10. Rune
TEN
RUNE
Rune's eyes snapped open to the pale morning light filtering through the windows of his private chambers, but sleep had been nothing more than a cruel illusion.
He'd spent most the night staring at the ornate ceiling, replaying every devastating second of what had transpired on his dining room table.
The way Maple had felt beneath him—soft, warm, and perfectly responsive.
The way she'd shattered so completely in his arms. The way her inner walls had clenched around his cock and milked him as he'd spilled himself deep inside her, marking her in the most primal way possible.
Such a foolish mistake.
But his dragon had snarled all night, a constant rumble of disapproval that plagued him until sleep had finally pulled him under from the tiresome internal war.
Rune dragged himself from the tangled sheets, his body aching with exhaustion and unfulfilled need.
The mate bond pulsed beneath his skin like a second heartbeat, stronger now, more insistent.
Every fiber of his being screamed at him to go to her, to finish what they'd started, to mark her skin and bind them together permanently.
The memory of his father's hollow body in the mahogany casket crashed through his mind with brutal clarity. The way the once-mighty Alpha had withered away after his mate's death, reduced to a shell of broken grief and expensive whiskey.
That was exactly why Rune couldn't complete the mate bond. He had sworn over that grave that he would never allow himself to become so dependent on another soul that losing them would destroy him.
But last night, when Maple had looked up at him with those green eyes dark with desire and whispered that she needed him, every wall he'd built over five centuries had crumbled to ash.
His dragon had surged forward with triumphant possession, and for those perfect, consuming moments, nothing had existed except the feeling of coming home.
That's precisely the problem.
He'd been frighteningly close to carrying her upstairs to his private chambers, to laying her across his own bed and worshipping every inch of her skin until she was screaming his name and begging to complete the bond.
His dragon had been pushing him to mark, to make the bond permanent and unbreakable.
The urge had been so overwhelming that for a terrifying instant, he'd almost surrendered completely.
Then reality had crashed back. The image of his father's funeral. The sound of dirt hitting the coffin. The promise he'd made to himself never to become that vulnerable.
So he'd run like a coward.
Rune stalked to his walk-in closet, shoving hangers aside with unnecessary force as he searched for something to wear.
His usual business suits hung in perfect rows, but the thought of sitting in some sterile office while his mate was under his roof made his skin crawl.
Instead, he grabbed a black henley and dark jeans, pulling them on with sharp, angry movements.
She didn't come looking for me last night.
The observation stung more than it should have. Part of him—a pathetic, desperate part—had wanted her to storm his chambers. To tell him he was being an idiot. To wrap her arms around him and promise that she wouldn't ever let him fall apart.
But Maple was too smart for that. Too independent. She'd probably spent the night analyzing what had happened with the same methodical precision she applied to her archaeological work and come to the logical conclusion that he was emotionally unavailable.
Good, he told himself as he yanked on his boots. That makes this easier.
But nothing about this felt easy as he strode from his chambers and made his way toward the grand staircase.
The mansion felt different with her presence in it—warmer, more alive.
Her scent lingered in the corridors like a ghost, citrus and roses that made his dragon pace restlessly beneath his skin.
He was so lost in his internal struggle that he didn't notice Ben until they collided at the top of the staircase. The archaeologist stumbled backward, catching himself on the ornate railing with the reflexes of someone accustomed to unstable terrain.
"Oh, good morning," Ben said, his tone carefully neutral. There was something in his expression—a knowing look that made Rune's jaw clench.
Rune's eyes immediately swept the area behind Ben, searching for the familiar cascade of dark hair and sharp green eyes. When he found nothing but empty space, something that felt close to panic flared in his chest.
"Where is Maple?" The question escaped before he could stop it, rough and more demanding than he'd intended.
Ben's eyebrows rose slightly, and Rune cursed himself for revealing so much with three simple words. The man was clearly putting pieces together that Rune would rather keep scattered.
"She went back to her room after you didn't show up for breakfast," Ben said slowly. "Said something about figuring out who's after the claim marker."
The panic crystallized into something sharper and more immediate.
He'd been so focused on avoiding her that he'd forgotten about the very real danger that had nearly killed them both yesterday.
Someone was hunting the artifact—and by extension, hunting Maple.
The thought of her putting herself at risk while he wallowed in his own emotional cowardice made his dragon roar with protective fury.
"Tell her not to go anywhere until I get back," Rune commanded, his voice carrying the unmistakable authority of an Alpha. "Don't leave the mansion. Just... look after her."
To his relief, Ben didn't argue. The man simply nodded, his expression growing serious as he seemed to grasp the gravity of their situation.
"I'll look after her and make sure she doesn't leave," Ben promised. Then, with the kind of direct honesty that Rune was beginning to associate with Maple's inner circle, he added, "So, what exactly happened last night?"
The question hit like a punch. How could he possibly explain the catastrophic loss of control?
The way he'd claimed Maple on a dining room table like some kind of primitive beast, then fled like a terrified child?
The fact that he was fighting a bond that felt as natural as breathing because he was too much of a coward to risk his heart?
"Nothing," Rune said flatly, turning away before Ben could read the lie in his eyes.
He took the stairs two at a time, his boots echoing against the marble as he made his escape. The sooner he got to Bram and figured out how that claim marker had survived his systematic destruction, the sooner he could find a way to protect Maple without losing himself in the process.
His private garage was a sanctuary of chrome and leather, housing a collection of vehicles that most men could only dream of owning.
The mangled remains of his Lamborghini had been towed away sometime during the night, leaving an empty space that served as a stark reminder of yesterday's violence.
He slid behind the wheel of his Porsche, the engine purring to life with a satisfying growl that echoed his dragon's restless energy.
As the garage door rolled open to reveal the sun-drenched canyon beyond, Rune pressed the accelerator and shot forward into the desert morning.
The wind through the open windows carried the scent of sage and red rock, but underneath it all was the persistent ghost of citrus and roses that had somehow worked its way into his very skin.
You can't run from this forever, his dragon whispered as the hidden town appeared in the distance.
Ten minutes later, the Porsche's tires screamed against asphalt as Rune yanked the wheel toward the curb outside the town council building.
The engine's growl died with a sharp twist of his wrist, leaving only the desert wind and the thunderous pulse of his own heartbeat.
Every muscle in his shoulders pulled taut beneath the black henley as he slammed the door and stalked toward the entrance, his dragon clawing at his ribs with restless fury.
She's safe in the mansion, he reminded himself.
The mate bond pulsed beneath his skin, growing stronger with each passing minute. Even now, miles away from her, he could feel her emotions like his own—her confusion, her hurt, her desire, but underneath it all, a fierce determination.
What is she so determined to do?
The building's corridors blurred past as his boots struck marble with military precision. He didn't bother slowing as he approached Bram's office, his hand already reaching for the ornate brass handle when voices drifted through the heavy wood.
"—situation that happened yesterday on the canyon road—"
Kade's voice.
What the hell was his second-in-command doing here?
Rune didn't knock. The door crashed open under his palm, revealing both men seated across from each other like conspirators. Bram's weathered face remained impassive behind his massive oak desk, but Kade straightened in his chair, his green eyes immediately assessing Rune's barely controlled fury.
"We were just about to call you," Kade said, his tone carefully neutral despite the tension radiating from his Alpha. "To discuss the situation that happened yesterday. The accident where somehow your Lamborghini got totaled and an SUV was charred with two bodies recovered from it."
The mate bond pulsed harder, demanding he return to Maple immediately. Rune's hands clenched at his sides as he fought the urge to shift and fly straight back to his mansion.
"Don't worry, Alpha. The situation is being handled," Bram interjected with his usual measured authority. "I told the local police it was an accident, but they'll want your statement."
Just perfect.
Rune's jaw ticked as another complication added itself to the growing list. His overprotectiveness in saving Maple's life had just dragged him into a legal mess that would require careful maneuvering through human bureaucracy.
"Fine. I'll deal with that later." He stepped further into the office, his presence filling the space like a gathering storm. "But speaking of the accident, those dead men were after the claim marker. And because Maple had it, they were chasing her."
The mate bond flared again, sending heat racing through his veins at the memory of her terror in that sedan. His dragon snarled, demanding vengeance against threats to his mate.
"Do you have any idea why that is?" Rune's voice dropped to a dangerous growl. "And more importantly, do you have any idea how one claim marker even survived? That seems impossible after I destroyed them all."
Bram's ancient eyes flickered with something that looked suspiciously like guilt. Kade squirmed in his chair, his muscles coiling as if preparing to physically intervene in whatever confrontation was about to explode between Alpha and Elder.
"Well, about that," Bram began, his voice carrying the careful cadence of a man about to confess a grave sin. "I may have had your ancestors make a few extra ones for safekeeping. Just in case you did something drastic like you did."
Heat exploded behind his ribs as his dragon roared with betrayal and rage, his vision tinging gold at the edges.
"What are you exactly saying?" Each word came out sharp enough to cut glass.
Bram's weathered hands remained steady on his desk, but his shoulders tensed as if bracing for impact.
"Well, after you destroyed all the claim markers a century ago, I had one reburied.
Then I put out a rumor—cryptic enough that I didn't think it would draw the wrong attention—that something was here on our land. I thought it would draw your mate."
The confession detonated through Rune's chest like dragon fire. His vision flashed molten gold as his human form wavered, scales threatening to ripple across his skin.
"How dare you go behind my back and do this?" Rune's voice carried the full weight of Alpha authority, reverberating off the office walls. "Do you have any idea what danger you just brought to me and to our town?"
Bram actually looked genuinely guilty, his ancient composure cracking around the edges. "I didn't think it would bring danger, Rune. I just hoped it would bring your fated mate. And well... it did."
"Yes, it did!" Rune slammed his palm against the desk, the solid oak groaning under the force. "And you knew I didn't want it. Now she's in danger and our town is in danger."
The mate bond pulsed again, stronger now, pulling at him like a physical chain. Maple was miles away, but he could feel her restlessness, her confusion, her stubborn determination to understand what was happening. His dragon demanded he return to her immediately.
Kade rose from his chair with fluid grace, his tactical mind already working through solutions.
"Rune, we can handle this. We'll triple the security of our borders and the hidden entrance.
We'll triple the security at Trigg Corporation's office in Phoenix.
We'll make sure Maple has a security detail—"
"I'm Maple's security detail. No one else."
The words escaped before Rune could stop them, his protective instincts overriding every rational thought about maintaining distance. His dragon purred with satisfaction at the declaration, while his human mind reeled at what he'd just committed to.
Kade's eyebrows rose slightly, but he simply nodded with the kind of tactical acceptance that had made him invaluable for four centuries. "Very well. I'll go ensure everything else is secure and assume you have Maple and her friend's safety handled."
Without another word, Kade strode from the office, leaving Rune alone with the elder who had orchestrated this entire mess. The mate bond thrummed harder now, demanding he return to his mate, but fury still burned in his chest like molten gold.
Rune fixed Bram with a stare that had reduced lesser dragons to ash. "If anything happens to Maple because of what you did—burying that claim marker and putting that rumor out there—you will pay for it."
The threat hung in the air between them, heavy with the promise of an Alpha's wrath. Bram received it in silence, his weathered face grave with understanding.
Without waiting for a response, Rune turned and stormed from the office, his boots echoing against marble as he made his way back through the corridors.
The mate bond pulled at him with increasing intensity, no longer just a whisper but a roar demanding he return to the woman who had become the center of his carefully controlled world.
He needed to get back to his mansion. Back to Maple. Even if he was going to resist the mate bond with every fiber of his being, he couldn't let anything happen to her.
The Porsche's engine soon roared to life, and he peeled away from the curb, desert wind whipping through the open windows as he raced back toward the canyon.
Back toward the woman who threatened to unravel five centuries of carefully maintained control with nothing more than her sharp green eyes and fearless curiosity.