---- Alpha Michael leaned in, his lips brushing my ear, his breath hot. "Tell me why I should." My breath caught. I didn't understand this shift in me. This ache. This pull. He'd always been the helpless man in the shadows of my pity. But now, I saw the truth-he wasn't broken. He was whole. He was powerful. He was a wolf in disguise. Ihad been living under the same roof as a fully capable man, who had played the fool... and now held all the cards. Alpha Michael chuckled, his fingers dragging slowly up my back. "You act so distant," he murmured, amusement dripping from his voice. "But aren't you my mate?" ---- My jaw tightened. I tried pushing him away, but he didn't even budge. Then his lips found the curve of my neck, brushing gently-until I felt the sharp pinch of his teeth. He bit me. A gasp tore from me. The sting was electric, awakening something deep in me. Alpha Michael pulled back, admiring the mark he'd left-a territorial claim. A wolf's mark. "A claiming kiss," he said, voice thick with satisfaction. My knees nearly buckled. My entire body went limp in his hold, overtaken by need and confusion. I felt the undeniable signs of arousal pooling between my legs, my wolf scratching beneath the surface, howling in response. "Stop," I begged, the words barely audible, barely convincing. ---- He chuckled again, low and rumbling. "Didn't you once ask me what it truly meant to be mated?" He knew. He knew exactly what he was doing to me-what his voice, his scent, his touch awakened. No. I couldn't let this happen. This wasn't reality. This was some cruel game. I needed to get out. Fast. Then, his energy shifted. The warmth disappeared. A glacial edge cut through his voice. "Why are you really here, Becky?" I blinked, thrown off balance. "W-What?" His grip on me tightened, the claws just beneath his skin pressing ever so lightly into my waist. ---- "What are you planning with Alpha David?" I felt my breath freeze in my lungs. Alpha David? What did he mean? What did Alpha David have to do with this? Gone was the playful flirtation. In its place stood an Alpha interrogator. Alpha Michael's gaze sharpened, his dominance coiling like a storm ready to strike. "Don't bother lying," he said coldly. "I know Alpha David sent you. He wants to know what I'm hiding. Am I right?" I gaped at him, stunned. "You've lost your mind." Alpha Michael's laughter was low and dangerous -no joy, just warning. "Don't pretend, Becky. We both know how far you'd go for that bastard."