Page 18 of The Silent Mate

“The initiation won’t take place for weeks. It is my duty to protect you. To mark you for theIntonat Nocte,” Roman whispered with nausea-inducing tenderness.

I started to tremble but mustered my strength. A muscle in my jaw clenched. “Only Malik can mark me. As my fated mate. Only him.”

“Only Malik can give you atruemark, yes,” Roman agreed, stroking my cheek and jaw, then down to my neck. “But there are other ways to give you my scent.”

He closed the distance between us. I immediately tried to retreat, but Anders clamped his arms around mine like a steel chain. Even if I thrashed, I couldn’t move.

With rough, impossibly strong hands, Roman took a fistful of hair at the back of my neck and tilted my head to the side, exposing the column of my neck to him.

“I won’t hurt you, Aria,” he soothed, his lips brushing the thin skin just above my clavicle.

I clamped my eyes shut, a whimper slipping from my lips as I prepared for the inevitable. My only consolation was that he wouldn’t truly mark me. Like he said, he was merely protecting me by giving me his scent…

Surrounded by an audience, Roman’s mouth sealed over mylower neck. His lips curled over his teeth, protecting me from his punishing canines, but his tongue lapped at my skin. Thorough.Wet.

Complete and utter wrongness consumed my body, and his tongue stroked up the column of my neck. Tears stung the surface of my eyes, but I wouldn’t cry. I would bear it. It would be over soon and I would carry theIntonat NoctePack’s scent.

Moon Goddess help me,I pleaded, squeezing my eyes together.

Then, Roman’s grip on my hair tightened. A low, grumbling groan vibrated from his chest, and his lips peeled back. His canines dared to scrape against the sensitive skin at the base of my throat.No.

And then I sensed it.

Thundering paws. A dangerous, electrifying tension settling over the clearing. And, finally, a growl, so low and menacing that it could’ve been pulled from the pits of hell itself.

8

MALIK

Isaw red.

Crimson blood edged my vision, every instinct urging me to tear into the male in front of me, brother and alpha. To clamp my jaws around his jugular and thrash until his tongue—the same tongue that lapped atmylittle mate’s neck—hung from my jowls.

The male, still in his human form, had the sense to step away from what wasmine.She—Aria, mine—scurried backward, clutching at her throat as if he’d branded her with fire.

A new savage snarl ripped from my chest. My wolf’s vocal cords weren’t similarly ruined beyond repair.

I prowled forward, paws heavy against the soft dirt of the training grounds, and strategically positioned myself between the alpha and my female. My movements were pure animal, the human parts of my mind hidden beneath the fog of rage.

The male—no,mykin—still did not shift into his own beast. I’d kill him anyway.

Nearby, several lesser wolves snarled and growled warningsat me, but they didn’t attack. Not yet. They would wait forhissignal. I didn’t care. I’d kill him first then happily kill the rest of them. I knew that I could. For her, Iwould…

A familiar voice streamed into my head, piercing through the savage veil.Brother, what are you doing here? You’ve abandoned your training duties?

I snapped my jaws at him, inching closer to the ground to prepare to strike. I couldn’t think of a sensible response. That part of my mind had gone dormant the moment I felt my little dove’s fear spike through our bond.

I’d been overseeing a patrol of young warriors when it happened. A spindling of ice shot straight into my heart, turning the rest of my body cold. I abandoned my post in an instant, but I was too far away. There was too much distance…

I felt her revulsion. Experienced her dread as if it was my own.

And, when I crested the hill, flanks heaving and blood pumping, I saw it. My Aria held against her will in front of a host ofIntonat Nocte.My brother’s mouth at her neck, latched onto her sensitive skin. Marking her with his scent.

My control snapped.

Roman took the smallest step backward, but his lips pulled back in an easy smirk.

Malik.He used my name, calling to the man within the monster.You didn’t need to come.

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