THIRD PERSON POV
The words hit Sebastian like a punch to the chest.
No man will ever own me.
He heard them over the applause, over Robert's awkward dismissal. He felt them in the raw, screaming stretch of the mate bond in his chest, a hot wire of pure rejection. His wolf howled inside him, a sound of furious protest that shook through his bones. Mine. She is mine.
His jaw clenched so hard his teeth ached. He watched Jessica sit down, her spine straight, her hands trembling in her lap. She thought she'd won something. She thought her little human declaration meant a damn thing in their world. The smug satisfaction on her face, even through the pain he knew she felt, lit a cold fire in his gut.
Next to him, he felt Dominic's rage like a furnace. His brother's hands were fists on the
