Camden blatantly stares at me, even as he begins to eat. The rest of his pack members are slightly more subtle now—merely sneaking glances out of the corners of their eyes rather than facing me head-on the way their Alpha currently is.
I stiffen when he leans towards me over the arm of his chair, and turn to pin him with a stony stare.
He gives me a long, slow perusal with his eyes, making me feel naked and exposed despite being fully clothed. His eyes blaze with lust as he takes in every inch of my body, his gaze turning smoldering. Just like that, warmth ignites in my belly, causing my cheeks to heat even further.
The mate bond is clearly doing its work. I know from my reading that the more time I spend around Camden, the firmer grip the metaphysical bond between us will get on me, and the more I’ll be attracted to him. The thought of something invisible controlling me makes me clench my teeth so hard that my jaw starts to ache.
With a mere look, he’s inspiring more lust in me than I’veeverfelt—aside from when he kissed me last night. To be fair, I can’t exactly pretend to have ever felt lust before, so the mere sensation of being sexually attracted to another being is jarring. There have been a few boys in the village that have caught my eye over the years, granted, but I was too busy raising a child to do anything other than flash a smile.
“Youreallydon’t like me, do you?” Camden questions, sounding amused at the prospect.
I sniff. “I’m not a fan of rhetorical questions.”
He rubs a hand over his stubbled jaw, and I suspect he’s hiding a smile. “Okay,” he drawls. “Whatareyou a fan of?”
His already deep voice drops an octave, gaining a smoky edge that sends heat whipping through me. I know he’s doing this on purpose—trying to exploit the innate physical attraction between us.
So, I say the one thing that I know will stop this conversation from becoming inappropriate—because he’s projecting an untamed need that makes me beyond uncomfortable, mainly because of how deeply it’s affecting me. “Humans. Human men, specifically.”
His gaze turns from smoldering to deeply irritated in a flash. His hands clench and his eyes burn a brighter silver-blue. Somehow, I can tell that his wolf is slinking closer to the surface.
The reading I’ve done on shifters has taught me that they have a dualism to their souls—that their inner animals are separate yet attached entities. If I’m not mistaken, a shifter and their inner animal are often on par with each other, but they both have their own personalities. The animals have a primal way of thinking—I’m willing to bet that Camden’s wolf simply doesn’t understand why I’m being resistant, which angers the animal within. I doubt the wolf is able to grasp the nuances of the situation—in his eyes, I belong to him, and he wants to claim that belonging. I’m sure Camden thinks similarly, though he's capable of assessing the intricacies of our circumstances. It almost makes me want to smile that neither the man nor his wolf are getting what they want, something that’s likely a new experience for both of them.
“A word of advice, Sierra,” Camden rumbles. “Tread very,verycarefully when talking about other men.”
I cock my head to the side. “Why? You have no right to control me—I won my duel. I don’t owe you or your fellow shifters anything. I don’t belong to you.”
I realize that the table has once again fallen silent, everyone watching my exchange with their Alpha, riveted.
A growl sounds low in Camden’s throat. “Incorrect. You’re the other half of my soul—you belong to me in every goddamn way, whether you like it or not.”
My temper—something I normally have solid control over—snaps.
“If you think a royal meal will change my hatred of you, think again.” I motion to the table in disgust. “Ask yourself this: whywouldn’tI prefer humans over you? mythics—shifters specifically—forced humans to go back to a miserable way of living. You stole our resources. Destroyed our technology because it didn’t suit your needs or whims. You caused billions of deaths. You consistentlystealthe lives of your mates, giving them no option but to submit to your disgusting ways. Standing with you is akin to accepting the horrors you have put us through, and I willneveraccept that. Likewise, I will never acceptyou.”
Disbelief, anger, and fury flicker over Camden’s face. I enjoy every one of the emotions, because I want to see him suffer as he has made humans suffer, and I’m now in the prime position to incite that torment within him.
“We’ve been laden with the consequences of your rule for over a century. We’ve had to fight for survival on a planetthat was ours to begin with. We’ve bled because you didn’t care enough to protect us. You’ve all but destroyed the human race, and yet you seek my allegiance?”
With a mask of determination on his features, Camden tells me in a quiet yet steely voice, “But you’re not human either, are you, Sierra?”
I really wish I hadn’t let the secret of my magic slip.
“My kind was on this planetlongbefore yours,” I shoot back. “Those with earthly magic, along with humans, have rights to Earth. Whereas you have nothing but a long history of causing pain and death to those weaker than you.” I inhale and exhale deeply, willing myself to gain some calm. I whisper in Leisel’s ear, “Ready to go, sweet girl?”
She’s stiff on my lap, but when she looks at me, there isn’t a hint of fear in her eyes. No, there’s an anger that almost matches mine. My impassioned rant seems to have riled her up—which wasn’t my intention. Leisel is kind, sweet, and the very definition of wholesome. I have no right to corrupt that with my anger. She nods, the motion jerky with rage.
“If you stand up from my table right now, you’ll pay the price,” Camden says, every syllable dripping with danger.
Ignoring his threat, I help Leisel up and then stand. Locking eyes with my so-called mate, I declare, “You have no jurisdiction over either of us. Leisel is too young to be mated, and I won my duel. I have no interest in dining with you or spending a moment in your company. So, I’ll kindly ask you to stay out of my life.”
Before I can blink, Camden’s on his feet and has a hand wrapped around my arm. His stern unyielding expression—as well as his blurring speed—startles me, but I don’t let that show. Instead, I try to jerk out of his hold. Unfortunately, that achieves nothing because his strength undoubtedly exceeds mine.
He addresses the pack though his eyes never leave me. “Please, continue with your meal. I need to have a word with our future queen.” Then ever so briefly glancing at Wyatt, “Watch yourmate in my absence.”
Those words feel like a bucket of cold water thrown on my anger, replacing it with a soul-deep fear. I instinctively reach out for Leisel’s hand, but Camden’s already dragging me away, his stride none too gentle.
“Stop!” I demand. “You can’t take me away from her!” I do my absolute best to escape his grip, but my efforts are perfectly futile. Within seconds, he has me out of the dining room and continues forcibly pulling me away from the one person in my life I truly care about.
