The Alpha King's Nemesis-Chapter 47: Weakened Resolve ()

The look in his eyes broke Zariah’s heart in ways she could not describe and Zariah wondered how it could be so hard when she had only met him today.

This only strengthened Zariah’s resolve as she recognized the tug of the mate bond already at play, pushing and pulling her heart as it pleased.

It did not matter how hurt he was now, he was bound to be more hurt when Zariah’s sword was finally pointed at his throat,

Zariah reminded herself if she hesitated now, it only meant she would still hesitate once again when that day arrived.

The inarguable fact remained that Alpha King Askel Vance Niolen was the enemy and there was nothing that could change this fact.

Zariah avoided his eyes as she continued speaking, she ignored his questions and merely said the words she had to say to him.

"I believe it best to see to this situation immediately, when we meet tomorrow, I shall remain representative of the Crimson Moon Pack."

"This is in both our best interests, yet mostly mine as I do not intend to change my decision and nothing can convince me otherwise, I hope my words are clear enough." Zariah stated, her tone cold and unfazed.

He watched her, clearly he was at a complete loss on what to say.

"You expect me to believe and accept your words, so why do you avoid my gaze? Look me in the eye and tell me you do not want me! Tell me your heart does not recognize me!" He was raging now as he covered the distance between them.

Before Zariah could react, he was right before her and grabbed a hold of her hand, his other hand encircling her waist.

"Tell me your heart does not call for me...Tell me you do not crave my touch, tell me I do not stir your desires..." He asked in a low tone,

From his glowing eyes, Zariah could see his wolf was close to the surface.

As he spoke, his hand gripped Zariah’s waist tighter as he leaned down to her neck and breathed in her scent.

Zariah’s eyes widened in panic as she felt a wet muscle come in contact with her skin and against her will, an inaudible gasp escaped her lips as his tongue trailed down her exposed throat.

His tongue left a burning trail as it moved and electrifying jolts rushed through Zariah, her knees growing weak and her head exploding with desire.

He backed Zariah till she felt her back pressed up against a tree, his ministrations had not halted at all as he tugged her robes to the side to allow himself more space.

His tongue tingled Zariah’s skin as the wet muscle lapped at her exposed skin, growls of approval sounding from deep within his throat.

A low moan escaped Zariah’s lips as his tongue found that spot between her neck and shoulder bone, the exact spot his mark was meant to rest.

As Zariah felt the sharpness of his canines graze over that tender spot, her mind exploded in pleasure and at the exact same time, her head screamed in panic, reminding Zariah of exactly what he was about to do.

Zariah gathered the only strength she could through her weakened muscles and shoved him backwards in one hard push.

To Zariah’s luck, although his strength was great, he was already carried away by his desire for her and had not expected that push.

Beyond that, although he was Alpha, Zariah was Alpha too and Zariah could admit he was greater in strength, but that did not mean he could easily overcome the Crimson Alpha.

"How dare you?!" Zariah raged as she watched him take a shaky step back, struggling to restrain his wolf who had just nearly marked her as his without her consent.

"I... I couldn’t control myself..." He began to explain and although Zariah knew he was not to be blame for the possessive and stubborn nature of his wolf, she had every intention to blame him.

"It seems my words are too difficult for you to understand, let me make it perfectly clear!" Zariah snapped, her rage triggered by the fact that she had fallen weak to his ministrations and nearly made a grave mistake.

Zariah knew clearly the power of a mate mark, the moment she bore his mark, his blood and life essence would be infused into her and her scent would be merged with his.

It was the very final step to complete the mating bond and once a wolf was marked, there was no going back whatsoever.

She would be able to feel his pain and he would feel hers, he could sense her mood and even hear her thoughts if he tried hard enough.

She would always crave his presence, his scent, his attention, his love, the mate mark would force Zariah’s utter submission to him...this was the severity of the mate mark.

If she bore his mark, there would be no going back, she would be his completely, mind, heart and soul.

If that happened, Zariah knew it was over for her, the only choice would be to take her own life rather than to spend the rest of her existence a prisoner to the mate bond.

Although Zariah had never let Caedmon mark her, she had witnessed the manifestation of the mate mark in other crimson wolves, in those scenarios, it had been a cherished outcome.

But this was different, this was a mating match that absolutely could not happen.

For Caedmon, Zariah had always wanted to wait till he had gained the approval of her pack before proceeding with that final irrevocable step.

That was the excuse she used, but deep within, Zariah knew she had been reluctant to make such an irrevocable involvement,

No matter how much she trusted and loved Caedmon, Zariah guessed she still had her own doubts and somewhere deep within her, she could not ignore Darren’s suspicions.

Zariah knew Darren better than anyone else and even when blinded by love, Zariah still pondered ever so often the fact that Darren would never make ungrounded accusations,

What was more, whatever Darren did right from their childhood had always been done with Zariah’s best interest at heart.

Yet a little self awareness had not mattered at all when she had still ended up falling to the grand plan and dragging the rest of Crimson Moon down with her.

And now, she would never let there be a repeat of the past, she certainly would not let herself fall victim to the machinations of the mate bond.

"Mhíjani... I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to...I would never..." He seemed unsure of how to explain himself in a way Zariah would believe.

He only stared at her with a pleading gaze, the vulnerability in his eyes tugging at Zariah’s heart.

"It doesn’t matter King Askel..." Zariah began, she took a deep breath in to compose herself before she continued speaking.

"I... Zariah Torin of Crimson Moon reject Alpha King Askel..." Zariah began to say the words that would severe the mate bond.

His eyes widened the moment he realized what Zariah was about to do and in the blink of an eye, Zariah was pulled into his arms and his lips met hers in a searing kiss... effectively shutting Zariah up.

He kissed her slowly and tenderly, perhaps trying to convey the words he could not say to her through his kiss.

Zariah felt a wetness on his cheek and her heart stopped knowing exactly what it was, her hands trembled and her resolve tethered off the edge, an inch away from crashing down into a bottomless abyss.

Every fiber of Zariah’s body screamed for her to kiss him back, to accept his love as tingles exploded through her body.

Zariah’s heart filled with conflicting emotions and as he pulled away, she kept her gaze low, unwilling to let him see the emotions reflected in her gaze.

"Mhíjani... please, no... don’t do that to me, I...I can’t." He pleaded in a quiet tone.

Zariah opened her mouth to speak but no words would come out, she could no longer bring herself to complete the words of the rejection.

Zariah cursed her weakness, she had never been one to intentionally hurt another and take pleasure in it, not even when that person was her sworn enemy.

Zariah had thought the experiences of the previous lifetime had made her stronger, but it turned out she was still the same Zariah Torin Moonstone at heart... an embodiment of justice and righteousness as her father had taught her to be.

Zariah pulled away from his arms and without turning back she said the only words she could still say, the official business of Crimson Moon still had to be handled.

"Alpha Moonstone has ordered me to receive a comprehensive report of all the Royal Lycan Pack will be needing the Crimson Moon to handle and my party would prefer to get started sooner rather than later."

"I also have a report to turn in and other topics to discuss with the Royal Lycans and representatives from across the supernatural realm, I will await your summons when it suits you, King Askel." Zariah said before she released a shaky breath and headed away.