Page 44 of Wolf Bitten

His dad threw his head back and laughed. The sound was loud and unhinged. “I don’t know how you managed to lie without the smell, but that’s impossible, and we both know it. Fated mates haven’t happened incenturies, and it would never happen between a wolf and a human.”

“I’m not only human.” I was so tired of everyone tossing that word around like I wasnothing. “I’m an arcane-borne. My blood holds power.” The words had slipped from my lips even though I’d been warned not to share this information with anyone. But maybe, just maybe, his dad would react differently with that knowledge.

King Jovian’s face paled as his entire focus turned to me. “What?”

Raffe’s brows furrowed. “You’ve heard of her kind?”

“She needs to go.” King Jovian pointed at the door. “I don’t care if she takes your car, but she needs to get out of here. You and I will go to Atlanta, where you’ll meet your betrothed. There’s no point in waiting until graduation. We’ll talk to Supreme Priestess Olwyn so you can finish your courses online.”

Something was off. He was angry, but fear was making him push Raffe harder. The thought of Raffe with someone else pushed my blood to a hum.

Raffe clenched his hands. “I’m not going. It would be pointless. Skylar is my mate. It’s done.”

“You can’t claim the Eastern heiress, but you can marry her. Make it legally binding in the eyes of the humans and live with her far away from thishumanwho’s messing with your mind.” King Jovian rubbed his hands together. “In time, you’ll see that this was the right choice. Besides, your mate bond isn’t complete yet and never will be because she’s not a shifter.”

My blood hummed, the power flowing through my veins as my anger, Raffe’s anger, and the anger of the presence inside me blurred into one.

“Everyone will see that you made a mistake and rectified it, bringing peace back to the wolf shifters here in the States.”

“No,” Raffe and I bellowed. The presence inside me clawed at my chest while my blood went beyond a hum to a vibration, spinning out of control, ready to push power out everywhere.

Raffe’s hands fisted like he was struggling to maintain control. “I won’t walk away from Skylar andmarrysome woman who will never hold a candle toher.” He pointed at me and bared his teeth. “I don’t fucking care if the East breaks away because being with Skylar is what’s best for me and what makes me the best choice to lead our people into the future.”

The vibration centered under my feet, ready to reach out and defeat the threat in front of me. Sounds grew louder, and I could hear Raffe’s and King Jovian’s every heartbeat.

King Jovian’s eyes glowed brighter. “You don’t have a choice.” Power radiated from each word, stalling my blood for a moment. “Your alpha commands you to leave Skylar and go to Atlanta to do what’s right for our kingdom.”

“Don’t you fucking dare,” Raffe said through clenched teeth. “I willneverforgive you.”

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take.” King Jovian hovered over him. “Bow to my will as your alpha and king.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

The floor shook underneath my feet, the power pushing from my body and into the ground, but even with my blood fritzing, King Jovian didn’t tear his gaze from Raffe.

Strain and fear, both my own and Raffe’s, constricted my chest, and with my magic this strong, I could feel King Jovian’s anger, determination, and fear as he stared down my mate.

This had to be what alpha-willing was, and burning acid inched up my throat. Forcing someone to do something against their will was sick. At least my bullies had excluded me from things; they hadn’t forced me to do something that would break me. What sort of father did this to his child? Even when my parents had encouraged me to go out and make friends, they’d never forced my hand. Andthiswas way worse than them wanting me to have a chance at beinghappy. King Jovian didn’t care about his son’s wants or needs.

The ground shook harder in tandem with my rising emotions—guilt for not being there for Raffe when he needed me the most and driving distance between us.

My head screamed that I needed to calm down, but I also knew that any attempt would be futile. It would be the equivalent of trying to get a dog not to play with a squeaky toy.

Pointless.

The immediate threat was King Jovian and his determination to come between Raffe and me. I couldn’t calm down with that threat imminent.

I could think of one positive—if things got bad enough, King Jovian would have to break thisstandoff and handle the repercussions of my blood. Not that it would make things better between us and him. He’d eventually try to alpha-will Raffe again.

Sweat beaded on Raffe’s forehead as he fought the command of his alpha.I can’t lose her. I can’t let him win this battle.

His words echoed in my head, faint but clear. I had to be imagining them and reading into the emotions that clung to him.

“Sky, you need to lock your magic down,” Raffe rasped, but I could read and feel the concern pouring off him. “Fighting him will be pointless if you wind up killing yourself.”

I snorted humorlessly. He was right—I ran the risk of dying—but the thought of him being with someone else hurt too damn bad, especially with our relationship under threat. “Sorry, but I can’t control it, not when he’s risking us.”

“That’s my point,” King Jovian gritted out. “She’s not only human but untrained and volatile. She can’t stand next to you, and I have no other heir as an option. I need to do this for our people, and you will see it clearly in time.”

---