Page 21 of Owning His Mate

To drive her point home, she presses the blade into the soft flesh under my jaw, and I smell the blood before I feel a drop roll down my throat.

“Why are you armed?” I don’t mean it to come out as rough as it does, but I don’t soften my tone either.

“Isn’t that obvious? I’m going on the mission.”

The growl that erupts from me is feral. Apryle’s eyes flare wide, and she steps back, holding the knife in front of her. The terror reflecting back at me is not feigned or acted. She is scared. Her thoughts through our bond also mirror her body language, and that’s what forces calm into me. She should never be afraid of me.

“I’m not going to hurt you.”

“Right.” She licks her lips but doesn’t put the knife away.

“Apryle, I’ll never hurt you.”

“I want to believe that.” But she doesn’t. Images flash through the bond, a collective of confusing moments and imprints of her being held down.

What the fuck happened? And where can I find the fuckers who have caused her so much anxiety so I can tear their heads off?

It takes all my strength to keep from exploding at the realization someone hurt my mate. Calm is what is needed in this moment.

I can’t make myself smaller, but I try to anyway. “We don’t know each other very well, but I hope you can read my sincerity through our bond.”

Her throat bobs, her gaze never leaving mine, as if she’s scared I’ll pounce if it does.

“I can, but I also feel your anger and your fear. It’s not going to stop me from going.”

Fuck. This is not an argument I want to be having with her.

“It’s dangerous.”

“So everyone should stay, right?”

“I don’t care about anyone else. Only you.”

That softens her eyes slightly. “It’s nice that you do, but you don’t get to tell me where I can and can’t go.”

“I’m your mate.”

“Mate, not keeper.”

I should be grateful that she’s not denying our bond, but all I can focus on is the fact she’s still determined to go.

The muscles in my face are wired so tight everything hurts. “It’s dangerous, Apryle. If they catch you?—”

“I can take care of myself. I’ve been doing it for a long time, and I don’t need you to swoop in and act like some sort of knight in shining armor. In case you’ve forgotten, I have magic. I can do things you can’t even imagine.”

I try counting back from ten, but I only reach eight before my hand collars the back of her neck, the other disarming her of her knife. It’s so easy. It scares the shit out of me knowing how unprepared she is. Apryle is strong in other ways, I can sense that, but physically she’s no match for a wolf my size.

Her eyes blaze as she stiffens beneath my touch.

“Your power isn’t going to protect you against the Order, Apryle. A few spells are no match for their strength.”

“A few spells?” She scoffs at me. “I can step into people’s dreams, Kye. I can blast you onto your ass right now without somuch as breaking a sweat. I can level the entire compound with just a ‘few spells’.”

She’s pissed, and I don’t blame her for that. It was a stupid thing to diminish her gifts, but fear for her safety makes my tongue loose.

“You don’t speak to me for days, and now you’re sneaking off on some suicide mission to fight an enemy that will do unspeakable things to you if they catch you. You don’t want me as a mate, but there they will give you even less choice than this.”

She hasn’t moved out of my grasp, and I notice she’s leaning into my touch as my thumb swipes over her skin. Her eyes are a little heavy and heated as I stroke her back and forth, over and over.

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