Page 23 of Fated to the Alpha Warrior (The Wolf’s Forbidden Mate #1)
As he speaks, throwing the full weight of his dominant alpha-to-be wolf into his voice, the bond flares to life. I hiss at its sharp presence in my chest, nearly as strong as it was the day it snapped into place.
“Apologies.” The warrior holds up his hands in a placating gesture. “I didn’t know?—”
“Now you do.” I blink as Kieran actually stands up and leans against the table, staring down the warrior. “So keep your thoughts to yourself and stay away from her.”
Narrowing his eyes, Thorin growls at Kieran, making it clear it’s time for the younger man to step back. Kieran bristles, but only momentarily—apparently he’s still capable of rational thought. I watch him sit down, rubbing my chest, my thoughts and emotions jumbled.
The clearest thing that comes through as I process it all is: how dare he.
Here I was, finally getting a moment all to myself, and he had to step in and piss all over it.
He even tugged on the mate bond, the bastard, just to make everyone see it.
As if it wasn’t enough to deal with the daily pain of his rejection—he just had to shove it in my face that I can’t have anyone but him.
I go through the motions for the rest of the dinner, smiling where needed, answering questions I’m asked, and eating and drinking like my life depends on it. The food is delicious—Kieran is an asshole for insulting Alpha Thorin’s cooking—and the wine is a much-needed balm to my soul.
Even still, it all turns to ashes on my tongue each time I feel Kieran’s presence beside me.
Words gather on the tip of my tongue only to be choked down and swallowed. Another swish of wine, another laugh at Thorin’s jokes, another cracking yawn.
“The two of you look like you both need to turn in for the night.” Alpha Thorin says when I can’t keep myself from yawning in the middle of a sentence. “Why don’t you head to bed? I’ll make sure these jerks keep it down.”
“We couldn’t possibly—” I’m barely able to get the word out before another yawn hits me. Defeated, I admit, “A good night’s sleep on an actual bed would be nice for a change. Thank you.”
I barely look at Kieran as we get up from the table, say our goodnights, and head toward the guest rooms. His presence beside me is like a thorn in my side.
Every step I take moves it deeper and deeper, until finally, we’re far enough away from the alpha and his warriors that the words I’ve swallowed come bubbling back up again.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I spin on him in front of the guest bedroom doors, scowling at his blank face. “What is wrong with you?”
“Is this not my room? I could’ve sworn this one was?—”
Snarling, I shove him in the chest. I’m much shorter than he is, but I’m still strong, and I take him by surprise. The flats of my palms connect with his wall of muscle and he stumbles back a step or two before recovering.
“You know exactly what you’re doing, Kieran.”
“Then enlighten me, Spitfire.” Now he’s angry too, and his anger fuels me. “Tell me what the fuck I’m doing that has you like this.”
“You’re—you’re being a fucking caveman!” I throw my hands up in exasperation. “Pissing on me like I’m some kind of damned fire hydrant. Throwing the bond around any time another man so much as looks at me.”
Kieran stiffens, staring me down. “Is that what this is about? You don’t know Fahad like I do. He’s an asshole, he sleeps around and?—”
“And I would figure that out for myself if you didn’t step in!” He looks over his shoulder as my voice rises, and I realize how close we are to the dining room still, so I lower my volume. “Besides, what business is it of yours if I want to sleep with a player? I can do whatever I want, you know.”
His ice blue eyes are unreadable. I hate how much this affects me, and how little it affects him. “You’re still a member of my pack, Aurora. It’s my job to protect you.”
I feel a whine building in my throat. “No. No, that’s not fair. You’ve never protected me.”
“That’s not true.” He actually looks hurt, damn him. “I know we have our issues, but you can’t actually believe that?—”
“You can’t keep doing this,” I hiss, my voice low but intense with anger. “You don’t get to reject me and then act like you have any claim over me. The mate bond doesn’t make you my mate, not really. Not when you haven’t given a damn about me for years.”
Silence falls between us. My chest rises and falls with short, emotional breaths of air. I wipe tears from my eyes, insisting to myself that they’re from anger. Kieran watches the motion, his thoughts well-hidden from me.
I can’t even feel his emotions through the broken bond. It feels like mine are spilling out everywhere, like my guts are unspooling onto the floor in front of me, and he’s just… cold. Ice cold, just like his eyes.
He’ll say something soon.
Any minute now, he’ll break the silence.
Please. He has to. Otherwise… otherwise…
“Good! I caught you guys before you headed to bed.” Footsteps down the hallway catch my attention. Pulling myself together, I peer over Kieran’s shoulder to see one of the young warriors, a woman named Kayla, headed our way.
“We just got news from a messenger on the eastern border—another pack has been affected by the madness. They’ve imposed a quarantine and need someone to help them make sure it’s not spreading. Think you two will be ready to head out in the morning?”
Kieran doesn’t even sound like anything has happened as he says, “We’ll make it.”
“Great. Glad we have you two around to help us figure this thing out.”
I barely managed to give her a tight smile as she leaves, and the silence between us presses down again. Clearing my throat, I tell Kieran, “I guess that’s it, right?”
“Aurora… I don’t know what to say.”
“You said plenty five years ago.” Stepping back from him, I shake my head and push all the emotions inside me down again. “See you in the morning.”
It’s a relief to step into my bedroom and shut the door so I don’t have to look at him anymore.
Some mate I’m stuck with.
Fate should’ve left me the hell alone.