ALPHA BIKER WHO CLAIMED HIS BROTHER'S MATE

7

MAYA:

“I am not jealous,” I scoffed, my voice betraying me with a frantic tremor. “I’m trapped in a house with a man who thinks I’m a weapon and a witch who thinks I’m a science project. Forgive me if I’m not exactly glowing with joy.”

Rafe didn’t show any ounce of remorse. Why would he?

Instead, he leaned in until the heat radiating from his bare chest seeped through my sweater.

“Your scent says otherwise, love. It’s heavy and smells like someone who has been having a s*x dream about me.”

I rolled my eyes as he said this.

“You are the only man close to me, and I am attracted to men. So, go figure, Rafe.”

I didn’t even know why I was being rude, but he was getting on my last f*****g nerve.

“Oh, cut the love dance for five seconds,” Delinda groaned, though her eyes were anything but bored. She stood up, the leather of her jacket creaking as she moved. The humor vanished from her face, replaced by a cold look.

She took careful steps toward me, her eyes never leaving mine.

“Let’s see what we’re actually dealing with.”

She began to circle me like I was a specimen in her lab. I felt her magic—it was dark and felt like a thousand needles pricking my skin. My wolf paced behind my ribs, snarling at the intrusion. I felt whatever power was inside me too, wanting to be set free.

But no matter how much it tried to connect to me, it couldn’t.

“You look like an Omega,” Delinda mused, her voice dropping into a low chant. “You smell like an Omega… mostly. But there’s something under your skin. A frequency that shouldn't be there.”

“I don’t know what you are talking about,” I snapped, my heart hammering. It was my wolf speaking. It was like she was afraid of whatever it was overpowering her.

“Are you sure?” Delinda stopped directly in front of me. Her eyes flashed a sickly violet. “Let’s see if whatever this is has teeth.”

Before I could protest, she lunged forward. Her eyes glowed red faintly as she slammed her palms into my chest with a force that should have sent me flying across the kitchen.

But I didn't move.

Instead, a shockwave of cold, violet-black energy erupted from my skin. It hit Delinda so hard that she was thrown backward, her boots skidding across the floor as she barely caught herself against the sofa.

Silence filled the room. It was suffocating. My hands shook as my eyes found Rafe, who stood in awe too.

“Is it some kind of demon or what?” he asked, killing his smoke on the kitchen counter to give whatever it was his full attention.

“Holy s**t,” Delinda whispered, rubbing her numb arms. She looked at Rafe, her face pale. “Could be a demon. I would know a vampire’s defense if I was attacked by one. Whatever it was, thank the goddess it is sealed inside of you.”

My brows wrinkled.

She shut her eyes for a second.

“The energy around it is dark, and it is suppressed by a really powerful spell.” She opened her eyes, then turned to Rafe. “Did you bring me here to kill me or something?” she asked, and he clicked his teeth.

“Delinda, please. You are the only witch in the club I trust and the most powerful.”

“Yeah, next time remember that we are the outcasts. I am the weakest witch in my family!” she raised her voice.

“That is what you think, but—”

“Can we not deviate?” I asked, cutting him off. Then I turned to her with my heart in my throat. “What it is, you can find out, right?”

She looked at me with uncertainty in her eyes.

“I can’t be sure,” Delinda said, her voice shaking. “But that coldness? That void? You are part something else. Something older and worse than a vampire. Maybe something they tried to burn out of history books.”

“A dragon?” Rafe asked, and I shot him a killer glare.

He put up his arm in surrender, then let out a dark chuckle, leaning back against the counter.

“Dragons cannot survive in this condition. Pick up a book or something.”

I hated how he switched from serious to joking.

His chuckle died down, and he stepped back into my space, his presence so overbearing it made my breath stutter in my lungs. He didn’t answer. He just looked at me with those predatory eyes, his hand reaching out to tuck a stray hair behind my ear. His touch felt like a brand.

“It doesn’t matter what’s in the books,” he murmured in a low tone. “What matters is what your parents are hiding. Only they have the key to the seal or whatever voodoo was used on you.”

He leaned down, his lips brushing against the shell of my ear, sending a traitorous shiver down my spine.

“We’re going back to the ship,” he whispered, and fear flashed through my eyes. “We’re going to find out exactly what kind of monster you’re hiding.”

I swallowed hard, knowing this meant I would be in the same space as Jalen.

“Now?”

“Soon,” he said, pulling back just enough to look me in the eye. He sighed, a dark shadow crossing his face. “But before we deal with your family secrets, I have to handle a mess at the club. Someone’s been talking, and I don’t like leaks.”

He turned to Delinda.

“I’ll be ready in a moment. We’re going to the Den.”

I felt a cold pit of dread open in my stomach. I badly wanted to know what was wrong with me, but I feared what they would find.

Also, I didn’t want to stay alone because I feared whatever I was would overpower me. I mean, it should know by now that I know it exists.

“Let me come with you,” I said, reaching for his arm.

His brows creased.

“You are no match for the club. You just tasted the dark side last night and—”

Delinda clicked her teeth.

“I knew it. This one is beyond f**k and move on. You care about her.”

Rafe glared at her for a second. Then he looked back at me.

“Get dressed in whatever clothes you want from my wardrobe. We leave in five.”