Page 24 of Owning His Mate

I don’t know what to do with Kye’s overbearing personality, so I made sure to have Archie sitting between us in the truck. He doesn’t seem fazed by Kye growling at him under his breath, which makes me suspect that my mate is usually not the most approachable wolf anyway. In fact, I get the impression Archie is enjoying unsettling Kye.

I watch the Montana landscape pass me by. The pretty mountains and trees cover both sides of the road, and not for the first time, I wish I could transform into my wolf and run free. I envy those who can shift. Even more so, I envy those who have their wolves with them at all times.

As much as I hate to admit it, Kye’s presence in my mind is comforting after all these years alone in there—even though I mostly feel his frustration. I thought being mean to him would convince him that we need to undo this bond, but if anything, it’s made him more determined for it to work.

I have to figure my way out of this, but right now I have no clue how to make that happen.

You have to run…

The thought creeps into my mind unbidden, but the moment it settles through my thoughts, I know it’s right. Running is the only option. If I stay, our bond will cement further, and we will become unbreakable.

But how can I run? I’m being hunted, and the last thing I want is to be locked in that creepy facility being rutted day and night while the Order tries to put a super soldier baby inside me.

You ran before.

I did. I stayed in the human world for a while, hiding my magic and cloaking my wolf. It won’t be as easy to stay hiddenthis time, not while Kye has a direct line into my mind, but it is feasible.

The car stops, scattering my thoughts, and I twist to look out the window, trying to see where we are.

Quaint stores line the main street, the American flag billowing in the breeze above one door. There are a few people milling around, completely oblivious to any danger around them. Hunters aren’t a threat to humans, but that doesn’t mean they won’t get caught up in the crossfire if there’s an attack.

As Callum climbs out of the vehicle, followed by Beck and Ayden, I open my door and slip out. My feet have barely hit the asphalt before Kye has rounded the back of the truck and is at my side. I wait for that stifling, suffocating feeling to hit me, but this time it doesn’t.

Before I can say or do anything, he backs me against the side of the car and his fingers wrap around my throat. His touch isn’t heavy, but it is insistent. Still, I wait for that choking feeling, but it doesn’t come. I know I should fight, but my traitorous body melts into his touch instead. Fickle bitch.

“Are you trying to drive me insane?” he demands, as if all of this is a personal attack on him.

“I don’tneedto drive you anywhere, Kye. You took the keys and drove yourself.”

He lets out a low growl in the back of his throat that makes that spot between my legs throb. It becomes more insistent as he leans toward me to sniff. “I can smell him on you.”

I’m confused, even as a shiver of need flows through me. “Who?”

“Archie!” He pulls back, his lips tugged into a snarl. “I could have killed him because of that little ruse you pulled. Don’t use other males to keep me from you.”

I fold my arms over my chest, feeling the waves of jealousy pulsing through the bond. He’s really upset by this? There isa slither of guilt stirring in my gut that I’ve hurt him, but I don’t want to encourage this behavior either. I feel like I’m being tugged in so many directions and the loss of control is overwhelming.

“So sitting by someone else is a problem now?”

His fingers knead the bridge of his nose. “You’re testing my patience, sweetheart.”

My stomach flutters.Why do I like him calling me that?

“Then maybe you should agree to my plan to undo the bond between us.” Even as I say it, I’m not sure I want it. I know this is the power of the bond, dragging me into his orbit, but it’s impossible to fight against its pull.

When his nose moves to my neck, sniffing along the column of my throat, all my resolve disappears. The hairs on my nape rise, a shiver trailing down my spine. I squeeze my thighs together, willing my body to remain indifferent, but I am no longer in control of myself.

“I will never let you go.” He breathes the words into my ear, making it sound like a promise but also a threat. “You’re mine, Apryle. The sooner you accept that, the happier you will be.” He licks over my pulse point, no doubt feeling the intense flutter of my heart beneath his tongue and the tremble of need that works through me. “You push me away, and yet your body craves me.”

“I don’t crave anything from you.” It’s a lie, and I have no doubt he knows it. I can smell my arousal, so I’m sure he can too.

“You’re scared. I can feel it through our bond. Apryle, I saw a glimpse of something—a memory, I think. What happened to you?”

He saw it? I never wanted to open that part of me to anyone, and my shame crawls through me. I was weak that day, pathetically so. My wolf was hidden and my magic uncontrolled. I let my pack hurt me because I couldn’t fight back. That helpless feeling is not something I ever want to experience again.

Needing to find control—of this conversation or my emotions, I’m not sure—I shove him back, and to my surprise, Kye lets go of me.

“Stay out of my mind,” I snap at him. “We may be mates, but you don’t get to dig into my private memories.”

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