Mon Amour

Chapter 30: ... Alphas Make the Last

Chapter 30: ... Alphas Make the Last

Anna watched Maksim's face intently. Nik said that he could wake up at any moment.

The trio spent the last couple hours watching Maksim transform. His entire body slowly began to heal.

She thought it was amazing how shifters regained their health. Maksim looked as good as new and she was thankful that her plan worked so far.

The aged book said that if he healed and didn't get worse, his body accepted the mark.

Anna was now sprawled on his chest. She was mentally and emotionally drained and only wanted to nap, but she knew that there was still more to be done.

Nik and Svetlana left some time ago. The two said they had to take care of something, but Anna knew they were just trying to give her and Maksim the space they needed.

She was appreciative of the time alone. She wanted to be with him, just the two of them, but she was also nervous. Since they left her, all she kept thinking about was how she would tell Maksim what she had done.

Would he be angry with her?

Would he be relieved she saved him?

Would he refuse to mark her?

It didn't truly matter to her now. A sort of peacefulness washed over her heart the minute she was finished marking him.

No matter what happened when he woke up, Maksim would live.

Isn't that all she ever really wanted?

Now that she had it, Anna was content.

Feeling some movement underneath her, she turned to look at Maksim's face.

"What happened?" Maksim mumbled in a gruff voice, as his lids fluttered open.

"Don't be mad, but-"

"Why is my arm bandaged?"

Before Anna could make a move to stop him and explain, Maks ripped the cotton and medical tape away from his arm. When the Alpha saw the healed teeth marks in his flesh, his gaze darkened.

"What did you do?" Maksim growled, even though he already knew the answer. Humans marking shifters was an old tradition that his people used to save a fallen pack member. Ancient shifters would lure in a human girl from a neighboring village and manipulate her into thinking she was in love. Once she found out the shifter was dying, she would be willing to offer herself in the shifters place. One hadn't been performed in centuries, because, as times changed, human sacrifice was no longer an option.

But that's exactly what Anna did. She sacrificed herself for him, and he couldn't be more livid.

"I saved you." She could tell he was angry and she didn't want to make it worse.

"You saved me?" Maks laughed wickedly. "At what expense, Anna? You expect me to be grateful and just sit around to watch you die. Well, I won't do it... Get out."

"But-"

"Get out!"

"No! I still need you to do something for me." Anna said, standing her ground. She wasn't going to let him bully her into leaving this time. Not when her life was still on the line. "I need you to mark me."

Maksim's eyes grew with more anger. She was dying and she wanted him to mark her. Did she think he wouldn't suffer enough grief with how things were now? He couldn't imagine being bonded to her, and then she die. Her death was already going to ruin him.

"I can't do it."

"No, you don't understand! I know what the legends say. If you mark me, I won't have to die. The power from our bond would keep me alive." Anna explained helplessly. If Maksim chose not to help her, she would surely be out of luck.

Maks looked at her skeptically. This plan was not a good one. There were too many things that could go wrong. This sounded like one of Niklaus' ideas. Only he would be willing to take such a huge risk.

"How do you know it will work?"

"I don't."

***

"Are you sure about this?" Maks asked.

The Alpha had been to war, but never had he felt this nervous. He couldn't tell if it was because of what he was about to do, or if it was because Anna was so close to him.

"I'll try to make it as painless as possible."

Putting her hands on his chest for comfort, Anna nodded. "I'm ready."

On her cue, Maks moved a shaky hand to push her long chocolate hair behind her back.

"Are you nervous?" Anna whispered.

When she received nothing in reply, she sighed. "Everything will be ok, Maks. I can feel it."

The Alpha hoped her 'womanly intuition' was right, because he couldn't feel anything but dread.

Anna could feel Maksim's face come closer to her neck. When she felt his stubble brush up against her skin, she couldn't help but to squirm.

"You have to stay still, Anna. I need to concentrate." Maks barked, causing her to mumble an apology.

Tension built up in the room.

Anna could feel Maksim's breathe float across her skin as unanswered questions filled her head.

How painful would it be?

Could this really be the answer they were looking for?

Would this end all of their troubles?

Suddenly, all of them left her as she felt the searing pain of a wolf's teeth buried in her skin.

Her hair stood on end, and her legs slacked beneath her. Luckily, two arms were there to catch her.

It was in the moment that Anna realized that she wasn't experiencing pain. No, it wasn't pain at all. She was experiencing love, sorrow, jealousy, passion, and a livelihood she had never felt before all at the same time.

It wasn't pain. It was the beautiful feeling of her soul being connected to another.

She had been wrong before to say she was content. Before, she didn't have this type of feeling.

The feeling of knowing someone will always be with you and apart of you. Anna now had someone who would be able to understand her like no other. She was now the proud owner of not only one soul, but two.

A sense of belonging filled her heart.

Anna now had a bond that could never be broken and a devilish wolf that would never leave her side.