Kiss At the River

“He’s here!” Milla perks up just as his scent reaches my nose. She recognizes it even before I do. “Our mate! Tell him you want to leave with him. Tell him you accept the bond!”

It takes all my strength to hold her back. She’s too close to close to the surface, threatening to take control and shift. Milla has always been willful, but her strength has almost doubled since finding Rafe.

Digging my heels into the rocky river bank, I clench my fists as we battle for control.

“Calm down, Milla!”

“No. It hurts. It hurts so much. It’s unbearable,” she whimpers. I feel it, too. The pain from rejecting the connection. I imagine it’s much worse for him. They say the recipient of rejection always feels worse than the one who initiated it.

I’m hurting him.

“You’re hurting both of us,” Milla snips before going silent under my control.

With her tamed, the pain lessens, and I can finally breathe again. At least, until he emerges from the trees, his dark hair disheveled and sweat glistening on