Chapter 6: Marked Without a Bite
627 Words
Aria could feel it before she even stepped into the training field.
Eyes on her.
Sierra.
Perched on the bench like a queen on a throne, surrounded by two other she-wolves dressed like they were attending a fashion show, not training.
Sierra’s red-painted lips curled into a smirk the moment she saw Aria.
“Well, well. Look who finally crawled out of hiding.”
Aria didn’t respond. She walked past them like they were ghosts.
She wasn’t here for drama.
She was here to train and breathe and survive.
But Sierra didn’t know how to be ignored.
“I heard Kael’s been visiting you at night,” she said loudly. “Don’t get used to it. He’s just playing with his food.”
Aria froze mid-step.
She turned slowly.
The old Aria the broken one would’ve lowered her head.
But not this version.
Not anymore.
“If he wanted you,” Aria said quietly, “he wouldn’t keep sending you away.”
Sierra’s face twisted with fury.
Her wolf pushed forward in her eyes. “Watch your tone, omega.”
Aria took a step closer, voice calm as stone. “I’m not the girl your Alpha rejected. I’m the one yours is chasing.”
Then she walked away.
Mic. Dropped.
An hour later, Aria was sparring with Jace again, sweat dripping down her back, arms burning from repetition.
She didn’t hear Kael approach she felt him.
Every cell in her body tightened like they knew he was near.
She didn’t turn.
Not until he spoke.
“Come with me.”
His voice left no room for argument.
Even Jace backed away with a slight bow, tossing Aria a small wink.
Kael said nothing as he led her to the forest edge. Only once they were surrounded by towering pines and distant stars did he stop.
“I heard what you said to Sierra.”
She swallowed. “Are you mad?”
“No,” he said. “I’m proud.”
She looked up, startled.
“I don’t need a Luna,” he said. “But I want a mate who doesn’t cower. One who fights.”
“I’m not yours,” she said, but her voice lacked fire.
“You keep saying that,” he murmured. “But your eyes say something else.”
Then his fingers brushed her wrist.
Slow. Light. Electric.
Her skin ignited under his touch.
And still he didn’t kiss her.
Didn’t mark her.
But what he did do… was claim her, without a single bite.
His hand slid behind her neck, and he pulled her forward until her forehead touched his.
“Say you don’t feel this,” he whispered. “Say you don’t want me, and I’ll walk away.”
Aria’s lips trembled.
“I… I don’t…”
But her wolf howled.
Her knees went weak.
And her heart betrayed her.
“I feel it,” she whispered. “I hate that I do… but I do.”
Kael exhaled shakily, like he’d been holding it for hours.
His nose brushed hers.
But still no kiss.
Only a promise.
“You’re not ready,” he said again. “But when you are… I won’t be patient anymore.”
Then he turned and disappeared into the trees.
Sierra watched from the shadows, eyes glowing.
She wasn’t going to lose.
Not to a broken little omega.
She’d find a way to destroy Aria’s place here.
And she already knew where to start
By exposing where she came from.
Back in her room, Aria sat against the window, heart pounding like it was still under his touch.
Kael hadn’t kissed her.
Hadn’t marked her.
But he didn’t have to.
He’d already started claiming her…
And the scariest part?
She was starting to want it.
- Writer
