Mated To My Supposed Brother

Scent Mask

The scene grew even more unbearable when Cassie pushed her way to the front of the pack.

She was the Beta’s daughter, and she moved with a predatory confidence that suggested she already owned the ground Liam stood on.

Aria watched, her heart hammering against her ribs, as Cassie reached out and grabbed Liam’s hand.

With a slow, deliberate movement, Cassie placed his large, calloused palm directly onto her chest,

pressing his hand against her skin right over her heart, dangerously close to the swell of her breasts.

"Feel that, Liam?" Cassie purred, her voice carrying across the quiet square. "It’s beating just for you."

Aria’s knuckles turned white.

A low, primal growl vibrated in the back of her throat, a sound she barely managed to swallow. Liam didn't flinch.

He didn't pull back. He just looked down at Cassie with an unreadable expression, his hand staying exactly where she had put it for a heartbeat too long.

To make matters worse, another girl stepped in from behind and wrapped her arms around his waist in a brief, daring hug, her face pressed against the broad, sweaty expanse of his back.

Liam finally shifted, gently but firmly disengaging from the pile of women.

He looked over at Marcus and nodded toward the training pits.

"Enough," he said, his voice a low, vibrating chord that silenced the giggling crowd. "Back to work."

As Liam turned to head back to the center of the red dirt to resume his sparring, Cassie didn't let him go without a final show.

She leaned back against the fence, her eyes dark with a challenge, and blew him a slow, seductive kiss that was meant for everyone to see.

Liam didn't react, but Aria felt the heat of it as if it were a physical brand.

However, Cassie’s triumph was short-lived. Before she could say another word, her own mate—a large, stern warrior named Jace—stomped over from the warrior barracks.

His face was a mask of thunderous rage.

"That’s enough, Cassie!" Jace growled, his voice loud enough to make the nearby girls jump. He didn't wait for her to argue.

He reached out, his hand clamping firmly around her upper arm, and began to drag her away from the fence.

"Let go of me! I was just talking!" Cassie shrieked, her face flushing with a mix of anger and embarrassment as she stumbled after him.

"You were doing more than talking," Jace spat, his wolf sensing the disrespect.

He hauled her toward their own cottage, ignoring the titters and whispers of the other women.

Aria watched the drama unfold with a grim sort of satisfaction, but it did little to ease the ache in her chest.

Liam was already back in the pits, his movements more brutal and focused than before.

He was testing her.

He was showing her exactly what she had asked for—a life where he was just her brother, and the rest of the world was free to hunt him.

Aria turned away, her movements jerky and forced. She could feel Liam’s gaze hitting her back now, even from the distance of the pits.

He wasn't looking at the girls, and he wasn't looking at Marcus. He was looking at her.

By the time she reached the relative safety of the kitchen, Aria was trembling with a mix of exhaustion and pure, unadulterated jealousy.

She dumped the water into the iron pot with a splash that dampened her dress, her mind a blur of Cassie’s hand and that daring hug.

The rejection she had thought would be her shield was starting to feel like a cage, and the quiet, dangerous man she called brother was currently letting the entire pack try to pick the lock.

She stood in the steam of the kitchen, the scent of lavender and soap doing nothing to mask the phantom scent of pine and sweat that haunted her.