“Is this your new thing, Belle – putting space between us?” Layke shook his head, tsking at her. “It won’t work. We’re mates.”
“Wrong. We might have mated, but we didn’t do it because we chose each other and wanted to have that bond, we came together for a deal. That makes it an arrangement, not a mating.”
“I don’t care for what you want to call it, Belle. The point is, I’ve claimed you and we have a connection you can't ignore. Neither of us can ignore.”
“And this connection means I am supposed to give you whatever you want?” Belle snorted. “Well f**k you.”
“I know you’re upset with me, baby, but did you give me a chance to apologize? Or did you try to freeze me out?”
It surprised her that he seemed genuinely hurt by that, in fact he looked it too. “Who said I was upset?”
“If you’re
