Page 129 of Alpha's Impostor Bride

“The mating mark.” She’s beginning to sober up.

“Yes.”

I expect her to say something, to react, but instead, she straightens up and pulls off her shirt. She’s not wearing a bra, and her generous mounds stare at me.

“If you give me the mating mark, that means you’re all mine.” I hear a hint of dark possessiveness in her voice now. “Whatever happens after this, you cannot be with anybody else. I don’t care if it’s for the kingdom or for revenge. You’re mine.”

She leans closer, and I feel my cock harden even more, if it was possible, at her next words.

“And if you even look at anyone else, I’ll kill you myself.”

Chapter 25

Leanna Avery

The last couple of weeks have been stressful. It’s been one thing after another. Cedric coming back, clearing up our misunderstandings, trying to figure out my next step…It’s been hectic, and I haven’t had one minute to myself. But with Finn out of the house and Cedric having returned to the North to deal with some emergency, I have the chance to sit alone with a bottle of wine and think, grieve the friend I lost, and consider the changes in my life.

I won’t ever truly get over the guilt I feel for George’s death. But with Cedric providing me the means to financially support his family, I am relieved. George’s death also opened my eyes to something else, something far more profound: my own mortality. My future. I want a new life with my mate and my son. Suddenly, this house feels like less of a home and more of a temporary abode.

In the silence, loneliness creeps in. I’m always on the go, tiring myself out so that I don’t have to think about the emptiness within me that throbs and aches. Even now, as I’m patching things up with Cedric, I can still feel a chasm between us. He’s holding himself back. His words are careful, as are his actions. When he touches me, he treats me as if I’m the most delicate thing in the world.

I don’t like it.

I understand that he has changed. Of course he has. We both have. But it feels like he’s deliberately keeping some distance from me.

I know things won’t automatically become perfect between us, and we both need time, but impatience is brewing within me. Especially tonight.

I miss Cedric.

With each glass of wine, the feeling is reinforced within me.

There is no anger or hurt any longer. Just loneliness. My wolf is miserable, and so am I. Tonight, I want the comfort of Cedric’s arms. I want the safety that only his presence offers. I want to lose myself in him.

The only problem is that, with the way he has been treating me, I don’t think he’s going to make the first move. That is why I have to seduce him. Or be brave enough to tell him what I need.

Which is where the alcohol comes into play. Glass after glass.

There’s a well-cooked meal on the table for us, but he never comes. I throw the wine bottle away, tired and aching inside.

All the online blogs suggest feeding him and then getting close to him. None of them accounted for the fact that I would pass out after drinking an entire bottle of wine, though. Of course he shows up when I’m passed out. It’s his scent that wakes me up. I don’t know where I get the courage to convince him to come lie next to me. My body moves of its own accord when I straddle him.

And when the words come out, I can’t seem to stop them.

There’s a reason why I don’t drink very often. Because I tend to be blunt and say what’s on my mind. What I don’t expect is for Cedric to react the way he does.

His hand reaches out and grabs a fistful of my hair before flipping us both over. When his mouth descends on mine, it’s to deliver a forceful, heated kiss that has my toes curling.

He doesn’t ask any more questions. He doesn’t stop. He simply stakes his claim.

The kiss is fierce, a clash of tongues and teeth, a desperate hunger in it. His mouth moves against mine like a starving man finally getting to eat. His body presses into mine as if he wants to take me right now. I can feel his hard length against my stomach, and I’m instantly sent back to a bedroom surrounded by stone walls, the shadows of the flames from the fireplace dancing along the ceiling as this man ravaged me, his body sweaty and strong as he held me, moving with me at a pace that left me breathless and delirious.

I can smell the musky scent of my arousal in the air, and Cedric groans as his tongue pushes its way past my lips. I sigh as he licks the inside of my mouth, tasting every inch of me. His grip in my hair is tight, and his body has mine pinned to the bed. My nipples are painfully rigid, pressed against his hard chest.

His touch, his kiss, everything feels far too familiar. It’s almost like coming home. I hear something tear, and then there’s a breeze upon my legs as the fabric that was my pants is pulled off. Cedric’s hand comes to fondle my chest, his fingers twisting and pulling at my hard nipples, causing me to moan into his mouth.

He releases my lips, his mouth trailing along my jaw as he forces my head back, settling on the spot where the mating mark is supposed to be. His voice is a throaty growl. “You want to claim me? I never took you to be so possessive.”

My wolf paces inside my head, baring its teeth. “Well, I am.” My nails dig into his biceps, drawing blood. “I’m not going to share you with anyone. Do you understand?”

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