Chapter 14 The Fallout
“I know exactly what I’ve done,” Lycian said. His voice was steady. Cold. “I’ve claimed my mate.”
Marcus’s face went from red to purple. “She’s not your mate. She’s wolfless.”
“The bond doesn’t care about that.”
“There is no bond!” Madison’s voice cracked. “You’re just confused. She did something to you. Some kind of trick.”
I wrapped my arms around myself. Standing there in just my tank top, I felt exposed. Vulnerable.
Lycian stepped to the side. Blocking their view of me. “You need to leave.”
“Not until you listen to reason.” Marcus pushed past him into the apartment.
Madison followed. Her eyes were wet. Angry. When she saw me, something in her expression turned vicious.
“You,” she hissed. “You did this. You seduced him.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Liar. You’re nothing. A charity case who couldn’t even afford a proper dress to the gala. And now you think you can just take what’s mine?”
“Lycian was never yours,” I said quietly.
She lunged at me.
Lycian caught her mid-step. His hand on her shoulder. Firm enough to stop her but gentle enough not to hurt.
“Don’t,” he said. “Don’t make this worse than it already is.”
“Worse?” Madison’s laugh was sharp. Bitter. “How could this possibly be worse? You’ve bonded with a human. A wolfless nothing. Do you know what the pack will say?”
“I don’t care what the pack says.”
“Well, you should. Because they’re not going to accept this. They’re not going to accept her.”
“They don’t have a choice.”
Marcus stepped forward. “Yes, they do. The pack can vote to reject a mate if they deem her unsuitable. And trust me, they will vote against this girl.”
My stomach twisted. I’d heard about pack votes. Rare but brutal. If the pack rejected me, Lycian would have to choose. His mate or his pack.
“Let them vote,” Lycian said.
“You’re willing to risk everything for her?”
“Yes.”
Madison made a sound like a sob. “What does she have that I don’t? I’m stronger. Better breeding. I was raised for this. Trained for this. I would have been perfect for you.”
“I don’t want perfect. I want her.”
The words hit me hard. Made my chest ache.
Madison’s face crumpled. For just a second, I almost felt sorry for her. Almost.
Then her expression went cold. Hard.
“Fine,” she said. “Have your little human. But don’t come crying to us when she destroys everything you’ve worked for.”
She turned and left. Her footsteps were sharp against the hardwood floor.
Marcus stayed. His eyes moved from Lycian to me and back again.
“This is your final warning,” he said. “End this now and we can all move forward. Madison will forgive you. The pack will forget. Everything goes back to normal.”
“No.”
“You’re making a mistake that will haunt you for the rest of your life.”
“That’s my mistake to make.”
Marcus’s jaw tightened. “Very well. But understand this. From this moment on, you’re on your own. The Blackthorn pack will no longer support the Valors. Our business deals are done. Our alliance is over. And when your pack votes to reject your human mate, don’t expect any help from us.”
“I never expected help from you.”
“You’re going to regret this, boy.”
“Stop calling me boy. I’m the future Alpha of the Valor pack. You will address me with respect or not at all.”
Something flickered in Marcus’s eyes. Surprise, maybe. Or respect. Hard to tell.
“Future Alpha,” Marcus said slowly. “If you even have a pack left after this.”
He left without another word.
The door closed behind him. The lock clicked.
Silence filled the apartment.
I stood there in my tank top, arms still wrapped around myself. My whole body was shaking and I couldn’t make it stop.
Lycian turned to face me. His eyes were still gold. His chest is rising and falling fast.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“No.” My voice came out small. “Your pack is going to vote against me. I’m going to destroy everything you have.”
“You’re not destroying anything.”
“Yes, I am. Marcus just ended your alliance. Your business deals. Everything. Because of me.”
“Because of him. Not you.” Lycian crossed the room. Picked up my sweater from the floor. Handed it to me. “He’s the one who made this a war.”
I pulled the sweater on. My hands were still shaking. “What happens now?”
“Now we prepare for the pack meeting.”
“When is it?”
“Saturday. Three days from now.” He pulled his own shirt back on. “Every adult pack member gets to vote. Simple majority wins.”
“And if they vote against me?”
“Then I leave the pack.”
“You can’t do that.”
“I can. And I will.”
“Lycian, no. This is your family. Your birthright. You can’t throw that away.”
“Watch me.” He moved closer. Close enough that I could feel the heat radiating off him. “You don’t get it yet. The mate bond isn’t just some feeling. It’s biological. Chemical. My wolf recognizes you as mine. And fighting that would literally kill me.”
“That’s dramatic.”
“It’s true. Wolves who lose their mates either die or go feral. There’s no in between.”
The words sent ice through my veins. “But we’re not actually mated. Not really. We just pretended for Marcus.”
“The bond doesn’t care about pretending. It knows what it knows.”
I sank onto his couch. My legs felt weak. “This is insane.”
“I know.”
“Three days ago I was just a scholarship student trying to survive. Now I’m apparently a mate to a future Alpha and about to be voted on by an entire wolf pack.”
“When you put it that way, it does sound insane.”
“Because it is.” I looked up at him. “What if they’re right? What if this isn’t real? What if it’s just attraction or curiosity or whatever your father said?”
“Do you feel attracted to me?”
Heat flooded my face. “That’s not the point.”
“Actually it kind of is. Because the mate bond starts with attraction. With that pull you can’t explain. With electricity when we touch.” He held out his hand. “Try it.”
“Try what?”
“Touch me. Tell me what you feel.”
I hesitated. Then reached out. Placed my palm against his.
The spark was immediate. Intense. Racing up my arm and straight to my chest. My breath caught.
“That,” Lycian said quietly. “That’s the bond. And it’s only going to get stronger.”
I pulled my hand back. “What if it’s not enough? What if the pack votes against me and you have to choose?”
“Then I choose you.”
“You’ll regret it.”
“Never.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I’ve spent twenty-two years waiting to feel something real. Something that wasn’t planned or arranged or politically convenient.” His voice went rough. “And then you spilled champagne on me and everything changed. You changed everything.”
My throat felt tight. “I’m scared.”
“Me too.”
“You don’t look scared.”
“I’m terrified. But I’m more terrified of losing you.”
Someone knocked on the door. Softer this time.
Lycian tensed. “I swear if that’s Marcus again…”
“It’s me,” a voice called. Cade. “Let me in.”
Lycian opened the door.
Cade walked in, looking between us. “So. Heard you claimed her.”
“News travels fast.”
“Madison’s having a breakdown in the student center. Very public. Very dramatic. Half the campus knows by now.”
I groaned. “Great.”
“Yeah, it’s a whole thing.” Cade looked at me. “You okay?”
“Depends on your definition of okay.”
“Fair.” He turned to Lycian. “Your dad called an emergency pack meeting. Saturday at sundown. He’s making it official.”
“I know.”
“Do you have a plan?”
“Working on it.”
“You'd better work fast. Because Marcus is already campaigning against her. He’s calling in favors. Making promises. By Saturday, half the pack will be convinced she’s some kind of threat.”
“Then we convince them otherwise.”
“How?”
Lycian looked at me. Something was determined in his expression. “We show them she’s not a threat. We show them she’s exactly what this pack needs.”
“And how do we do that?” I asked.
“You meet them. Talk to them. Let them see you’re not what they expect.”
“I’m a wolfless human who works two jobs and can barely afford food. I’m exactly what they expect.”
“You’re also smart. Strong. Brave enough to stand up to an Alpha.” Lycian’s voice was firm. “We just need to make sure they see that part.”
My phone buzzed in my backpack. I pulled it out.
A text from an unknown number.
Pack meeting Saturday. You will lose. And when you do, I’ll make sure you wish you’d taken my deal.
Marcus.
I showed the text to Lycian.
His eyes flashed gold. Then he smiled. Cold and sharp.
“Let him try.”