Page 92 of Fated to the Wolf Billionaire

But I could tell from his expression that my reassurances weren’t landing. He had fully taken on the mantle of blame; the failure rested around his shoulders like a cloak he couldn’t—or perhaps wouldn’t—shake off.

I held on to his shoulders, forcing him to look me in the eyes when I spoke again, more slowly.

“You did not make them attack us. You fought valiantly at three-to-one odds.Noneof this was your fault.”

“It doesn’t matter. Don’t you see? A male who’s worthy of you can protect you, no matter the cost. You should never have had to fight. He should never have touched a hair on your head. Look at you. You’re injured.” He held my hand tenderly between the two of his, staring down at my scraped palm.

I was shocked when a salty tear landed and stung it.

“Reed, you have to stop this. Youaremy mate. You said it yourself, the Moon Goddess doesn’t make mistakes. There’s no one more perfect for me in the whole world. Youprotectedme. You killed for me, Reed. You hold the other half of my soul, right? Tell me you still believe that.” I was begging, grasping at straws to make him see, to hear me. Hear that I didn’t blame him.

“Fiona, I can’t protect you alone without a complete bond. I can’t—this omega seal? It’s going to keep calling to them, any male around you. Those three were only the first. Therewillbe more. And you don’t want to be locked up. You don’t deserve to be locked up. I know that, no matter how much it terrifies me. But I’m not enough, not without my pack. We have to go back to Kane and Brielle, back to the enclave. I can’t deal with the vampires when I know there are going to be wolves dogging our every step. I can’t see you hurt again for my failure.”

His voice was broken, and I hated every single second of it. And in that moment, I knew what I had to do. Whatwehad to do.

“So bite me. Right now, tonight. Make me yours forever, seal this bond between us, so that no wolf ever tries to lay claim on me again.”

His entire body tensed, taut as a bowstring under my fingertips, near to breaking under the strain of it.

“No. You don’t understand what you’re asking me.”

“So tell me. Make me understand! I’m your mate. This is our problem, my problem, that’s tormenting us. You didn’t ask for an omega-sealed mate, and I didn’t ask for this. Butthis is the hand we were dealt.”

“A bonding is beautiful, the culmination of love and trust and respect. The joining of two into one forever. There’s a ceremony, and you in a gorgeous gown—if I bit you tonight, you wouldn’t get any of the beauty and tradition you deserve. I can’t take that from you for my failure. It would only compound what you’ve lost for being with me.”

I wanted to scream, shake him, but curse it all, he was deadly serious. “Reed, look me in the eyes right now.”

He obeyed without hesitation, giving me his stunning blue eyes, the ones from my dreams that felt a lifetime ago. The eyes of the man—the wolf—who I loved.

“What I deserve isyou. To be yours. Those traditions sound lovely and beautiful and wholesome. But they’re not mine. I’m not a wolf. I am… Fiona. Your Stormy. I’m not losing a damn thing. I’m gaining everything, because all I need is you. You make me safe, you make me whole, and I don’t want to waste another second waiting on the moon, waiting on ceremony or tradition. Do you understand?”

He hesitated, then nodded, his eyes starting to glow. Wolfie understood. I could trust him to always give me what I needed, even over the man’s protests, and right now? I needed that bite. I needed to seal this bond between us, so that what happened to us tonightneverhappened again.

Because I simply couldn’t bear the look of fear and pain in Reed’s eyes for one more second. Some instinct inside me rose up, and I craned my neck to the side, baring my throat for the alpha wolf. I knew what I wanted, what we needed.

I wasn’t sure what I expected—a growl, maybe a snarl as the wolf took over and claimed me. But that wasn’t what I got. Reed rumbled, low in his chest, that soothing sound that offered me comfort, solace.

And that tenderness? That unexpected balm, that offering of safety, even as I offered him everything? It was earth-shattering.

He reached forward and undid the towel he’d wrapped around me, leaving me bare for his eyes. He lifted me from the floor like I was weightless. Wrapping my legs around his waist, he carried me to the bedroom and laid me back on the oversized mattress like I was precious to him, because I was.

His lips hovered over mine, his expression serious as he stroked my jaw possessively with his thumb. “Are you sure, Stormy? I won’t take this choice from you. You can still say no, and we can curl up in this bed and go to sleep. Tomorrow, I’ll make you safe with my pack.”

“I’m sure, Reed. I don’t want to wait.”

He lay at my side, kissing me softly, erasing the feeling of other hands on my skin one by one as he peppered kisses along my throat. He cupped my breasts reverently, sending easy waves of pleasure through me, a low hum of desire threading through my blood and heightening the feel of his lips, his teeth, as they slowly worked over my neck. No pain, only warm pleasure, filling me up like honey, making my limbs go soft and pliant.

Liquid heat pooled at my core, but I sensed that he wasn’t warming me up for that reason. He didn’t move faster or further. He didn’t push for sex. He worshipped my body with his hands and lips and tongue until I was panting, restless, and needy beneath him.

That was when he struck, his fangs piercing me with unexpected ease, hot and sharp and intensely blissful all at once. One moment, I was lazily aroused, warm and safe—the next, I was crashing over the edge of bliss, wrapping myself around him as intense pleasure filled me, shattered me.

Whether the bite lasted seconds or minutes, I couldn’t have said. All I knew was that I rode a wave of euphoria so intense, the blood rushed in my ears, and when I came back down from the peak, I was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. Reed licked and sucked over the wound, the ache fading to nothing more than tenderness. I prodded with my fingertips, surprised to find it already closed, neatly sealed from whatever claiming magic the wolves possessed.

I looked up at him, suddenly feeling vulnerable from the intense experience we’d just shared.

“How do I bite you?” The question hadn’t really occurred to me before, when it was theoretical. But a mate bond was a two-way street, and I didn’t have wolf canines to sink into him. I had blunt, mostly human teeth.

“Don’t overthink it. The bonding magic will find a way, just… do whatever feels right.”

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