Page 19 of Billionaire Wolf Needs a Maid

"Don't." She held up a hand, her rings catching the fluorescent light. "I've known you too long for that bullshit. Look at thesereadings." She thrust the tablet at me. Cortisol is through the roof. Hormone levels are so out of balance, I haven't seen something like this since Will rejected his mate bond."

Her words were like a bucket of ice water doused on my head. "This isn't the same thing."

"No?" She stepped closer, her lab coat rustling. "The aggression, the loss of control, the physical symptoms, all of these are signs your wolf is literally tearing you apart, trying to get to her. To your mate."

"I can't." My voice cracked. "Sabrina, you know what the Nightfang pack would do to her."

"I know what denying this bond will do to you. And that might be worse." Her expression softened. "I've been your doctor since you first shifted. These readings are textbook mate bond rejection. It's killing you, Dean."

Each mention of the mate bond sent electric jolts through my body, like lightning seeking ground. My skin felt too tight, my chest hollow and aching where the mate bond should have been.

"I can't have a mate." The words tasted like ash on my tongue. "Not with my family, not with their threats."

"Your wolf has already chosen." Sabrina's voice softened with understanding. "You can't fight biology. The longer you deny the bond, the worse your symptoms will become."

I paced the length of her office, unable to stay still. The wolf's energy thrummed through my veins like rushing water seeking release. "What symptoms?"

"You're already experiencing most of them. Insomnia. Mood swings. Difficulty maintaining control during stress." She listedthem clinically. "But it will progress. Organ damage from prolonged heightened stress levels. Mental deterioration. In extreme cases, complete loss of ability to maintain human form."

My stomach lurched. "There has to be a way to suppress it."

"There isn't." She stepped into my path, forcing me to stop. "The mate bond exists for a reason. It's not just about reproduction, it's about balance. Your wolf has recognized something in her that you need. Something that completes both sides of your nature."

"What I need is to keep her safe." The words came out raw, scraping my throat. "You don't know what my family is capable of. What they'd do to her."

"And you don't know what denying your nature will do to you. You're literally tearing yourself apart."

My phone buzzed. I glanced at the screen, it was Levi. I ignored it.

"The attack today?" Sabrina continued. "That loss of control wasn't just about stress. Your wolf is fighting harder because it senses its mate is near. The closer she is, the harder it becomes to maintain distance."

As if summoned by her words, Nina's scent drifted through my memory. I snarled, my fangs puncturing my gums before I could stop them.

"Exactly." Sabrina noted my reaction. "You can't keep fighting this, Dean. Either accept the bond or—"

"Or what? Send her away?" The thought made me want to rip the room apart. "I won't put her in danger."

"She's already in danger." Sabrina's voice was gentle but firm. "The longer you fight this, the more unstable you'll become. And an unstable wolf is a threat to everyone, including her."

I stumbled into my penthouse, fingers fumbling with the biometric lock three times before Jenkins finally overrode it. The tremors started in my hands first, then seized my entire body. My bones burned like molten metal trying to reshape themselves.

"Sir, shall I call Dr. Wu?" Jenkins's voice held an edge of concern I hadn't programmed into him.

"No." I gritted through clenched teeth, staggering to my office. Even the sight of my normally chaotic desk, now arranged in neat stacks with color-coded sticky notes, made my chest ache. She'd organized my chaos, brought light into my darkness. Another tremor ripped through me. The wolf thrashed against my control, desperate to track her scent, to find its mate."

My phone buzzed again. Levi.

This time I answered.

"You sound like shit," he said by way of greeting.

"Thanks." I slumped in my chair, running a shaking hand across my face. "Always good to hear from you too."

"Jenkins called. Said you're having control issues." A pause filled with understanding. "It's the mate bond, isn't it?"

I didn't answer. Didn't need to.

"You can't fight it forever, man." His voice softened with memory. "Trust me, I tried with Krista. Nearly drove myselfinsane before I accepted it. The wolf knows what we need, even when we're too stubborn to admit it."

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