Chapter 5 – Marked by the Strongest
428 Words
Forty minutes of silence, his hand resting on my thigh, silver flames dancing happily around his fingers like kittens.
We didn’t speak.
We didn’t need to.
The new bond hummed between us, warm and steady, nothing like the cold chain Aarav had snapped three years ago.
The gates opened on their own.
A palace, not a pack house, rose in front of us. White marble, glass walls, moonlight reflecting off a private lake.
Ryan carried me over the threshold without asking.
My guards took positions outside.
He didn’t stop until we reached the top floor, a massive bedroom with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the full moon.
He set me down gently.
“Still okay with this?” he asked, voice low.
“I can wait. I will wait if you need time.”
I reached up and pulled his tie loose.
“I waited three years for someone to see me as more than weak.”
I stepped closer.
“Show me what it feels like to be wanted by the strongest.”
His control snapped.
He kissed me like a man starved, lifting me against the window.
Cool glass at my back, hot Alpha at my front.
My gown vanished in one smooth tug, replaced by his hands, his mouth, his teeth grazing the spot where my neck met shoulder.
“Tell me to stop and I will,” he growled against my skin.
“Don’t you dare.”
He carried me to the bed.
Moonlight painted us silver and gold.
When he finally sank his teeth into my neck, marking me as his Luna, his Empress, his equal, the silver flames exploded outward, cracking the glass behind us.
I marked him back, silver flames branding his skin in a perfect crescent moon.
The bond locked into place, unbreakable.
Hours later, we lay tangled in sheets, my head on his chest.
His fingers traced the new mark on my neck.
“Mine,” he murmured.
I smiled against his skin.
“Yours.”
My phone buzzed on the nightstand.
A message from an unknown number.
Aarav:
I felt the bond break again. I felt you accept him. Please, Riya… I’m dying without you.
I showed Ryan the screen.
He kissed my temple.
“Let him suffer.”
I deleted the message and turned the phone off.
Outside, the full moon watched over us.
For the first time in three years, I slept without nightmares.
Only sweet dreams of silver flames and golden eyes.
To be continued…
Drop a ❤️ if Riya finally got the love she deserves!
- Writer
