TO MATE A MONSTER

CHAPTER 3

ETHAN'S POV

Julian’s words still hung in the air between us. I love you, and I want you to mark me as your mate.

For a moment, I didn’t say anything. I just stood there, letting her words settle. My wolf didn’t react, not the way it had when I saw her, the girl from the gathering. That silence told me everything.

“Julian,” I said finally, my voice low, barely above a whisper. “You know that’s not possible.”

Her chin lifted slightly, but she didn’t speak. I could see the tension in her shoulders, the way she braced herself for what I was going to say.

“You’ve been with me almost all my life,” I continued. “You’ve stood beside me through everything, every battle, every loss. You’ve been my Beta, my friend… my family. But I’ve never felt that pull towards you.”

She swallowed, her eyes darkening, but I pushed on.

“I can’t mate you, Julian. Not just because you’re my Beta, but because…” I paused, dragging in a breath. “Because I’ve found my mate. In the most unexpected place, and I need to find her. I have to.”

For a second, her eyes stayed locked on mine. Then she gave me a small smile.

“Okay,” she said.

But the smile didn’t reach her eyes. My mind was already pulling me back to the memory of that girl. The way my wolf had nearly torn out of me to get to her.

*********

ELENA'S POV

My room was quiet except for the soft scratch of pencil on paper. I sat cross-legged on my bed, my sketchpad balanced against my knees. Drawing had always been my escape, the thing that kept my mind from falling apart. Tonight, I didn’t even realize I was sketching a face until I looked down and saw the lines, sharp jaw, piercing eyes.

His eyes.

I cursed under my breath and was about to flip the page when there was a knock at my door.

“Come in,” I said, not looking up.

The door opened, and Alpha Lucas stepped inside. His presence always filled a room, the air seeming heavier somehow. My wolf shifted inside me and became restless.

“The attraction,” he said, his voice was low and sounded certain. “It’s here. Stronger than before.”

I blinked at him. I was caught off guard. “Lucas…”

Something in his gaze changed. His pupils widened, and that familiar hazel darkened to gold. His wolf surfaced fast, energy surging like a current through the air. The heat coming off him made my skin prickle. He took a step toward me, and I could feel the weight of his next action.

My breath was now fast. “Lucas, stop,” I said, but my voice didn’t sound as firm as I wanted it to.

He didn’t slow down. His breathing grew heavier, his eyes locked on my neck. My wolf bristled, every instinct telling me what was about to happen: he was going to mark me.

“Lucas, I mean it!” I pushed myself back against the frame.

His wolf was in control now, that primal need spilling over. He was close enough that I could feel his heat, smell the wild edge of his scent. My hand shot out, gripping his wrist, shoving it hard.

“Stop!” I shouted.

The word hit him like a physical blow. His eyes blinked, shifting back to normal, his wolf retreating. He stood still, breathing hard, then stepped back as if he’d just realized what he was doing.

“I… I’m sorry,” he said, with a rough voice. “I don’t know what came over me.”

I didn’t answer. I just stared at him, my chest rising and falling fast.

He hesitated at the door, his hand tightening into a fist before he finally left.

I sat there long after he was gone, my heart still pounding. Sleep was out of the question.

The next morning, I was on the training field before the sun came into play. The cold air kissed my skin, but I welcomed it. I needed something to burn away the restlessness that had kept me up all night.

I gripped a practice sword and began moving through the drills and strikes. My muscles screamed, but I kept going, anything to keep my mind from drifting where it wanted to go.

I switched my grip, bringing the sword down in a sharp arc, too sharp. The edge sliced across my palm. I hissed in pain but didn’t stop right away. My body had healed from worse in seconds before, and I expected it to do the same now.

Only… it didn’t.

The pain didn’t fade this time. It grew sharper, painful, deeper, spreading up my arm like fire. My knees went weak, and the sword slipped from my fingers, clattering to the ground. I pressed my hand to my chest, waiting for my skin to close.

It didn’t.

The burning grew worse. My vision wavered.

Then I screamed.

I heard steps coming towards me. Lucas’s voice called my name. He dropped to his knees beside me, grabbing my hand. The moment he saw the wound, his expression shifted from concern to pure urgency.

“Damn!” he swore, snatching the sword from the ground. He turned it over, sniffed the blade once, then cursed again. “The sword’s laced with wolfsbane.”

My stomach turned cold. Wolfsbane. Even a trace could kill a wolf; it is that deadly.

Lucas looked right into my eyes. “The healer isn’t here; he’s in another pack. We don’t have time. We have to take you to the Eclipse Shadow Pack.”

I tried to shake my head, to tell him no, but my body wasn’t listening, my vision was becoming blurry, and my limbs felt heavy.

“Lucas…” I managed, my voice barely above a whisper.

Before I could finish, the darkness pulled me under.