again. “I would never try and control you. Or treat you badly.”
“Because my life hasn’t exactly been straightforward. And I want to be free to make my own choices.”
“Em, joining my pack is not about me owning you, it’s a simple matter of survival.” I lightly scraped my clawed thumb nail under her jaw, tempted to mark her anyway.
She jerked back, her voice a harsh whisper. “Don’t!”
I tilted my head, trying not to let her see how much her continued rejection hurt. “I don’t want you in such danger out there, not when I can protect you as one of my own.”
She sighed, but her eyes softened. “Connor, I missed you so much, and I’m having problems just believing you’re actually here in front of me. Give me some time to process all this. Right now, I can’t be just one of your pack, and risk one of your alphas coming for me.”
My body tensed. This situation was totally my fault. I’d let pack males claim females, and I’d not given a shit if it was consensual or not—until now. None of my brothers would ever consider claiming her for himself, not now that they knew what she meant to me; and any other bastard stupid enough to try would end up dead.
“They wouldn’t do that. You’d be mine to protect, Em…”
She sighed and briefly closed her eyes. “I don't need your protection, I haven’t for years. I can take care of myself.”
“No, you can’t! That's why you just ended up with five broken ribs!” Snapping wouldn’t help, but I couldn’t help the surge of frustration at her unwillingness to admit any vulnerability.
Her mouth flattened into a tight line. I was right, and she knew it too, but as always I’d pressed her stubborn button.
“What about Shannon?” Her mouth flattened into a straight line.
I softened my voice in an attempt to reason with her. “Em, Shannon means nothing to me. And fighting for your life is okay for a while, but eventually someone will get you on your own…”
She snarled, interrupting me. “Then I’ll kill them.”
“Maybe, but you can’t kill everyone in here, nor can you fight off an organised group. Those males were attacking you like they would prey; they were weakening you and biding their time until you were too exhausted to fight any more; then they would have gone for the kill.”
“I know that!” Flames sparked in her eyes.
My muscles tensed. Shit! I’m handling this all wrong!
I let her go and stepped back, giving her some breathing room. Those flames only showed up when she was emotionally at her limit. And I think we were both hitting that mark. “Fine, I’ll drop it for now. But you must know that I won’t let any other male touch you. I can give you twenty four hours to consider my offer.” I forced out my next words, knowing I couldn’t leave her vulnerable even if she hated me for it. “But if you don’t make a sensible decision, you’ll be marked whether you like it or not.” I made myself walk away from her and flung the door open.
Stone stared at me from the hallway.
“Fetch Reed and Myles.”
Stone’s jaw clenched and his eyes flashed.
He was right, I’d tell me to go fuck myself, too, but I held his gaze. With a growl, he spun on his heel and stormed away towards our brothers’ cell. Owen sauntered into the room. He smiled at Ember, studying the way she moved, the way she paced the room, her posture upright with no sign of her broken ribs. His eyes widened and he flicked his gaze back and forth from her to me several times. I glared at him in warning. He nodded his understanding, but looked at Ember in awe, as well he might. She was the one thing we all spent our lives looking for—my soulmate.
Ember stopped pacing and glowered at me. “You can’t just mark me against my will. If you do, I’ll never forgive you.”
My gut twisted at that thought, but her safety came first. “Oh, yes, I can, and will if I have to. I can do anything I want in this place, and as good as you are at fighting, I’m better.” I prowled closer to her. Unsurprisingly, she didn’t concede or let me push her back. My blood stirred at her defiance, shooting straight to my groin, but I didn’t push my luck, knowing she’d retaliate if I touched her now. I smirked as her pupils