The Four Beta Brothers
Chapter 130

JUNIPER

I took a step back automatically. "What happened to you?"

Nathan stepped forward, his jaw tightening. "You abandoned me. I knew it was too good to be true when you said you wanted me."

My muscles tightened as I heard Nathan's accusation. "I told you not to go. I begged you not to follow your father. Ever since you disappeared, I haven't stopped thinking about you." Asher, Nathan found me. Get here now, I tried to link.

Nathan moved forward and grabbed my neck, suddenly pinning me against the wall. He added pressure to his grip, but I was still able to breathe. My chest heaved up and down as I looked at the man who was supposed to be my mate.

"You really expect me to think you haven't stopped thinking about me?" His voice was cold. With his free hand, he ran his fingers over my mate marks, making my body squirm beneath his touch. "Were you thinking about me when my brothers marked you?" "What did your father do to you?" I asked, ignoring his question. Answering it would only make the situation worse. I already wanted to twist away from Nathan's touch. It wasn't supposed to feel this way when my mate touched me. "My father opened my eyes to who you really were. He made it clear that you don't care about me," Nathan growled.

"That's not true. Anthony lied to you. Of course, I care about you." I forced myself to look into Nathan's eyes, even though it scared me. This was not the sweet, innocent Nathan I once knew. There was a darkness in him that was beyond my understanding, but I needed to get through to him.

Nathan is here, and something is wrong with him. I tried linking Ethan, Axel, and Asher at the same time, but all I felt was silence.

"You just tried to link my brothers to come save you, didn't you?" Nathan growled. "No," I said. "I-"

Nathan squeezed my throat and slammed me against the wall. "Don't lie to me! I'm not a fool!"

He released the tension on my throat, and I immediately started coughing. "Fine. I tried to reach them, but only because I'm worried about you. You're not yourself. You need help."

"They couldn't help me even if they actually cared enough to," Nathan snapped. "Once you came along, they practically forgot I existed. Even if you could link them, they would only come running here for your sake, not mine."

"That's not true. They have all been just as worried about you. Wait... What do you mean even if I could link them?" I tried to keep my voice steady, fearing what Nathan would do if I set him off again. The Nathan I knew would never harm me, but this version of Nathan was unknown and unpredictable.

"My father has talented friends. Did you know that sorcerers have a wide range of abilities? They can enhance werewolves to make them stronger. They can weaken them. They can remove memories or even add in false ones. This one in particular even knows how to block linking abilities. All I had to do was give her the signal, and no one in this house can link for help. Pretty interesting, huh?"

"Why are you doing this?" I asked, unable to get my heart to stop racing. If I couldn't link Asher and the others, I had no way to call for help. I did what Asher asked me too, yet I found myself in the exact, helpless position I was trying to avoid.

"Because I needed to see if everything my father said about you was true. I thought maybe if I saw you, you'd explain yourself and I'd learn that my father was wrong, but it's clear that's not the case." Nathan tightened his grip, and I felt his pain flash through me. The Nathan I knew was still inside the shell of this person. His pain was real, but it was amplified by whatever Anthony did to him. If I could just find the pieces of the real Nathan, I could pull him back to me.

"I love you," I said. "I don't know what your father told you, but I love you Nathan, and I want to be with you."

His hand loosened a fraction. "You're just saying what I want to hear."

"No," I quickly said. "I have always loved you. When we were younger, I loved you like a little brother. When I saw you at CUW again, I knew I still loved you like that." I didn't want to lie to Nathan, because I knew he would see right through it, and it'd only anger him, but I wasn't going to give up on him, either.

"So that's all I am to you? A little brother?" He pushed me against the wall harder, and my breathing grew more labored as he constricted my airway.

"No!" I managed to choke out. "That was before. It's different now. When I saw you in the library, I knew I couldn't see you as just a little brother. I love you, and you're so much more than that. You're my mate, and I want us to be together." Nathan hesitated. His eyes brightened for just a moment, and I knew I was getting through to him. "Prove it to me."

I didn't break eye contact with Nathan to even blink. I didn't know what kind of proof he wanted. Trusting in a relationship came with time, but I had to do something to show him I was serious.

I grabbed his wrist and gently tried to tug it away from my neck. "Let go of me, and I'll prove it to you."

His lips twisted. "I don't trust you."

"Then I can't show you what you want," I said. I tugged at his wrist gently again, trying my best to keep my calm. "Please."

His grip loosened enough that I was able to pull his hand away from my throat. I was on the edge of getting through to him. If I could just break whatever spell he was under, I would be able to bring my Nathan back to me.

My fingers curled around the collar of his neck, and his entire body tensed under mine. I lifted onto my toes and pulled him down to meet me for a kiss. He was stiff against my mouth, but that didn't deter me. I ran my tongue over his lips, trying to get him to open up and let me in.

Nathan parted his lips just enough, and I slipped my tongue inside his mouth. My chest tensed as I deepened the kiss. He didn't taste how I remembered. It wasn't a sweet kiss that made me want more. This kiss tasted rotten, and my wolf convulsed, desperate to get me to stop. This was not the kiss of a mate.

Nathan pulled away suddenly, his lip curling into a snarl. "You hate kissing me."

I touched my lips, trying to figure out why that felt so wrong. Nathan was my mate. I still felt the wisps of our connection, but my chest ached as the sourness of the kiss lingered on my tongue.

"No," I tried to say, realizing Nathan was waiting for a response. "It's not like that."

He grabbed my shoulders suddenly, making me squeak. "Then kiss me again."

He leaned down, but my body flinched before his lips could touch mine.

"You are disgusted by me." Nathan slammed me against the wall, knocking all of the air out of my lungs.

"No, that's not it," I said, but I didn't know what to say. I couldn't even pretend to kiss him, because my body revolted at the idea.

"You said you loved me!" His fingers dug into my arms, and I could feel where the bruises were forming.

"I do love you!" I shouted, tears streaming down my face. "I love my sweet Nathan. The one who was patiently waiting for me to realize what a fool I was. The one who pushed himself to be the best wolfball player, hoping it would bring me back to you one day. I love that Nathan, but I don't know where he is."

"I'm right here," he growled. "You just never knew who I was. My father was right about you. You only care about gaining power, which is why you want my brothers and not me."

"That's not true!" I objected.

Nathan let go of my shoulders and grabbed my hair instead. He tilted my head back. "Then kiss me like you mean it."

When I hesitated, Nathan slammed his lips against mine. I pushed against his chest, trying to get him off me, but he was too strong. He slipped his tongue in my mouth, taking advantage of me. My body convulsed, hating every second of the kiss. It was wrong, and I just wanted it to stop.

But Nathan kept going.

He pulled me over to the bed and threw me on top of it. He pulled at my shirt, and I heard seams ripping as he exposed my collarbones. He sucked the marks his brother gave me, and my skin burned.

"Nathan! Stop!" I struggled beneath him, tears streaming down my face. This was not the Nathan I knew. This wasn't my Nathan. He would never harm me or force me to do anything I didn't want to.

"You're my mate, and I'm going to make sure you know it," Nathan muttered against my skin. His fangs extended, and I thrashed even harder. I couldn't let him mark me like this. I reached for anything to use as a weapon. I had to stop him. My fingers brushed the lamp cord on the bedside table. I nearly had a grip on it, when I heard footsteps.

Kalli kicked Nathan in the side, throwing him off of me. She grabbed the lamp I had been reaching for and slammed it over Nathan's head. She made sure he was unconscious and then tied his hands behind his back with the cord of the lamp.

When she was sure it was safe, she turned to me and offered me a hand. "Are you okay?"

My body shook, and I quickly grabbed Kalli's hand. She pulled me into a tight embrace, and a sob escaped my lips. That had been too close.