Viktor
I stared at Louis's retreating figure, a jolt of panic swirling inside of me, at the words he'd left behind. "I'll be back for you, mi amor."
For me… his love.
I shook my head, that wasn't possible. No one has ever made me feel so wanted in my life, this could only be a dream… no! A nightmare.
No matter how hard I tried to collect my thoughts, I couldn't make sense of what had just happened. A man radiating danger and arrogance like the gods themselves had sculpted him to boast, had walked into my kitchen, threatened to kill me, then declared his desire to mate with me… all within minutes. My head spun, my pulse raced, and for a moment, I thought I might go mad from the storm of emotions raging inside me.
I bolted into the bathroom and splashed cold water over my face, hoping to steady myself. I wanted to close the bakery, to shut out the world until my thoughts could catch up, but I had too many orders, too much food prepared to waste. So I went back to work, forcing a smile, serving customers like nothing had happened.
When the last one left, I locked up and made my way to the small room on the side of the bakery that had become my sanctuary. But as I stepped out of the back, my foot caught on something, or someone.
A familiar figure stood there, and in an instant, all the anger I had managed to suppress against Louis was replaced with a different, sharper fire. "Mateo!" I hissed, my voice low, almost a growl.
He looked up at me with that same infuriating smile I knew so well, the man who had treated me like I was nothing from the moment I discovered he was my mate.
Mateo was human, and that made our bond tragically one-sided. He came for me only when desire struck. Other times he was reckless, wild, entirely self-serving. There was no subtlety in his touch, no thought for the wolf raging inside me, no acknowledgment of the fire he lit in me and then left smoldering.
I still remembered the first time I saw Mateo. Whenever he told his version of the story, he claimed it was love at first sight. He'd say "you had bright eyes, easy smile, the kind of confidence that made people lean in without realizing it." To him, it had been instant, magnetic, like fate itself had shoved us together.
I knew better.
I knew exactly why he had been drawn to me. It wasn't love nor choice, it was the mate bond. It pulsed between us, tugging at him whether he understood it or not. And he didn't. Not truly.
He thought the pull was his own desire, a spark of affection. But I knew the truth. I felt it. The wolf inside me had recognized him long before I even glanced his way. He had been mine from the moment the bond settled, he had no say in it, and neither did I.
Mateo's ignorance was both frustrating and… pitiful. Sometimes I wondered if the Moon Goddess herself had cursed me. She gave me a mate who could never feel the kind of love that wolves did, a human, so clueless, so incapable of understanding the depth of the bond. She made me taste only a fraction of what others had, a glimpse, never the full fire.
And yet… even knowing all this, I couldn't deny the effect he had on me. Every time he looked at me with that careless, half-knowing smile, every time he touched me without restraint, my wolf roared in response. My heart ached, my blood burned, and I hated myself for wanting him.
He came and went as he pleased. He took, he claimed, he used me however he wanted, but he never understood. And every time he left, the wound he left behind burned far more than any kiss or touch could remedy. I had told myself, over and over, that I was done. That I would never let him hurt me again. But fate, or the goddess, or the bond, kept pushing him back into my life.
I couldn't even reject him, because he wasn't a wolf, it would have no effect. And now, standing here again, I realized just how much that bond could hurt. And how much it could drive me mad with desire.
But… I had sworn the last time… I was done.
"I'm asking you to leave," I said, trying to sound firm, though the ache in my chest betrayed me.
Mateo only shook his head, stepping closer, his eyes dark and hungry. "I want you, Vik" he whispered like it was the most natural thing in the world.
The words tugged at my cold skin. This was the second time today… someone has said they wanted me.
I felt resentment bubbling inside me, a mixture of anger, lust, frustration, need, colliding and exploding all at once. Before I could even think, my wolf took over. I grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him against me, forcing my lips onto his.
The kiss wasn't gentle. It was urgent, claiming, the human was mine. So, if he came to me, he'd have a taste of me.
Mateo tasted of himself and of me, his lips soft but insistent, his hands sliding down my sides as if he'd been waiting for this moment forever. My hands tangled in his hair, yanking him closer, pressing him impossibly tight against my body.
I could feel his heartbeat racing against mine, his breath hot, his every reaction feeding the hunger coiling inside me. His hands traced over my chest, over the curves and angles of my body that only I, or maybe no one, had the right to touch. I deepened the kiss, teeth occasionally grazing his bottom lip, tasting him with a ferocity that startled even me.
I felt his dick poking at mine, it was a battle of who was hornier for who. And I was certain we both thought we knew the answer.
Every nerve ending screamed for more, I could feel the pull of our bond, my wolf roaring in approval even as my human heart screamed in protest. There was no restraint, no subtlety, only raw, unyielding desire and the delicious sting of anger and longing mingled together.
Mateo gasped against me, and I felt it echo through my chest, through my bones. I held him tighter, reveling in the heat and tension, the push and pull of a connection I both hated and craved.
And when we finally broke apart, gasping, shivering, I knew that nothing had been resolved. My wolf was still burning, Mateo's hunger still pressing against me, and the ache of wanting him… was far from over.
I was still reeling from everything, Louis presence and absence, the mate bond, the fire Mateo always seemed to ignite… when his voice cut through the haze. "Fuck me, Vik… fuck me like only you know how to."
It was low, almost a growl, and it sent a jolt straight through my chest. My pulse spiked, my wolf howled, and every part of me screamed, this is wrong… but I can't stop wanting it.
His words weren't just desire, they were a claim, a demand, a reminder of every wild, reckless moment we'd shared. And I couldn't ignore them as images even began to flash in my head.
I paused for a second, my hands clenching at my sides. Heat pooled in me, making it impossible to think. The ache of wanting him, the sting of the bond, the memory of every time he'd left me, everything collided in that single, searing moment.
Mateo's lips brushed against my ear again, and I could feel his body pressing closer. I swallowed hard, the wolf inside me growling, the part of me that was human shivering with need.
I didn't know how much longer I could hold back. I needed to fuck him, I really did. But it would be on my terms!