Page 47 of Challenged Mate
The warmth in my core gave me my answer.
No.
I needed to put a stop to this.
And I needed to do itnow.
“I’m going to mate your alpha, Asher,” I tried to use reason to pull him out of his dominating instincts. “How are you going to handle it when his scent is all over me? You need to get ahold of yourself.”
A rumble billowed in Asher’s throat, but he stopped his advance with a foot of space still between us. My hands were an inch from his chest. They ached with desire to touch him.
“The alpha is not Stanley,” Asher growled. “You shouldn’t have let him touch you.”
“It was one dance!”
He bared his teeth.
My hands fell to my side. They curled into fists. “I don’t care if we have a fated bond, Asher. You don’t get to act like a neanderthal. Youcan’tact like a neanderthal. Not unless you want everyone to find out about us.”
On my second day in Alaska, I’d confirmed with Chase that the spell he’d used to mask the scent of the mating bond between me and Asher was still in tact. No one could smell the link between us. But that wouldn’t matter if they witnessed Asher’s possessive behavior. There was only one reason a male would act this way.
“Then you need to keep your distance from other males,” Asher barked back.
I threw my arms in the air, exasperated. “Again, what’s going to happen when I mate the alpha? You can’t act like this. Get it together.”
Asher’s muscles tensed. I wasn’t afraid he’d hurt me—the nature of bonds made that impossible—but I was afraid of what he would do to someone else if he didn’t figure out how to control himself. Otherwise, it would only be a matter of time before the entire Wilds Pack knew about us, which would only complicate my impending mating with their alpha.
“Stanley is bad news, Blair.” Asher’s voice softened, but his body remained tense and coiled, ready to be unleashed at the slightest provocation.
I matched his tone, “Understood. I’ll stay away from him. Okay?” That was easy enough to promise. Stanley had acted like a decent person tonight, but I had no plans to befriend him. The dance had been a one-time thing, fueled by my irritation at learning Chase had kept the fact he was the Wilds beta from me.
Asher stared down at me, his breathing ragged. Finally, a long exhale billowed from his nostrils and he dipped his chin. “Thank you.”
“No problem.”
Silence fell, but it wasn’t uncomfortable.
In fact, I’d say it was the most content I’d felt since the moment I stepped onto Wilds Pack territory.
My eyes drank Asher in, roving over him without the slightest hesitation.
Shit.I’d missed him. Like…reallymissed him.
This is so not good.
I’d been trying to ignore how badly I wanted to see Asher. I’d convinced myself I was close to mastering the pull of our fated mate bond.
But I was a liar.
“How have you been?” The rumble of his voice made my skin pebble.
“Okay,” I told him. He shot me a doubtful look, so I added, “The days are getting better, but they aren’t great.”
It was his turn for his eyes to run over me. They left a smoldering path of desire in their wake. “Chase said you’ve accessed your magic.”
I nodded, internally preening at the happy approval shining from his gaze.
This needs to stop.
