The Alpha's Unclaimed Mate novel Chapter 182

Chapter 182: Friendzone. Friendzone. Friendzone...Nevermind.

"I watched a Fae-wolf moon goddess, whatever the hell she is, kiss two men and get bitten by them both in the same hour." Maelor slumped into a chair by the fire in Riven’s study. "And you’re offering me scotch?"

He took the glass and took a long sip.

Riven claimed the armchair opposite Maelor with one ankle on his knee, completely unbothered. "Tiberon doesn’t let anyone do anything. There is more to that. A deal under the table."

"A shark judging another shark for swimming, are we?"

"I don’t swim. I own the ocean."

Maelor raised an eyebrow, swirling the last golden drop of scotch in his glass before tipping his head back. "Hyran Thornfell called the wards the single greatest failure in his career. We are on borrowed time as it is."

"The clock isn’t ticking for us, Maelor. It’s ticking for everyone who doesn’t know what we’ve done."

"Two wolves just sank their fangs into your ’niece’"—Maelor punctuated the word with air quotes—"at the same time. She is unconscious in another king’s territory, and your response is a single cryptic sentence."

Riven set his glass down with a final thud.

"When Thornfell asks you to audit the wards again, don’t tamper. Just take longer. Put restrictions on it. The more time the girl is away from Drakenfell the better."

✦✦✦

Ice on her neck. Gauze underneath. And the scent of the man she was supposed to be walking away from wrapped around her like a confession.

She opened her eyes and saw Fin’s abs. He had one arm wrapped around her, the other was holding the ice pack on her neck.

"Hey... it’s okay, Serena," he whispered, kissing the top of her head. "I’m here."

She swallowed the lump in her throat. The sobering truth was that when she was with Fin, everything felt like it was supposed to be. He had endured two months of torture for her. The fact that she was about to cut things off with this man was breaking her heart.

But she had to do it. She told Elara she would.

His hand moved to the back of her head, gently stroking her hair.

She took a steadying breath. "Fin, I—"

"No," he cut her off. "I’m not going anywhere, Serena. Sorry. No."

His arms tightened around her. "I feel you. You don’t want me to go anywhere either."

She didn’t argue. He was right. But what she wanted and the right thing to do were two different things.

The images came back in pieces because that always happened after she was marked. The ritual, then Dex kissing her. She kissed him back in front of Fin like an idiot. And did the same thing with Fin to Dex. It wasn’t on purpose. Everything happened so quickly, the last thing she ever wanted to do was hurt either of them.

She then realized that he was hard under her, and tried to push herself up. But he didn’t let her move. She gave up after one try, exhausted.

When she stirred again, Fin was the one waking her. Her eyes opened groggily.

He picked her up and carried her into his large bathing chamber.

She let him. He’d been taking care of her for days and this was becoming a morning routine.

He took off her silk shorts and camisole.

Friendzone, step one: let the man undress you. Elara would be thrilled with her execution so far.

His thumb traced her jawline, grip tilting her chin up so she had nowhere to look but at him. His chest heaved, and every muscle in his torso was drawn tight, coiled with want.

"Fuck, you’re so beautiful."

He said it like a confession and an accusation at the same time, as if her entire existence was a personal inconvenience he refused to stop enjoying.

They got in his rainwater shower and the water felt good falling on both of them. He kissed her lips, then moved back down her body, leaving fire in his path.

Maybe it was him seeing her kiss someone else. Maybe it was from the audacity of Dexmon marking her. Maybe it was his territorial instincts in overdrive. Fin wanted to claim her fully—to dominate her until she screamed his name. The urge to mate warred with the urge to taste her, and the Gods themselves couldn’t have stopped him.

Oblivious, Serena’s mind went back to Dexmon. Her heart ached at the thought of him sleeping alone last night, his first night back. She wanted to check on him and make sure he was okay. His torso was so bruised.

While naked in Fin’s shower, she was spiraling about Dexmon. This was fine. Everything was fine. The friendzone plan was thriving.

Fin’s mouth locked around her clit, sucking relentlessly, completely breaking her out of her train of thought.

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