Page 77 of Bonds of Hate

My neck aches from the effort of maintaining the submissive pose before an Alpha who doesn’t deserve even an ounce of respect. I just have to hope that Logan doesn’t immediately see through my act.

His scent spikes with a sharp tang of surprise as Logan makes a gruff sound of acknowledgement.

A single finger traces the curve of my cheek, before nudging my face until I have to look him in the eye. His hand strokes down my throat, palm resting on the pulse beating steadily under that fragile expanse of skin. For a moment, I wonder if that hand will squeeze down and choke the life out of me as a punishment for making them wait.

“This is a queen’s dress,” he muses as his thumb drifts across the sharp line of my collarbone. “A queen is never late. Everyone else is just early.”

“You aren’t upset that I’m wearing your mother’s dress?”

His gaze passes over me again, making my skin tingle with awareness in all the places his attention lingers. “Whywould I be? It’s a brilliant move if we want the king’s attention.”

Logan’s arm wraps around my waist, pulling me against the solid wall of his chest. His scent washes over me — bitter clove, amber, and the bourbon he must have downed while waiting for me. The combination makes my head spin. For once, I actually let myself enjoy it.

My body fits perfectly against his side, as if we were made to fit together. The warmth of his touch seeps through the silk of my dress, so hot he must be a raging inferno on the inside.

For just a moment, I let myself sink into the fantasy of what this could be.

I imagine standing beside him on the palace balcony, waving to crowd clamoring for the first view of their new queen. Golden eyes watching me with adoration, rather than calculation and aggression. That moment is everything I trained since childhood to reach.

The vision is so vivid that I have to remind myself it is both fleeting and impossible. Logan will never make me his queen, and I would be stupid to accept it if he offered. Every soft thought about Logan is a weakness, a crack in my armor that he will eventually exploit.

But I can play pretend for as long as necessary.

“Shall we?

Logan tucks my hand into the curve of his elbow, the other at the small of my back, practically cradling me against him. His body curves over mine, solid and protective, as if he is only moments from swooping me completely up into his arms.

I graze my nose against the side of hisneck, briefly scenting him. The taste of bitter clove bursts on my tongue as he growls in approval.

My smile is soft, practically a simper when I look up at him. “Lead the way.”

He gives me one last once-over, expression rueful as he shakes his head. “You really are the perfect Omega, aren’t you?”

Gritted teeth have to hide behind my smile as he escorts me away. The quiet knife wrapped in smoothest silk.

Otherwise, I might just be stupid enough to forget that none of this is real.

Chapter Seventeen

MAYA

Ishould be more anxious than I am about making our entrance into the gala. Our tardiness has ensured the event is in full swing as the double doors to the ballroom swing open and a guard announces the arrival of Pack Logan.

And their Omega.

I’m already expecting it when hundreds of faces turn toward us as we enter the room.

It isn’t quite as dramatic as it could be. The string quartet doesn’t stop playing. But the din of conversation, laughter and clinking glasses lowers to something quieter. We have the attention of most everyone here, if not all of them.

Faces blur in my vision in the crowd as we walk past. I focus my gaze on a spot just above the grand dais where the king sits. Logan’s body language is relaxed, his expression one of brusque confidence, as if having the attention of literally everyone in the room is not only his expectation, but a basic right.

But I sense the muscles coiling in tension underneath my hand, flexing every time a murmured comment is spoken loudly enough for us to hear before he relaxes again.

“Is that the queen’s old claiming gown?”

“She looks amazing in it.”

“Like an amazing slut, you mean? I heard she was already on her knees in that interview before the door was all the way closed behind her.”

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