Chapter 43
forty-three
When my mate runs into my arms, dressed like an angel, smelling like heavenly happiness, looking so damn pretty it hurts—and wearing a crown of actual, honest-to-God daisies…
Fuck me.
I’m going to end up being Finn’s friend, aren’t I?
Violet leaps up and winds her slender limbs around my body, clinging to me. A stuttering huff catches in my purring lungs—something that almost feels like a laugh.
The sound warms Violet’s honeysuckle sweetness until my canines pulse. The sensation is too familiar—and getting stronger every day. Fear spikes hard at my center, followed by the ever-present seethe of frustration.
Christ. I can’t even hold her, now?
Apparently, not without my Alpha wanting to tear into her.
Violet feels me stiffen. A soft, kittenish rumble buzzes behind her sternum.
My Alpha lunges, gnashing his teeth at me. I grab his leash, yanking the chain to hold him down. Dread sinks into my stomach as he nearly shoves past my defenses.
Fuck. We’ve been playing tug-of-war for weeks. I’m getting weaker… but he isn’t.
He still snarls and snaps every second. Demanding his mate. Not understanding why she isn’t tied to us at all times.
It’s hard enough for me to resist his enraged commands under normal circumstances. The fact that I also want Violet more than I want anything else makes it nearly impossible. It’s only a matter of time until I crack, and we both know it.
Finn sensed it, too. And then shocked the hell out of me when he didn’t laugh or mock or dismiss any of the things I told him over text. Instead, he… helped me.
Us.
I’m not sure if I mean Violet and me… or all three of us. Either way, as Violet’s purr melds into my possessive growl, vibrating against her breasts, a needy little moan slips out of her. And I’m grateful.
Especially when I realize he told Violet some of the things I can’t seem to scrape out. It’s clear they’ve talked this through when she leans away, reflecting the first strains of twilight in her wide green eyes. Her smile wavers, all the more beautiful for the watery emotion behind it.
“It’s okay, alpha,” she whispers. “If it doesn’t work… or if you snap into a rut… I’m not scared of you, Ryker. I know you are. But I never have been. Not even the first time.”
That’s true. She felt calm around me when I was actually feral. She saw me, under all the aggression and fear. Then she reached into my soul and tried to pull me to safety.
My mate.
Brave, but shy. Humble, but beautiful. Here. Wanting me. Hoping I’ll be courageous enough to face my demons for her.
They do feel farther away, out here. Finn had a point about the walls closing in, the artificial lighting. One day, I hope that won’t feel so threatening. But for now… for tonight…
I want to try.
Because, Christ—I want her more than I want to breathe.
Violet catches onto my mood, inhaling the musk that rises off my neck with another willing whine. She’s so kind that way, using whatever clues I manage to give her instead of trying to make me speak.
Sweet little daisy.
“Here?”
I grunt one of the only words my Alpha allows, nodding at the bed. Asking her. Offering another chance for her to change her mind or voice her doubts.
Violet only smiles, though. Beaming and brilliant. “Right here is perfect, lion.”