The silence was so thick, it could be cut with a knife.

Danica’s heart thrummed so loudly, she was certain everyone close by could hear it. They were werewolves, after all.

Obnoxious werewolf hearing. I can’t even be nervous in private!

Gage’s mouth flopped open in shock for a second before he came to his senses. “What the hell do you mean ‘you challenge me?’ You can’t challenge someone for their mate!”

“Actually, he can.”

They both turned to see Norman clad in a stylish black tuxedo that made him look like Gomez from The Addams Family. All that was missing was the mustache.

His seedy black eyes peered at Gage in triumph. “If the rumors I hear are true,” he said, raising his voice so it could be heard throughout the grand room, “then I believe the lady is no longer mated to you. Am I correct?”

Gage’s jaw ticked and Danica gulped.

Norman raised his brows. “So you don’t deny it?”

Gage pressed his lips together in a thoughtful moment before speaking. “We don’t know what has happened.”

“Then your mating tattoos really are gone.”

Danica clutched the shawl covering her bare shoulders tighter.

Gage’s jaw ticked. “Yes.”

“As is your bond to her?”

Every pair of eyes swiveled back to Danica and Gage. She felt the heat of their stares so intensely, she was afraid the flesh would melt right off her face.

Gage’s voice sounded strained when he answered. “Yes.”

“I can’t hear you.”

“It is,” Gage barked, glaring at Norman.

Malachite stood by silently, watching all this unfold without so much as a hint of his true feelings in his expression.

Danica resisted the urge to growl.

That son of a bitch. How can he be so smug during all of this? Doesn’t he realize he’s trying to wreck the one good thing that’s ever happened to me?

Of course he didn’t. He was thinking only about himself.

“What the hell is your problem?” Danica yelled, coming up beside Gage.

“Danica,” he said quietly, trying to grab her and hold her back, but she brushed him off. She was so angry she could punch something. Her inner wolf growled at Malachite, who regarded her with that same coolness that had pissed her off to begin with.

“What do you hope to achieve by challenging Gage for me? I’ll never love you.”

“You don’t know that,” Malachite said.

“Yes, I do!” Danica pressed a finger to her chest, right over her heart. “Only I know what I am and am not capable of, and I’m telling you, there is no way in hell I could ever love someone who tries to control me!”

“I’m not controlling you.”

“Aren’t you, though, by trying to force me away from Gage? You’re trying to bend me to your will. Well, I’m telling you right now that I’ve had about enough of that in my life, and I am sick and tired of being treated like I don’t matter!”

Her voice had steadily risen to a scream throughout the tirade. Her angry words echoed off the walls, and she was breathing much harder at the end of her speech than when she had started.

Norman sniffed and turned his nose up at her. “Well, if you’re done throwing your temper tantrum… which, by the way, is so befitting a queen.”

Danica’s face flamed. How dare he make fun of her! He was only trying to make her look bad in front of the other royal werewolves so it would make Gage look bad.

Bastard.

“As it appears you are no longer mated, I think the terms of the match should be declared,” Norman continued.

“There isn’t going to be a match,” Gage said in a steely voice.

Norman scoffed. “I really don’t think you have much choice in the matter. Where is Her Majesty?”

Danica blinked. Why was he bringing Alara into this?

The room looked around when Alara said, “I am here.” Her voice was filled with power and authority, and it easily carried through the room. People bowed or curtsied as she strode toward them, with Nik following close behind. He wasn’t wearing any of his piercings, and he looked downright handsome in a rugged kind of way.

Alara gazed at Norman coolly, though anger burned behind her eyes. “I’m glad you addressed me as I was already heading in this direction. What is the meaning of all this nonsense, Mr. Black?”

“It’s not nonsense,” he said matter-of-factly. “I simply wanted to ask your opinion on the matter.”

“You mean Malachite challenging Gage for the right to Danica?” Alara said with a hint of sarcasm. “It’s not possible.”

“But in our laws, doesn’t it state that an unmated she-wolf can be claimed by another male?”

Danica thought Alara would immediately rebuke that outrageous statement, but the princess went still and pressed her lips together. Danica’s heart sped up.

“He’s not serious, is he?” Danica asked.

Alara didn’t answer. Her face went pale and she swallowed hard. “Yes,” she said in a low voice, ducking her gaze away from Danica. “That is what our laws say.”

Danica went cold with fear. “You can’t—he can’t—that’s not possible! I’m mated!”

“Alas, my dear, your tattoos—or lack thereof—and your missing bond say otherwise,” Norman said with mock sympathy.

Danica looked to Alara for help, but she wouldn’t look at her. Gage’s fists trembled by his side. His eyes were murderous as he stared at Norman and then Malachite, who remained completely calm.

“I don’t care what our laws say,” Gage snarled. “No one ever abides by that law now because it’s archaic and barbaric.”

“Makes no difference,” Norman said with a sympathetic sigh. “The law is the law, even if it’s an outdated one.”

Gage growled as his eyes flared gold. “If it’s a fight you want, then I sure as hell will give it to you.”

“Gage!” Danica blurted.

Malachite grinned, looking every bit the part of the Big Bad Wolf he was. “I’m looking forward to our rematch, pup. I think you’ll find I won’t be so easily bested this time.”

“We shall see,” Gage snapped.

“Well, it’s settled then!” Norman said gleefully, clapping his hands. “What say you to getting this pesky business over and done with? Shall we say the garden courtyard at midnight?”

Danica forgot how to breathe for a second. “But that’s in an hour!”

“Look on the bright side, peaches,” Norman said jovially. “At least you’ll have it over with.” He clapped her on the shoulder once before sauntering off.

Alara immediately walked up to them. “I’m so sorry,” she said, her eyes begging them for forgiveness. Nik came up behind her and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. “I froze. I wasn’t expecting him to spring that on me. No one has invoked that law in centuries.”

“Is it true, what he said?” Danica asked, interrupting her. She felt like every fiber of her being hung on what Alara said.

Danica’s heart sank when Alara at last turned her sorrowful gaze on her. She didn’t need to hear her say it because she could already read the answer on her face.

“I see,” she said, staggering backward. It felt like the time she’d missed the next bar on the monkey bars and had fallen flat on her back. The air had been knocked from her lungs, and she couldn’t breathe for a few terrifying seconds.

She couldn’t believe this. Was mating everything in this world? Did unmated female werewolves really get treated this way and just go along with it? Sure, Gage had implied that the werewolf society had “risen above” this law, but it didn’t take away from the fact it was still implemented.

That notion was strong enough to encourage her hate, which was the only thing to break through her fear and shock at the current situation.

“It doesn’t matter what the fucking rules say,” Gage said in a low voice filled with rage. “I’m going to kick his ass, and that’s all there is to it.”

Without another word, Gage took her hand and pulled her toward the doors. People parted as they passed, the chorus of their whispers filling Danica’s ears. She wanted to scream at them to shut up, and when they snickered, it took every ounce of self-control in her to keep from tearing them to shreds.

Gage and she didn’t speak the entire way to the room. His face remained hard and his jaw clenched as he practically dragged her from one hallway to the next. She knew that kind of rage-driven haze. Sometimes in a tough situation, anger was the only thing strong enough to get you through it. Anger at the world, anger at the mess you were in, anger at yourself….

She tried feeling angry, wanted to feel angry or latch onto an emotion that was stronger than fear. But all she could seem to do with every step was fall apart more and more on the inside.

All her worst fears came rushing back to her: the fear of ending up alone and with someone she did not love, the fear of finding herself in a loveless marriage she couldn’t back out of….

Her knees shook as she bit back a sob of despair, nearly tripping as her legs turned to Jell-O.

Gage’s grip tightened. “We’re almost there. Just hold on a little longer. I need you to be strong, Danica.”

She nodded. Strong. Right. What the hell had gotten into her? Where was that inner strength she’d so carefully nurtured while enduring all those years of hardship?

She suddenly felt selfish for falling apart when Gage needed her. Had she even stopped to consider what was going through his head?

He seemed to have it together so much that she often found herself relying on him more so than the other way around. But that wasn’t how relationships were supposed to be. You had to lean on each other’s strengths in times of individual weakness. That’s what being in a relationship was all about. It meant you didn’t have to navigate life’s troubles alone.

They reached their room and Gage quietly shut the door behind them. In the tomblike silence of their bedroom suite, Danica’s thoughts suddenly seemed that much louder.

Will Malachite try to kill Gage to get the upper hand?

Does this mean I’ll never get to see Gage again?

Her heart nearly broke her sternum from beating so hard, and she found it hard to breathe despite her best efforts to calm down.

There was no calming down from this. Sometimes, you just needed to hold someone and be held.

“Gage?” she whispered, a tremble in her voice. She could tell by how hot her eyes were, and by how the room blurred every time she blinked, that there were tears in her eyes.

He turned to face her, his face scrunching up with worry when he saw her expression. He already looked so agonized, so torn. It was the same look she knew she wore.

She didn’t need words to express what she wanted. It didn’t matter they no longer had a bond. They didn’t need one.

Slowly, she reached back and undid the zipper on her dress. As the silky material fell away from her body, Gage’s eyes grew darker with lust.

She peeled the gloves off one at a time, letting them fall to the floor beside her dress. Next, she stepped out of her heels and pulled down the already soaked panties and panty hose.

With both hands, she unclasped her bra and removed it. Her nipples puckered at the sudden chill, throbbing because they longed to feel Gage’s touch.

His gaze openly roved over her body as she removed the pins holding her hair in place. It spilled over her shoulders and chest in a cascade of golden curls. Removing her jewelry, she stood there and let him take in her naked body.

Her sex ached. Teasingly, she reached down and pressed the pads of her fingers against herself. She gasped at the sudden wave of heat her body responded with and began stroking the hyper-sensitive nub. It was so easy to get lost in her emotions right now. She eagerly let go of her worries, releasing herself to the sensations pulsing through her. Her breasts heaved up and down as her breathing grew more labored. She didn’t want to think about tonight, or tomorrow, for that matter.

She only wanted to feel.

Gage watched without blinking as he tossed his jacket to the side and undid all the buttons on his shirt with expert precision.

Though he was undressing quickly, it felt like an eternity to her. She needed to feel him inside her before she came undone. It hadn’t been that long since they’d had sex, but with the threat of separation looming over their heads, it seemed like she hadn’t made love to him in forever.

The tips of her fingers reached inside of her, coating her in her own hot, sweet nectar.

Gage stepped out of his pants, shoes, and socks, and then yanked off his boxers. His erection jutted out proudly between his legs, the length of his swollen shaft making Danica restless. She hungered to feel him moving inside her, filling her up with deep, long strokes.

She probed deeper inside herself as he approached, his darkened gaze dropping to her hand. Silently, he lowered himself to the floor one knee at a time and gently pried her hand away. Grabbing her hips, he pulled her closer until her sex was touching his lips. He kissed her tenderly in sweet kisses that sent tendrils of pleasure curling up through her senses. She gasped, throwing her head back and leaning into him as he began to lick her. The sweetness of the gesture only made it more erotic. Not once did he become hurried or frenzied. No, he was taking his time and savoring her taste.

When she thought she would come undone, he rose and hoisted her up so her hips were even with his. She wrapped her legs around him as he walked them over to the bed, where they collapsed atop the soft silk sheets.

He kissed her on the mouth with the same sweetness he had shown her most sensitive area. The tang of her juices clung to his lips, mingling with their saliva as he gently nipped at her lower lip.

She opened her legs wider as he shifted his hip placement so the head of his cock nudged her wet seam. She ached deep within, her body longing for him to take her.

With a whimper, she dug her nails into his buttocks, urging him to get on with it.

He cupped her cheek, his eyes exploring her face intently. Then his mouth came down on hers hard, right about the same time he drove himself into her.

She gasped as he began thrusting fervently, and his tongue teased hers in desperate, breathless kisses. She bucked against him and ran her nails down his back. He groaned low in his throat, his strokes going deeper as he cradled her against him.

She clung to the man she loved as he drove himself deep inside of her, the dizzying sense of pleasure building in her core making her delirious.

Sex could just be sex, or it could actually be love given physical form.

As Gage made love to her, possibly for the last time, all the emotions of love and adoration she’d felt growing this past month came to a swell. She cried out about the same time he did, their hearts beating as one.

When she came down off the beautiful cloud of ecstasy, she sighed with contentment and relaxed against the sheets.

Gage, breathing heavily, kissed her on the mouth. “How was that?” he asked raggedly.

“Superb. As always.”

He gave her a ghost of a smile, but the troubled look in his eyes returned and eclipsed whatever happiness she’d seen there.

He rolled over to lay on his back and wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her against him. She clung to him as closely as possible and pressed her ear against his chest so she could hear his heartbeat. It was quite possibly her favorite sound.

A thoughtful minute passed while she traced patterns on his chest with her fingernail. She stared at the unmarked skin, feeling the calm of resignation settle over her.

And the bitterness of resentment.

“There’s no backing out of this, is there?” she said in a resigned voice.

“No,” Gage answered.

If it were possible, Danica would have gotten closer. She knew trying to convince him to run away with her was a moot point. They couldn’t abandon their pack. She’d grown fond of them, and they really had started to feel like a family of sorts to her. Besides, no wolf who ran from a challenger would ever be able to call himself an Alpha.

Their relationship wasn’t the only thing at stake—so was Gage’s pride as an Alpha.

She frowned, wondering when someone would point out that he was technically “unmated” and no longer fit to be an Alpha. With all the fuss surrounding the decision of who would be the next High King, no one probably cared much about what happened to an insignificant “country pack.”

Her frown deepened. The Council had to be aware of the tattoos’ absence. Well, they sure as hell were now, thanks to the ballroom spectacle.

So why hadn’t they taken Gage out of the running for High King?

Gage held her tight and kissed the top of her head. “I will win you. You are mine, and I am yours, as it was always meant to be.”

His tone sounded so reassuring.

But she couldn’t help but notice the shadow of doubt hiding in his eyes.