Chapter 3 – The Heat Between
Amara lay awake in her small cabin, moonlight spilling across the sheets. No matter how she tried, she couldn't erase the memory of his touch. The way his hand had fit around her wrist, the gravel in his voice when he called her "mine."
Her body betrayed her silence, shivering with want she had never known. The bond was dangerous—too powerful. She pressed her fingers to her lips, remembering the heat of his thumb brushing there. Her skin still burned with the phantom touch.
A sudden knock startled her. She froze. The door creaked, and before she could rise, he stepped in.
Kael.
The Alpha filled the doorway, his presence suffocating and intoxicating all at once. He closed the door behind him, eyes locked on her. "I couldn't stay away."
Her wolf howled inside her chest, desperate, needy. She shook her head, trying to will him away, but he only crossed the room until he stood at the edge of her bed.
"You don't want me here?" he asked softly, though his smirk suggested otherwise.
Her breath came fast, her body trembling. She didn't answer—couldn't—but her pulse betrayed her. His nostrils flared as he caught it, and his eyes darkened with hunger.
He leaned closer, caging her in with his arms, the mattress dipping beneath his weight. His lips hovered just above hers, not touching, only teasing.
The mate bond sizzled like fire on her skin. Her eyes fluttered shut, her chest rising and falling in quick gasps.
Kael chuckled low in his throat. "Your silence speaks louder than words, little mate." His lips brushed the shell of her ear, sending shivers racing down her spine. "Tell me to stop, and I will."
She couldn't. She didn't want to.
His mouth claimed hers—fierce, hungry, desperate. Her body melted under him, her hands fisting into his shirt as though she could drag him closer. The kiss deepened, his tongue stroking against hers, demanding entrance, dominance, surrender. The world disappeared, leaving only heat and need.
Her thighs trembled, her body arching against his without thought. He growled into her mouth, a sound of pure possession, one that made her wolf purr and her body ache for more.