Page 164 of The Wolf King

He wants me to marry him?

Fire erupts from the pits of my soul. It surges through my body and spills out of my mouth before I can even weigh up my options.

“No,” I say.

My pulse calms. The edges of the wooden fireplace, the pattern of the sun on the worn rug, the tattered leather beneath my fingertips, all come back into focus.

James shifts and the chair squeaks beneath his large frame. His jaw hardens, just like Callum’s does when he is displeased.

“No?” he says.

“No.”

Blake watches from the window and there’s a calculated look of disinterest on his face.

“I offer my protection, and the most coveted position for a woman among the Kingdom of Wolves, and you turn me down?” James’s voice is soft, but there’s a note of anger rippling through it.

“You offer me protection from a danger of your own devising! You know that Callum and I are...” I trail off, not sure how to end that sentence.

“You and Callum are what? Married? No. Does your union with him offer any political advantage? No. You’ve gone off and lived your wee fantasy for a while, but it’s time to come back to the real world now, Aurora. Blake told me you were smart. Do not disappoint me.”

I grit my teeth, trying to swallow the rising storm. Of course Blake had something to do with this.

I glare at James. “Callum is your brother.”

And I think that I am falling in love with him.

“Aye. And he needs to come back and live in the real world, too.” He shakes his head, his brown hair brushing his broad shoulders. “Callum cannot offer you anything. I am the king, and I am offering to make you my queen. Do not be a fool, Aurora.”

My breathing is fast. Waves of venom ripple through me, tainted by fear. I am like a cornered viper, a wall behind my back and a cage in front of me. This cannot be my fate. I cannot have escaped one marriage, only to be forced into another.

“What do you think Sebastian will do to you when he realizes my brother has had you first?” says James. “It doesn’t please me, either. I am willing to overlook it.”

My pulse accelerates again. Not only at the thought of what Sebastian might do to me, but also at the thought of what James will expect from his wife if I were to accept his offer. If I marry him, I will have to submit my body to him too.

No. I will not do it.

“I will not marry you. Not now. Not ever.”

James’s face darkens. “I am the Wolf King.”

“You are the Wolf King because Callum allowed you to be.”

A flash of pain bursts into my cheek and my head is snapped to the side as James backhands me. My mouth fills with the metallic taste of blood, which sprays across the rug. Cold adrenaline floods my body. The backs of my eyes burn.

I blink hard.

I force my gaze back to James, my cheek burning and strands of hair hanging in front of my eyes. “I will never marry you.”

He’s settling back in his chair, his face like stone.

Over his shoulder, I notice Blake watching. His expression is nonchalant. Bored, even. I catch a flash of darkness behind his eyes. When he sees me looking, he leans back against the window ledge and moves his gaze to the mountains outside.

I feel another burst of hatred so strong that I fear I will combust.

James whistles, and the door opens behind me.

“Put the princess back in her cell,” he says to the two men who enter the room. “And make sure she is not comfortable. She needs some time to reconsider her choice, and to be reminded of my mercy.”

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