Vasile growled. He did not like Serghei's name on her lips.

She paused pointedly as if to say are you finished. He lifted a brow at her. “He walked me home to make sure I got there alright.”

“You were alone with him?”

“Do we have to do this here?” she asked as she rubbed her forehead and pushed stray strands of hair away.

“We are not leaving this home until I determine whether or not to kill this pup.”

Her eyes widened. “You would kill him?”

“He kissed you.” Vasile’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Did he touch you?”

“Unless you can tell me a way to kiss without touching, then yes, he touched me and kissed me.” She was getting irritated with him, and under different circumstances he would have thought it cute.

“Did he put his hands on your body?” he rephrased bluntly.

“No.”

“Why did he kiss you if he was not your mate?”

“He was convinced that because of how he felt for me, we had to be true mates, and maybe the signs just were delayed.”

“Did you feel the same?” He was not real sure he wanted to know the answer to that, and he was purposefully staying out of her mind because if he got a glimpse of her memory of that kiss he would kill Serghei right there, right then without so much as blinking.

“No, I told him that I thought of him as a brother. He was my friend―nothing more.”

The next questions had Vasile nearly phasing. He knew his eyes were glowing a blue by that promised violence. “You have never been in his bed?”

“What!” Her head whipped around to look at the kneeling male in question.

“Do not look at him,” Vasile rumbled.

“Why would you ask me if I have been in his bed?” She was angry now. She looked fierce, and it made his wolf want to pant at her feet.

“Because your blouse was in his bed.” Vasile spoke very deliberately and watched as her face morphed into one of utter shock and embarrassment. She had not known about the blouse; he could breathe somewhat easier.

When she looked back up at him, his gut clenched at the tears welling up in her steel grey eyes. “Can we please go? I really need to go.” Her voice trembled slightly with the need to cry.

He reached for her and to his relief she came willingly into his arms. He looked at Ion and Nicu. “Have him strip his bed and burn the sheets and burn the blouse along with them.” Then he looked at Theris. “I will replace them. But I cannot have another man rolling around in my mate’s scent.”

“Of course not, Alpha.” Theris smiled but the simmering anger was just below the surface.

Vasile looked down at Serghei who still knelt with his head down. He forced the young man’s head up simply with his will and held his stare. “It is understood in our race that unmated males do not touch females other than their family. If she is not your female, then she is someone else’s, and what right do you have to disrespect his mate in such a way? I am not going to kill you, though I have every right to. For my mate’s sake, I will show mercy because I believe it would hurt her if I ended your life. But if I hear of you touching another female that is not yours, I will cut off your hands.” He started towards the door with Alina tucked under his arm but paused and glanced back over his shoulder. “Sain and Theris, thank you for your hospitality. I appreciate it.” His voice was cool and calm as if he had not just threatened to remove their young wolf’s appendages.

Once he was outside, he turned her and pressed his face into her neck. His. She was his and only he should be allowed to bask in her intoxicating scent.

“Vasile,” she said his name tentatively. “Are you alright?”

He shook his head and answered honestly. “I am not sure at the moment.” They stood there a few minutes longer before he released her and took her hand. “Perhaps, we should talk.”

Alina could still feel the tension in his hand as he held hers. She knew that his wolf was very close to the surface, but at the moment she could do nothing to soothe him. She was mortified. Her mate had found her clothing in another man’s bed. She could understand his anger. Her stomach rolled at the idea of Vasile’s clothes in another female’s bed. The look on his face when he had asked her about the blouse was one of not only anger but incredible hurt as well. She never wanted to see that look on his face, and she especially did not want to be the cause of it. She led him to the spot that Sisily and she had claimed many years ago. Vasile sat down in front of a tree and pulled her down so that she was sitting in front of him with her back against his chest. His arms wrapped around her waist pulling her tightly against him. It was terribly improper, but she did not care. She needed to be held and not just by anyone. She needed to be held by him.

She leaned her head back on his shoulder so that his mouth was next to her ear. She shuddered as his warm breath caressed her skin as he spoke.

“I nearly killed him when I found your blouse in his bed,” he confessed. “I have never wanted to rip a man to shreds more than I ever had in that moment.”

“I am sorry,” she started.

“Not your fault,” he interrupted her and pressed his hands flat against her stomach squeezing her reassuringly. He kissed the side of her neck, and when he pulled away quickly, she could tell that he was trying to control himself, and she knew it was because of her age. Why did he have to find me before I was of age, she thought.

“Can I ask you a question?” Her voice came out more breathless than she expected.

“Anything,” he whispered.

“How come you do not lose control? You seem so calm even though I can see contained anger.”

He chuckled. “I have a feeling my control is going to be tested again and again when it comes to you.” He let go of her and reached up to undo the braid she had put in her hair. She bit down on her bottom lip to keep from groaning as he began running his fingers through her hair, and then he moved it out of the way over her shoulder. “If I do not keep a tight grasp on my wolf, on his rage, it would be very bad, for a lot of people. If I turned him lose, I do not think I could ever regain control of him. And now with you, his rage has reached a whole new level. He wants you, now. Wants to take you and make you ours so you can never leave us.”

“And what about you?”

“I agree with him, but I am a tad less barbaric. And I also understand that your age is of consequence.”