Page 35 of Bound By My Alpha Mate

Gavin and Everett looked at me. Colt reached for my hand, but I pulled it away and sat up straight. “I want to be here to fight the Lycans,” I insisted.

“Exposure to blood will only weaken you. Please leave the fighting to Mythguard,” said Sebastian. “You’re more useful to us in good health. We’ll have need of your healing magic later.”

Grumbling, I knew he had a point. I did want to fight; Welkin had implored me to avenge my mother! But I would be useless if I came into contact with too much blood, and I sensed that the consequences of the Lycan ritual would be a very gory affair. “Where will you take me? Will I come right back after it’s all done?”

“We’ll take you into the city of Gunnison. It’s only thirty minutes away from here. As soon as we receive confirmation that the Lycans have been exterminated, we’ll bring you back.”

“Okay. When do we go?”

“As soon as possible.”

The Alphas nodded their approval. If everyone agreed it was the best option, I would be foolish to deny it. I didn’t have anything to pack, nothing to bring with me except the clothes on my back, so I was ready to leave with Mythguard right away. Before I could, though, Colt took my arm and led me to a quiet corner where nobody would overhear us.

“Let me mark you,” he said.

A conflicting storm of feelings gripped me. “I’m not ready for that.”

“We’ll be able to communicate if I can mark you.”

I shook my head. “You won’t need to communicate with me.”

Colt’s face darkened with worry; he was clearly unwilling to separate from me so soon after I had begun to accept his presence. “I promised I wouldn’t let anything happen to you. I want to protect you.”

“Then come with me.”

“They won’t let me.”

“Well…I’m sorry, Colt. I can’t let you mark me.”

He had to understand my reservations. There was too much going on for me to undergo the marking ritual in earnest. I didn’t want to rush into it—I barely knew Colt and still didn’t trust him as much as I wanted to. Knowing what I’d said pained him, I cupped his cheek and looked into his eyes. “You have something you need to do, and so do I. I’ll be back. Okay?”

Colt sighed. “Okay.”

I held his gaze for a moment longer before craning my neck and brushing my nose against his. The gentle touch of his lips led to a kiss that I couldn’t help. I wanted him to know I meant it when I said I would be back.

Colt melted into the kiss. I had to be the one to pull away, leaving him with the memory of my touch as I joined Mythguard at the door. I gave Colt one last look, and his smile lit me up—not in anger, but affection.

I wanted him to overcome this. I hoped he would.

Chapter 22

Colt

As I watched Kiara leave, the taste of her kiss lingered on my lips. She would be all I’d think about for the next couple of days. Was it selfish of me to have wanted to mark her so soon after she’d lost her mother? I’d meant it when I’d suggested that it was just to be able to communicate telepathically, because Mythguard taking her away from me made me feel useless—like, despite all my promises to protect her, I would once again be reduced to watching everything happen from the sidelines.

But I would respect her wishes.

I stood by the open door and watched the cars pull away. Through their tinted windows, I couldn’t even see Kiara, and with each yard of mounting distance, my fated mate bond thinned like an elastic band—but I knew, inevitably, Kiara would come crashing back to me. I just had to be patient. Turning around, I found Everett, Gavin, Aislin, and Billie looking at me with varying degrees of judgment.

“You really asked to mark her,” Aislin accused.

The hair on my arms stood up. “Because I wanted us to have the mate connection so I could keep her safe.”

“You sure it wasn’t because you wanted to control her or know where she was at all times so you could deliver her to your despicable father?”

“Ais…” Everett warned in a low voice.

“No, really. This asshole is always up to something,” she said, thrusting a finger at me. “I’m surprised you didn’t try to drag her back to the mine in the middle of the night after she freed your wrists.”

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