Page 30 of His Fated Luna

I saw the way she looked down at herself. Like she thought she wasn’t good enough. As if she didn't have any idea how fucking stunning she actually was.

My instinct to reassure her that she was perfect bubbled up inside of me.

“You can stop worrying about me," she went on, her voice bitter now. My hands itched to fold her into me reassuringly. “I can only imagine how hard it must be for you to keep your hands off Lexia, all because you’re afraid it might hurt me physically. I’ve seen you two kiss. It doesn’t hurt me; I don’t think you both sleeping together will hurt me either. If it does, I’ll figure a way around it. You can stop being celibate."

The venom in her voice was impossible to miss.

I was silent for a long moment, just watching her. She stood there defiantly, pink-cheeked and furious, and I—goddess help me—found myself drawn to her. Maybe it was because I had just shifted back from my wolf, but everything about her seemed... heightened. Alluring. Beautiful.

I turned away abruptly, pretending to scan the perimeter, hands on my hips. I had to look away from her to gather my thoughts.

"You know..." I said, mostly to myself. "That’s not all that defines my relationship with Lexia. I’m not with her just for a quick roll between the sheets. When two people really care about each other, it’s not the only important thing."

Yeah. I was trying to convince myself I was still in love with Lexia.

"Seemed like it to her," Rose snapped.

I turned back, smirking despite myself, trying to lighten the mood. “Why do you seem so upset? Can you blame her? I’m a beast in bed."

"Stop trying to change the subject. The last thing I want to discuss is if you’re good in bed."

I stepped forward, lowering my voice. "There’s no ‘if,’ Princess."

She scoffed. "I can’t believe I’m having this conversation with you."

I watched as she barely came up to my shoulder, refusing to meet my gaze.

"So what are we going to do?" I asked, standing close—too close.

"You could step down to be with Lexia," she whispered.

I let out a bitter laugh. "If the person you loved asked you to give up your dreams, would you? Would it be worth it?"

She was quiet. That was answer enough. Then, finally, she spoke.

"It would never be worth it. To give up your life’s ambitions and goals for someone would only end up making you bitter. It’s one thing to put your plans on hold to help your other half, but it’s entirely another thing to forgo your ambitions."

I stared at her, taken aback. She said it with such certainty. And she was right.

"We... we could do the mating ceremony," she offered hesitantly. "You could keep seeing Lexia. I mean, as long as—"

I laughed again, shaking my head. "I guess my mom didn’t tell you everything. Do you even know what a mating ceremony entails?"

"It’s like the equivalent of marriage for werewolves," she said, her eyes sincere.

Mine, on the other hand, were full of derision.

"You mate," I said flatly. "Some do it in their wolf form during the ceremony for everyone to see—"

"No!" she gasped, horrified.

I smirked at her reaction, wanting to completely scandalize her sensibilities. Maybe then she’d stop offering herself up like a lamb for slaughter. She deserved so much more than what I could give her.

"Some do it in private," I continued. "But the ceremony isn’t complete until you mate and mark each other."

"You could mark me. Maybe that would be enough," she suggested, wringing her hands.

"That’s something extremely intimate. Why do you think I haven’t marked Lexia? In a lot of ways, it’s more personal than sex." I held her gaze, making sure she understood. I would have to be blunt with her. "Once you mark your mate, you become completely in tune with their feelings, their thoughts. You can see inside each other’s minds... relive memories. Would you really be okay with that? With a sham mate? Me marking you while still seeing Lexia in secret?" I scoffed. "Is that really what you want? Are you really that desperate to be luna?"