Jared (River Pack Wolves 3)(35)

His smile was warm. “All right. Let’s start with submission. Any wolf can submit to an alpha—either as part of a pack or a mating. It’s a magical bond that ties them together: the alpha pledges to protect their pack or their mate, and wolves who submit are pledging their obedience.”

“Obedience,” she said coolly. “That sounds… yeah, I’m going with kinky again.”

He tapped her nose with his finger. “It’s not like that. The pledge strengthens the alpha in a literal, magical sense. When the alpha is stronger, the pack is stronger. Or the mate pair, including their pups. And the alpha would never hurt those who have submitted to him. It’s really in everyone’s interest, and it feels… amazing. You’ll have to experience it to see. For mated pairs, it starts with submission, but it goes beyond that. Once the female submits, they make love. And during the act…” He trailed a finger along her jaw, drawing a hot line down to the crook of her neck. “He bites her.” He leaned in and nipped deliciously at her neck.

She couldn’t help sucking in a hot breath.

The grin on his face was wide when he pulled back.

She swallowed. “Okay, that’s hot even when you’re not actually biting me.”

He licked his lips. “You have no idea, sweet Grace. When the male claims his mate with his bite and his love, his magic flows into her. The pleasure is like nothing you’ve ever experienced.” His face shadowed, and he suddenly grew quiet.

Her eyes went wide as she remembered. “You had a mate once,” she said softly.

His expression locked down. “She’s dead now.”

“I’m sorry.” She bit her lip, unsure if she should say anything more. But she couldn’t help herself—because she was falling in love with this hot, sexy shifter. “Can you have more than one mate? I mean… is it a one-time thing?” God, she hoped not. She wasn’t even sure what it meant to submit, much less be mated—was that for life?—but she needed to understood at least what the possibilities were, especially between her and Jared.

He hesitated, his gaze lowered, not meeting hers. “No, I could have another mate.” He raised his eyes to meet hers. “I just never thought I would.”

“You don’t have to tell me about her,” she whispered with a shake of her head, all while thinking, please tell me about her. This felt important—it seemed like part of what drove Jared to lock himself down. And Grace knew that she was part of what was opening him up again. She couldn’t do that—she couldn’t help him overcome his past—if she didn’t even know what it was that shut him down in the first place.

He held her gaze, but his eyes weren’t hard and his expression wasn’t that stone-faced look he’d worn so many times. “Her name was Avery,” he said, finally. Then he sucked in a deep breath.

She reached a hand to press flat against his chest, over his heart. He glanced at her hand and placed his over it, holding her to him, then looking up into her eyes again. “I like it when you do that.”

She smiled a little and waited to see if he would share more.

“I mated before I went overseas to serve,” he said quietly. “When I came back… I was different. Avery sensed it. She asked what had happened, and I told her, and…” He swallowed, and dropped his gaze again, avoiding hers. “She was horrified. Repulsed by it. I don’t blame her, not really. War is horrifying. She pulled away, and I didn’t have anything left in me to keep her. I was already dead inside—the war had done that to me. I couldn’t leave it behind, even though I was back home. I never really knew if that was what drove her away—not what I’d done, but who it made me become. In the end, it didn’t really matter.” He dropped his gaze to his hand holding hers against his chest. “When she left me, I had nothing but the war inside. So I re-enlisted, did another tour. While I was gone, she died. Simple car accident. Happens every day. I wasn’t there to protect her. Maybe I couldn’t have done anything, but I’ll never know.”

She cupped his cheek with her hand, tears threatening her eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

He looked up, eyes glassy with tears that weren’t being shed. “When I lost her—my mate—I lost everything. I lost myself. Being alone and isolated is the worst thing that can happen to a wolf. It’s not supposed to happen. I still had my brothers and my pack, but I pulled away from them all. I’ve been dead inside for so long… and then I saw you.” He gave her a smile that seemed pained. “You were isolated, a wolf in hiding, and my wolf… he took one look at you, and he sent me tearing off into the woods to protect you. Because no one should be alone like that. No one.”