Page 11 of Mane Attraction
But Xelene wasn’t buying either explanation. She’d worked with enough high-stakes clients to recognize genuine panic, and what she’d just witnessed wasn’t professional anxiety. The way Lev had looked at her—like he’d seen something that both thrilled and terrified him—suggested something far more complicated than simple nervousness.
“I’m going to check on him,” Gerri announced, heading for the door. “You two wait here and... get comfortable. I’m sure this is just a misunderstanding.”
Alone with Janice, Xelene sank into one of the leather chairs facing the desk and tried to process what had just happened. Her hands trembled slightly as she smoothed her skirt, and she clasped them together to stop the visible evidence of her shaken composure.
“Xelene?” Janice’s voice carried genuine concern. “Are you okay? You look like you just got struck by lightning.”
That’s exactly what it felt like,she thought, but saying so aloud would only invite questions she couldn’t answer.
“I’m fine,” she lied, staring at the door where Lev had disappeared. “Just... concerned about the timeline. Six days to fix whatever reputation issues he has? This might be the first client I can’t help.”
The admission tasted bitter on her tongue. Her perfect success rate was more than professional pride—it was the foundation of her identity, the proof that she could control outcomes and manage chaos. Losing that now, especially on such a spontaneous assignment, would shatter something fundamental about how she saw herself.
But even as she worried about her professional reputation, her traitorous mind kept circling back to the moment their hands had touched, to the way Lev’s eyes had burned with recognition and fear, to the electricity that still danced beneath her skin like a secret she wasn’t ready to acknowledge.
What is wrong with me?she wondered, touching her palm where his had rested.And why do I feel like I’m missing something important about what just happened?
SEVEN
LEV
Lev’s long legs carried him down the castle’s corridor without conscious thought, his heart hammering like a caged animal desperate for escape. The ancient tapestries lining the walls blurred past him as he fought to process what had just slammed into him with the force of a freight train.
My fated mate.
The words echoed in his mind like a death knell, even as his lion roared in triumph deep within his chest. Every instinct he possessed had locked onto Xelene Warren the moment she’d stepped into his father’s office—her cream silk blouse hugging curves that made his mouth go dry and that navy skirt emphasizing the length and tone of her legs.
But it wasn’t her beauty or her body that had captured him, though she was stunning enough to stop traffic on three planets. No, it was something deeper, more primal. Her scent—lavender mixed with something uniquelyher—had filled his senses the moment she’d entered his orbit, making his lion prowl restlessly beneath his skin. He’d had to clench his fists to stop himself from pulling her into his arms and burying his face in her neck to get a deeper inhale of that intoxicating fragrance.
Yet he’d reached out anyway, like some fool drawn to flame, and the moment their palms had connected, the mate bond had slammed into him with a force that left him reeling. Fire had raced up his arm and exploded through every nerve ending, his lion roaring in recognition while his human mind scrambled to deny what was happening. The way her breath had hitched, the widening of those cool green eyes—she’d felt it too, even if she didn’t understand what it meant.
Idiot,he cursed himself.You knew better than to touch her. You knew she was your fated mate before you even shook her hand.
The reality of it made him want to punch something. His father—that manipulative bastard—had orchestrated this entire situation. Lev wasn’t stupid; he knew exactly what Gerri Wilder was famous for, and it wasn’t finding reputation consultants. The woman was a legendary matchmaker who specialized in pairing shifters with their destined mates. When his father had mentioned consulting with her about Lev’s “reputation issues,” Lev knew the trap was being laid even as his father played dumb.
“Prince Lev?”
The familiar voice made him spin around, his eyes blazing with fury as he faced the petite woman who had just upended his entire world. Gerri Wilder stood in the corridor, her white hair catching the afternoon light streaming through the windows and her blue eyes holding that knowing gleam.
“Are you alright, dear? You seemed to become rather unraveled back in the office.”
Lev’s hands clenched at his sides as he glared down at the matchmaker. “What do you think? You know exactly what happened back there. Don’t try to play innocent with me.”
Gerri’s expression didn’t change, that infuriating smirk remaining firmly in place. “I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean.”
“Bullshit.” The word came out as a growl, his lion pressing closer to the surface. “You brought my fated mate to me on purpose. My father put you up to this, didn’t he?”
The matchmaker’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction, and Lev knew he’d hit the mark. “Well, dear, sometimes these things need a little push. Your father’s health concerns and your succession to the throne warranted some... strategic intervention.”
“Strategic intervention?” Lev’s voice rose, echoing off the stone walls. “I’m tired of people pushing me to do things I’m not ready for. This whole thing is complete bullshit.”
The weight of it all crashed down on him at once. His freedom slipping through his fingers like sand, the crown waiting to crush him beneath its weight, and now this. A fated mate who would expect commitment, loyalty, everything he’d spent his adult life avoiding.
I don’t want to lock myself down to just one woman,his mind protested desperately.I’m not ready for this.
“I think your lion has been ready for quite a while,” Gerri said gently, her voice cutting through his internal panic like a blade. “You’ve just been too stubborn to listen to him.”
Lev’s jaw clenched as her words hit their target with surgical precision. She was right, damn her. His lion had been restless for years, demanding he slow down, find his mate, claim the love his soul yearned for. Instead of listening to that primal wisdom, Lev had rebelled harder, partied more, buried himself in the beds of willing females—anything to avoid the deep connection that terrified him more than any enemy he’d ever faced.
