Filed to story: Mated and Hated by My Brother’s Best Friend Book PDF Free by Anna Campbell
My brows furrowed. “Needed to?”
He nodded. “To apologize.”
I blinked. “You?”
Eric’s eyes didn’t waver.
For what Max did. For what our brother put you through.”
In the corner, Lincoln remained silent, his arms crossed, jaw tight. His expression unreadable, but I could feel the tension radiating off him
“I struggled for words. “I don’t know what to say.”
“You don’t have to say anything. Eric said quickly. “We just… we wanted you to know we’re not standing by him. Not this time. What he did was inexcusable. We’ve both been taught since we could crawl that a forced mark is worse than murder. That it breaks the very laws our kind was built on. And Max… he crossed that line.”
I swallowed hard, a lump forming in my throat. “I didn’t press charges.” know Ene said quietly “And that’s the only reason he’s alive”
My eyes flicked to Lincoln, whose gaze hadn’t left the floor. His silence was louder than anything Eric had said.
Enc followed my glance and added, “Lincoln hasn’t said much. But he’s angry, Jiselle. Angrier than I’ve ever seen him.”
At that Lincoln finally looked up. His dark eyet Successfully unlocked! le mask slipped. I saw the storm behind therm
The fury. The helplessness
En continued, “He told me if anyone had done that to his mate-if someone had dared force a mark on the person he loved he wouldn’t have stopped until there was blood”
Lincoln nodded once, a sharp movement that said everything and nothing at once.
I bit my bottom lip, my voice barely a whisper “Thank you Both of you. I didn’t expect this.”
Enc offered a ghost of a smile. “You didn’t deserve any of what happened. And for what it’s worth. I’m sorry”
With a glance at Lincoln, who gave the smallest nod of acknowledgment, they turned to leave. At the door, Eric hesitated, glancing back point”
“He’ll never be the same after this, he said softly. “But maybe that’s the p
And then they were gone.
I sat there for a while, the silence settling around me like a thick fog. I wasn’t sure how to feel. Part of me was grateful for their words. Another part felt the weight of what had been taken from me all over again.
But then I felt it
A pull
A thread tightening in my chest
He was close
Nate
The door opened quietly, and there he was-shoulders broad, hair mussed, eyes weary but alert. He froze when he saw me awake, his hand still on the handle
“You’re up,” he said softly.
I nodded, my eyes tracing the healing cut on his brow. “Yeah. Just now.”
He entered slowly, almost like he didn’t want to scare me. He stopped a few feet from the bed, eyes searching mine for something I couldn’t name.
“I saw them leave,” he said. “Eric and Lincoln.”
“They came to apologize.”
“I figured.” His jaw clenched. “At least someone in that family still has a soul.”
“Hey Eva is the sweetest,” I teased, knowing what he meant.
He smiled softly, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
“I meant the few with testosterone.”
“Still up for deliberation with Eva.” He chuckled again, and I noted the way it made me a hundred times more alert, and a million times more gushy.
Nate ran a hand through his hair, and I could see the exhaustion in his posture. He looked like he hadn’t slept in days. Probably hadn’t.
“I wasn’t sure if you’d want to see me, he admitted, voice low
I looked at him then. Really looked.
His eyes were tired, but his gaze was steady. His hands fidgeted at his sides, but his stance was open. He wasn’t here to demand anything. He wasn’t here to gloat or stake a claim.
He was just here.
For me.
“I do want to see you,” I said softly.
Relief flickered across his face, and he took a cautious step closer. “How do you feel?”
“Different,” I whispered. “Stronger. Calmer. Like… something’s settled.”,
“That’s the bond,” he said gently. “It’s finally in place. Fully”
It hit me then. We were…. fully mated. We mated back when I was sixteen. The only thing left there
Though he did it to save my life, we were finally fully mat
I nodded slowly it feels good”
A beat of silence passed between us
Then another
And then I said, “Thank you.”
He blinked “For what?” mated.
“For saving me. For not pushing me when I wasn’t ready. For everything.”
It was t the mark and now it was
His throat bobbed as he swallowed, and he finally took the last step toward the bed, pulling the chair close and sitting beside me Our knees brushed, and the simple touch sent a ripple of warmth through me.
“I didn’t just mark you to save your life,” he said quietly.
My breath caught
“I mean-I did. That was part of it. You were dying. There wasn’t time. But… I would’ve done it anyway. Even if you were healthy. As long as you wanted me to, I would’ve.”
I stared at him, stunned.
“I’ve wanted to mark you since you found out I was your mate,” he continued. “But I waited after I royally fucked up. I saw my mistake a few years too late so I had to wait and even consider living without you. I tried to respect the time you needed. And I’ll still respect it. If you need space, if you need to figure things out-just say the word.”
I reached for his hand, threading my fingers through his. “I do need space.”
His eyes met mine, hope flickering in them.. “But there’s a chance?”
“I guess,” I whispered. I knew damn well I couldn’t resist this bond forever. “I just need time. Time to heal. Time to figure out what all this means. But it might be nice if you weren’t keeping me at arm’s length.”
He exhaled like he’d been holding his breath for hours. “Okay,” he said. “I can do that.”
We sat in silence, hands intertwined, hearts slowly syncing.
And for the first time in what felt like forever, the world didn’t feel like it was crumbling around me.
“I only have one concern,” I mumbled.
“Name it.”
“How pissed is Ethan?”
*Nathaniel*
I woke to the quiet sound of her breathing.
Steady. Even. Peaceful.
For the first time in days, Jiselle was sleeping without trembling, without crying out, without her body burning itself from the inside. Her hand was still curled in mine, small and warm, and I hadn’t let go all night. I didn’t plan to.
The chair beneath me creaked as I shifted slightly. My back ached from sleeping hunched over, but I welcomed the discomfort-it was a reminder that I was still here. Still breathing. Still holding onto the girl who, just yesterday, I thought I might lose forever.
Moon above, she looked different.
Not fragile or weak, though she had every right to be after what she’d survived. No-she looked radiant. Her skin no longer flushed with fever but calm and glowing. Her wolf had settled. I could feel it in the mate bond, humming low and steady now, like a thread newly stitched but strong.
We were bonded.
Fully.
I traced my thumb gently along her knuckles, watching the way her fingers twitched every now and then in her sleep. I wondered if she was dreaming. If she knew I was here. If the calm she felt now matched the calm that had finally begun to unfurl inside my own chest.
A soft knock at the door broke the stillness.
I looked up just as the nurse slipped in, holding a clipboard against her chest.
“I’m sorry to disturb you,” she whispered, glancing between us. “But the Alpha Council has summoned you..”
My stomach tightened. “Now?”
She nodded. “They said it was urgent. And… it’s not exactly a request.”
Of course not.
The Alpha Council didn’t summon people out of courtesy. They were an arm of the International Werewolf Council, which operated this school. It was the only other organization as big as ATA on this godforsaken island. They basically headed the school. I knew better than to dismiss their summon. Especially not when I knew it involved Jiselle.
I gently laid her hand back on the bed, my fingers lingering for just a moment longer than necessary. Then I stood and pressed a kiss to her temple, careful not to wake her.
“I’ll be back before you even miss me,” I murmured, though the words felt heavier than I wanted them to.
She didn’t stir. Just breathed.
And I let myself believe, for a second, that maybe everything really would be okay.
Then I left
I was on my way to the meeting room when I realized I was being intercepted. instructor Bastain was waiting when I stepped out into the courtyard, arms folded, eyes scanning the horizon like he was tracking ghosts in the sky. The wind tugged at his dark coat, and for once, the man looked tired. Not the usual sharp, colled precision he carried. But worn. As if something big loomed just beyond his grasp.
Beside him stood Miss Carrow-her ever-sleek braid draped over one shoulder, her eyes sharp behind narrow glasses. She looked like a woman who’d never once missed a detail. And right now, her gaze was squarely on me.
“You kept them warting long enough” Bastain muttered. “Now we’ll have to be brief.”
“She nearly died” I shot back “Forgive me for not sprinting out of the infirmary the second she stopped seizing”
He didn’t flinch at my tone if anything, his mouth twitched like he respected it
Miss Carrow nodded in quiet agreement “She’s awake?” i nodded once “Sleeping now Peacefully
Something passed through her expression Relief, maybe. Or regret I couldn’t tell
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?