LET'S CELEBRATE! IT'S MY BIG DAY: A WHOLE NEW BOOK, A WHOLE NEW WORLD, A WHOLE NEW HERO! Check out the excerpt at the end of this chapter (added after the chapter was published so you aren't charged for the words). I hope you love Zev as much as I do!

*****

AARYN

Tarkyn didn't respond immediately and they both walked forward, the sunlight through the leaves overhead dappling the twigs and dirt crunching under their feet. "I didn't challenge you because I thought I could win her, Aaryn," he said finally, turning to look at Aaryn's profile.

Aaryn met his gaze stonily. "Oh?"

"No."

"Then why? Until we mated, I would have described you as one of the most respectful and thoughtful males in WildWood. But I haven't missed it, Tarkyn, the way you look at her. And that touch yesterday? Don't give me this bullshit about family friends. You and I both know—"

"I was saving face in front of the others, it's true. I apologize," he said tightly. "But I assure you, Aaryn, I did that—all of those things—for her and for you."

Aaryn stopped walking and turned to face the male. "How the hell do you tell yourself that touching my mate is good for us?"

"Because it lit a fire under you. I may not have found my True Mate—perhaps I don't have one—but I've observed enough relationships, and had enough of my own to know that a strong female needs to be valued. She needs to be protected, as much from herself as anyone else. And she needs to feel that the love you have for her can be relied on. You were hanging back, Aaryn, as if you weren't really sure she was yours. You allowed me far too much leniency. She is Queen. She is dominant. And she's no one's mate but yours. You have the Alpha power within you. You weren't holding back out of fear that you'd lose. You were holding back out of some stupid sense of self-doubt, or… what? That you didn't deserve her?" he said, shaking his head.

"It's none of your business—"

"You're my King, and the mate to my Queen and Dominant, and I serve her as Captain and Defender. It is every ounce of my business to make sure that she has what she needs around her. And you had the equipment, but you weren't using it. You needed to see that it was up to you to defend the boundaries of your relationship. No one else. Not even her. She will defend your relationship against females that might seek you. But the males? That's your job."

"And I'm doing it," Aaryn ground out.

"Now you are. But it took you long enough. The boundary you set for me yesterday? That should have been clear to every male in the City from the moment you walked the Smoke and Flames. She has been woken up, Aaryn. She stinks of you and your mating, and yet you let her walk unprotected into environments that are awash with strong, virile males. Wake up!"

"You just said it was stupid to doubt that I was unworthy of our relationship!"

"Exactly. You set that boundary out of value for her, not for yourself."

Aaryn opened his mouth to argue, then closed it again. The words repeated in his head on a loop.

You set that boundary out of value for her, not for yourself…

He'd never thought about it that way before. He'd always perceived her as the stronger one because she could shift.

Obviously following his train of thought, Tarkyn spoke up again. "She's strong enough to defend herself," Tarkyn said quietly. "And you are the mate chosen for her by the Creator. No one doubts that, Aaryn. What you have to prove is how much you value her. And you do that for her heart, not for your own."

Aaryn blinked. Reth had spoken to him of these dynamics before, but not in this way.

He scanned back through his memories—the way Reth had always stood over Elia. Stood between her and any male whose ears perked in her direction. The way he'd never been ashamed to show her affection before others—had, in fact, repulsed his own children with his effusive displays.

How he'd never taken Elia's beauty for granted, or denied its power. But warned any male who looked like he might try to breach her space.

And she'd done the same for him.

Aaryn had heard the stories about when they were young and Elia had first come to Anima. Reth had giggled over that on the Day of Flames.

But there was more. He'd seen Elia—smaller, weaker Elia—stand proud and aggressive in the face of lionesses who gave Reth their eyes in ways that communicated a lot more than a greeting.

He'd seen her stomp that kind of attention out of more than one female.

And Reth had preened.

Not because he couldn't have handled it, but because she chose to.

"I've never thought about it that way before," he said quietly, frowning at his feet. He began walking again.

"Believe me," Tarkyn said as they swung up the trail towards the western side of the City where Aaryn's tree house was, "when the day comes that I find my true mate, I'll probably need other males to come alongside me and show me how it's done, too," he growled. "I'm just following examples. But… but I want to see Elreth happy. And I want to see you growing into every inch of the male you can be, Aaryn."

Aaryn blinked. "Thank you?"

Tarkyn clapped him on the shoulder so hard, he stumbled forward a step. He was sure that wasn't an accident either, and he growled.

Tarkyn chuckled. "See, you have all the equipment to make a fine mate, and a fine King, I might add," he said good-naturedly. "You just have to be pushed to show it to the world."

"And that pushing, that's your job?" Aaryn asked dryly.

Tarkyn's face went a little bit sad and he dropped his chin. "No. But it should have been your fathers and… and I knew him. Only met him once or twice, but he was a good male. I never quite believed the stories that went around about him. But Reth swore… anyway. I just… if I was in his shoes, it's what I would have wanted the strong males around my son to do, that's all."

Aaryn swallowed hard. Thoughts of his father led him straight back to thoughts of his mother. "Well, thank you," he said quietly. "I think he would have appreciated that, too."

Tarkyn nodded.

They walked on.

*****

NEW BOOK OUT NOW! My entirely new character and world is now live! It's still in the process of being vetted by AllNovelFull, but you can find it if you search "Rise of the Dark Alpha":

Zev prowled towards her, all shining, brutal beauty, his chin low and those incredible, piercing eyes fixed on her. He didn't stop until they were toe-to-toe and he blocked her view of every other male in the circle.

His eyes dipped to her mouth as he leaned in, his whisper playing on her skin.

"You. Are. Mine."

His deep voice twanged in her belly as the howls of the wolf pack rose from behind him to echo across the mountains of Thana, while the other Chimera protested his claim.

Fighting the urge to stroke his broad, bare chest with her shaking hands, Sasha forced herself to tilt her head and raise an eyebrow. "So bold for a pup who just found his fangs."

The other males hooted with laughter.

Ignoring their taunts, Zev's eyes sparked and he leaned even closer, the scruff on his jaw tickling her cheek as he smiled. "So bold for a human who already knows the pleasure of gasping my name."

She shivered when his teeth grazed her ear.

(SEE THE FULL SUMMARY IN THE AUTHOR NOTE BELOW)