All Chapters of The Mate Hunt: Chapter 21 - Chapter 30

Maeve“It only lets you choose whose name is on the cage,” He contiunedThe charming mask Darius wore slipped away in an instant. All that remained was the Alpha beneath, no pretense, no softness. Possessive. Arrogant. The kind of power that believed it could lay claim to anything it desired, simply because it was strong enough.I turned my face toward him, daring him to read the hatred in my eyes. “If you wanted me willing, you should have kept pretending to be kind.”Darius’s gaze flicked to my lips, his eyes dark. “I never offered kindness,” he said, voice low and cold. “Only a better cage.”His fingers tightened at my throat, just enough to remind me who held the advantage.I snapped my head forward, slamming my forehead into his nose. He grunted, sharp and unguarded, and his grip loosened. Instantly, I wrenched one hand free, reaching beneath my tunic for my hidden blade. The second knife flashed in the dim forest light, slicing a hot line across his ribs.Blood soaked into his s

Maeve“Yes,” I breathed, unable to hide the way my pulse leapt beneath his touch.Ronan’s thumb circled the spot on my throat, slow, possessive. The bond between us thrummed, thick and electric, as if my veins had been carved into tuning forks for his want.“You’d put yourself in another man’s hands just to avoid mine,” he murmured, voice tight with hunger, “because you hate being touched by me.”I set my jaw. “I considered saving my sister.”His eyes narrowed, that golden fire simmering. “And if he’d asked you to kiss him for her freedom?”Anger flared, sharp as a blade. “I would have cut out his tongue.”His mouth quirked, dangerous and delighted. “That answer may have saved his life.”“You were about to kill him.”“I still might.”He leaned in. The distance between our mouths vanished, only a breath, a promise, separated us. I could smell blood on him, feel the heat pouring off his skin, sense the anger trembling just beneath the surface.My own body betrayed me; every nerve lit up

RonanMaeve started to run again. And without a beat, I followed. The forest bent around me willingly. I knew how to move through it without disturbing the branches, how to place my feet so the leaves did not betray me, and how to allow my scent to drift in one direction while I approached from another.She ran north, heart pounding, until she dropped behind a fallen tree. I paused, several yards out, felt her breathing shift, go shallow and quiet. She was hiding. Clever. If I wanted, I could walk straight to her.Instead, I circled the clearing, letting her think she’d set the game.A flicker of anticipation sparked in the bond... she wanted me to take the bait. Her trap. I scanned the trees and spotted it: a thick branch bent low, tied with a strip of dark cloth, sharpened stakes along its length. Step across the hidden line, and it would swing straight for my chest.I almost admired her craft enough to trigger it. Almost.Instead, I stepped around, slipped a hand beneath the branc

RonanMaeve retreated... one step, two, before she realized I was guiding her. She stopped, eyes sharp, suddenly wary. Behind her, the trail narrowed, flanked by a wall of thorns on one side and a steep rock face on the other. She’d backed herself into the only clearing nearby without a way out.She glanced over her shoulder, saw her mistake, and stiffened.“You chose this clearing,” she accused.“I chose you.” My voice was low, rough with hunger.“That isn’t romantic.”“I wasn’t trying to be.”But the bond betrayed me, a tightness in my chest, a flicker of something I hadn’t wanted to name. I never learned how to offer softness, or gentle words, or flowers.What I offered was pursuit, protection, the promise that no other would ever touch her so long as I breathed. Dark things. Honest things.Maeve raised her blade, daring. “Come closer.”My wolf howled in answer. I closed the distance in a heartbeat.She struck, wild. I caught her wrist, and she punched my jaw with her free hand, he

MaeveThe bond was a living thing inside my chest, a second heartbeat that didn't belong to me.I felt him. His want. His hunger. The vast, consuming void that had tracked me through three territories and three years. It pressed against my ribs like a caged animal, and the worst part... the part that made my throat tight and my hands shake... was that something inside me answered it.Ronan.His name rose unbidden in my mind, and through the tether, I felt his satisfaction curl like smoke.Then he moved. Not forward. Not against me. Down.I didn't understand at first. My leg was still hooked over his hip, my back still pressed to cold stone, his hand still warm on my thigh. Then his grip shifted, guiding my leg free, and his body descended.His knees hit the ground.I stared. My breath caught somewhere between my lungs and my throat. Ronan... the wolf who has my sister locked up, who'd torn my tunic like paper, who'd promised no other would touch me so long as he breathed... was kneeli