Page 46 of Moonlit Choosing Ritual

Overall, it was odd, but I could understand that all of them were being careful around their Alpha. No one had the audacity to speak either with me or against me. They glanced at me with jealousy rife in their eyes.

All at once, I felt his hand on my thigh beneath the table. I tried to remove it, but he clutched my thigh tightly, warning me. Biting my lip, I ended up clenching my thighs tightly, his hand trapped in the middle. Talon didn’t move his hand. He held his wine in the other as he talked casually to the other guests. The moment I loosened my thighs, his fingers trailed up to my panties. Fuck. He moved them to the side and brushed his finger on my sex. To my mortification, my pussy was weeping. He smirked, coating his fingers with my cream.

I blushed inadvertently and his gaze darkened. He pulled his fingers back and licked them clean, maintaining his intense stare. I watched him sucking my juices, the heat in my belly tightening. Could someone come just like that? Fuck my imagination.

Someone started talking to him, breaking our reverie. Instantly, I lowered my head, taking in a sharp breath.

When the dinner was over, we headed to the living room where wine was served. Kenzie leaned down to whisper something in his ear. Talon’s expression turned grim. “I’ll be right back,” he said to me and left hastily. As soon as he left, I made my way to Jackie.

“Jackie?” I rasped. She was standing with Kirk, looking lost.

“Kimble!” she squealed, and I hugged her. When I pulled away, she assessed me. “You look so beautiful! I’m sure Alpha Talon is unable to keep his hands off you!”

I chuckled, because that was the truth. He was finding ways to touch me all the time. I glanced at Kirk who seemed a little perturbed.

“You didn’t tell me you were going to the Choosing Ritual?” I said to Jackie.

She pursed her lips, lifting her shoulders in awkwardness. “I didn’t know I had to. Alpha Talon’s command that I was supposed to take part in it didn’t arrive until the last minute.”

Surprise washed over me. “Why?”

Kirk leaned over to her, whispered something, and left, after bowing to me slightly, like he didn’t want to. His reaction toward me was discomforting.

Jackie nodded and watched him leave. As soon as he was out of earshot, Jackie said, “Alpha Talon told me that Kirk was taking part. It caught me by surprise because he hadn’t informed me that he was going to the Choosing. Honestly, I felt betrayed and was so angry that I didn’t want to participate. But—” She sighed deeply. “Alpha Talon insisted that I attend it. In a way, I’m happy I went. Kirk and I are now mated!” Her cheeks flushed pink.

I was perplexed. If Kirk loved her, then why did he go to the Choosing without telling her? It made little sense. I thought of asking her, but I stifled my question because Jackie looked ecstatic. “I’m happy for you,” I said, hugging her again.

She beamed at my words. “I gotta leave! Kirk’s waiting for me outside. He doesn’t like such large gatherings!”

“Ah, okay!” I gave a tight smile as she hurried to leave. My friend’s euphoria about being mated to someone who tried to go to the Choosing Ritual without telling her was bizarre. I couldn’t help comparing myself to her, or Alpha Talon to Kirk. Talon haddone everything he could to mate me. He even defied the rules and walked over a taboo. A crack developed in the wall around my heart.

“Kimble, the Alpha is calling you to the main meeting room.” Kenzie’s voice made me jump. I blinked as I saw Jackie disappearing through the main door. “Are you thinking about Jackie and Kirk?”

“Yes. But I don’t understand—”

“Kirk took part in the Choosing to mate you, Kimble,” Kenzie cut me off.

Goosebumps broke out over my skin. “Kenzie. Oh, my Gods…”

Kenzie placed his hand at the small of my back as he guided me through the crowd toward the meeting room. “He wanted to claim you, but obviously he was no match for Alpha Talon. Alpha Talon knew he would have killed Kirk if he tried to approach you, and Kirk was forced to choose Jackie. Alpha Talon did it because he knows Jackie is your only friend in this pack. He transferred $20,000 to Kirk’s account so he could start a new life with Jackie.” We reached the meeting room, where Kenzie stopped and turned to me. “Talon wouldn’t have hesitated to kill Kirk for trying to approach you had he not been Jackie’s boyfriend.”

The shock was heavier than gravity. “Why was Kirk trying to choose me? It makes no sense,” I asked in a low voice.

“Kirk was working with Liam.” Kenzie took a deep breath. “Liam made sure he had his men all around you to prevent Talon approaching you.”

Chapter 25

Kimble

I exhaled a shaky breath as Kenzie’s words left me shell-shocked. If Talon wanted, he would have killed Kirk and no one would have questioned him, but he didn’t, because Jackie, my only friend in the pack, loved Kirk.

All the facts had always been there, hidden in plain sight, but it wasn’t until the fog cleared that I understood their significance. The realization washed over me like a warm tide, filling me with a sense of… love? The rebel in me mellowed as another layer peeled away and Talon’s real personality emerged.

With emotions swirling in my heart, I entered the meeting room where my eyes locked with Talon, seated at the head of the table. He pointed to an empty chair on his right for me to sit. Even though the room was full of people, my eyes held his gaze as I made my way over.

As soon as I sat in the chair, he held my hand over the table and intertwined our fingers. I noticed there was a bruise on his knuckles and a few blood drops caked on his shirt. When I took a closer look, I saw another bruise near his chin. Automatically, I tightened my grip on his hand.

“I’ve called you here to introduce you to the council members, Kimble,” he said firmly. When I nodded, he introduced me to everyone, and I looked at each of them with determination. Every person in the meeting looked warily at me, ready to disregard me at the drop of a hat, but Talon’s presence made them afraid. The meeting was over in less than half an hour, and I hurried back with him to the bedroom. “What’s the hurry?” he asked. “There are guests in the main hall.”

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