Page 18 of Star Crossed Delta

Their faces were cold and inscrutable.

At a raised hand from Mak, Koda paused mid-step as her husband prowled toward her. This forced her to take steps backward, away from him, until she came to a halt, her feet laden with fear.

‘How did you find me?’

‘Your ring,’ he drawled, lifting his dark glasses from his face and tucking them away. ‘Its tracking signature is unique.’

‘How long have you been using it to follow me?’ she demanded with anger.

Mak’s eyes flicked to Koda before settling back on her. ‘Since we wed. Long enough to know you can’t run from me, Saba.’

She snorted, trying to hide her nerves. ‘I’m not afraid of you, Mak.’

His eyes bore into her with an intensity that made her shiver. ‘You should be.’

She stared back at him, her audaciousness to resist him growing stronger with each passing second. ‘What if I’m not?’

His smirk widened. ‘You will be because the next time you try to lie to me, humiliate me, throw a knee in my balls, or escape me, I’ll bring down the wrath I’ve been holding back on all of your family.’

There it was.

He was willing to kill to keep her.

All the air went out of her bravado, and she sagged.

She was desperate to be free, but not at the expense of lives.

She’d seen what this man was capable of, and she would have been a fool not to learn from it.

Still, she leaned into him. ‘I’ll stay, husband, but excuse me if I don’t grovel and fall at your feet in terror.’

He arched a brow, a gleam of amusement dancing within, leaning in to whisper into her ear, brushing it with his teeth. ‘I happen not to like pushovers. Defiance turns me on.’

Koda cleared his throat, drawing their intense focus back to him. ‘We have to get the fokk out of here, boss, before we draw in any more attention. Heat we don’t need.’

There was nowhere for her to go.

She twisted her lips, stepped away from Mak, and put her hands out in surrender, ready for cuffing.

‘I’m not medieval Saba,’ her husband grated. ‘Get in the fokkin ’ flyer.’

She sucked her teeth and swiveled toward the thrumming craft, the thrusters rumbling, drowning out the protests in her mind.

Mak and Koda followed close behind her, a constant reminder of the shackles that bound her to this life she had tried so desperately to escape.

She ducked her head to avoid the rotors, but just before she set foot inside the cold machine, Mak’s arms reached for her, encircling her from the rear.

He pressed his entire length to her, bending his head to whisper into her ear.

‘I’m amused by your attempt, ?arim , perhaps even turned on.’

Whipping her body around, his lips descended and took hers in a bruising crush.

She hated that her spine arced, pushing her tits into his chest, her mouth twisting along with his, hands clutching at his broad shoulders.

His hand moved to the swell of her ass, which he pulled hard to himself.

She gasped as the unmistakable heat and steel of his cock throbbed against her tummy, scorching, branding her.

He laughed with a cruel huff, tearing his mouth from hers. ‘You know full well that you’re in my grasp now, in every way.’

She shivered at his words, shaking with rage and desire as her body heated from his touch.

With a quick hiss, she tried to twist from him, but he only smirked, holding her tighter.

‘Your insolence only makes me burn for you, wanting to own you even more.’

She jolted, angry, vengeful. ‘I hate you.’

‘Now you know how I feel for you and your family for what you put me through.’

She jolted, the realization of how deep his wounds were hitting her.

‘Now, will you get in without causing any further drama, woman?’ he murmured into her hair.

She nodded, and he stepped back, tapping her ass, which drove her inside in outrage.

As she settled into the flyer seat, the frigid air conditioning chilling her to the bone, she comprehended this was far from over.

They locked eyes as he strapped in with an icy smile.

With a wink, Mak slipped back into his enigmatic mask; his profile turned from her.

She dragged her eyes from him and focused instead on the view outside.

The hangar roof slid open, and the craft dusted off, carrying her back toward a future fraught with uncertainty.

Clenching her teeth, she vowed never to stop fighting for the life she desired, clinging to the spark of rebellion that refused to be extinguished.

MAK

When they finally arrived back at the lodge, the air between them crackled with tension.

The flight had been quiet, words unsaid but thick with a charged silence.

As they walked up the stairs to their chambers, Mak was very aware of her presence beside him, every step and breath she took amplified the storm inside him.

He paused at her bedroom door, trying to fight the pull, the gravity that had drawn him toward her all night.

He turned to face her, his eyes sweeping over her again, from the curve of her neck to her ass.

The light in the hall was soft, casting her in a glow that only made her look more radiant, more dangerous to his resolve.

With a snarl, he reached out, one hand curling around her waist, the other slipping behind her nape.

She gasped, but she was not hesitant in leaning into him.

‘You might have been killed out there, assassinated by a sachem ,’ he growled. ‘Your lack of thought for your safety, and by extension, my own, is unacceptable.’

With a savage grunt, he pulled her close, her breath mingling with his for a brief, searing moment.

He bent his head and kissed her, hard, dirty, deep, hungry, letting all the frustration and pent-up desire pour into it.

Her lips were soft, pliant, and warm, and to his surprise, she responded at once, reaching to grip his shoulders as if afraid to let go.

Their embrace melded in a ferocious battle of wills, in a wildfire burn that ignited everything he’d been trying to suppress for so long.

His cock hardened, so stiff, he growled into her mouth, meshing his lips to hers, sucking on her tongue, eliciting panting moans from her.

It freakin’ turned him on even more.

He glided his touch over her spine, molding her body to his, her scent filling his senses, making it impossible to think straight.

Her hands crept to his neck and clutched him as if holding on for dear life while her hips swirled against his pulsing member.

When her tongue swiped his incisors, it sent a bolt of rapture through him, and he almost roared.

Fokk.

He wrenched himself from her, taking a step back, heaving.

She, too, was breathless, her chest rising and falling, her eyes dilated, and her lips swollen from the intensity.

Hell, he couldn’t allow this to go any further. He couldn’t give in.

He turned away with a curse, striding down the corridor toward his private suite. He left her standing, swaying, and gasping, her fingers still raised as if she might catch him before disappearing.

Once inside his chamber, he shut the door and let out a roar that tore through the silence, full of the frustration he was unable to contain any longer.

The walls of his primary echoed with its sound, the fury that had been building for months crashing down at that moment.

He pounded his fist against the wall, the cool stone doing little to calm the fire raging in his chest.

He couldn’t give in to her, not like this.

She was too dangerous, too close to the part of him that was still vulnerable, still raw from old wounds he refused to acknowledge.

Yet, no matter how hard he tried to fight her or how much he wanted to punish her for being the unwanted wife who had upended his life, he couldn’t ignore the truth.

He was fokked.

She had him, whether he liked it or not.

With one more growl of frustration, he threw himself onto the chair in the corner, his head in his hands.

Every single time he spotted her in the hallways and lounge rooms of the lodge, he wanted to tear off her clothes and bury his cock in her.

Torn, he hated how much he desired her.

If he seduced just right, she’d give in.

But it’d be coercion, not the love he craved.

He still longed for a genuine, intimate connection with a woman he respected and adored, someone with whom he could lose himself completely.

Despite his body’s cravings, his heart remained scarred by the deception and betrayal he had endured.

His face twisted in anger, bitterness etched into every line. His fists clenched, knuckles white from the tension.

He needed fresh air.

With a growl, he exited the lodge and headed eastward along the shore, seeking wisdom and company.

Mak found himself at the edge of the lakefront, boots crunching over the smooth gravel that lined the garden path leading to Xander’s retreat.

The atmosphere smelled of pine, lake mist, and iron-rich stone.

Golden light spilled from the windows, washing over the dark timber siding of the two-story chalet perched just above the rippling black water of the lagoon.

He didn’t bother knocking.

He stepped onto the deck and spotted his pack leader, in shorts and a tee, slouched in a chair by the fire pit, a book resting on his thigh.

Beyond him, the reservoir stretched vast and still, black glass beneath the stars.

Xander glanced up, surprised. ‘Didn’t expect you out here tonight.’

Mak shrugged. ‘Didn’t plan it.’

Xander stood, set his volume aside, and crossed to him, clapping a hand to Mak’s shoulder and pulling him in for a clasped forearm grip.

‘You look like a man who needs a remedy stronger than a therapist.’

Mak’s expression didn’t shift, but he followed Xander to the outdoor bar at the edge of the terrace.

From outside, the interior glowed with warmth.

It was a haven of curated wood, luxurious fabrics, and steel-beamed ceilings softened by hanging lanterns and woven textures. A crackling fire roared in the hearth.

Savvine was curled on a couch, a blanket wrapped around her legs as she watched a holo drama.

Mak took a respectful step into the house and raised his hand.

She gave Mak a slight, knowing nod and a wave.

He returned it before stepping back into the night.