Page 48 of Cruel Mate

The way Christian smirked was way too confident, and Layla felt sick as she allowed him to guide her away across the lawn.

“Zander, go sit on the porch and cool down,” she heard Jack order as they walked away, but it was clear from the shuffling that ensued afterwards that Zander needed some roughhousing to listen to the alpha.

She glanced over her shoulder to see Kane and Eddie practically dragging her mate to the swing where she’d been waiting for him.

Whatever Christian wanted, she wanted it over quickly, not least of all because he made her skin crawl.

“What do you want, Christian?” she snapped when she thought they were far enough away from the others.

She turned to the dark haired, scar-faced wolf and glowered at him, her arms crossed over her chest.

“How are you, Lay?” Christian asked, his smile pleasant. It only made Layla more nervous.

“Fine,” she barked back at him. “What do you want, Christian?”

She hated having to repeat herself.

Christian closed the distance between them, raising a hand as if to reach for her. Layla stepped back and growled a warning. “Don’t touch me.”

“I just needed to know you’re safe,” Christian said, and Layla almost believed him—almost.

“I am, no thanks to your fuckwit packmates! Did they tell you they almost killed me?”

Christian glanced at his feet, a look of embarrassment on his face. “They told me they’d attacked a messenger. When I realized it was you, I had them—”

Layla didn’t need to hear it. She didn’t want to hear it, either. She snapped at him, “They shouldn’t have been attacking anyone! But we both know that’s not why you’re really here, Christian. You didn’t come to apologize, so what do you really want?”

“You.”

The word caught Layla off guard. She should have known. Christian had always had an unhealthy obsession with her. It was likely because she was so much weaker than him, because she allowed him to walk all over her. And once, she might have actually been flattered. Now, she just felt sick. “Excuse me?”

“I’m alpha of my own pack now. I have everything I could ever want or need, except one thing,” Christian said, and this time he did grab hold of her hand. “I need you, Layla. Be mine. Be an alpha’s wife.”

Layla snatched her hand away, nausea bubbling up in her throat. “No.”

“No? I’m offering you the most powerful position in the pack next to my own, and you say no?” Christian snarled, and there were his true colors, the anger and violence blazing in his dark eyes.

Layla was toeing a dangerous line, even more dangerous now that he was an alpha, but she could sense Zander close by and knew he would never let any real harm come to her.

“I can’t,” Layla said.

“Is it because of that blunder headed beta?” Christian snarled back at her, his claws starting to elongate.

“That beta is my husband, and you would do well to respect him!” Layla growled back at him, astonished by the fury she heard in her own voice. “I am carrying his child.”

She laid her hand on her stomach, protecting that child when Christian glanced down.

He sneered at her, baring his teeth. “I knew you smelled different. I didn’t realize it was because you’ve been whoring yourself!”

Layla’s own fury was upon her then. She lashed out without thinking and struck Christian clean across the cheek. “I am his wife! I am no whore! You tried to make me into one, but you didn’t succeed! He made me a mate, and I…” I love him, she realized, her heart skipping a beat. She didn’t say the words aloud. Christian could never understand such a thing as love.

“You stupid bitch,” Christian said, glaring at her with his hand on his cheek where she had struck him. “You could have been an alpha’s wife.”

“I would rather be an omega’s wife than yours!” Layla spat back at him.

Christian grabbed her by the upper arms then, drawing so close she could smell his rancid breath. “You’ll never be anything in this pack. I’d be doing you a favor.”

Layla laughed in his face. She had never been strong enough to deny him anything before. The only reason she had gotten away from him in the first place was because he had run from Nightstar without her.

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