Page 39 of Marked By Moonlight
“You won’t. I’m your mate.”
“And you’re weak. You haven’t been trained even to fight as a human, let alone as a wolf. You can’t even smell what happened on me. You don’t have any of the basic wolf instincts. You can’t shift. You’re useless to me.”
“I’m not weak!”
He growls, trying to get me to back down, to bow to him. I stand taller, growling back.
“I’m. Not. Weak.”
His jaw twitches, and his eyes glow that bright yellow color of the moonlight.
“That is yet to be determined.”
I huff.
“But whether you are weak or strong, you should still be terrified of me. If I don’t find you worthy of being my mate, I’ll kill you. It’s the only way to ensure the universe brings me a new mate, one I actually find up to the task.”
“I’m not the only one who needs to be found worthy. You need to prove your worth, too, if you expect me to accept the mating bond between us.”
He grins approvingly. But right now, I couldn’t care less about what he thinks. This is a two-way street. I don’t care if he’s the most powerful alpha. I know my own worth, and I won’t be bossed around by anyone, especially an egotistical male on a power trip.
“Emeric will train you. He’s the only male you can trust. Do not venture out of this house without him by your side.”
“What about you?”
“You can’t trust me, and you’re not safe with me. I think I’ve made that perfectly clear.”
“Maybe I can’t trust you, but I’m not afraid of you.”
“How bad, you asked? How badly did I hurt Baelor?”
He pauses, and my heart skips a beat.
“I killed him.”
I don’t react. I know he’s looking for a reaction from me, but he’ll find none. I lock my emotions up tight.
“Learn to shift. Become worthy of being part of the Moonlight wolves. And stay away from me until then.”
I grind my teeth together.
“Otherwise, you’ll end up dead.”
Chapter 15
Lumi
My jaw slackens as I process his words. Ambrose killed Baelor—just like that.
Suddenly, it hits me—I know very little about Ambrose, my mate. He’s the man I’ll spend the rest of my life with if I learn how to shift and complete the marking, but I don’t know him. I’m not in love with him, and he sure as hell isn’t in love with me.
Everything we feel toward each other is because of a supernatural bond, part of how our species is fighting for survival. It’s beyond either of us. This bond is predestined, something we have no control over.
The mating bond doesn’t guarantee love. It doesn’t guarantee that we will even like each other. All it does is guarantee a physical match—one that will produce strong offspring.
I thought when I found my mate, he would be easy to love; maybe it would even be love at first sight. Instead, Ambrose is a killer. He killed another alpha, and from the look of Ambrose, it took very little effort. He killed Baelor rather than risk him threatening us. I don’t know if that’s supposed to be romantic or terrifying.
And he’ll kill me, too, if he finds out the truth. He’s already doubting me. He thinks I’m not worthy of being his mate if I can’t even shift. I’m a weakling, clearly not strong enough to be an alpha’s mate. The alpha’s mate is supposed to be his equal in every way and strong enough to carry his heirs.
