Chapter 7: The Bite Beneath the Moon
706 Words
She couldn’t sleep.
Even with the doors locked and curtains drawn, Chloe couldn’t shake the image of Luca’s eyes—how cold and calculating they were. Or the way Dante’s entire body vibrated with rage when he’d faced him. There was something darker in Dante than she’d realized. Something dangerous.
But it was that same danger that made her feel safe.
And terrified.
And breathless.
She slipped out of bed and tiptoed down the stairs. It was late, nearly 2 a.m., and yet the house felt… alive. Like the walls were holding their breath.
Dante was outside.
She saw him the moment she peeked through the glass doors. Shirtless. Barefoot. His body was painted silver by the moonlight, muscles tense and twitching like he was trying to hold something in.
She opened the door without thinking. The night air hit her like ice.
“Dante.”
He didn’t turn.
“Go back inside, Chloe.”
She stepped closer. “Talk to me.”
He did turn then. His eyes were glowing. Not softly, not subtly. They were lit, like a firestorm burning behind his skull. His chest rose and fell in ragged waves.
“You shouldn’t be out here,” he said. “I can’t hold it back much longer.”
“Hold what back?”
His voice dropped, low and rough. “The shift.”
Chloe’s heart skipped. “Are you… turning?”
The silence said enough.
Dante turned his back to her again. “When a wolf finds his mate, the bond doesn’t settle quietly. Not when the mate is resisting it. It fights. It burns. It takes everything in me not to tear this world apart for you, Chloe.”
She came closer. “Then don’t fight it.”
He whipped around, his face twisted in agony and desire.
“Say that again.”
“I don’t want to be afraid of you,” she said, her voice shaking. “I want to understand you. If you’re going to turn, I want to see it.”
“Chloe—”
“I trust you, Dante.”
That broke him.
With a deep growl, he dropped to his knees. His bones cracked, his skin rippled, and his spine arched in a violent shudder. His breath came in pants, grunts, and whimpers, and then—
He exploded.
Not in blood or gore, but in sheer force. One moment he was a man, and the next, a massive black wolf stood before her, golden eyes glowing in the dark. Majestic. Feral. Beautiful.
The wolf walked toward her slowly, almost unsure. It lowered its head and nuzzled her palm, breathing her in.
She didn’t flinch.
Instead, she stroked his fur, soft and warm beneath her trembling fingers.
“You’re still you,” she whispered. “Aren’t you?”
The wolf’s tail flicked. His massive body pressed closer.
And then… she felt it.
A pull. A heat between them that wasn’t human, wasn’t logical. It was primal.
“Do it,” she said suddenly, chest rising.
The wolf pulled back, startled.
“Mark me.”
The shift was instant. The bones broke again, the form twisted and reformed—until Dante stood before her, sweat-drenched and panting.
“Do you know what you’re asking?” he said, voice rough.
She nodded, stepping into him.
“If you bite me, I’m yours, right?”
His hands trembled as he touched her waist.
“You’ll be bonded to me forever. No one else. Not even death could break it.”
“Then what are you waiting for?”
He growled low, gripping her face. “Tell me you want me. Say it.”
“I want you, Dante,” she whispered. “All of you.”
His lips crashed against hers.
And then—teeth.
White-hot pain shot through her shoulder as he bit down, marking her with the symbol of his claim. She gasped against his mouth, her blood mingling with his.
The moment sealed something ancient between them.
A bond.
A tether.
A love that would burn kingdoms down.
And in the quiet after, as he held her in his arms beneath the moon, Chloe knew one thing for sure—
She would never be the same again.
- Writer
