Page 71 of Captivated By Alphas 1, Fated (The Blood Moon Chronicle #4)

For once, Jace didn’t fight the impulse to pursue.

He slipped away from the main gathering, following that intoxicating scent until he found Eli leaning against the wall with his eyes closed, looking like some ethereal creature who’d wandered into the wrong realm entirely.

The sight stopped Jace in his tracks—platinum hair catching the hallway’s subtle lighting, slender throat marked with evidence of their claim, pulse visible beneath skin so pale it seemed to glow.

Beautiful mate, his panther purred, throwing itself against his control with renewed hunger. Claim deeper. Mark permanently. Make him understand what he is to us.

Jace agreed wholeheartedly with his beast’s assessment. The need to touch Eli, to taste him again, to reassert his claim wasn’t just his panther’s demand—it was his own burning desire wrapped in thirty years of careful control finally meeting something worth losing that control for.

“Hiding from the social obligations?” Jace asked, his voice dropping to the seductive register that had made directors rewrite scenes.

Eli’s eyes snapped open, that extraordinary lavender-blue gaze focusing on him with laser precision. A flicker of surprise quickly transformed into the sharp wit Jace was rapidly becoming addicted to.

“Taking a strategic retreat from the battlefield,” Eli corrected, attempting casual indifference despite the flush already climbing his neck like sunrise.

“There’s only so much small talk about Pomeranian dietary restrictions a person can absorb before contemplating dramatic exits involving punch bowls and public disgrace. ”

Jace chuckled, genuinely amused by the imagery his mate conjured. His panther, however, had zero patience for conversational foreplay when more pressing needs demanded attention.

Take him. Private place. Now. Need to erase rival’s scent.

“Come with me,” Jace said, making a decision that bypassed all rational thought in favor of pure instinct. The hallway offered no privacy, no security from interruption.

“What? Where?” Eli’s eyes widened with a mixture of wariness and unmistakable interest that made Jace’s pulse accelerate.

“Somewhere we won’t have an audience,” he replied, already taking Eli’s hand and leading him down the corridor toward the guest wing. “Unless you prefer having conversations about your neck decorations in public spaces.”

Yes, his panther approved with predatory satisfaction. Isolate mate. Claim properly.

“I’m supposed to be working,” Eli protested, though he followed without real resistance. “My mother will organize a search party if I disappear from service duties. Complete with tracking dogs and disappointed lectures.”

“Five minutes,” Jace promised, though his panther snarled at the ridiculous limitation on their claiming time.

Need hours. Days. Forever to claim properly.

“Five minutes for what, exactly?” Eli demanded, though his voice carried more curiosity than genuine objection. “Because if this involves more of your cousin’s artistic appreciation for hickey placement, I might need hazard pay.”

Jace smiled at the reference to Adrian’s inevitable pursuit, pleased by the spark of challenge in Eli’s voice despite his obvious nervousness. “To finish what we started last night. Without interruptions from well-meaning relatives or social obligations.”

Yes, his panther surged with anticipation. Complete the claiming. Make him understand what he is to us.

He opened the door to an elegantly appointed guest room, drawing Eli inside before closing it firmly behind them. The space was dim and intimate, sunlight filtering through heavy curtains creating an atmosphere perfect for what his beast had in mind.

Eli glanced around with obvious nervousness, his fingers fidgeting with the buttons of his formal vest. “This feels like the beginning of a very expensive mistake. The kind that ends with awkward family dinners and me looking for new employment opportunities.”

“No one will disturb us,” Jace assured him, locking the door while his panther purred at having their mate secured in private territory.

Trapped. Perfect. No escape. Can claim properly now.

“You’ve been avoiding me all day,” Jace said, closing the distance between them with measured steps that had Eli backing toward the bed. “Professional duties or something more personal?”

Eli’s chin lifted with characteristic defiance even as his legs hit the mattress. “I’ve been working, which is what some of us do at family gatherings instead of brooding attractively in corners while looking like walking testosterone advertisements.”

The sass in Eli’s voice made Jace’s heart rate spike with pure appreciation. Christ, he loved that sharp tongue—loved even more the thought of finding creative ways to make it less sarcastic and more… occupied.

Strong mate, his panther approved with deep satisfaction. Challenges us properly. Makes claiming more rewarding.

“Brooding attractively,” Jace repeated with amusement, enjoying their verbal sparring almost as much as the physical tension building between them. “Is that your professional assessment of my corner-lurking technique?”

“Professional assessment is that you’ve been watching me like I’m the last piece of chocolate in a box of mediocre assortments,” Eli shot back, his eyes sparking with the defiance that made Jace’s pulse race.

“Which is either flattering or deeply concerning, depending on your intentions regarding said chocolate.”

Jace laughed, genuinely delighted by the metaphor. “And if I told you my intentions were decidedly unwholesome?”

“I’d say you’re probably overestimating the quality of this particular chocolate,” Eli replied, though his scent betrayed his interest despite the self-deprecating words. “Pretty sure I’m more gas station candy bar than artisanal Belgian truffle.”

Wrong, his panther growled with certainty. Perfect mate. Highest quality. Exactly what we need.

“I don’t think so,” Jace said seriously, his voice dropping to an intimate register as he stepped close enough to feel Eli’s body heat. “I think you’re exactly what I’ve been waiting for my entire life.”

Eli’s body responded instinctively to Jace’s proximity—spine straightening before melting into instinctive submission, head tilting slightly to expose his throat in a gesture that made Jace’s panther rumble with deep approval.

Submits naturally. Recognizes alpha authority. Perfect mate response.

“Five minutes,” Eli reminded him breathlessly, though his eyes had fixed on Jace’s mouth with obvious fascination. “Then I need to return to reality and pretend this never happened.”

“Five minutes,” Jace agreed, though he had absolutely no intention of limiting himself to such a ridiculously short time frame.

Much more time needed. Much more claiming required.

“What exactly did you have in mind for these alleged five minutes?” Eli asked, his voice hitching slightly as Jace stepped even closer, crowding him against the bed.

“Because I’m starting to think your idea of ‘five minutes’ runs on some kind of Hollywood time that doesn’t correspond to actual Earth minutes. ”

“I’ve been thinking about you since last night,” Jace admitted, his voice rough with honesty. “Watching you move through those rooms today, seeing our marks on your neck, remembering exactly how you tasted when you surrendered to what we both wanted.”

Eli swallowed hard, his breathing quickening in response to Jace’s confession. “That’s— I mean— It was just attraction. Physical chemistry. Temporary insanity brought on by moonlight and too much wine.”

“Just physical?” Jace challenged softly, placing one hand on Eli’s hip while the other came up to cup his jaw with gentle possession. “Just temporary? The most intense connection I’ve felt with anyone in thirty years of existence is just temporary insanity?”

Truth, his panther agreed with fierce conviction. Only mate we want. Only one who matters.

Eli’s eyes widened at the raw honesty in Jace’s voice, something vulnerable and hopeful flashing across his features before he tried to cover it with characteristic snark.

“You can’t possibly mean that. You’re Jace Carmichael.

You could have anyone you want—supermodels, actresses, people who know which fork to use for the fish course and don’t accidentally insult foreign diplomats by mixing up their languages. ”

“I don’t want anyone else,” Jace said with absolute certainty, his thumb tracing the elegant line of Eli’s jaw. “I want you. Only you.”

Before Eli could mount another self-deprecating protest, Jace closed the final distance between them and claimed his mouth in a kiss that was pure possession wrapped in desperate need.

His panther roared in triumph as their lips met, the beast’s satisfaction echoing through every nerve ending as they finally, finally tasted their mate again.

Perfect. Yes. Finally. Taste mate. Claim mate. OURS.

For one breathless moment, Eli remained frozen with surprise, clearly caught off guard by the intensity of Jace’s approach.

Then he melted against him with a soft sound of surrender that sent triumph racing through Jace’s veins like the finest whiskey.

Eli’s hands came up to grip his shoulders, fingers digging in with surprising strength as his lips parted on a gasp that Jace immediately took advantage of.

This was claiming. Pure, primal, desperate claiming.

Jace’s tongue swept inside Eli’s mouth with the confidence of an alpha who knew exactly what he wanted and had no intention of being denied.

He tasted winter and heat, sweetness and that unique flavor that was purely Eli, and his panther went absolutely wild.

More. Deeper. Claim everything.