Page 27 of Depraved
“You fit. I promise. You’ll always fit with me.” I put a fist over my heart, showing Jonah exactly where he fits.
He shakes his head, his mouth a hard slash. He doesn’t believe me. Fuck.
How do you prove you love someone? How do you show them they’re not just worthy but worshipped? How can you make them believe you when they’ve already decided it’s not true?
“Why would you think you don’t fit?” I reach out, carefully, tenderly, my fingertips going to the edge of the white t-shirt one of the healers put him in. I touch the bite mark at the junction of his neck and shoulder, where it emerges above the collar. “You’re mine, and I’m yours—”
“No. You’rehis. He marked you.”
Shit. The force of his anger makes me mentally trip and tumble backward. The truth of his statement squeezes my heart. Our mate bond is one-sided. It isn’t whole.
Add his mark,my wolf urges, wanting his bite, wanting her neck to bleed for Jonah to prove our love.
“Well, mark me back,” I tilt my head to the side, impulsively offering him the unblemished half of my neck. “I never wanted Black’s mark anyway.” That’s the truth, though even as I say it, a little bit of guilt creeps in because now … though I won’t say it aloud, I’m a tiny bit attached to the bite Black gave me. It’s brought out a different side in him occasionally, one that’s tender and doting in his own strange assholey way, a side I never suspected existed. A hidden side that seems reserved only for me.
“That’s a death sentence if I ever heard one.” Jonah’s bitter tone cuts right through my secretive thoughts.
Fuck. I straighten. He’s right. Blackwouldkill him. The alpha seems resigned to sharing … to an extent. But what would he do if someone undermined him in front of the pack?
We did it once but survived only because Black marked me, and I’d just marked Jonah. But I don’t think alphas give second chances.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t think about how mad he’d get.” I gnash my teeth as I try to come up with some other solution, but my mind fails me. “What do you want to do? If you don’t fit here with the Lobos, then neither do I. I go where you go. You want to run again?” I ask softly.
But Jonah stiffens and doesn’t answer me, eyes wide and focused on something over my shoulder.
Goosebumps creep up my spine as caramel and woodsmoke suddenly fills the air.
Shit. Black’s behind me. What did he hear me say?
8
JONAH
Alpha Maddox is beyond pissed.His pupils are blown out. I watch him struggle to hold back his wolf. His dark eyes don’t completely morph but become ringed in gold. It makes them glow as his canines elongate.
He heard every word Elena said.
I’m suddenly ice-cold, my body going haywire as I watch the alpha who just stepped into the room a moment ago turn and shut the door. The lock clicks ominously, causing Elena’s shoulders to hunch for a moment.
My pulse thuds in my ears as he stalks slowly toward us in his designer suit.
He doesn’t run. No, he drags it out, letting us feel his fury from across the room.
Next to me, Elena tucks her legs in closer, making herself smaller. Even my defiant mate can’t completely hide from the power given off by the alpha of the biggest pack in the world.
Black makes eye contact with me for a moment, and my head swiftly bows. Unlike with Pluto, where I wanted to and was even able to resist for a second, I don’t want to defy this alpha. Neither my human mind nor my wolf are up for it. He’s going to punish us. And this time, it’s going to be worse than before, my conscience whispers.
I know he went easy on us with our prior punishments, but right now, he looks more like a demon than a shifter king. A low growl from him makes me flinch.
Mouse whines, and his avatar appears on the comforter. He tilts his head to the side, proffering his neck for the alpha’s teeth. I do the same.
It must be the right thing to do because that fiery wall of fury diverts to the side as Black’s gaze shifts over to my mate—our mate?—to Elena.
But dammit, I don’t want him turning that fury on her.
It’s too late. He rounds the base of the bed and stalks to her side. With one hand, he reaches forward and roughly grabs onto her chin, tilting it up so she’s gazing at him.
I’m torn between the need to protect my mate and the need to submit. Both urges tug at me until I’m locked up by my own instincts, muscles at a stand-still.
