Page 44 of Auctioned Wolf Bride

“It takes some getting used to,” Jameson conceded. Evelyn and Oliver, another of the claimed couples, nodded their agreement.

“And that’s not mentioning all the things I’ve started noticing about her,” I growled. “Like how smart she is, how much I admire her bravery, even when it ends up getting her in trouble. She’ll stick up for anyone despite being at a disadvantage, and thanks to the claiming bond, I’ve opened up to her more than anyone else. It’s the emotional connection that’s really making this such a pain in the ass.”

I glanced over at the others, expecting them to agree. Instead, they all stared at me like I’d just started speaking gibberish.

“Um…” Evelyn and Oliver exchanged glances with one another, then looked at Jameson. All of them wore identical expressions of bewilderment.

“What?” I asked, glancing between each of them.

“That doesn’t sound like our claiming bond at all,” Evelyn said.

My brow furrowed. I swiveled to look at Jameson, who nodded.

“The protectiveness went up,” he confirmed. “As did the desire to be around Georgia whenever possible. And the physical attraction. But emotional? Not really.”

“Yeah, well, you were attracted to her before you had the claiming bond,” I pointed out. “So of course that wouldn’t change.”

Evelyn shook her head this time. “A creep claimed me once,” she said. “Remember? The only reason it didn’t set in was because we killed him before it could click into place. And I can promise you there was no increased emotional attraction. A desire to have sex with him? Yes. But I definitely didn’t startliking him more, or start to feel an emotional connection after the bond.”

I stared blankly, trying to process exactly what they were saying. Because if I was understanding them correctly…

Jameson broke through my thoughts. “Are you able to sense where she is?” he asked. When I shook my head, he said, “By this point, that part of the bond would one-hundred percent have set in place. I can get a general idea of where Georgia is as easy as breathing.”

“Same with us,” Evelyn said. Oliver nodded.

I stood, running my fingers through my hair as I began pacing. “Are you telling me that the claiming bond didn’t work?” I asked.

“The claiming mark, has it gotten more prominent?” Mark asked.

I froze, mouth opening. It hadn’t. In fact, the last time Thea and I had sex, it had nearly healed entirely. How could I not have noticed it at the time?

“The claiming didn’t go through,” I said. “Why?”

“I have a theory,” Malcolm said, scratching his stubble. “You told me the circumstances around the claiming. It didn’t seem like either of you were actually willing.”

“There has to be intent on at least one side,” Malcolm explained. “If you were coerced… if neither of you were willing…”

“Then it didn’t go through,” I finished for him, my head spinning with the implications.

The claiming didn’t go through. Which meant everything I’d felt about Thea over the past few days, how much I caredabout her, how willing I was to do anything to protect her, how attracted to her I was, the fact that I couldn’t stop thinking about her… it had all been real.

I was in love with Thea.

The realization slammed into me so hard that I nearly reared back in shock.

Everyone was staring at me, waiting for my response as I processed the new information.

“This doesn’t change anything,” I said, but that wasn’t exactly true. If anything, I was more invested in rescuing her than I had been before.

Because I needed to tell her the truth. That I loved her.

“I’m still going to go rescue her, either on my own or with help,” I said.

Mark nodded. “In that case, let’s come up with a plan quickly and get the hell out of here.”

Chapter 17 - Thea

This cage felt smaller than the last one. I wasn’t sure if that was my imagination, or if it was intentional. I supposed it didn’t matter in the end.

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