LOGINAva’s povMilrac’s words “Rest for an hour” hung between us like a dare neither of us wanted to take.I stayed pressed against his chest, feeling the rapid thud of his heart against mine. The fresh mark on my neck pulsed hotter with every breath. Through the bond I felt his craving crash into me, raw and endless, the same slow burn that had tormented us both finally demanding to be fed.“I do not want to rest,” I whispered against his throat.His arms tightened around me. A low growl rumbled in his chest, vibrating straight into my bones. “Thank the goddess.”He lifted me again, my legs locking around his waist as he carried me to the massive bed. The crimson silk sheets were cool against my back when he laid me down, but the heat of his body followed instantly, covering me completely. His mouth found the mark on my neck first, fangs scraping gently over the sensitive bite. Pleasure shot through me like liquid fire. I arched up with a gasp, fingers digging into his shoulders.“You fee
Ava’s povMilrac’s mouth stayed pressed to the fresh mark on my neck, slow and deliberate, as the last alpha vanished into the trees. The courtyard below us was empty now, silver chains scattered like forgotten warnings on the stone. Pleasure rolled through the bond in warm waves, each stroke of his tongue pulling a soft sound from my throat that I could not hold back.He lifted his head just enough to look at me. Gold still edged his eyes, but the hunger there had sharpened into something quieter, more dangerous. “They ran,” he said, voice low. “But they will be back by morning with more chains and more lies.”I slid my hands up his chest, feeling the steady beat of his heart now perfectly matched to mine. “Then we use tonight to make sure they cannot break us.”His fingers flexed on my waist. Through the bond I caught the echo of his thoughts, dark and unfiltered. *Want you alone.* *Want to feel the mark while no one is watching.*He did not speak it out loud. Instead he lifted
Ava’s povMy mother’s words hung in the air like smoke after a gunshot.“They are gone. For now. But the northern packs are already moving. They heard the bond completed.”Milrac’s arms stayed locked around me. His chest rose and fell against mine, steady but fast. The fresh mark on my neck throbbed in time with his pulse. Every beat sent a new wave of him through me, his thoughts brushing mine like fingers on bare skin.Let them come, he sent silently. I want to feel you use the power while I still have you to myself.I tilted my head, letting my lips brush the edge of his jaw. “We have minutes, not hours.”His hand slid up my back, slow and deliberate, fingers tracing the line of my spine through the torn dress. “Then I will make every second count.”He pulled me closer until my body fit perfectly against his. The bond flared hotter. I felt his want curl around mine, dark and patient, the same slow burn we had both fought since the first time he touched me in the hall downstairs. Hi
Ava’s povMilrac’s teeth sank deeper.Pain and pleasure crashed together so hard my vision blurred. The half mark flared white hot, then snapped into something complete, something alive. I felt him everywhere at once. His thoughts brushed mine like smoke, raw and unfiltered. The bond flooded open.I have wanted this since the photo.Do not fight it, little scientist. You are mine and I am yours.I gasped against his chest, fingers digging into his shoulders. His blood still coated my hands but the wound was already closing, the bond knitting him back together through me. My wolf howled in triumph, merging with his until I could not tell where I ended and he began.“Finish it,” I whispered, voice breaking.His fangs pressed all the way in, sealing the mark. Heat poured down my spine, pooling low and heavy. The slow burn that had tormented me for days finally ignited into something I could not name. I arched into him, chasing the feeling, needing more.Then Grandmother’s voice sliced t
Ava’s povMy mother stood in the doorway, pale and shaking, her eyes fixed on the fresh bite at my neck. Milrac did not step away from me. His hand stayed splayed across my waist, thumb stroking slow circles that made my skin burn even through the torn dress.“Mom,” I breathed. “You should not be here. The doctors—”“They can wait.” Her voice cracked but held steady. “I had to tell you myself before she arrives. The bond does not make you a weapon. It makes you the only shield left against what is coming.”Milrac’s fingers tightened on my waist. “Speak clearly. No more half truths.”She took one shaky step inside, ignoring the guards behind her. “Your real father was not just any hybrid. He was the last blood witch who carried the goddess’s own curse. The packs hunted his kind because one bonded pair could rewrite pack law with a thought. Your grandmother knew. She married me off to Brent to hide the bloodline. When you were born she saw the mark on your skin and planned everything. T
Ava’s povThe door rattled again, harder this time. “Open up, Alpha! The elders will not wait!”Milrac’s mouth stayed pressed to the tiny wound on my neck, his tongue tracing slow, deliberate circles over the spot where his fang had broken skin. The bond flared hotter with every lick, threading fire through my veins and straight into my core. My wolf purred. I hated how much I arched into him.“Say the word,” he breathed against my throat, voice raw. “One word and I finish it right here. Full mark. No more half measures.”My fingers tightened in his hair, pulling him closer even as the pounding on the door grew louder. “They will break it down any second. And you are still bleeding from Silas’s bullet.”He lifted his head just enough for our eyes to lock. Gold swirled in his stormy gaze, hungry and furious. “Let them try. I have waited too long to feel you like this.”His hand slid from my throat down my side, fingers digging into the curve of my waist through the torn dress. The slow
Ava’s povChaos exploded across the bridge.Milrac shoved me harder behind him, blood still pouring from his shoulder. “Stay down.”Silas fired again. The bullet grazed Milrac’s arm. He did not flinch. Instead he roared and lunged, slamming the old man into the railing with one hand while the other
Ava’s povThe clock on the nightstand glowed 2:17 a.m. in soft red numbers. I had not slept more than twenty minutes at a time. Every time my eyes drifted shut, Milrac’s voice echoed in my head.“You are mine now, Ava.”My body ached from the beating, but the real pain was deeper. Inside. My wolf w
Ava’s povI stood frozen in the vast hall long after Milrac’s footsteps had faded up the grand staircase. The echo of his final words still rang in my ears like a curse I could not shake.“You are mine now, Ava. And I do not share what is mine.”My legs trembled. Blood continued to drip from my chi
Ava’s povA heavy silence swallowed the room the moment those words left his mouth. “She is my wife now.”My whole body went rigid even though every inch of it screamed in pain. Blood dripped from my split lip onto the cold marble floor, warm and sticky. I could barely see through the red haze co







