Page 31 of Captivated By Alphas 1, Fated (The Blood Moon Chronicle #4)

Eli’s eyes widened, something vulnerable flashing across his features before he masked it with a nervous laugh. “Right. Soaking wet, half-dressed, and completely mortified. Very attractive.”

“Exactly,” Adrian agreed, his thumb brushing Eli’s lower lip. The soft texture sent electricity racing through his veins, his panther practically howling with the need to taste, to claim. “Utterly irresistible.”

He leaned up slightly, closing the distance between them by inches. Eli remained frozen, his breath coming in short, shallow gasps. Adrian could hear his heartbeat racing, could smell the sweet-sharp scent of arousal mingling with the winter-pure scent that was uniquely Eli.

Yes, his panther purred. He wants us. Take him. Claim him. OURS.

Their lips were a breath apart when a car horn sounded in the distance, breaking the spell. Eli jerked back as if burned, scrambling to his feet in the shallow water.

NO! his panther snarled with such fury that Adrian had to clench his jaw to keep from growling aloud. So close! Bad timing. WORST timing.

“That’s probably someone looking for me,” Eli said, voice higher than normal. “I told Mom I’d only be gone an hour. And now I’m soaked and wearing your shirt and—oh God, this looks so bad.”

Adrian rose more slowly, water streaming from his now-ruined designer slacks. His panther snarled in frustration, but he maintained his outward composure despite the beast’s rage at the interruption. “Rain check, then?”

Don’t let him go, his panther urged. Don’t let him leave. Not when we were so close.

Eli’s eyes darted to him, then away. “We should get that gas to your car.”

“You’re not actually going to pretend this didn’t happen, are you?

” Adrian asked, catching Eli’s wrist as he turned to climb the embankment.

The contact sent heat racing up his arm, his panther purring at finally touching their mate’s skin directly.

“That there isn’t something happening between us? ”

Eli froze, his pulse racing beneath Adrian’s fingers. The rapid flutter against his fingertips made Adrian’s panther growl with satisfaction—physical evidence of their effect on their mate that couldn’t be denied or rationalized away.

He feels it too, his beast insisted. His body knows. His heart knows. Even if his mind doesn’t understand yet.

“What I’m going to do is help you get your car started so you can get to the estate and I can go change into actual clothes and try to forget the most mortifying day of my life.”

“Mortifying?” Adrian echoed, his panther bristling at the description. “Is that really how you’d describe what just happened?”

Not mortifying, his beast objected. Perfect. Meant to be. FATE.

Eli turned back to face him, something vulnerable and honest breaking through his snarky defenses. “No,” he admitted quietly. “But it’s easier than acknowledging I just nearly kissed Adrian Carmichael while wearing nothing but his shirt in the middle of a lake after he caught me skinny-dipping.”

The raw honesty disarmed Adrian completely. His panther settled, recognizing their mate needed gentleness, not aggression. The beast understood that Eli was overwhelmed, struggling to process the intensity of what was happening between them.

Gentle with mate, it conceded. Don’t frighten. Don’t push too hard.

“When you put it that way, it does sound rather extraordinary,” Adrian said, his lips curving into a smile that was genuine rather than practiced.

“My life was normal before yesterday,” Eli muttered, though there was a hint of a smile playing at the corner of his mouth. “Boring, even.”

Adrian’s panther perked up at that specific time frame. Yesterday. What had happened yesterday? His mind quickly cataloged the possibilities—yesterday was when the family would have been preparing for the reunion, when the estate would be coming alive with activity, when… when Jace had arrived.

As the realization struck, Adrian’s panther suddenly went rigid, nostrils flaring as it processed the scents clinging to Eli’s skin beneath the lake water and Adrian’s own cologne.

There it was—faint but unmistakable—Jace’s distinctive scent lingering around Eli’s collar, his wrists, places where close contact would have left traces.

How had he missed it before? His beast had been too overwhelmed by mate recognition to notice the subtle markers of another alpha’s interest.

Jace, his panther growled, hackles rising with territorial fury. Jace touched our mate. Jace’s scent on him.

The beast pushed forward with such force that Adrian had to clench his jaw to keep from snarling aloud.

Images flashed through his mind—Jace with Eli, Jace’s hands on Eli’s skin, Jace’s scent marking what should be theirs alone.

His cousin had clearly done more than just meet Eli; he’d gotten close enough to leave his scent behind.

Rival, his panther hissed, the concept foreign and unsettling when applied to family. Jace wants our mate. Jace touched our mate first.

“Yesterday?” he prompted, his voice rougher than intended as he fought to keep his beast from showing in his eyes. “What happened yesterday?”

Eli’s eyes widened slightly, a fresh blush creeping up his neck. “Nothing. Just… you know, things. Normal things. Estate things.”

The evasion and blush told Adrian everything his panther needed to know, confirming what his senses had already detected.

Something significant had happened between Eli and Jace—something that involved close physical proximity, something that had left his cousin’s scent on Eli’s skin.

His beast bristled with territorial possessiveness, a primal surge of competitive instinct he’d never felt toward his cousin before.

Adrian leaned closer under the pretense of examining Eli’s face, inhaling deeply to confirm his suspicions.

Yes—there was no mistake. Jace’s scent was strongest around Eli’s wrists and shoulders, as if his cousin had grabbed him, held him, perhaps even pinned him against something.

The thought made his panther bare its teeth in silent challenge.

Mine, it snarled, pushing Adrian to replace Jace’s scent with his own. Not his. OURS.

“Estate things,” Adrian repeated, still holding Eli’s wrist, his thumb tracing gentle circles over his pulse point while deliberately rubbing his scent gland against Eli’s skin.

His panther purred with satisfaction as his own scent began to overlay Jace’s.

“That sounds suspiciously vague for something that apparently ended your boring normal life.”

The way Eli’s pulse jumped beneath his fingers and his scent spiked with surprise confirmed it.

His panther growled with possessive frustration, already plotting how to establish primacy over his cousin.

They’d never competed for anything that mattered before—roles, awards, business ventures, none of it had ever truly mattered.

But this—their mate—this was different. This was everything.

“And now?” Eli deflected, clearly eager to change the subject. “Now I’m going to have to explain to my mother why I’m soaking wet and wearing a shirt that isn’t mine. And why I’m late.”

Adrian filed away Eli’s reaction for future consideration.

Something had definitely happened yesterday—something significant enough to make Eli blush at the mere mention of it.

And given Jace’s arrival and subsequent strange behavior through the pack bond, coupled with the lingering scent markers…

Adrian’s panther growled softly at the implications, a possessive streak he hadn’t anticipated flaring to life.

Must claim mate first, it insisted. Before Jace can. Must establish primacy. Must replace his scent with ours.

The irony wasn’t lost on him. He’d come early specifically to witness and mock Jace’s unexpected attraction to someone, only to find himself in exactly the same position. With exactly the same someone. The universe did have a sense of humor after all.

“Tell her you were rescuing a damsel in distress,” Adrian suggested, finally releasing Eli’s wrist though his panther whined at the loss of contact. “It has the virtue of being partially true.”

Eli snorted, the sound so unexpectedly inelegant from someone so beautiful that Adrian felt his heart turn over. “Right. You’re very damsel-like. Especially with those shoulders.”

His panther preened at the implied compliment, pleased that their mate had noticed their physical attributes. The beast interpreted it as further evidence of mutual attraction, of perfect compatibility.

He notices us, it purred. Appreciates our strength. Perfect mate.

They retrieved the gas can, which had thankfully landed on the path rather than in the water, and continued in silence. Adrian was acutely aware of Eli’s every movement, the way he kept a careful distance between them now, the nervous energy radiating from him in waves.

When they reached the Aston Martin, Eli handed over the gas can with obvious relief. “This should be enough to get you to the estate.”

“Thank you for the rescue,” Adrian said, allowing his fingers to brush against Eli’s as he took the container. The brief contact sent electricity racing up his arm, his panther purring at even this minimal touch with their mate. “And for the memorable introduction.”

Eli’s cheeks flushed again. “Please don’t mention this to anyone. Especially not my mother.”

“Your naked swimming adventure is safe with me,” Adrian promised, his lips curving into a smile that was both reassuring and predatory. “Though I can’t promise I won’t think about it. Often. In great detail.”

His panther growled its agreement, already cataloging every moment of their encounter in perfect detail—the way sunlight had danced across wet skin, the graceful arc of Eli’s body as he’d moved through the water, the feel of that lithe form pressed against him in the shallows.

These memories would sustain the beast until they could claim their mate properly.

“You’re impossible,” Eli muttered, though there was a hint of a smile playing at the corner of his mouth.

“So I’ve been told,” Adrian agreed cheerfully. “Repeatedly. By directors, producers, and now by the most beautiful young man I’ve ever seen standing in a lake.”

The compliment landed exactly as intended—Eli’s flush deepened, his scent spiking with pleased embarrassment. His panther noted this reaction, filing it away for future reference. Their mate responded to direct, sincere compliments, even as he tried to deflect them with sarcasm.

Beautiful when flustered, it observed. Want to see more. Want to cause more.

“I should go. Mom’s waiting.”

“I’ll see you at the estate,” Adrian said, making it sound like both a promise and a threat. His panther infused his voice with subtle dominance, making it clear this wasn’t the end but merely the beginning.

“I help with dinner service most nights,” Eli replied, already backing toward the path that would lead him to his car. “And I’ll need to return your shirt.”

“Keep it,” Adrian said immediately, his panther practically roaring its approval. The thought of Eli keeping his shirt, wearing it, sleeping in it perhaps—it satisfied some primal need to mark their mate with their scent. “It looks better on you anyway.”

Yes, his beast purred. Let him keep our scent. Let him carry our mark.

Eli rolled his eyes, but there was a softness to his expression that hadn’t been there before. “Goodbye, Adrian.”

“Until tonight, Eli Harper,” Adrian replied, watching as his mate disappeared into the trees.

Once alone, Adrian allowed his control to slip completely. His eyes blazed gold, canines lengthening to full extension as he braced himself against his car. The metal crumpled beneath his grip, leaving perfect impressions of his fingers in the door.

“Mine,” he growled, the word echoing in the quiet forest. His panther wasn’t just interested or attracted—it was obsessed, consumed, utterly captivated by the platinum-haired beauty with the sharp tongue and vulnerable eyes.

The need to claim, to possess, to mark was overwhelming, a physical ache that radiated through his entire body.

OURS, his beast insisted with absolute certainty. Perfect mate. Only mate. OURS.

But Adrian hadn’t become a critically acclaimed director by rushing his scenes.

Eli might know about their shifter nature, but he had no idea what it meant to be a panther’s mate—the intensity, the possessiveness, the forever of it all.

This would require careful navigation, perfect timing, and exquisite direction.

Patient hunt, he told his panther. Careful seduction. Not frightening him away.

As he poured the gas into his tank, Adrian’s mind was already composing scenes, plotting the perfect seduction.

His mate lived on their estate. Worked in their home.

Was already familiar with their supernatural nature.

And most importantly, had looked at him with those extraordinary eyes that couldn’t hide their interest, no matter how much sass came from those perfect lips.

One thing was certain: his homecoming had just become infinitely more interesting than he’d anticipated. And his panther would accept nothing less than the perfect final act—Eli Harper, claimed and marked as theirs, forever.

Must claim before Jace, his panther insisted as Adrian started the car. Must win mate. Must be first.

For the first time in their lives, the cousins might find themselves in direct competition. Not for a role or an award or family approval—but for something infinitely more precious. Something neither of their panthers would willingly surrender.

Adrian’s hands tightened on the steering wheel as he pulled back onto the road. The hunt had begun. And he had no intention of losing.