm inside him, but the guilt still lingered. He'd come so close to crossing a line, to taking something she hadn't fully consented to. And now, he didn't know what the small bite might mean for her or for them. His wolf had been too close to the surface, too desperate to claimher, and he'd lost control of himself. He couldn't let that happen again. He wouldn't.

FOURTEEN

MAYA

The knock on the door came that morning just as Maya finished spreading a thin layer of Kieran's homemade blackberry jam across her toast. The sharp, insistent rap made her jump, causing her knife to clatter against the plate. Kieran was across the cabin in three long strides, his movements fluid and predatory.

"It's Malcolm," he said, his nostrils flaring slightly as he scented the air. His eyes flashed toward her with a hint of possessiveness that sent delicious shivers through her. "And Lena."

Maya's fingers automatically went to her neck, where the shallow mark from last night remained. It wasn't a full claiming bite—Kieran had made that clear—but it felt significant nonetheless, like a promise written in her skin.

Kieran slid the heavy wooden beam away from the door and swung it open. Malcolm strode in, bringing the crisp morning air with him. His eyes darted between her and Kieran, a knowing smirk forming on his lips.

"Well, well," Malcolm drawled, "don't you two look... rested."

Lena followed, her petite form a stark contrast to the Silvercrest brothers' large frames. Her unusual violet eyes fixed immediately on Maya, then widened slightly as they caught the bite mark on Maya's neck.

"Father's getting restless," Malcolm said, cutting straight to business. "He knows you've gone AWOL, and he's not stupid, Kieran. He's put two and two together about the human witness."

Maya felt her cheeks flush. Human witness. Is that all she was to these people? After last night, she'd thought... but no. Pack politics were complex, and her relationship with Kieran was barely a day old.

"How much time do we have?" Kieran's voice was hard and commanding, the voice of a future Alpha. Maya watched the muscles in his jaw tighten, fascinated by how quickly he could shift from the tender lover she'd known last night to this formidable leader.

"Not much," Malcolm replied, running a large hand through his short black hair. "Damon and I can only run interference for so long. Father's sent scouts to check your regular spots. This place was never on his radar before, but?—"

"But he's not above following even his own sons," Kieran finished grimly.