Page 48 of Fated
She pulled back, reddened eyes locking onto his with wild desperation that was devastating in its beauty. “Kai,” she whimpered. “Please...please tell me it’s not true.”
Pain laced through him. Before he could speak, her lips crashed against his. The kiss was frantic, pleading. The world fell away, and old instincts took over. Her tongue sought his, bodypressing tight as Kai’s hands gripped her hips while she ground against him.
His restraint crumbled as she moaned into his mouth. Each kiss demanding more of him—allof him. He tightened his hold, deepening the kiss as his cock throbbed against the confining seam of his pants. Desperation clouded his mind as he wrestled one arm between them, clumsily working his fly and fumbling with her jeans.
Like a male possessed, he stumbled toward the SUV, mouth never leaving hers. His fingers finally found her panties, dipping beneath fabric to seek her wet pussy, needing to feel her readiness.
“Fuck waiting for a claiming ritual,” he growled against her ear. Seven years of yearning burned in his veins, driving him to press her against the hood.
The air shifted violently as his fingers slipped inside her, a feral snarl splitting the night. In an instant, Ava was torn from his arms.
Kai staggered back, horror dawning as he saw Lena crouched over Ava, hand wrapped around her throat.
“Keep your filthy fucking paws off mymate!”
Kai’s stomach twisted at the tableau—Lena’s face contorted with rage, Ava whimpering, his own pants barely held up by his straining erection.
“Fix it!” Lena barked, voice sharp with barely contained rage. Her chest heaved as she fought to restrain her wolf, eyes flickering between golden-brown and molten gold.
Kai watched, stunned, as Lena wrestled for control. Her fists clenched and unclenched, claws extending and retracting with each labored breath. Her snarling lip faltered as rage gave way to vulnerability. As she steadied herself, pain twisted her features—pain Kai couldn’t bear. Shame clawed his insides, shredding at the hollow confines of his chest.
“Lena,” he choked out.
Her hand shot up, silencing him. “Don’t.” The grief-edged word came through clenched teeth. Her body trembled as she forced another steadying breath, claws inching back beneath her skin.
When she met his gaze again, fury had been replaced by gut-wrenching sorrow. Her lip quivered as she repeated, “Fix it.” Her voice broke on a barely controlled sob. “I can’t bear to see you again until you do.”
The plea struck like an arrow, rooting him in place, robbing him of speech and movement.
Without another word, Lena strode back into the lodge. The soft click of the closing door echoed like thunder in the sudden silence, leaving Kai drowning in shame and regret.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
LENA
The soft click of the lodge doors echoed through the silent lobby. Lena paced with sharp, angry strides, emotions churning like a storm—rage, betrayal, heartbreak—each one cutting deeper than the last.
The scene outside replayed in brutal detail. She’d known instantly that the leggy blonde wrapped around Kai had to be Ava. At first, she’d tried to rationalize what she was witnessing. Seeing the female’s distraught expression and shaking shoulders, Lena had assumed Kai had ended things. She’d even felt a flicker of empathy.
Then Ava had kissed him.
And Kai—her mate—had kissed Ava back.
Lena’s hands flexed and unflexed unconsciously remembered watching his restraint slip, hands moving with intimate familiarity, pressing Ava against the car hood...
No.She wouldn’t let herself relive it.
What terrified Lena most was her own feral response. She’d attacked another she-wolf, drawn blood. She should feel remorse for that violence, but all she felt was Elara’s ferocity echoing in her mind: “How dare she touch mate! He’s not hers to have!”
She’d demanded Kai fix it before fleeing, but now, pacing the empty lobby—skin too tight, every nerve raw and exposed—she wondered if it was even possible. How did you repair a bond after watching your mate nearly give his body to someone else?
Then came a voice, warm and proud. “There’s my beautiful daughter-in-law! You look—”
Lena whirled on Darius, golden-brown eyes blazing. A growl rumbled in her chest as she stalked toward him, primal rage bubbling to the surface. Her claws extended unconsciously, muscles coiled tight.
“I amnotyour daughter-in-law.” She stepped into his space, teeth bared. The towering alpha loomed over her, but she didn’t flinch. Her head tilted back, staring the arrogant male down. “And I mayneverbe—especially considering that your son was just wrapped up in his girlfriend’s arms, with his dick out, ready to fuck her on the hood of a car!”
Darius’s sharp intake of breath cut through the lobby. His commanding presence faltered as his eyes darted between her face and the glass doors, shock and devastation warring in his expression.
