KAYLA POINT OF VIEW

Pain that was the first thing I felt when I opened my eyes again. Every bone in my body felt as if it was being crushed to pieces. I looked down at my hand and saw it had turned green; the silver chain had penetrated all over my body.

I looked all over the room searching for anything I could use to end it all right there. I couldn’t handle the pain again, but I found none. I tried reaching for my wolf again; it kept on bouncing back. The silence in my head was worse than the pain; it was like I had lost half of myself.

“How long have I been here?” I whispered to no one. My lips were scraped, my body trembling.

At that moment, I knew there wasn’t any redemption for me. My mind flashed back to Zuko, the expression on his face when Carter whispered to him. For the first time, I wondered if maybe this was what Carter wanted all along: to see me broken, to erase me from this world without lifting a finger.

I lay lifeless on the cold floor, unable to fight to stay alive anymore. I didn’t know how long I’d been here, but throughout my stay here, I hadn’t been brought either food or water.

I was left alone to rot here. I was already blacking out when I heard another set of footsteps coming toward the cell. I shivered in fear, hoping it wasn’t Carter again. As I was about to stand up to check who it was, I fell flatly on the floor, and everything became black.

**************************************************

When I opened my eyes again, the first thing I saw wasn’t the darkness or silver bars I usually woke to. This time, it was a very bright light that made me squint. For a second, I panicked, thinking maybe I was dead.

But then I felt the soft and warm sheet under me; then I noticed I was on a bed.

Confused, I tried to sit up, but my body was too weak. My throat burned like sandpaper, my lips parched. And that’s when I noticed him.

He was sitting right there, elbows on his knees, his head buried in his hands like he had been carrying the world. His shirt was wrinkled, his hair a mess; he looked so tired.

“Dante?” I managed to call lightly, since my voice was still hoarse.

“Kayla,” he called softly, looking so relieved and happy. He immediately stood up from where he was sitting and sat beside me on the bed.

He leaned closer, his eyes never leaving mine. “You’re awake… thank God, you scared the hell out of me.”

I licked my lips, struggling to get words out. “Where… where am I?”

“You’re safe,” he said quickly, too quickly, as if he repeated it enough, it would be true. “I pulled you out of that cell. You were…” His voice cracked, and he looked away for a second, as if he was finding it hard to process everything. “You were barely breathing, you had turned green already, and were lying unconsciously on the cell floor.”

I stared at him, my heart beating weakly. “Why? Why would you do that? Zuko…”

“Zuko be damned,” his tone was sharp and dismissive, while he kept his jaw clenched. “I couldn’t watch you die in there, Kayla. I don’t care what he thinks, or what Carter told him. I know you’re not a threat.”

My chest tightened, tears stinging at the corners of my eyes, finding it hard to believe he would do all that for me. “You didn’t have to; I would have been fine. If Zuko finds out…” I tried saying, not because I was ungrateful, but because I feared for him too. He is a beta, and Zuko is an Alpha; he has the power to kill him or sentence him to death.

“Let him find out,” Dante’s voice dropped lower; he sounded angrier. His eyes locked onto mine with something that made my wolf stir inside me; even in my weak state, my wolf still wanted him all over me.

“I’ll fight him if I have to. Even if it means breaking everything between us. But I’m not letting you suffer like that again.”

I didn’t know what to say. For once, words failed me. “Why?” I whispered softly.

“Because you’re my mate. And I would do everything to protect my mate,” he said, grinning. “If only you knew how long I waited for my mate, the years it took me to finally find her. And you think I would throw or let her rot? No, I would fight for her, even if it means losing my life in the process.”

I sat still, fidgeting in fear and confusion; I didn’t know whether to ask the questions that have been bothering me or keep them in. I finally mustered up the courage.

“Can I ask you a question, Dante?” I requested, hoping he would agree and give me the answer I needed at the moment.

“Sure, love, what’s bothering you?” he questioned, looking concerned.

I avoided his gaze. “You claimed I’m your mate, right?”

“Yes, you are,” he replied, flashing me a light, toothy grin.

“Why did Alpha Zuko also claim me as his mate earlier?” I asked stylishly, without confessing to him that I also felt the same pull toward him. I didn’t know why I did that; maybe it was because I didn’t want to hurt him or make him feel heartbroken.Or because deep down, I wanted to have them both to myself.

Immediately I completed my words, I finally summoned up the courage to face him. And damn, I knew I had hit a spot. His smile faltered, his face hard as rock. The bright look on his face became so dull that I could barely recognize him right now.

“Who do you believe?” he asked, his voice rough and hoarse.

“I don’t know what to believe,” I said, though it was half true. Because I was still confused.

His jaw clenched, his knuckles turning white as he tightened his fist. “You don’t know?” he repeated, his voice rising. “Kayla, I just pulled you from death itself. I risked everything to save you, and you’re telling me you don’t know if I’m your mate?”

His words hurt me, but my chest burned with something else. My wolf churned uneasily, and I hated her for it. She didn’t howl for Dante, nor did she turn away from him. Instead, she pressed against me with a longing growl, reminding me of Zuko and the pull I felt toward both of them.

I squeezed my eyes shut, shaking my head. “It’s not that simple, Dante.”

“Then make it simple!” he snapped, standing up abruptly. His voice shook with anger and something that almost sounded like heartbreak.

“If you can’t choose, then maybe you don’t deserve either of us.”

He kept moving around the room, trying to suppress his anger, I guess. Before I could respond, he closed the distance between us, claiming my lips harshly, biting my lower lip in a way that would draw blood.

But my wolf, being her, urged me to reciprocate the action, and I did. I continued kissing him, shoving my tongue into his mouth, enjoying the moment. He pulled me closer to him, trailing kisses from my earlobe down to my neck. I held onto him tightly, moaning loudly, not caring who might be hearing us at the moment.

I placed my hand on his chest, and I could feel his soft heart beating in a rhythmic pattern on my palm, and damn, if that wasn’t the hottest thing right now.

His lips devoured mine desperately, tasting me like I was the only thing that mattered most to him in this world. His hand gripped my waist possessively, pulling me closer until there was no space left between us. The warmth of his body, the way his chest rose and fell against mine, made me forget every wound, every scar, every ounce of pain I had suffered.

“Dante…” I whispered between kisses, but the sound of his name only made him growl against my lips.

His hand slid upward, cupping my breast firmly through the thin fabric that covered me. My nipple stood at attention as he worshipped my body, like it was an artwork on its own. And I loved that; I never let any guy go this far with me, not even Aiden. I gasped into his mouth, my back arching instinctively into his touch. His thumb brushed over my hardened nipple, making heat pool between my legs.

I shouldn’t be letting this happen, not with me unsure how I feel, or him not even putting a ring on my finger, but my body, my wolf, betrayed me. She wanted him, and I couldn’t deny her the pleasure of that.

He kissed me harder, rougher, before trailing his lips down my jaw, then lower to the soft spot beneath my ear. His hot breath against my skin made me shiver, my fingers tangling into his hair.

His mouth trailed lower, brushing over the top of my breast, then slipping under the fabric. His tongue circled my nipple, teasing, sucking, making me whimper. I couldn’t stop the loud moan leaving my lips; I couldn’t hold back the pool between my legs, not when he was touching me like this.

“Dante… please…” I breathed, not knowing what I was begging for, my voice broken and needy.

His hand moved lower, sliding down my stomach, closer and closer to where my whole body ached for him. My whole body tensed, waiting.

Then he stopped, his fingers resting just at the edge of my underwear. He froze, his breathing heavy, his dark eyes locked on mine.

“Kayla…” his voice was rough, deep, trembling with need, and I couldn’t lie, that turned me the fuck on more than I already was. He leaned closer, his lips brushing my ear. “Do you want this? Do you want me?”

He looked up at me again, his hand still there, waiting.

“Should I?”