Page 12 of Claimed By My Fiancé's Brother

“I…” I stuttered. “I…”

“Stop!”

Everyone in the clearing turned to look at the source of the interrupting growl.

I followed their gazes to see Alexander walking toward me, his light blue eyes not cold and detached as usual, but burning with so much emotion that I couldn’t look away from him. Lara unfurled within me, as entranced as I was.

“Brother,” Dylan gritted out. “What are you doing here?”

Alexander ignored him, his gaze never leaving mine as he closed the distance between us and pulled me into his arms.

I jumped, completely surprised, bracing myself with my hands on Alexander’s broad chest.

“Alexander, what—” I began to ask, but my voice cut off when Alexander fisted my hair, making a mess of the waves Elena had styled earlier, and bared my neck to him.

A slight tremble ran through me. Surely he wasn’t?—

Alexander bit down hard on my neck, marking me as his mate.

I gasped, a feeling unlike any other racing through me—a feeling of completion, fulfillment, and so much euphoria that Lara howled within me.

Alexander retracted his canines, sealing my wound shut with a precise stroke of his tongue that made my toes curl from the pleasure that flooded my veins. My gasp morphed into a moan as Lara took over to mark our mate.

And just like that, I felt our bond snap into place.

Our bond wasn’t like anything I’d imagined it would be. It felt like I’d been floating and lost, and then suddenly I had a tether. Not one that restrained me, but one that linked me to a companion.

And on the other side of that tether was Alexander.

I opened my eyes and stared into Alexander’s, feeling completely enthralled.

Had his eyes always been so beautiful? And that face, Goddess, he was?—

“What have you done?” Dylan growled, interrupting my reverie. His eyes burned black as he advanced threateningly toward my mate.

Alexander’s hand fell to the small of my back, a silent reassurance. Under different circumstances, I would’ve marveled at this complete change in his behavior, but all I could think of now was Dylan giving us some privacy so I could jump my mate’s bones.

Wait.What?

No. That wasn’t me; those were Lara’s thoughts. The marking had given her too much dominance, enough that she was at the forefront of my mind, and there was only one thing she wanted—her mate.

“I thought it would be obvious,” Alexander deadpanned in response to Dylan’s outburst. “I claimed Eleanor as my mate.”

“How dare you?” Dylan’s wolf was gaining dominance now, and I would’ve been concerned if I wasn’t busy mentally wrestling with my own wolf. “Eleanor is mine! We’ve been engaged for years!”

Alexander shrugged indifferently, his thumb moving in circles on my lower back and winding up Lara even more.

“I was carrying out my duty to do right by her, seeing as we spent the night together and I took her maidenhead.”

Maidenhead? Who the hell still used words like that?

The wind went right out of Dylan’s sails, and murmurs broke out across the clearing.

“That’s not true.” Dylan sounded like he was trying to convince himself. He turned to me with so much hope in his eyes that I almost felt pity for him. “Right, Eleanor?”

I finally had Lara under control, but I didn’t respond to Dylan.

My silence must have spoken volumes, because the fury that suddenly flooded Dylan’s face reminded me of how he’d looked last night when he choked me.

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