CHAPTER TWO — THE CABIN OF HEAT AND CONTROL
893 Words
The cabin’s door slammed shut behind them, sealing out the snowstorm with a heavy thud. Mira wasn’t sure if it was the fireplace crackling or the man standing before her that made the room feel blisteringly warm.
He set her on her feet slowly, like he was afraid she might shatter if he let go too fast.
Then he didn’t step back. He stayed close. Too close. His chest brushed hers with every breath, and his golden eyes tracked her like she was the only thing in the world he saw.
“Tell me your name,” she whispered.
“It’s Cassian.”
His voice rolled through her, low and rough.
“But you won’t use it tonight.”
Her breath stumbled. “Then what should I call you?”
He smiled—slow, dangerous, possessive.
“Alpha. Until you’re brave enough to call me yours.”
Her stomach flipped, heat rushing through her. She should’ve been scared. She wasn’t. Not when his eyes held something fierce and almost…reverent.
“Sit.”
He guided her gently to the edge of the couch, his warm hand resting at the back of her neck.
“I need to calm down before I touch you again.” She swallowed. “You carried me all the way here. You…protected me.”
“Protected?”
His laugh was quiet, dark.
“You think that was protection? That was restraint, little mate.”
He paced in front of the fire, muscles taut under his shirt, jaw clenched like he was wrestling with himself.
The room hummed with tension, sharp and electric. Mira watched him, her pulse fluttering.
“What’s happening to me?” she whispered. “Why do I feel like—like I need to be close to you?”
Cassian stopped.
Then in two strides, he was kneeling in front of her, hands braced on either side of her thighs, caging her in.
Their faces were inches apart.
“It’s the mate pull,” he said softly. “Your body recognizes mine. And mine—”
His gaze swept down her lips, her throat, the trembling rise of her chest.
“—is barely holding back from taking what it’s craved since the moment I scented you.”
Her breath hitched.
“Then stop holding back.”
Cassian’s growl shook the air. His hand slid up her thigh, slow, deliberate, possessive enough to make her toes curl. He didn’t rush. He didn’t need to. His touch alone made her entire body heat and tighten.
“You don’t understand,” he murmured, his thumb brushing the sensitive skin above her knee.
“I’m not like human men. Claiming a mate is…violent. Consuming. Permanent.”
She leaned forward, her lips nearly touching his.
“I want permanent.”
Cassian’s eyes blazed.
His hand gripped her jaw gently but firmly, tilting her face up.
“You just had your heart broken,” he growled. “You’re fragile right now.”
“No,” she whispered, threading her fingers into his hair.
“I’m done being fragile.”
His restraint snapped.
Cassian surged up, pinning her gently but unyieldingly against the back of the couch. His mouth crashed to hers in a kiss that wasn’t gentle—it was hot, hungry, claiming. Her hands fisted in his shirt as he deepened it, pulling a soft, startled sound from her throat. He broke the kiss only to murmur against her lips, “You taste like you were made for me.”
Her heartbeat pounded wildly.
“Then take me.”
He pressed his forehead to hers, breathing hard, fighting every instinct he had.
“Not yet,” he rasped. “If I take you now, it won’t be slow. It won’t be soft. And I swore to myself I’d give you at least one night where you choose me fully.”
“I am choosing you.”
“Mira.”
Her name sounded sinful in his voice.
“You’re not choosing me. You’re running from pain.”
She shook her head and tugged him closer by his shirt.
“No. I’m running to you.”
Cassian’s breath trembled—an Alpha losing the last thread of control.
His fingers traced her hip, her waist, the underside of her jaw, each touch claiming more of her without taking too much.
“Say it again,” he whispered roughly. “Say you want me.”
“I want you.”
His growl vibrated through her entire body.
He lifted her effortlessly, settling her across his lap while the fire burned beside them. She felt the strength of his arms around her, the heat of his breath on her neck, the way he held her like he’d been waiting centuries to do so. But he didn’t push further.
He kissed her again—slow this time, deep, intoxicating—then pressed his forehead to her shoulder.
“I’ll give you everything,” he murmured, voice shaking with restrained need.
“But the claiming…that happens when you’re sure. When you’re mine because you want to be—not because he hurt you.”
She curled into him, her body melting against his.
“Then stay with me tonight.”
Cassian’s arms tightened around her, protective and hungry all at once.
“I’m not leaving,” he whispered against her neck.
“Not now. Not ever.”
- Writer
