Page 74 of Abandoned By My Alpha Husband

"Then what do you need?" He pressed closer, warm breath washing over my face. I had nowhere to hide. "Tell me what you need. I'll give you anything."

"I need you to stay away from me." I could barely control my voice—it was about to turn into a moan. My body was surrendering to him without my permission.

"Really?" He tilted his head. His voice dropped lower, more dangerous. "You really want me to stay away?"

"Yes," I said, but my voice was shaking. I was barely holding on, and he could tell—or he'd known all along, because his eyes were locked on me, traveling from my face to my chest, my hips, my thighs, then back to my eyes. I felt like his gaze had licked every inch of me. The thought made me even more unsteady.

"Then why are you trembling?"

I could see the collarbone peeking from his collar, the line of his throat. Damn it. Damn it.

"I'm not—"

"You are." He dipped his head and kissed me. My wolf surrendered completely. His forehead nearly touched mine. "Elena, your body's more honest than your mouth."

My breathing came faster. All I could do was repeat uselessly.

"Let me go." But it came out as a whimper.

"If I let you go, you'll leave," he said quietly. "And I'll never see you again."

I was furious. "That's what you deserve—"

Before I could finish, he kissed me again.

His lips pressed against mine, hard, with something close to desperation. My body went rigid. My mind went blank. My wolf let out a low moan, and my entire body went limp. The sensation... like an electric current flooding in from where our lips met, racing down my nerves, burning through my chest, my belly, every corner of me.

I could kick him. Slap him. Tell him to get lost.

But I couldn't.

My hands fell limply from above my head. His hands settled on my waist. Through the smooth fabric of my suit, I could feel the heat of his palms. His kisses trailed from my lips to the corner of my mouth, down to my jaw, finally landing on my neck.

"Elena..." His voice was hoarse, breath spilling across my skin. "This suit... looks so good on you... I've never seen you dressed like this before..."

My hands finally pushed against his chest.

"Don't..."

But my voice was so soft it had no conviction. He lifted his head. Those gray eyes fixed on me, full of raw hunger. I trembled. The tension and thrill of being on the verge of conquest wrapped around me, leaving me unable to speak clearly.

"Tell me to stop," he said, voice shaking—he was holding back. "Elena, tell me to stop and I will."

I opened my mouth. My wolf was going crazy inside me, tail wagging furiously, howling—"Don't stop, don't let him stop." I felt his heartbeat syncing with mine. I felt his body heat melting into my own temperature.

We belonged to each other.

Even if I didn't want to admit it.

Even if he'd hurt me.

Even if the bond... had broken.

We still belonged to each other. That sense of belonging between fated mates—without my realizing it over the years—had seeped into our very bodies. The Moon Goddess's joke was always this cruel. We were already bound tight.

My silence, my hesitation—he read it as permission. He kissed me again. One hand slipped beneath my jacket, circling my waist but going no further. His breathing was ragged. I could feel him hard against me, but still he held back, only biting my lip and murmuring.

"Elena..."