gh him, a wildfire threatening to consume every rational thought. His claws scraped the eart

of his prey-except Ryker wasn't prey. Not exactly. He was something else,

body doesn't lie. It's yours to deny, your mind yours to pret

every word he opened his mouth to speak caught in his throat. The bond pulsed betwee

wled. His voice was low, restrained, d

I know that beneath the armor, beneath the fury, beneath the pride-you're mine

chest tightening, his fangs itching in that familiar, primal way. Every instinct screamed to

his head spin. The Alpha King reached out, brushing his fingers along Ryker's jawline, a touch so light it should have been me

d. His lips ghosted over Ryker'

d with heat. He wanted to take Kael, push him against a tree and sink his fangs in, or at least claw his shoulders

eemed to vibrate through Ryker's chest. "Denial

subtle, almost imperceptible traces of another pack moving close, their presence a shadow in the night. His body t

narrowing. "Intruders," he growled

. "Border patrol," he said, voice

et it," he murmured, placing a hand briefly on Ryker's shoulder-

mered in his ears

st Ryker's neck, and whispered a single w

mething deeper-something forbidden. Ryker tried to speak, tried to figh

ly, a kiss that was a battle as much as it was a promise. Ryker's hands tangled in Kael's dark hair, pulling,

niable pull of the bond between them. Ryker wanted to fight it, wanted to push Kael away, but the moment Kael's ha

tugged at Kael's lips. "You can resist," Kael said softly

not yours," he said, though the

dark and knowing. "Yo

lexed, his senses razor-sharp. Kael moved beside him, a silent shadow, perfectly in sync.

pack, eyes gleaming with aggression. Ryker growled, low and feral

ss its face. It had underestimated them. T

the intruder with a grip that made Ryker's blood race. Together, they were unstoppable-two predators in perfect h

struck with precision. Within moments, the intruder lay retreatin

t Kael, who was calm, almost unnervingly so, though his dark eyes

voice low, approving, predato

ng else-a need, an ache he could not deny. "And you

s forearm, lingering. "I told you," he whisper

zzying pull of desire and the bo

t. Stop running from what you are. We're Alphas, Ryker. Two of the st

heat, the undeniable truth of Kael's presence, weakened him more than any s

brush that left Ryker's senses raw. "Taste me," Kael wh

s neck lightly, the first spark of the bond ignited fully, roaring throu

s grazing skin, teeth just enough to thrill wi

ng him closer, surrendering without fully a

and intoxicating. Ryker's knees threatened to give out. Every nerve screamed, every instinct

something that had always been waiting for them both. Ryker's mind blurred

, voice trembling: "W

d endless. "What we were always meant to do," he said softl

m raged, but for the first time, he didn't

the night understood that something irreversible had begun. Two Alphas, on

Ryker realized the impossible truth: the Alpha he was meant to