Mateo's POV
"Don't speak like that again," I said, voice flat and final. "Ever."
Alfred inclined his head, expression carefully neutral. "As you wish, Alpha." He set the decanter down and slipped out of the parlor without another word, leaving me alone with the crackling fire and the echo of his suggestion hanging in the air like smoke.
"If you really want her, then you have to bed her before Mark."
I drained the last of my wine in one swallow. The burn did nothing to quiet the storm inside me.
I stood, paced to the window, then back again. The room felt too small, the walls pressing in. My wolf was pacing too, restless, hungry, claws scraping against the inside of my skull. Alfred's words weren't new, they'd been whispering in the back of my mind since the night Mark dragged her to his chambers. But hearing them spoken aloud made them dangerous.
The bond hadn't let me forget her for a single second since the ball. Every time she looked at Mark without flinching, every time she spoke with that new steel in her voice, the pull tightened like a noose. She wasn't the trembling girl who'd arrived here days ago. I wanted her more than I'd ever wanted anything.
I told myself I was just going to check on her. Make sure Mark hadn't hurt her after the introductions. Make sure she was breathing easy. That was all.
I left the parlor and moved through the darkened corridors like a shadow. The pack house was quiet now, only the occasional patrol in the distance. Mark's meeting had run long, he was still in the council chamber on the far wing. I knew because I'd made sure of it before I left the parlor.
Her scent hit me the moment I reached their door. Rosewater, and underneath it, the faint, lingering trace of fear that was finally starting to fade. My hand hovered over the handle. I should turn back. I should walk away.
I didn't.
The door was unlocked. Arrogant bastard. I pushed it open slowly.
Violet was alone.
She sat on the edge of the bed in a thin silk robe, hair loose around her shoulders, staring at nothing. The lamp beside her cast soft gold across her skin. She looked up the second I stepped inside, eyes widening in shock.
"Mateo?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. She stood, clutching the robe closed. "What are you—"
I closed the door behind me. The click sounded too loud in the silence.
"I needed to see you," I said, the words rough. "Just for a moment."
She didn't move away. Didn't scream. Didn't call for help.
The bond roared between us, hot, insistent, drowning out every rational thought. I crossed the room in three strides.
She didn't back up.
I cupped her face with both hands, thumbs brushing the soft skin under her eyes. Her breath hitched. Her pupils blew wide.
"Tell me to leave," I rasped. "Tell me right now!"
She didn't, and that drove me even further. I kissed her.
It wasn't gentle at first, days of restraint snapping like dry wood. My mouth claimed hers, hard and desperate, tasting wine and want and everything I'd tried to bury. She froze for half a heartbeat, then her hands fisted in my shirt and she kissed me back.
Fierce. Hungry. Like she'd been starving too.
I groaned into her mouth, walked her backward until her legs hit the bed. She fell onto the mattress and pulled me down with her. Our bodies locked together, her legs wrapping around my hips, my weight pressing her into the sheets. The silk robe parted under my hands. I kissed her throat, her collarbone, every inch of skin I could reach. She arched beneath me, fingers digging into my shoulders, soft gasps turning into moans that drove me insane.
I was lost in her. In the heat of her skin, the way she trembled when I kissed the spot just below her ear, the way her nails raked down my back like she was claiming me right back.
My wolf surged forward, teeth aching. The mark.
I tried to fight it, gods, I tried. but the bond was screaming, demanding, and she was whispering my name like a prayer.
I kissed her neck again, slower this time. Reverent. Then my canines lengthened and I bit down—hard, deep, right over Mark's mark.
She cried out, sharp pain melting into something else, something molten. Her body clenched around me as the bond snapped into place, bright and unbreakable. Mine. Finally mine.
The haze cleared in an instant. Cold reality crashed over me like ice water.
I reared back, staring down at her, at the fresh mark on her throat, red and raw, at the way her lips were swollen from my kisses, at the dazed, wide-eyed look on her face.
"What have I done?" The words tore out of me.
Violet touched the mark with trembling fingers. Her eyes met mine, shock, confusion, and something dangerously close to wonder.
"Mateo…"
I scrambled off her, chest heaving. The room spun. Guilt and triumph warred inside me, tearing me in half.
"I didn't mean—" I started, then stopped. Because I had. Deep down, I'd wanted this. I'd walked here knowing exactly what could happen.
She sat up slowly, robe slipping off one shoulder. She didn't cover herself. She just looked at me.
"You marked me," she said quietly. Not angry. Not afraid. Just… stating a fact.
I dragged a hand through my hair. "Mark will kill me. He'll kill us both."
She swallowed. "He hasn't sealed his mark yet. Everyone knows it. The council knows it. The pack whispers about it."
"That doesn't make this right."
"Does it really matter?" she argued softly. "Isn't this what you wanted? Isn't that why you're here?"
I stared at her, surprised at how calm she was at the situation. Did she not realize what was at stake? This was wrong, Mark wasn't going to let it slide. He'd punish her, worse than ever.
"Violet—"
"Enough! Don't call my name if you're going to be a coward. You've made your mark, just like him. Now there's only one thing to do. Either take the next step, or run away like a little bitch."