THE ALPHA’S BRUTAL CLAIM
"You wanted me to fail," she yelled, her voice shaking with rage and desperation. "You wanted me to prove you right."
"No." My voice was a low, feral growl. "I wanted to know if you'd stand your ground. And you did." You stood your ground, held my life in your hand, and chose to keep it breathing. That was all I needed to see.
Her defiance was a thin wall, her trembling betraying her. "This doesn't make me yours."
I leaned in, my lips a hair's breadth from hers. The scent of her… of wood smoke and sweat, and something wild and unmistakably Lyra… filled my senses. "You already are," I whispered against her lips. "Even in your hate."
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Lyra, the last warrior-heir of Ravengarde, detests Kael, the cruel enemy alpha who murdered her family, burned her castle, and claimed her as his ruthless spoils. Imprisoned in his domineering Shadowfen Keep, her rage is a burning blaze, battling the forbidden, wild linkage that brings her closer with each bitter glance and each jealous touch. She promises to kill him, break free from his shadow magic, even as his control ignites a deadly, forbidden desire in her. But when Lyra learns the horrible truth… that the betrayal that had destroyed her clan was not schemed by Kael, but by her own ruthless bloodline in a lust for power… her world shatters. Every sadistic phrase, every brutal touch she endured under Kael's command now bears an abject truth: the enemy that she had sworn to kill was, in reality, protecting her, and is now very likely the only one who can save her from a much darker fate than his claim.