Page 45 of Savage Mates

“Chain her inside until we know what she and those she brought with her are doing here.” My words were met with a glare from Thor, a lifting of Titus’ eyebrows, and something unexpected from the human.

She shoved Thor hard enough she managed to pitch him back. Then with a sharp glare thrown in my direction, she bolted away from us, managing to scramble out the door.

I sighed. It was a moment shared between the three of us that had both frustration and amusement.

“She thinks she can run from us,” Thor said as if not bothered in the least.

“Maybe we should let her think it’s possible.” Titus leaned against the wall, yawning.

I certainly wasn’t as keen on allowing her to play given I had zero patience. “I’ll get her.”

“Don’t hurt her, Zeus. We need to discover what she knows and why she’s here.”

Her challenge had kept my lion at the surface. Somehow, I’d need to find a release. Perhaps punishing her would calm the beast within.

“I will find out. Trust me.” I stormed from the building, issuing an intense growl.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Alexander confronted me. “You obviously can’t handle a single human. Maybe I need to do so myself. I’ll break her.” His smile was more like a leer. The lion constantly pushed hard against us, refusing to accept our authority.

His reaction had a strange effect on me.

Jealousy.

It swept through me like a tidal wave the same way the longing for a taste of her had earlier.

The rush of need so intense, I threw a single brutal punch, releasing enough of my lion Alexander was pitched against the well casing. Blood trickled from a gash in his head.

The others gasped, inching closer, eager to encourage a fight.

When he scrambled to his feet, I cocked my head. “Don’t try that again, Alexander. You won’t like what happens if you do. The human is off limits. Touch her and face my wrath.”

Without waiting for a response, I turned and headed in the direction where she’d gone.

“Be careful, Zeus. If you want to play leader, then you need to act like it. She just defied all three of you.”

I stopped long enough to issue a keening snarl.

Although his comment held some merit.

But no other lion was allowed to touch her.

She wasn’t difficult to find even though she’d managed to run far by the time I caught up with her. As soon as she heard me, she spun around, her eyes wide. For a split second, I caught fear in them.

I’d be damned if my mouth didn’t water, the ache in my loins intensifying. She was wild, her long hair once pinned in a ponytail was loose, tangled by the trees she’d run through.

In her hand was a massive stick that she was holding like a weapon. She even lunged forward onto my foot, throwing out the tip as if it were a sharp, poisonous spear.

Her breathing was ragged, her face streaked with dirt, and her clothes were completely disheveled. But even I had to admit she was a gorgeous specimen.

When I did nothing but remain where I was, curious as to what she would do, she repeated the ridiculous action.

As if putting the fear of God into me.

Sighing, I took a single step toward her.

“Don’t come any closer. I will use this.”

“I’m certain you’ll try. And you’ll fail.”