Bastien’s POV
I close the bedroom door as quietly as I can, unsurprised to find my mate waiting on the other side. I almost smile; some things never change. My little mate seems just as prone to eavesdropping as ever, and just as bad at disguising her misbehavior. She leapt halfway across the room when I came out, and now stands with her arms coiled defensively around her body, eyeing me with apprehension.
“Still listening at doorways, little wolf?” I ask, striding forward until I’m towering over Selene and she’s forced to back away to escape my shadow.
Rather than answering, she glowers and says, “Why did you do that?”
“Do what?” I feign ignorance, “Put your pup to bed?”
“No.” She corrects me immediately. “Why did you say those things to her?”
“Because Lila wanted a bedtime story.” I shrug, watching her skirt away from me with amusement. She should know better than to run from a predator – especially her mate. I follow her at a distance, never coming close enough to make contact, but making my intentions all too clear.
You can run, little wolf. Axel rumbles, but you can’t hide.
“What did you think of it?”
Selene is beginning to look rather distraught, like a cornered rabbit with nowhere to turn. “It sounded like a fairy tale.” She replies dismissively.
“So?” I ask, taking too much pleasure in baiting her. “What could be better for a growing pup?”
“Fairy tales aren’t real.” Selene argues, a red flush working its way up her cheeks.
I study my mate for a long moment, absorbing the blend of fear and arousal muddying her pristine scent. I can hear her pounding heart and panting breaths, and see the confusion tangling her nerves. Her pupils are great black discs, surrounded by coronas of blue and violet.
Perfect. Axel purrs in my head.
I have to agree. My mate is straddling the precipice of lust and nervousness which never fails to send my blood rushing south. It’s been too long – far, far too long – since I’ve seen her this way, and far too long since we’ve mated. She’s perfectly primed, probably nearing her heat and pushed over the edge by my wolf’s provocation. But I still must wait a little while longer.
“Why aren’t you with Drake, Selene?” I question sharply.
Completely thrown off balance by the unexpected question, Selene scrabbles for an answer before feebly claiming, “I am.”
“No. You joined his pack, you let him father your child, but you aren’t together.” I assert, prowling nearer. “He hasn’t marked you, he hasn’t formally recognized Lila as his child, and he hasn’t moved you into the Pack House until now.”
“Because I didn’t want him to.” She counters, crossing her slender arms over her chest defiantly. “I didn’t want a mate – I don’t want a mate.” She amends, “Drake understands that. He respects it. There are no strings in our relationship.”
“And why are you so determined to live without a mate?” I inquire, “what is so terrible about strings?”
“Stop it, Bastien.” Selene pleads. “I know what you’re doing and it’s not going to work.”
“What am I doing?” I ask innocently, stalking her skittish movements.
“You’re trying to make me think you love me, and that you’ll accept Lila no matter her paternity – so that I’ll mate with you.” She accuses, looking over her shoulder to make sure her escape path is clear.
That was a mistake. I take the opportunity to close the distance between us, flitting forward so that I’m standing mere inches away when she turns back to face me. I clamp my hand over her mouth before she can cry out, and lock my free arm around her waist, gluing our bodies together.
“Shhh,” I croon, shifting my hand to cup her cheek, “I’m sorry, I just didn’t want you to wake Lila.”
Though her mouth is uncovered, Selene does not try to speak. She holds herself completely still, not frozen in terror, but tensed to the point of shaking – as if she’s fighting some internal battle I cannot see. I wonder if her wolf is doing as Axel is: urging her to rub herself all over my body to mark me with her scent.
“You’re right, Selene.” I declare gently, “I am trying to make you think those things” I let the words hang in the air, giving my mate time to backtrack our conversation. When she remembers the last words spoken before I surprised her, her brow furrows in consternation.
Unable to help myself, I press my lips to her wrinkled forehead with a deep chuckle. “Not because I want to mate with you – though I absolutely do.” I promise, “But because that is the way I truly feel.”
Selene is already shaking her head, tears welling in her eyes. “You’re being cruel.” She accuses.
Tracing my hand up and down Selene’s spine, I search her expression, “How, sweetheart?”
“Lying about loving someone is a horrible thing to do.” She informs me, eyes narrowed to slits. “You broke my heart once, wasn’t that enough?”
“Careful, little wolf,” I growl, tightening my grip on her small body. “I don’t mind if you eavesdrop, or push me away, or even run from me.” It takes nearly all my strength to keep the anger I’m feeling out of my voice, and I only succeed in part. “But don’t you ever, ever, accuse me of not loving you.”
I slide my hand into her long hair, tangling my fingers into a fist and tugging her head back so she’s forced to look me in the eye. “I love you, Selene.” I profess. “I have always loved you and I’m so sorry I didn’t show you enough.” I insist. “I was trying to protect myself. I didn’t think you could feel our bond without your wolf and I believed you were going to leave me.”
Selene whimpers, and I can feel her wolf trying to submit to me, trying to pull her eyes downward even as I force them up. “And I don’t care if Lila is Drake’s, or anyone else’s. I love her too.”
“You don’t even know her.” Selene hiccups, “And you don’t know me anymore. I’m not the same person I used to be.”
“I know you made her.” I proclaim, “That’s all I need to know.”
Selene’s black lashes fall shut, forcing out a few tears which slide in rivulets down her cheeks. Her full lower lip trembles dangerously, and I lower my forehead to hers, “And I do know you, Selene.” I murmur. “You’re my mate, I would know you anywhere.”
She shakes her head helplessly from right to left, never parting her skin from mine. “I want to believe you.” The words are so quiet, I can barely hear them.
“Why can’t you?” I press, massaging her nape and letting Axel’s purrs of encouragement vibrate in my chest.
Selene gathers in a deep breath, building up the courage to voice her fears. “Because it doesn’t make any sense.” She exclaims weakly. “You could have anyone. Why would you want me?”
A fresh burst of rage sets my blood to boil, sending the molten liquid surging through my veins with ruthless fury. My mother was right. I wish I could kill Garrick all over again for what he did to my mate. That anyone could put such wretched thoughts in her mind is enough to make me physically ill, and I want to go back in time and rip the wolf from limb to limb.
“Look at me, Selene.” I instruct huskily, trying to keep my grip on her body gentle even as visions of dismembering her stepfather dance in my head.
It takes a minute for her to comply, but her soaked lashes eventually part, and I plummet into pools of cerulean and lilac. “That’s it.” I praise gently, petting her everywhere our bodies connect. Forcing the connection as long as I can bear before answering her question, I finally explain, “I want you, because you are all I have ever wanted in a mate, and everything I never knew I needed.”
Selene tries to close her eyes again, but I tug lightly on her hair, prompting her to meet my gaze without reserve, “The goddess created us for each other.” I remind her, “There could never be anyone else for me. It has always been you, Selene.”
I’m not sure whether my words overwhelmed her, or her own complicated feelings are rising to the surface, but her eyes begin to overflow again. I let her bury her face in my chest now, wanting to soothe away her hurts even as I strive to push her out of her comfort zone. “I’m scared.” She breathes shakily.
“I know, baby.” I sigh, pressing my lips to her temple. “That’s how you know it’s worth it.”
As the last words leave my mouth, a loud rap sounds on the door. Without waiting for permission to enter, the wooden panel swings open, revealing Drake Cavanaugh at its center. His gaze is locked on Selene, on her position ensconced in my arms and the tears in her eyes.
I only have a moment to react. One second Drake is watching us with disgruntled disbelief, the next he’s flying at me in a fit of temper so violent his wolf bursts through his skin. I only have time to toss Selene out of the way before shifting to meet him.
Whatever his motives, the Eros Alpha just made a critical mistake. It is one thing to attack me on neutral ground or a battlefield, it is another thing entirely to let fly when my mate still stands in the line of fire. No matter what he intended, Drake Cavanaugh just gave me license to put him down – once and for all.
