Page 3 of Fighting Fate
I let the shift take over, now standing in my human form in front of my aggressor. Soon, I’m not the only one. My mate shifts, going from a heavily furred bear on all fours to a chiseled, large-framed man whose eyes are just as dark and just as unsympathetic as before. His shining dark hair gleams when heinclines his head a little. “You shouldn’t have come here.” His voice! Like warm honey being poured over my body. All I want is to savor it, but I can’t ignore the message.
When all I can do is stand here gaping at him, his nostrils flare in an exasperated sigh. “My clan is about to kill you, little wolf.”
No. That can’t be right. “But…” I whisper, finally finding my voice. “But can’t they tell? I mean, don’t they know?”
Another sigh, this one enough to make his broad shoulders rise and fall. “They do. They’re only waiting for me to reject you before they close in.”
Reject me.
My fated mate is prepared to reject me. He doesn’t even seem surprised that I found him or that I exist. He’s already decided I’m not worth having. Only the worst of the worst are rejected by their mates.
Well, I qualify, don’t I? Somehow, over the pain of my broken heart and my wolf’s agony, I understand I deserve this. I’m not worthy of being claimed after what I did to Nora for so long. I took my pain out on her again and again until hating her was more the point than anything to do with Mom or Dad. And I took pleasure in it. That’s the worst part.
This is my repayment. Being rejected by the one living creature I was meant for. A hundred stories of rejected mates and their miserable existences crowd my already overwhelmed mind. How am I supposed to live with this? How can he look at me, standing naked in front of him, and not feel the same pull I do? How is that possible?
Wait. What am I thinking? How can I wonder and worry about how I’ll get through this when it’s obvious I won’t live to see tomorrow? There are low, menacing growls beginning to fill the air. I sense their impatience. They want him to get this over with. To reject me once and for all so they can tear me to pieces.
How was I supposed to know my life would end tonight? How could I have known the last time I looked at my family would be the last time ever?
My heart stutters when he steps closer to me. This is it. This is when I die. He doesn’t say a word, but he doesn’t have to. I know what he’s thinking, what he’s feeling. He is my fated mate, after all.
Somebody needs to explain all of this to my body, since his nearness makes my skin flush and desire pool in my core. My nipples tighten, and I go wet between my thighs. He has to smell it. I know he does. He has to know what he’s doing to me. Is he feeling the same way?
Touch. Feel. Mate.My wolf only wants one thing. Forget survival, forget what they’re about to do to me. I can’t die without at least touching this man, who towers over me and stares down with a look of stern disapproval.
I have to. I have to raise my hand and place it on his chest, where dark hair covers his skin. A shiver of pleasure races through me when I feel the firmness of his muscle, the heat of him, the strong heartbeat under my palm. It’s electric. And it feels so right.
His eyes widen, his heavy brows lifting, but he doesn’t say a word. He doesn’t try to push me away, either, which means a lot more. It’s one thing to know he’s about to reject me, but totally different to have him physically shove me away from him.
If I’m going to die, I’m at least going to have my first kiss before I do. Not many people are lucky enough to have their first kiss with their fated mate, even if I wouldn’t consider anything about this lucky.
Before I can overthink it, I stand up on tiptoes, my lips seeking his sensuous mouth in one last act of desperation. Before he can stop me, I make contact, and the pleasure deepens as I kiss him for the first and last time.
He might want to reject me, but I’ll make sure he doesn’t forget me.
Chapter 2
Kyran
I shouldn’t be doingthis.
For weeks, there has been only one thing on my mind: the existence of my mate, and the fact of having to hold myself back from her. The alpha of a clan does not have the luxury of going on whims and thinking only of himself. Accepting a wolf as my mate would be deadly—if not for me, for other members of my clan, who wouldn’t stand for it. They might do something stupid like start a fight with a pack of wolves, much larger and stronger than our dwindling numbers.
I’ve spent the days battling instinct, fighting against nature itself. Determined to do everything in my power not to lead my clan down a dangerous road.
I should’ve known fate wouldn’t be so easily brushed aside. I should have known the little wolf would find me. That if I didn’t go to her, she would be the one to lose the battle with what her nature demands.
If only she didn’t do it while I was already out hunting with a handful of others. It isn’t that we need to hunt, but rather that we want to hold on to some of the old ways. She would choose this exact moment to breach our borders, wouldn’t she?
And now, she’s gone the extra step of kissing me, and I feel my resolve slipping away with every second that passes. So warm, soft, and supple. Full at the hips, with firm tits that beg to be fondled. Her ripe body is pressed against mine, almost like she’s forcing her scent on me. Does she have any idea what she’s doing, or is this all blind instinct? She’s young, so young. She trembles against me—is that inexperience or the fear of knowing she’ll die here and now the moment I give the word?
Her lips are plump, yielding under mine when there’s no choice but to kiss her back with everything I’ve struggled to deny ever since I first set eyes on her in the clearing. The longing—relentless enough to keep me awake until all hours of the night, sweating and almost clawing at my sheets. My bear rejoices, pulling her closer, compelling me to touch my tongue to hers. She releases a strangled moan, her nails dancing through my chest hair, and in my mind’s eye, I see myself taking her here and now, in front of everyone. It would leave no room for doubt or argument. She is mine.
I have no right to make her mine. An alpha cannot pick and choose which laws are convenient for him to uphold. Others in the clan might have the luxury, but not me.
So stop this. Reject her.I hear the disapproval all around—growls, grunts, paws slapping the ground in growing frustration and impatience. They’re ready to make an example of this little wolf while all I can do is soak her in as long as possible. My mate. Mine. It just isn’t meant to be.
It’s me who breaks the kiss that should never have happened in the first place, pulling back to look at her with disappointment and regret. “This cannot be,” I whisper even while my dick presses hard against her, demanding more. And gods, how I want to give in.
