Jag racked his brain for a solution, still upset that he’d given Dane a reason to think of himself as disposable when he’d been Jag’s whole world from the moment he’d crashed into Jag’s life. At first, Jag had been mostly attracted to his big, strong body and unusual features, but they’d gotten to know each other since. Dane had so many amazing stories to tell, a good sense of humor, was smart when it came to building the house, had unique tastes, and the joy of mating with him was like nothing Jag had ever experienced.
“How about you write them a message, and I will get it delivered?” Dane’s family likely lived far away, but Jag would make it happen.
Dane exhaled and shut his eyes for several moments before glaring at Jag. “How about we pay her a visit together?”
“N-no,” Jag choked out, increasingly frustrated. Was he really not enough? He worked so hard to provide Dane with everything he could dream of. They even cooked marshmallows over the fire the other day because Dane had mentioned he liked them. It was time to put an end to this silliness and change the topic. “Speaking of presents…” He smiled and pulled one of the books out of the backpack.
“I’m not your dog,” Dane said, as if the gifts Jag was bearing didn’t matter. “You can’t just tell me what I can and cannot do. That’s not how a partnership works!”
As if navigating this new relationship wasn’t hard enough already. After three years on his own, Jag might have turned a little feral, but he was doing his best to accommodate his mate!
Jag’s shoulders slumped. “You claim you’re not a dog, and yet you bark at me. I can’t let you out of my sight until you’re tamed.”
He knew this wasn’t what Dane had wanted to hear the moment hot rage bloomed on that handsome face in dark blots.
“Oh, so you think it’s your job to tame me? In that case, consider me fully untamed. I won’t sleep next to you any longer!”
Jag raised his hands in panic as sweat beaded on his forehead. He leaned forward and crawled closer to his mate on all fours. “Dane, Dane… my sweet big bear. You know you don’t want that. We have something so good here.”
“No, we don’t. I’m just a pet that you can fuck. Otherwise, this wouldn’t be sitting on my neck, and I could go visit my mother,” Dane roared and tossed a plastic box full of rubber bands Jag’s way.
Jag had reflexes quick enough to cover his head, but the hit still hurt his arm. He growled in anger. Maybe it was time for a different approach.
He got up to tower over Dane. “Now listen here. You are so much more to me. You are my mate. But there is still a hierarchy in every group, and you don’t get to throw a fit just because you’re sulking!”
“Go fuck yourself, because you sure won’t get to do it to me ever again,” Dane said in a voice as cold as the harshest winter.
Jag stepped back, and his heart rattled in panic. He kept forgetting that the rules he’d grown up with meant nothing to Dane. Being the better fighter, Jag could even take Dane by force, but what he wanted was a loving, pliant mate, not one he needed to abuse in order to stay in control.
He licked his lips, trying to find the right words, but his mouth was dry as the dirt under his feet. “You like it. You like me,” he rasped.
Until this moment, Jag had been convinced they could soon move their sexual relationship further, yet now he was back to square one and would have to work for what he’d already claimed.
Dane grabbed a pitcher of water and splashed its contents on Jag. “I liked you when I thought we were coming to an understanding, but now I see you just think of me as your property and want to keep me whether I want it or not! So no, I don’t want you, you selfish fuck!”
The earth crumbled under Jag’s feet. “B-but we mated.”
“You don’t deserve me, and if you want to ever have a mate again, take this fucking collar off me and go looking,” Dane said with a flash in his blue-brown eyes.
Jag screamed out, raising his arms at the stubborn beast in front of him, but there was no point to this painful conversation, so he walked out. Plopping down to the comfy old armchair he’d dragged over here because Dane had liked it, he took deep breaths to calm himself. But it wasn’t working, and his eyes began to sting, because no matter what he believed, the onslaught of loathing got to him.
Why couldn’t Dane see that Jag really cared for him? He would have given his life in his mate’s defense, and even today he’d ventured out in order to fulfill Dane’s unspoken wishes. There was only one thing he wanted in return, but Dane seemed unable to forget his past and remain at Jag’s side as nature intended.