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She gasped, struggling to get in enough air to breathe. Shaking her head frantically, she clawed at his arms, scrabbling to get out of his unbreakable hold. Maddox still refused to let go. He was too afraid she would hurt herself again if he did.
“Angie, calm down,” he said. He laced his voice with the power of an alpha wolf in an attempt to get her to submit to the predator in him.
It didn’t work.
“No— no! I won’t do it. You can’t make me. This is my life. I get the choice. You don’t get to tell me that I’m yours and that’s that—”
“I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to. It is your choice.”
She stilled, hope filling her voice. “Then it’s simple. I choose to go back home.”
“No.”
“So it’s not my choice after all, is it?”
Maddox didn’t answer her again. Instead, he tilted her in his arms, holding her tight in a fireman’s carry, her cheek pressed against the heat of his bare chest.
He started back for the cabin.
“What do you think you’re doing?” demanded Evangeline. “Put me down!”
“On a sprained ankle? No. I’m taking you back and we’re going to put some ice on that.”
With the adrenaline coursing through her, she barely noticed the throbbing. She’d be lying if she said it wouldn’t slow her down. But, even if she couldn’t run away from him again, she refused to let this overgrown caveman treat her like an invalid. “It’s fine. I can manage on my own.”
“Angie,” he growled her name, an obvious warning.
It didn’t faze her. Not now. She left her fear back where she fell. With the sudden understanding that he believed she was his mate, she knew he wasn’t kidding when he said he’d rather die than hurt her.
Pity she didn’t feel the same way for him.
“I don’t need anything from you.” Then, aware of how he winced whenever she corrected her name, she added with a touch of vindictive glee, “And it’s Evangeline.”
Maddox stopped moving but she felt his torso tremble as another growl built its way up his chest. Glaring down at her, his shifter’s eyes flashed, suddenly glowing like a nightlight, while his jaw clenched in obvious anger. It lasted for a few seconds before he let out a shaky breath. Evangeline did the same, and only then did it occur to her that she’d been holding hers.
Okay. Maybe she was still a tiny bit afraid.
The spike of fear in her scent irritated him. She’d never been afraid of him before, not even when she first found out she was destined to be a wolf’s mate.
Why was it so hard this time around?
Maybe it wasn’t the smartest idea, but Maddox finally let some of his frustration slip out.
“Evangeline,” he said, purposely using the name, “I’m not going to hurt you, but I’m not going to let you hurt yourself, either. You’re my mate, and I’m going to do everything I can to take care of you. I suggest you get used to that. I’ll do what I think is best for you until you’re back to normal. You might not like it, but you’ll deal.”
She stiffened in his arms again. “As soon as my ankle is better, I’m gonna run.”
That’s not what he meant by back to normal. Too bad Evangeline didn’t know that.
“And I’ll chase right after you,” Maddox vowed. “My wolf is stronger and faster than you are. It knows these woods and can follow your trail wherever you go. It won’t stop. Remember, I’m not some fucking Ant who’s gonna give in to your temper tantrums and let you have your way. I’m a bastard, but I’m your bastard. Like I said, you’ll deal.”
“I won’t,” she said solemnly. Blissful silence followed for maybe five seconds before she demanded, “And what is that anyway?”
Still battling back his fury when it came to her insistence that she could escape, Maddox was looking forward to a quiet walk back to the cabin as he reflected on all the ways he’d fucked this up so far. He was so focused on having her near, it took him a second to realize she was waiting for his answer.
“What’s what?” he asked. What was she even asking him?
“Ant. When you say it, I think it means one thing and it’s not good. What is it?”
