I couldn’t stop replaying it. The way his tongue had stroked mine, demanding and deep. The low rumble in his chest when I’d whimpered. The undeniable hardness I’d felt pressed against my belly, proof that the kiss had affected him just as powerfully. My cheeks burned at the memory. I was no delicate flower, but in that moment, I had felt delicate in his armscherished almost, despite the anger fueling it all.
“I hate you,” I whispered to the absent Alpha, even as my body ached for more. “I hate what you do to me.”
I climbed onto the bed, burying myself under the covers as if they could shield me from the bond pulling at my soul. Promises spilled from my lips in the quiet darkness. “Never again. I won’t let it happen again. I won’t give him that power over me. I’m stronger than this. I hav
