The Wolf God's Unwanted Luna

Albericus’s POV

I stepped forward and caught her hands gently in mine, watching her closely. Her skin was warm. Her pulse beat much faster than it should have been. "Do not even think about trying anything foolish. I mean it. If you do, I will " I leaned in slightly, lowering my voice to a murmur, "I will spank you."

Her eyes snapped wide open in pure disbelief.

"Just kidding," I muttered, my voice barely audible. "Maybe. Possibly. Okay, probably not."

Her facial expression went instantly glacial.

"You absolute troll," she hissed, ripping her hands away from mine as if my skin had burned her. "Try it and I will charbroil your ass before you so much as raise a single finger."

She stormed right over to the heavy wooden door and stood there expectantly, arms folded tightly across her chest like she was the one in charge here.

I ran a tired hand through my hair and let out a heavy huff. By the spirits, this woman was something else.

Through the fractured bond between us, I could sense two completely distinct emotions bleeding through my mind. One was quiet amusement Aurora, most likely. The other was a prickly unease coming from that darker presence hidden inside her. The one that always seemed totally unsure whether I was a serious threat or just a running joke. The truth was, I walked a fine line between both.

My teasing? My blatant flirting? My absolute promises? All of it left her spinning in circles, and I knew it. I was not just toying with her for fun I was pushing her, pulling her, and reminding her that no matter how far she tried to run away, this invisible tether held strong.

"It was just a harmless joke," I muttered under my breath as I approached the door and turned the iron lock. "Sort of..."

She did not move an inch.

I looked straight at her. She looked right back at me.

Neither of us trusted the other, not entirely. But we were stuck playing this crazy game now. Two completely different creatures tangled together by fate, by force, and by something right in between.

And for better or for worse, we were stepping outside together.

"Go ahead, try something funny," she snapped, fire flashing brightly in her dark eyes. "Just remember it when you are bent over my lap."

Then she spun around on her heel and stormed off.

I followed right behind her, trying desperately not to groan out loud at the hypnotic sway of her hips as the outdoor wind caught that strange, dark dress she insisted on wearing. It looked like something stitched entirely out of midnight and rebellion, but all it really did was highlight her body in a way that made my inner wolf practically salivate.

I let out a silent, mental cry. My wolf snorted at me in pure disdain.

It has been way too long, the beast reminded me.

She did not even wait for me to show her the correct exit she remembered the way on her own, storming out of the building with that same headstrong grace that somehow made my blood boil and race all at once.

I paused right at the open doorway, arms crossed over my chest as I watched her inhale a deep, grateful breath of fresh open air. The bright sunlight caught in her hair, casting a warm golden shimmer across strands that were usually pin-straight. But now? I noticed a subtle wave creeping in just the faint ghost of the natural curls she used to have.

Without saying a single word, she made her way over to a cluster of tall trees, dropped heavily to her knees, and plunged her bare fingers directly into the dark earth. I stayed close by, leaning my shoulder casually against a thick tree trunk as she buried her hands deeper into the rich soil, her breathing slowing down into something almost meditative.

I simply could not resist the urge to tease her.

"That is right," I said with a wide grin, "breathe it all in, wiggle those dirty fingers. Feel that wonderful dirt, earth witch."

Her head snapped toward me instantly, and if looks could actually maim, I would already be torn into tiny shreds.

"You are the mangy mutt here, not me," she growled darkly.

Before I could get another word out, a flurry of small rocks and heavy clumps of soil whipped aggressively through the air straight toward me. I ducked just in time to avoid getting pelted right in the face. Still, I had to shield my eyes as the dirt assaulted me. I felt a few small cuts open up on my skin, then close just as fast as they came. Oh, the wonderful perks of being what I am.

When I finally looked back up, she was standing proudly with her arms out wide, her long hair thrashing wildly in the wind, and her eyes blazing. A true goddess of absolute fury. My goddess.

"Okay! Okay! I completely surrender!" I shouted loudly, barely dodging a stone that flew suspiciously close to my most sacred region.

"I am so completely done with you!" she yelled back. "If it were not for you and your idiotic werewolf mating bond, I would be on the other side of the damn planet right now!"

I darted quickly behind a thick tree trunk, breathing hard.

This was not an official battlefield, but she had me pinned down worse than any trained warrior ever had.

I could not fight her. Not like this.

My wolf growled angrily inside my mind, furious at the very idea of raising so much as a single claw against our mate.

"I know, I know," I muttered under my breath, crouching low while the air around me literally buzzed with flying debris.

"Come on, babe, do you not think you are being just a little "

Something invisible gripped my ankles tightly. The ground was yanked right out from beneath me, and the next thing I knew, I was hanging upside down in midair. My arms flailed wildly as I twisted around like some sort of cursed prey animal caught in a trap.

I let out a low growl.

I was a Beta.

A strong wolf.

I was not meant to dangle like a helpless rabbit caught by its feet.

"Put me down right now!" I barked angrily. "Or I swear to the moon "

A sharp jab of unseen force slammed straight into my gut, instantly stealing all the breath from my lungs.

"Shut up," she said coolly, looking thoroughly pleased with herself.

"Oh, I am definitely getting you back for this stunt," I gritted out through clenched teeth, jabbing a threatening finger down toward her as I spun slowly in circles in the air.

Her lips curled upward into a wicked, triumphant smirk as she sauntered a bit closer. At least she had finally stopped hurling heavy rocks at my head. Small victories.

"And how exactly are you planning on getting back at me, dangling right there midair like a caught trout?" she taunted smoothly. "It is simple really I just walk away, and you simply... hang there."

"You think this is actually funny, do you?"

She folded her arms neatly across her chest and tilted her head sideways, grinning ear to ear.

"Oh, absolutely hilarious."