LUCIAN SLADE

Selene walked into my room with her butt cheeks half exposed and a drink in hand. She swayed her hips, biting her lip seductively as she approached.

“I thought newly mated werewolves spent their time together, but here you are crawling back to me.”

I couldn’t help but scoff at her words. Moon Goddess be damned. Aurora can keep the title for all I care; she’ll never get kindness from me.

“Are we going to fuck, or do you want to ask me twenty questions?”

She burst into laughter and chugged down the glass of wine.

“I suppose having such a mild mate would irritate anyone.”

“Mild?”

Selene rolled her eyes. “Everyone knows your mate looks hideous.”

My fist clenched tightly, and an overwhelming rush of anger surged through my veins. I didn’t even know why I felt this angry.

Selene let her clothes fall, exposing her naked body. She dropped the glass on the table and shook her breasts.

“Time for you to let off some steam,” she whispered sweetly, her voice dripping with seduction.

But I wasn’t turned on. Far from it. Letting out a deep sigh, I said, “Wear your clothes and stop turning yourself into a cheap slut.”

Her jaw dropped. “What?”

“See you tomorrow at the training field.”

And with that, I walked out of the room, leaving her gobsmacked. How pathetic. I came for pleasure but left even angrier.

Curse that damn mate of mine.

Everything began with her. If only I’d aimed correctly, she would have been old news.

But no, I let her roam free, and she had the nerve to bewitch me, binding me to her forever.

“Alpha,” Jules bowed his head in greeting when I walked into my manor. I tossed my cloak and hat to him. He caught them with ease and handed them to the maids to keep in my room.

Since it was midnight, the pack house was quiet. The only sounds were the crickets and the breeze rustling through the trees.

But it came with comfort.

Sitting on the balcony, I ordered Jules to pour me a drink. As the liquor burned down my throat, I felt better, so I gulped down another glass.

“Your mother came by,” Jules informed me as he took a seat opposite mine. I rolled my eyes at the mention of the woman who claimed to be my mother, Margaret Slade.

“What does she want now?”

Jules gave me a half-hearted smile. “She’s been here since you fell sick.”

My nostrils flared. “What the hell! Who let her stay in my pack?”

Jules bared his neck in submission as my wolf roared in rage. I could feel my control slipping away, my wolf begging to break free, to tear her apart.

“The… elders…” he stammered, eyes lowered in submission.

Just then, I caught a familiar scent.

A scent I knew even in my sleep.

Aurora.

My wolf calmed instantly. “Get lost!” I shouted at Jules, who wasted no time scrambling to his feet and running off.

With wide eyes, I searched for Aurora, her scent growing closer and closer. For some sick reason, I could feel my wolf’s excitement.

Disgusting.

Aurora walked toward the balcony with a bucket of water in each hand. Her dress was soaked in mud, even her hair, yet I couldn’t help but smile. My wolf basked in her scent like it was the most beautiful thing ever, even when she smelled like a wet dog.

I hated how it calmed me.

The effects of mate bonds were simply pathetic.

Aurora halted when she saw me. Through our bond, I could feel the overwhelming wave of fear.

She was scared of me.

Good.

“Why do you smell like a wet dog?” There was no tenderness in my voice, only a cold, menacing edge.

She chewed on her bottom lip, staring at her feet like an innocent little omega. But now I knew how vicious and despicable she could be.

“I… I fell into the lake,” she stuttered, biting her lip even harder. I was certain it would bruise.

From the way her chest rose and fell rapidly, I could tell it was a lie. But I didn’t care.

“You wanted to be my mate so badly, didn’t you? Now you’ll have to earn my pack’s approval,” I said in amusement.

It was no secret that the pack hated Aurora. Who wouldn’t? Associating with witches could get you stoned to death in other packs.

She fidgeted with her fingers. “I… I need to go. Courtney is waiting for me.”

And with that, she grabbed her buckets and tried to run off. But I placed a foot in front of her, and she tripped. Her face hit the ground, and the water spilled everywhere.

“Oh… you missed a step,” I said with mocking laughter before walking out on her.

My dearest Aurora, if only you knew what you’ve signed up for.

Take the title, wear it, deceive yourself with it, but you’ll never be it. You’ll never be my mate. I’ll make you wish you’d never crossed my path, wish that bullet had found you instead.

But by then, it’ll be too late.

Because you’ll have driven yourself to death.