Page 86 of Bear
“Mess? What kind of mess?” I gripped the salad that I had a feeling I would not want to eat.
“Probably with pulling chunks of fur off some animals, ripping clothes off a vampire, maybe some blood? Either way, it’s all in good fun. Everyone taps out when they’ve had enough.”
I could only let out a sound that resembled a toad croaking escape my throat.
Chapter Thirty
Bear
Everyonehadbeenpushingmy buttons all day. The snide remarks about how sweet my mate was. How precious and small. They all wanted her. To touch her, talk to her, to see her mark.
She was patient with them, answering their questions about how she was doing. If I was treating her right as a mate. Why the hell would they ask her such questions? Did they question my loyalty to her? Did they not think I protected her with every fiber of my being?
They all looked at her, talked sweetly, softly, like she was something precious to them.
I fucking hated it.
She was mine.
This was why I didn’t want to bring her from my cave yet. I knew I wouldn’t be able to control my possessiveness over her. We have just bonded. Other mated shifters had more time with their mate.
That damn demon was forcing me to stay close to Tajah. If something happened, I needed to know that the witch and warlock would be close by to take care of her.
And on top of it all, my mate and I must consume heat and rut suppressors until she healed.
Throughout the morning, I desperately attempted to maintain composure. I meticulously donned a façade, concealing my true emotions, all while suppressing the furious storm brewing within me. The anger simmered as Morpheus, with insistence, offered his assistance in assembling the boxing ring.
He was by my side, his feline scent aggravating my nose.
My mate was still trying to understand our bond. She could only feel the surface of my emotions. She could not dig deep inside me unless she concentrated, and I didn’t want her to dig deep. Not now, not when she was battling the demon inside her.
We had all the time in the world to figure out our bond.
I wanted her to relax as much as possible.
But then this mother fucker had to mess with me.
Morpheus’ taunting, batting his paw with my grizzly, and now I was angry. Too much pent-up frustration, anger, and worry was now ready to be unleashed.
I shifted and made sure Anaki took care of my mate as I climbed into the ring. I was ready to take on Morpheus and teach him, as well as everyone else, a lesson. I would not kill him, but I would make sure he knew not to mess with me.
Two more unmated males entered the ring. All three were unarmed, circling me, jumping at me from all sides.
Do they really think they can do anything to me?It was comical.
My animal was pissed but not worried in the slightest. My brothers were weak, and if they wanted to test me, we would teach them a lesson.
My grizzly stood tall, its brown fur bristling in anticipation. Its head raised high, ears perked, and its eyes narrowed in focus. Its claws were unsheathed, and its teeth bared. The crowd around the perimeter of the ring was loud and wild, many standing to get a better view, holding beers and popcorn. Money was being tossed around, and there was an air of excitement and tension as everyone waited for the fight to begin.
Damnit, this was all planned.
“Come down here and fight me!” Morpheus and two other males grabbed my leg. I easily shook them off, and they flew out of the ring.
Everyone laughed, and I huffed, letting out a roar.
I guess if we were going to have a fight, let’s have a fight.
My mate was sitting in the middle of our friends. Anaki on one side, Journey and Delilah surrounding them. They all waved, but my mate was sitting in shock with her mouth hanging open.
