Chapter 2

Up in the stands, Maximilian finally snapped back to reality. He shot to his feet, his face pale with fury.

"Jax! Put her down! Who the hell said you could touch her!"

Jax didn't even look back.

He carried me through the arena floor, his combat boots stepping over bodies and blood without breaking stride.

Dante came charging down with a dozen heavily armed guards, guns trained on Jax's head.

"You crazy bastard! You got a death wish?! Put that trash down!"

Jax stopped.

He slowly raised his eyes. The look in them was pure, crystallized murder.

"Dante." Jax's voice was quiet, but every person in that room felt it crawl up their spine. "Which hand did you use to flip that switch?"

Dante blinked. He took half a step back without thinking, then forced his voice loud to cover it. "The hell does it matter which hand?! Shoot him! Kill him!"

The guards never got to pull their triggers.

Jax vanished.

The world spun. He had me locked against his chest, shielding me completely. A second later, a scream tore through the air.

"AAAGH——!!"

Dante dropped to his knees. His right wrist was bent at a grotesque angle, the bone punching clean through the skin, blood spraying in pulses.

Jax stepped back into place, his black knife dripping.

He glanced up at Maximilian with cold, flat eyes, and let a slow, cruel smile cross his lips.

"Maximilian. Your dog got loose. I handled it for you."

Maximilian was shaking with rage. He pressed a hand hard against his chest — the searing pain of a rejected mate bond tearing through him.

"Jax… You're going to start a war with the entire Alliance over a defective omega?!"

Jax looked down at me.

I was curled inside his coat, the drug and his pheromones overwhelming me. I couldn't stop myself — I pressed closer against him and let out a soft, desperate sound.

Jax's throat moved. The hunger in his eyes was almost violent.

He tightened his arms and pulled me fully against him.

"So what if I do?"

He laughed, cold and sharp. "She's mine. Even if she were worthless — especially then — none of you pieces of trash get to put your hands on her."

He turned and walked out of the arena, carrying me with him.

Behind us: Maximilian's furious roar, and Dante's screaming.

The black SUV tore through the storm.

The privacy partition rose between the front seat and the back, sealing us off completely.

In that small, closed space — just me and Jax.

The fever inside me surged back with a vengeance.

This was what happened when a mate bond awakened with nowhere to go. My skin was burning. Every nerve in my body was screaming for something I couldn't name out loud.

"Hot…"

Without thinking, I pulled the coat open, baring stretches of pale skin. Mud and blood still clung to me, but somehow it only made everything feel more raw, more exposed.

Jax slammed the brakes.

The SUV let out a sharp screech on the empty mountain road and skidded to a stop in the pouring rain.

He spun around and grabbed my wrist, pinning me hard against the leather seat.

"Serena, look at me. Really look at me!"

Jax's voice was rough and ragged. His eyes were bloodshot, barely holding back something wild that was about to break loose.

I stared up at him through a haze, my gaze drifting to the bob of his throat and the hard lines of muscle beneath his collar.

I couldn't make out a word he was saying. All I knew was that the cool, clean scent coming off him was the only thing easing my pain.

I was like a dying fish, instinctively clawing toward water.

I pulled free from his grip, threw my arms around his neck, and pressed my body against his burning chest.

"Please… I need…"

I was crying, searching blindly for his lips, kissing and biting at his jaw and the side of his neck without any sense of what I was doing.

Crack.

The last thread of Jax's self-control snapped clean.

"You asked for this."

He let out a low growl, took control, and slammed his palm against the back of my head, crushing his mouth down onto mine.

It was a kiss built on hunger and force.

He pried my lips open and pushed in deep, greedily sweeping through every inch of my mouth. His tongue was aggressive, relentless — like he wanted to consume me whole.

"Mmph…"

I couldn't breathe, but my body melted completely.

His large hand slid down along my waist, rough with calluses, leaving trails of fire everywhere it touched.

His touch was possessive — rough, yet carrying a tenderness so faint it was almost invisible.

Rip.

The last scrap of fabric on my body tore away.

He lowered his head, his hot mouth trailing down my neck, pressing deep red marks into my collarbone and chest.

The marks of a beast claiming what was his.

"It hurts…" I couldn't take the intensity. Tears spilled down my face one after another.

Jax went completely still.

He lifted his head and looked at my tear-streaked face. The wildness in his eyes slowly faded, replaced by something raw and aching.

He drew in a long breath, forced the fire inside him back down, and pulled his coat tightly around me again.

"Hold on a little longer." His voice was so hoarse it was barely audible. "Not yet. Your body's too weak — it can't survive a full bonding mark."

He pulled me into his arms, slipping one hand inside my clothes, his warm palm pressing flat against the back of my neck.

A steady flow of pure, soothing energy poured into me.

The primal force of a top-tier Alpha.

He was using his own power to forcibly suppress the heat burning through my body.

It was an incredibly dangerous thing to do. One wrong move and the energy could turn on him.

But he didn't even flinch.

I didn't know how much time passed. Eventually, the fire inside me died down. I leaned against his chest and let my eyes fall shut.

In the blur between waking and sleep, I felt his lips press softly against my forehead.

"Rest. I'm here. No one's touching you."