C5

MAGNUS POV

"I will give you anything you want after the sacred mate bond," I say, my voice very curt.

I lean in close to him.

"Gold. Elite wolf sentinels. A huge room in the citadel. You will not have to lift a finger because the pack servants will take care of everything for you."

He looks at me with sad eyes. He hates how much control I have. He hates feeling stuck, even if every other young wolf scholar dreams of this life.

"And pups?" Stevens asks very quietly.

My eyebrows pull together. "I have not thought about it."

That is a big lie. With four brothers and the ancient moon bloodline to protect, I think about it every single day. I just do not want to say it out loud.

I see his shoulders relax a little bit. His inner wolf gets calmer. He wants a real family where he can finally feel loved.

"What were you thinking about just now, young wolf?" I ask, my deep voice rumbling across the table.

Stevens jerks in his chair, blinking his eyes very fast. "Nothing, Alpha Magnus."

My mouth kicks up in a knowing smirk, but I let it go.

The Moonkeep Chef walks over to our table, and I order his food for him like I always do. "He will have the cooked salmon, no green toppings, with the truffle rice —"

"Actually," Stevens cuts in quickly, lifting his chin up high. "I prefer the thick meat steak, medium rare, with garlic butter sauce and the crispy roasted potatoes."

The servant hesitates, his eyes darting between us like a tiny rabbit caught between two huge Alphas.

My jaw clenches tight. My grey eyes get very narrow, like heavy steel gates slamming shut. Then, I give a slow nod to the servant. "Make it exactly as he said."

The servant runs away fast. I stare across the table, waiting for the boy to look away.

My eyes glint with gold. "Testing your limits now, are we?"

"Just letting you know I have my own preferences," Stevens answers back, trying to sound sweet.

"I know you do, young wolf. You are completely terrible at hiding them from me."

"I did not know I was supposed to hide them," he shoots back, pushing his water glass away.

My mouth twitches with dark amusement. "Keep talking like that, and I will think you enjoy being a bad, disobedient wolf."

"Maybe I do," he whispers, looking right into my eyes even though his pulse is going super fast.

My eyes get very dark, but the servant comes back with the fresh bread, breaking the tight air between us. We eat our food in total silence. It is the same heavy, suffocating quiet that always sits between us. No laughs. No playing around. Just the sound of forks and knives.

By the time we walk out of the Crimson Moon Lodge, the forest air is cold and crisp, but the anger inside my chest is burning hotter. Stevens reaches into his pocket and pulls out his phone, his fingers moving fast.

He thinks I do not see the screen. Another message flashes from Noah Tiedemann.

Noah: I will pick you up Thursday night, young wolf. I cannot wait to touch your soft skin and make you scream my name.

A tiny smile creeps onto Stevens's lips before he can stop it.

That is the final straw. My wolf snaps completely.

I grab him by the waist and spin him around hard. My big palm hits his lower back, throwing him back until his spine slams straight into the stone wall of the alleyway. My massive body crowds his smaller one, my hard chest pressing into him, heat radiating off my skin like a hot furnace.

I growl. A real, feral alpha growl shakes my throat.

"I do not like it when you are distracted from your Alpha," I roar softly.

My lips crash down on his before he can even take a single breath.

It is not a sweet kiss. It is not gentle at all. It is brutal, possessive, and punishing.

My mouth takes everything from him, my tongue pushing past his teeth, claiming his mouth with raw, vicious hunger. His small hands fly up to grab my suit jacket, his back arching into my chest as I press my heavy thigh right between his legs. Every single touch makes my inner wolf go crazy.

I sink my teeth into his bottom lip, tugging it hard until he lets out a soft gasp, his legs shaking like they are going to give out. He is totally wrecked, panting for air, his eyes dizzy. When I finally pull back, his lips are bright red and swollen.

My thumb rubs his hot cheekbone, and I growl low into his ear. "Is that enough romance for you, Stevens?"

He cannot answer me. His throat is too tight, his mouth completely ruined from my brutal kiss.

"And another thing," I say, my voice turning black and dangerous. "I do not like it when you look at other male wolves. You belong to the Silverclaw Throne. You look at me. Remember that."

I step back, fixing my suit jacket like nothing happened, my face turning back into cold ice.

But Stevens just stands there against the stone wall, his heartbeat hammering loud, his lips bruised, his whole body shaking. He looks completely lost between his secret messages and his Alpha's dangerous touch.

STEVENS POV

The glossy marble floors of the Moonrest Royal Lodge shine under the big gold lights, and each step of my shoes clicks against the ground like a countdown to something bad.

Noah's hand sits way too low on my back, his fingers rubbing the bottom of my shirt as he pulls me through the grand lobby. My spine goes totally rigid under my fine clothes. I chose a bright crimson silk shirt tonight that sits tight on my waist, and Noah's eyes have not left my chest since I got into his car.

I swallow the bitter lump in my throat.

This was a massive mistake.

I knew it the second I saw the greasy hunger in Noah's eyes. His texts were so charming, full of promises about long talks and real affection. But right now? Now I feel like a weak deer in the woods, and Noah is a predator ready to sink his teeth into my neck.

"Mmm," Noah hums, his lips brushing against my hair. "You look absolutely delicious tonight, young wolf."

My stomach turns over with total disgust. Even when Alpha Magnus was completely angry and possessive in the alleyway, he never made me feel unsafe like this. He never made my skin crawl. When Magnus held me tight, I felt protected. I knew his big arms would kill anyone who tried to hurt me.

But with Noah, there is no safety at all. His touch has no honor and no alpha restraint.

Noah's hand dips even lower, squeezing my hip tight. My jaw locks.

"Where are we going?" I ask, trying to make my voice sound light. "You promised me good food. I thought we were going to eat dinner first."

Noah lets out a dirty chuckle, pulling a sleek black keycard out of his pocket. "We are going straight to the royal suite, boy. We can order food to the room later... after we play around."

My throat closes up fast.

God, I was so stupid. Of course he didn't want to talk to me. All those sweet messages were just bait to get me into his bed. A huge wave of shame hits my chest. No. I am not doing this. I want to go home.

But before I can pull away from his grip, the heavy gold elevator doors slide open. A massive chest wrapped in a dark charcoal suit fills the space.

My heart stops completely.

Alpha Magnus.

He stands there like a giant warrior king. His brown hair is slicked back, his sharp face looks like granite, and his grey eyes are locked right onto me. Then, his gaze drops down to Noah's hand resting on my waist.

The grey in his eyes turns into a terrifying storm of golden alpha rage. I shiver, goosebumps breaking out over my neck.

"Alpha Magnus," Noah stammers, his voice turning small and shaking. "What a... surprise."

Magnus does not blink. His big body vibrates with pure, deadly violence. His fists are balled tight at his sides, and when he speaks, his voice is a low, lethal rumble that shakes the floorboards.

"Take your dirty hands off my mate."

Noah swallows hard, his hand twitching on my back but he is too proud to move it away. "Technically, he is not your marked mate yet, Alpha —"

Magnus moves faster than a lightning bolt.

One second Noah is standing next to me, and the next second Magnus has him pinned flat against the gold elevator frame. Magnus's giant hand is wrapped around Noah's throat, squeezing hard. Noah's feet scramble wildly against the marble floor, looking for balance.

"I will not say it again," Magnus growls, his grip tightening until Noah's face turns bright red.

"Magnus!" I gasp, grabbing his heavy sleeve, panic making my chest tight. "The Elite Wolf Sentinels... someone is going to call the Alpha Council!"

Magnus lets out a cold laugh that sounds like knives scraping together. "No one throws the Future Alpha King out of his own royal lodge."

Noah chokes, his eyes bulging out of his head.

Magnus uses his free hand to pull out his phone, typing fast before speaking into it. "Egon, get to the lobby right now. Drag Noah Tiedemann out of the territory. He is banned from every single piece of land owned by the Silverclaw Pack."

Noah makes a horrible, strangled noise in his throat.

"And cancel his position with the Moonsong Bard Guild," Magnus adds, his eyes never leaving Noah's face. "He is no longer allowed near my young wolf."

Magnus grins, a scary, sharp glint in his eyes as he reaches into Noah's jacket and plucks the black keycard away. "Not anymore. This room belongs to me now."

My pulse is racing super fast as Magnus steps back, brushing off his sleeves like Noah was nothing but dirty mud. Two big Elite Wolf Sentinels appear out of the shadows, grabbing Noah by his arms and dragging him across the floor. Noah tries to yell threats, but Magnus ignores him completely.

The lobby goes totally quiet. The heat radiating off Magnus's body feels like a hot summer sun.

"Step into the elevator, Stevens," Magnus commands, his voice low, heavy, and unyielding.

There is no room to argue with him. My feet move on their own, following his shadow inside the small gold box. The doors slide shut behind us, locking us away from the world. I lean my back against the cool metal wall, trying to breathe, but Magnus stands right in front of me with his big arms crossed over his chest.

His eyes are super narrow as they scan my body, staying for a very long time on my tight silk shirt and my exposed throat.

"Did you come to this lodge to give your body away to a weak wolf like Noah?" he growls, his voice dropping into a dangerous register.

I flinch at his harsh words, but I force my chin up. "That is not true, Alpha Magnus!"

His jaw tightens, a big muscle jumping in his cheek.

"If that is not true," Magnus snarls, taking a giant step closer until his chest touches mine, "then why are you dressed like a toy? Showing off your neck like you are begging for a male wolf to touch you?"

The words hit me like a physical slap, but I refuse to cry. I look right back into his furious eyes.

"Because I wanted to feel like I matter to someone!" I scream at him, the raw truth bursting out of my chest. "I wanted one night of being wanted before I marry a cold stone who treats me like a pack treaty! You never touch me! You never look at me! What was I supposed to do?"

His eyes turn into pure gold. "So you thought you would lay down for the very first rogue wolf who sent you nice messages?"

"You told me it was okay!" I shout back, my voice shaking with anger and sadness. "You said it yourself five years ago at the shrine! You said I could have little crushes before the ceremony! You said you would not fault me for it!"

Magnus takes another step, pinning my body completely against the metal wall, his hot breath hitting my face.

"I lied," he growls.