The heat didn't fade.
It lingered in the pit of Aylin's stomach, coiling tighter with every breath she drew. She could feel the mark burning against her skin, the unnatural pull of the Moon's curse rippling through her veins, dragging her down a path she'd tried so desperately to avoid.
Her heart thudded erratically as the crowd swirled around her, whispers catching in the air, some too fearful to look her in the eye. Her body trembled, a mixture of hunger and agony—a vicious blend of emotions that confused her, that overwhelmed her.
Aylin's pulse surged as the three men stepped toward her. The intensity in their eyes was palpable—feral, possessive, and wild. The world felt like it was tilting under the weight of their gaze, each one carrying their own brand of madness, their own insatiable desire for the woman they knew they could not control.
Ryder.
Aylin's gaze found him again, his red wolf eyes locked onto hers with a searing intensity that made her breath catch. He was standing at the edge of the circle, his massive frame like a wall of dark rage and temptation. His hands were clenched at his sides, his jaw tight, as though holding back a flood of violence and desire.
But it was more than that. She could feel it—the force of the connection between them, the tether snapping into place between their bodies like an electric shock, pulling them closer despite their hatred for one another.
"You're cursed," he growled, his voice a low, dangerous rumble that seemed to reverberate through her chest.
His words hit her like a slap, but it was the rage in his tone that made her heart race faster. He didn't want her. He hated her. He would destroy her if he could.
But she couldn't look away. She couldn't stop herself from wanting to reach for him.
"Ryder, stay back," she heard Kael's voice cut through the tension. The priest moved forward, his dark eyes glinting with an unreadable emotion. "Don't let the rage blind you."
Ryder snarled, his muscles rippling beneath his clothes as he fought to control himself. His wolf was close to the surface, his teeth bared as though he could barely hold on.
The air around Aylin seemed to crackle with heat, the mark pulsing violently against her skin, urging her forward, urging her to step into the chaos. She wanted to scream, wanted to push the madness away, but it was impossible. The curse had already taken root, and there was no going back.
Lucien stood at the edge of the firelight, silent as ever, his eyes narrowing as if watching the situation unfold with too much interest. His calm demeanor was unnerving, but there was something in the way he studied her that sent a thrill of fear and excitement up her spine.
But it was Ryder who made her breath catch again.
He took a step forward, his powerful frame moving as if the world didn't matter. She could feel the magnetism of his presence, the raw power of his anger, and the undeniable pull of the mark. The bond.
The desire.
He stopped just inches from her, and the heat between them grew so unbearable, Aylin had to clench her fists to keep from reaching out to him. Her body begged her to close the distance, to let him touch her, to drown in his anger and fury, but her mind screamed in resistance.
"Why do you hate me so much?" she whispered, her voice barely a breath against the heavy night air.
His eyes locked onto hers, burning with something dark and twisted.
"Because you are a curse, Aylin," he hissed, his hand rising as if he wanted to touch her, to rip the mark from her chest with sheer force. "You ruin everything you touch. You—"
But the words faltered when the mark on her chest burned hotter, and Aylin gasped, falling to her knees before him. The pain was almost unbearable, but it wasn't just pain—it was something deeper, something primal.
She could feel the mark wanting him. She could feel the way it reached for him, as though it had been waiting for him this entire time.
Aylin's breath hitched, her body trembling. Her chest heaved with the strain of the curse, her pulse pounding in her throat.
But even as the pain wracked her body, her thoughts were consumed with him.
I hate him, she thought desperately. I hate him so much.
But it didn't matter. The mark didn't care.
It was the Moon's curse, and the Moon had its own plans for them both.
"Stop." Lucien's voice broke through the haze of her mind, calm, cool, and deadly. The man stepped forward, his eyes meeting hers with an unsettling intensity. "You can't fight the bond, Aylin."
"Leave me alone, I won't let it control me." She gritted her teeth, forcing herself to stand. She couldn't afford to fall apart—not in front of them, not in front of him.
"when you returned, you should have known what you signed for, allow it, it's your destiny." Kael's voice was quiet, but there was an edge to it that sent a chill down her spine. The priest had a kind of power, an authority she couldn't deny. He stood closer now, the heat from his body pressing against hers as he moved in, his fingers brushing her shoulder. "Resisting only makes the curse worse."
"I don't care about the curse." She turned sharply toward Kael, her eyes flashing. "I won't let it ruin me mostly for him."
"Too late for that," Ryder spat, his eyes glinting dangerously. He moved closer, and for a moment, it felt as though everything in the world was aligning around them—two forces that should never have met, two hearts that would destroy everything in their path.
Aylin's pulse hammered in her ears. She didn't want this. She couldn't want this.
But her body betrayed her.
The mark pulsed harder now, begging for release, begging for the very man she despised.
"You think you're the only one cursed here, Omega?" Ryder's voice was dark, dangerous, raw with unspent fury. "You think I wanted this pull? You think I wanted to feel this way? About you?"
Aylin's chest tightened. The words should have stung, should have shattered her, but they didn't. They only served to ignite the flames licking at her insides.
"I thought you despise me," she whispered, her voice trembling with the force of her emotions. "You hate the vibe I bring, you hate our bond… but you still feel it, don't you?, I know you can't resist it"
He didn't answer.
But the truth was in his eyes.
The truth was in the way he stepped closer to her.