"More?" He pressed.
Mia only nodded her head, unable to speak.
He brushed his nose against her cheek and commanded in her ear. "Then, beg for more," Zeus smirked. His eyes shone in the dim bedroom, and his hand stopped playing with her clit. "Beg...
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I knew something was off. Zeus had been unusually quiet throughout the entire conversation at the library, only lurking in the back of my mind, observing. And if there are two things Zeus cannot do, it is to keep quiet and sit still. Of course, it was like the calm before a storm.
He snarled in my mind. "You can't control me forever." His words were laced with a warning, his need for dominance overbearing.
Zeus was frustrated, especially since I had left Mia behind. I had run from his mate.
"Do you think this is enough?" His deep voice echoed through my body, vibrating with his need for dominance. "Words won't keep her safe. We need to do more. We need to mark her," Zeus' tone sharper now and more urgent.
"Not this speech again, Zeus! You're like Mia—you can never shuffle the playlist. Always stuck on repeat."
"Yes, this again, Alexander!" His growl grew sharper. "You read that message. They're making bets. Those boys see her as a prize, and you're doing nothing! We need to mark her before someone else tries to get close."
I snorted, trying to push him back. "So, you're worked up over a text? You think your mate will jump in another's arms?" I rolled my eyes. "Don't be stupid, Zeus. Mia is barely trusting me. Do you really think she'll let another man touch her like I do?"
But even as I said it, Zeus' anger pricked at me. His possessiveness was always overwhelming.
"I don't care! I want her MARKED." His snarl filled my mind, rattling my nerves.
My jaw clenched as I fought to stay calm. "No! Mia isn't ready. She must come to me of her own free will, Zeus. We can't force her."
Zeus let out another furious snarl in response. "It's not about forcing her, Alex. It's about protecting her. If we don't act, she'll slip further away."
He pushed forward through the trees, running faster this time. The noise of the practice field faded behind me as we went deeper into the forest. Zeus, however, was not letting me take back control. At some point, he stopped abruptly, frustrated. His paws were near the edge of a cliff.
"She'll live with us at the penthouse until we can fly home."
I shook my head. "That's not happening, Zeus," I growled. "She's seventeen; that isn't how things are done in the human world. They don't live like we do." I took a deep breath, tired of his game. "We aren't in our pack. This isn't the Red Moon."
Zeus growled, and I could feel his rage boiling beneath my skin. "She's ours. No one else will have her—not now, not ever." The possessiveness in his voice made my skin prickle.
"And no one ever will. Now, calm the fuck down!" I said firmly, trying to regain control, but I knew that would not work.
The sun was setting, and we were only getting deeper and deeper into the forest. I told Mia I would be back for her.
