Ian's pov.

What?"  I blurted out, "What do you mean no? Didn't you hear what I just told you?"

"I heard and understood everything perfectly." She said with her hands crossed. 

"I don't think you did...."

"You need a mate that can support you, I can be just that." She continued without missing a beat. 

" But you know nothing about Northern politics!"

"I'm a fast learner."

She had such fierce determination blazing through her eyes, reaching straight to Griffin who was revolting within me to give our mate everything we had and more. 

But I had to do everything I could to stay incharge of the wheels instead of taking the backseat. 

I have no reason to be entertaining this conversation, You are already drained tonight; I'll give you a time to think about it, Accept my rejection and I'll do everything I can to ensure your freedom and that you are reunited with one of the existing Southern packs. They are actually doing far better than you think.

" And how can you be so sure about that?" 

 “Because I'm making sure of it, personally.” 

She looked at me eyes swimming in distrust.

"Why are you doing all of this? I'm sure your buddies wouldn't be happy to hear that, Why are you risking yourself for no gain?"

Through her words I heard the final cry of a baby reaching me even after so many years.

"You don't need to know...go to sleep..."

I looked away from her but I could feel her eyes brushing every surface of me, fanning a fire I'd been desperate to quench since I met her.

"Where will you sleep then?" It might just be Griffen trying to take over but she almost sounded, concerned?

"On the bed obviously-" It's just struck me that there was only one bed here, I had called for her to be brought here without much thought and-

"I'll be taking the bed then-"

She said laying tossing the duvet To a side and laying down her legs positioned in a way that gave me too many ideas. 

The way she tilted her head to look at me, I could tell it was intentional. 

This woman... 

I laid on the other side of the bed as far away as I could, thankfully I couldn't inhale her scent-a fact that both relieved and frustrated me at the same time-but I could still see her and smell the artificial albeit not off-putting vanilla scent Elena had bathed her with. She must have misunderstood why I asked for her to be brought here, though I'm guessing that's what everyone is thinking. 

Selena-ugh, even her name is so- kept her eyes on me, wide awake like she could keep them like that all night. 

"Go to sleep, " I said for about the third time tonight. 

She raised an eyebrow. 

"You sleep first..."She said her voice sharpening and her eyes transforming into slits. 

The tension that radiated from her was palpable, moments like this reminded me that she was a slave. And she had probably been a child when she was captured, growing up in a world where each day felt like walking on thorns she couldn't pluck out. 

Most of the Slaves I met shook while keeping contacts with my feet-though that was an affect I had on almost everyone except the other Grand Alpha's-but she was confident, she said what was on her mind without hesitation. 

Fearless

"Just as a mate should be..."Griffin said to me with deep admiration. "...Take her, Claim her-"

"Enough, Griffin" I said but my resistance didn't sound as strong as it should be. 

"You'll find someone else someday..." The moment I said the words Griffin provided an image of her with another man and I had the urge to commit murder. 

No .. no .. 

She blinked her eyes at me. 

"You're my mate," she said matter of fact, like that solved all the complications between us, "I don't want anyone else,"

Moon goddess help me. 

"Why are you being so stubborn?"

"I could say the same thing to you!" She suddenly crawled over to my side of the bed until the only distance between us was the duvet and our clothes. "I want to rip off your clothes right now and have you but you're acting like you're not as affected as I am,"

There was no hope for me then, maybe this was what I was hoping for when I commanded for her to be brought to my Chambers. I had just Deceived myself into believing that it was just for her protection in case they tried anything. 

In seconds that dress hrr had been giving me a window to get skin for the past hour was shred to confetti and my clothes were all over the floor. She was strong tearing them off like they were wet tissue, considering she had a shackle on... 

Right that d*mn thing. 

I raised my hand to her back and watched her flinch, that cut something deep inside me.

How many times had she been hurt that way for her body to react so reflexively?

I touched the vile metal, recognizing my Alpha aura the moon magic on the shackle released and it fell to the floor in two pieces.Her scent hit me like a tidal wave, Lavender, the earth and something more complicated that instantly made me as hard as a brick. She took a deep breath, there were prominent purplish bruises on her neck. 

"Do they hurt?"

Why was I asking as If the shackle was on my neck?

"They're supposed to, that's kind of the point right?" She reached for one of my pecs and squeezed. It would have hurt so bad if I wasn't turned on out of my mind.

Instead it felt amazing.

Honestly everything with her felt amazing for no darn reason, was this what a mate bond felt like? Wasn't it too intense? If I went ahead with this would I be able to forget about her the way I need to, will i-?

"No, I think we shouldn't..."

I have a full body shiver as her tongue flicked across the pink crown of my manhood.

"We should...?" 

Ugh, she was teasing me.

I sat up, fisting a handful of her gorgeous red hair before slamming my lips against hers.