Chapter 32 Chapter 32
Anya’s POV
"Stop insulting my Moon Goddess," he growled, slapping a large, wet hand over my mouth to silence me. "You'll upset Her."
He glared at me, though there was a touch of amusement in his eyes. "Honestly, you should be on your knees thanking Her. You were chosen as my mate. Consider the alternative: rotting away with Alpha Borin, a man we both know you despise."
I ripped his hand away from my mouth, glaring back. "And what makes you think I like you any better? You're just as arrogant. Maybe I hate you both equally!"
He let out a sharp, incredulous laugh. "You hate me? Is that right?"
"Yes!" I lied, crossing my arms over my chest, shivering slightly in the cold water. "I can't stand you."
"Liar," he murmured, stepping closer, invading my space again.
"I'm not lying! I don't like you at all!"
"I can feel it, Anya," he countered, his voice dropping an octave. "You can lie with your mouth, but your body tells the truth. You kissed me back. You melted when I touched you. You reacted."
"I was... I was just surprised!" I stammered, my face heating up. "And... and cold! I was shivering!"
"You were burning," he corrected, his eyes darkening. He leaned down, inhaling deeply at the curve of my neck. "And I can smell it. Beneath the river water, beneath the fear... I can smell the scent of your desire. It's pouring off you."
"I don't smell like desire!" I argued, trying to push him back, though my hands lingered on his chest. "I smell like dead fish and river mud!"
"To me," he groaned, grabbing my hips and pulling me hard against his erection, his composure finally cracking, "you smell like need."
He rested his forehead against mine, his breathing suddenly ragged, his jaw clenched tight. The playful bickering vanished, replaced by a vibrating tension.
"You have no idea," he rasped, his voice strained with the effort of holding back. "You have no idea how much I want to get inside of you, Anya. My wolf is clawing at my ribs, screaming at me to take you right here against the riverbank. It is taking every ounce of my control not to ruin you."
I stepped past him, wading out of the shallows. My legs felt heavy, trembling with fatigue. I grabbed my damp, dirty dress from the rock and pulled it over my head, wincing as the wet fabric clung to my skin.
His eyes were glued to me the entire time, tracking every movement. I didn't bother turning away or trying to hide. What was the point? He had already seen everything there was to see. There were no secrets left between us, no modesty left to salvage.
I took a deep, weary breath, fixing my gaze on the trees. "Let's go, Alpha."
He followed me out of the water, water sluicing off his sculpted body. "You know," he mused, a smirk playing on his lips as he reached for his trousers, "you were quite the tigress just a moment ago. Clawing, arguing, making demands..."
He paused, leaning in close, his voice mocking. "And now? You look terrified again. Why? Are you afraid I'll take you right here? Before the official mating ritual? You know... the one with the chanting witches performing blood magic in a circle around us?"
He chuckled darkly. To him, it was a joke. To me, it was a horror story.
I didn't smile. I couldn't. The adrenaline was crashing, leaving behind a bone-deep exhaustion. I hadn't slept in twenty-four hours. I’d worked a full shift gutting fish, ridden a horse until my legs went numb, and been hunted down by a monster. I was done.
"Yes," I whispered, hugging my arms to my chest to stop the shivering. "I am scared of you. Please... just stop talking about... doing those things to me."
He scoffed, fastening his trousers. "You act as if it is purely physical. You can't feel the pull, the need, because you're just a human. You're numb to the bond."
"I'm human..." I murmured, the words slipping out before my tired brain could stop them. "...But I can feel you."
I froze. The silence that followed was deafening. It was too late to take it back.
Then, he snapped.
Without a word, his hands clamped onto my waist, bruising in their intensity. He hauled me in for a desperate, devouring kiss that swallowed my scream.
"A-ALPHA!" I whimpered against his mouth, but the sound was lost.
Everything happened in a blur of frantic motion. He backed me up until my bare skin hit the rough bark of a massive oak tree. He didn't stop.
He shoved his knee between mine, parting my legs, and then grabbed my thigh, hitching my leg high up over his shoulder, leaving me completely open to him.
Then, he freed himself from his trousers.
My eyes widened in horror. I looked down, and my breath stopped. He was... massive. Inhumanly so. It wasn't just large; it was terrifying. There was absolutely no way.
Physics doesn't work like that, my mind screamed. I will break.
I slammed my hands against his chest, pushing with everything I had, panic overriding the bond.
"No! Stop!" I cried, staring at him in terror. "That's why! That's why those girls died! Because you're... you're too big! You'll rip me apart!"
He froze, his hips hovering just inches from mine. He looked down at me, his breathing ragged, his eyes swirling with that dangerous mix of lust and frustration.
"Do you think I actually mated with them?" he growled, his voice rough.
He leaned in, his face inches from mine, forcing me to look at the truth in his eyes.
"I killed them before they could even touch me, Anya," he confessed, the words cold and stark. "The Wolf took over. I lost control and tore their throats out before I ever got them to a bed."
He pressed his hips forward, just enough for me to feel the hard, hot length of him against my entrance, proving a point.
"But now... with you..." he whispered, shuddering as he rested his forehead against mine. "I can feel the Wolf pacing... but he isn't attacking. When I am with you... I can control myself."