Page 107 of Never Submit

“Say something,” Ren whispers. “Please. I don’t know what to do here.”

Her body is thrumming, her muscles clenched, her heart thudding, and her scent a thousand times more potent now.

“It’s going to be okay,” I reply, but honestly, I’m really not sure. I’m having a hard time sorting through everything.

My head buzzes and my instincts aren’t serving me now. This is uncharted territory.

“I feel Noble in our bond still.” Ren sounds relieved as she scrubs a hand over her naked breast. “So this didn’t cancel out my bond with him, at least.”

“It doesn’t seem so…” I trail off. “I feel him too.”

She blinks big eyes at me. “Wait, what?Youcan feel him?”

I nod. The stranger part of this is that the tenor of Noble’s energy doesn’t bother me.

“How…how is this happening?” she asks.

“If you’re looking for answers, I’m afraid I don’t have any to give you. I’ve never heard of this happening before either. Not in my pack, not in any pack.”

I stand still, waiting for Ren to move when she’s ready, and she finally steps closer.

Her expression is torn between anger and confusion. “It doesn’t make sense, Mathis. I already have a bond with Noble.” Her voice falters on his name, and jealousy coils tight in my chest.

“I know,” I reply. “Believe me, I know. But this…” I gesture between us. “This is real, too. I felt it. You felt it. You can’t deny that.”

Her lips part like she’s about to argue, but then she closes them again, a pained look crossing her face. “I don’t know what to think. I don’t even know what to feel right now.”

I close the distance between us. Her scent, untamed and electric, washes over me. My wolf stirs restlessly beneath the surface. “I want you, Ren. I always have, but I want you for myself. Not to share you. As selfish as it may sound, I want you as my mate. Mine only. Now it’s…complicated.”

She lets out a shaky breath, her shoulders sagging. “Complicated doesn’t even begin to cover it. I care about Noble. And I?—”

She stops herself, but her emotions wash over me in a fresh wave—her turmoil—yet there’s a surge of her love and desire for me, too. My entire chest warms at the realization.

Ren loves me. She doesn’t need to use her words for me to understand.

“Maybe we don’t need to overthink it. We both know you’re different now, Ren. You’ve been different ever since?—”

“The Moonstone,” she finishes for me, her voice flat.

“When it went into you, something changed.Youchanged. You became like us in a way, but maybe you’re not just a wolf. Maybe the Moon Goddess—” I break off, feeling ridiculous even saying it out loud.

“Chose me?” Her laugh is sharp, bitter. “Is that what you’re trying to say? That I’m some divine chosen one, and that’s why my entire life has turned upside-down? Now you’re really sounding like Noble.”

“I’m not saying I understand the reason for it,” I reply, forcing my voice to stay calm. “But the rules—the ones we’ve always lived by—they clearly don’t apply to you.You’re bonded to Noble. Now to me. There’s no other explanation.”

She shakes her head, pacing a few steps before turning back to me. “Why me, Mathis? Why not someone stronger? Someone smarter? Someone who isn’t constantly fumbling through every decision, barely keeping it together? I was supposed todie.Twice. When I was born and then on my twenty-fifth birthday, and now you want me to believe I’m special? It doesn’t make sense.”

She’s trying to make it sound like a ridiculous notion, but the more she talks, the more it makes sense to me. The pieces fall into place and with the return of logic, the overpowering emotion starts to subside.

“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” I say simply. “You’re stronger than you think, Ren. Smarter than you give yourself credit for. And maybe the Moon Goddess saw your potential and gave you a second chance. Maybe she knew we needed someone like you.”

All of us.

“Or maybe this is just some cruel joke. Maybe she’s testing me, seeing how much I can take before I snap.”

I close the distance between us. I’m itching to touch her—just some kind of contact—so I take her by the arms. The instant we connect, a buzzing radiates over my skin. “You haven’t snapped yet,” I murmur. “That’s what matters. And you won’t, because you’re strong.”

Her lips press into a thin line, and she looks away, her gaze drifting to the trees.

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