Leyden waited until their footsteps faded down the hallway before speaking. “You okay?”
“Am I okay?” Connor spun to face him, eyes blazing. “Talking about your availability like you were a slab of beef at a butcher’s shop? That son of a bitch just implied you’d fuck anyone who asked, like you’re some…some…” He cut himself off, jaw working.
“I know what he implied.” Leyden kept his voice level. “But he backed off once he understood…”
“He disrespected you. Right to your face.” Connor paced the length of the office, energy crackling off him in waves. “Treated you like you were still available for casual hookups, like your mating bond means nothing because we haven’t…”
He stopped abruptly, shoulders tight.
Leyden had expected Connor to be upset about the sexual implication, embarrassed or ashamed that their lack of consummation was apparently obvious enough for other wolves to notice. But the emotion pouring through the bond wasn’t shame.
It was righteous fury.
“Connor…”
“How dare he?” Connor’s hands shook. “How fucking dare he question the validity of our bond just because we’re not advertising our private business with our scents? You’re my mate. Mine. And he had the audacity to proposition you like I don’t even exist, like you’d just…”
“Hey.” Leyden crossed to his mate, gripped his shoulders. “Breathe.”
Connor sucked in air, gaze locked on Leyden’s face. “I wanted to rip his throat out.”
“I noticed.”
“I’m not sorry.”
“I didn’t ask you to be.” Leyden studied his mate’s furious expression, something warm unfurling in his chest. “You’re defending my honor.”
“You’re my alpha. My mate.” Connor’s voice roughened. “Nobody gets to talk to you like that. Nobody gets to imply you’d break our bond for casual sex with some…some visiting alpha,especially one who notes our claiming scars, and still makes stupid assumptions.”
Leyden understood in an instant. Connor was possessive, and highly protective. He was fierce in a way that had nothing to do with sexual jealousy and everything to do with pack bonds, with loyalty, with the fundamental disrespect Taylor had shown their mating.
Cupping Connor’s face, Leyden’s thumbs brushed over his sharp cheekbones. “You know what Taylor said doesn’t bother me, right? I don’t care what assumptions other wolves make about our relationship.”
“Well, it bothers me.” Connor’s jaw tightened beneath Leyden’s palms. “You changed your entire life for me. Gave up casual sex, dealt with challenges from your own enforcers, restructured your pack’s expectations about what an alpha should be. And that asshole walks in here acting like none of it matters because we’re not fucking?”
“Connor…”
“No.” Connor pulled back, pacing again. “You deserve better than that. You deserve a mate who can give you what you need, who can…”
“Stop.” Leyden caught his wrist, tugged him close. “You give me what I need. Every day. This…” He gestured between them. “Sitting on the couch together, working in the office, talking about pack business and everyday things like genuine couples who care about each other. Those things mean more to me than any of those casual encounters ever did.”
Connor’s expression cracked, something vulnerable bleeding through the anger. “But you’re still lonely.”
“Yeah. Sometimes.” Leyden wouldn’t lie. “But that’s not your fault. That’s me dealing with years of using sex as a substitute foractual connection, trying to figure out what intimacy looks like when it’s not just physical.” He squeezed Connor’s wrist. “You’re teaching me that. Showing me what it means to actually know someone, be known by them. That matters more than what Taylor or anyone else assumes about our bond.”
Connor searched his face, the fury in his eyes banking to something softer. “You really mean that.”
“I really mean that.”
“Taylor still shouldn’t have…”
“No, he shouldn’t have,” Leyden agreed. “And if he tries it again, you have my permission to tear him apart. But for now, let’s just finish reviewing this contract and make sure he’s not trying to screw us on fishing rights.”
A laugh huffed out of Connor, unexpected and genuine. “Fishing rights. Right. Very important.”
“Critical pack business.” Leyden steered him back toward the desk. “Can’t let minor things like territorial disrespect distract us from the really important issues.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
