Page 88 of The Alpha's Unclaimed Mate
“Your side, Sienna. I’m on your side.”
She inhales deeply and then releases my tie. Before she can move away, I pull her straight into my lap and lock my arms around her.
“You’re the only woman who consumes my thoughts, which you have done since I first met you. I am willing to burn every friendship to the ground for you. Just say the word.”
Her cheeks turn red, and she turns her head away, muttering, “You’re making me sound toxic.”
“I like you this way.” I nuzzle her neck, testing the waters to see how far she’ll let me go. She stiffens but doesn’t push me away. “Makes me feel like you don’t completely hate me.”
“I don’t hate you.”
“I know.” I rub my nose against the mating mark and feel her shiver. “But I can see how unhappy you are. So, when you act like I do matter to you, it makes me happy.”
She grabs my jaw, forcing me to stop nuzzling and look up at her. “Are you trying to act pitiful to get me to feel sorry for you?”
I grin at her. “I don’t know. Is it working?”
She shoves my face to one side, but I grab her hand and kiss the palm.
“I am pitiful, Sienna. I had to push away my amazing mate for so long and watch her get cozy with other men—”
She scoffs. “Oh, like you didn’t—”
“—and now that I do have her, she can barely look at me.” I end on a deliberately heavy sigh.
“Stop trying to act cute. It’s not going to work.”
I kiss her cheek lightly. “Sienna.”
She looks at me warily. “What?”
“I’m sorry. For everything. I know I put you through hell and made you think the very worst. I’m an awful mate for that. I thought it would be easier if you could hate me, as long as you could be alive to do so. But the more I saw you, the more desperate I was to have you. You’re unlike anyone I’ve ever met. You’re so free and vibrant, everything I crave. I wanted to be a part of your life.” I tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear wistfully. “There were times I wished you weren’t my fated mate. So that I could be with you without the curse.”
I see the emotion flicker in her eyes before she hides it. Her lips move as if she’s trying to form words but failing.
“I know I hurt you, Sienna. I should have fought harder to stop you from coming here. That way I could have just been your fated mate, a stranger who was arrogant and rejected you, rather than someone who constantly hurt you.”
She swallows, and there is a sheen in her eyes. “I want to be so mad at you.” The tears in her voice make my chest tighten. “I want to scream at you and hit you and do all sorts of awful things to you.”
“I know,” I say hoarsely.
She doesn’t speak for a moment. “I know none of this is your fault. You did what you had to do. But knowing that doesn’t make what you did stop hurting. Constantly throwing me out, choosing Lydia…” Her jaw clenches. “I want to make you pay for it all. But a part of me knows that’s wrong because it wasn’t your fault.”
“I was an asshole.”
“I wish I could disagree with you. I really want to,” she whispers brokenly. Then, she wraps her arms around my neck, as if to hide her face from me, and I wrap mine around her waist.
“We’re going to keep looking for a way to break this curse,” I say quietly, looking at an invisible point on the wall. “But I intend to treat this time with you as very precious, Sienna. Each day I get with you is a gift, and I will treat it as such. I won’t squander a second of it.” My fingers press against the back of her head gently as I stroke it, murmuring, “I don’t mind you punishing me for what I put you through. Punish me till you are satisfied. I’ll take whatever you dish out.”
Her tears against my neck have me closing my eyes in regret.
I whisper, still stroking her hair, “Do whatever you have to do to feel better, Sienna. I’ll love you through it all.”
Her sobs reach my ear, shoulders heaving. I hold her tighter.
My mate is a prideful creature, and I hurt her pride with my actions. She’ll need more time, but I can be patient.
I’ll wait for her.
