Tangled in Moonlight: Unshifted novel Chapter 477

Chapter 477: Ava: A Thin Line Between Anger and Arousal

Our cabin door slams behind us, loud enough to rattle the hinges. Even Selene doesn’t follow. The moment it closes, my back hits the wood—hard. I suck in a sharp breath, startled. Lucas moves fast, crowding into my space, one hand planted beside my head, the other gripping my hip like he thinks I’ll disappear if he lets go.

He’s close. Too close. His eyes are burning gold, glowing in that halfway place between man and wolf. It’s not the calm kind of glow either—it’s the kind that means something inside him is slipping.

"You are not going." His voice hits low, all grit and gravel, something deep and primal. "Not to this raid. Not this time."

His fingers flex against my hip. It’s not rough—not yet—but I feel the warning in it. The barely leashed temper.

"Not ever again if I can help it."

I see red. "You don’t get to make that decision alone." My palms hit his chest, hard, but it’s like trying to move a wall. He doesn’t budge. "Not anymore, Lucas."

"This isn’t up for debate." His jaw clenches. I watch the muscle twitch, sharp under his skin. "I’m the Alpha. I decide who goes on missions."

"You’re trying to keep me safe instead of using my power. I’ve trained for this, Lucas. I’m not the same helpless girl you met at the Gala."

His nostrils flare. "I know exactly what you are and how hard you’ve worked, Ava."

"Then explain to me how this makes sense." My voice rises against my will. "You let Lisa come to fight the Mad Prince, but you think I’m a liability?"

His eyes narrow to dangerous slits. "Lisa isn’t my mate. Lisa can’t die and take half of me with her."

"That’s not—"

"It is exactly the fucking point, Ava!"

I duck under his arm, needing space, needing air, but he moves faster, trapping me against the door again.

"You’re walking into a camp full of people who use magic and leaving your magical mate behind." My hands push against his chest again. "That’s not protective," I snap, voice shaking, "it’s suicidal."

Lucas’s lips curl back, baring teeth that are just a little too sharp. "We have a Fae. Heize is coming."

I stare at him like he’s grown another head. "You can’t seriously think that covers it. Why settle for one when you could have two? Why am I the only one you don’t trust enough to fight?"

"I do trust you." His voice drops low, the heat behind it simmering instead of blazing. That softness? Somehow worse than all the growling. "You’ve proven yourself. Again and again."

"Then let me prove it one more damn time," I fire back. "Why won’t you let me go?"

His eyes flash. And then he snaps. "BECAUSE I’VE ALREADY WATCHED YOU NEARLY DIE MORE TIMES THAN I CAN COUNT!"

The words explode out of him, shaking the air. His hands slam against the door on either side of my head, and for a heartbeat, the whole cabin feels like it rattles. Dust floats in the streaks of light, dancing through the silence that follows.

I flinch. Just a little. But I don’t back down.

"My people," I say, breathing hard, "are in danger every single day. I can’t just sit here while they fight and bleed and die. I won’t."

His chest heaves, every line of his body coiled tight, trembling with restraint. But his eyes... there’s something broken behind them. Something raw and hurting.

I press the words into the silence, cutting through it all. "You keep locking me away, Lucas, and I stop being your Luna. I become your prisoner. Is that really what you want?"

He doesn’t answer.

But something shifts. Breaks.

I see it in the flicker of his eyes, the sudden snap of movement before his mouth crashes into mine—furious, desperate, consuming. His hands bury in my hair, tugging just shy of painful as his lips steal the breath from my lungs.

It’s not a kiss.

It’s a fucking storm.

Teeth scrape. Tongue demands. Every inch of space between us disappears as his body presses into mine like he means to fuse us together.

I should shove him off. We were arguing. We are arguing.

But my body’s not listening.

It’s learned him too well.

My fingers curl into his shirt, not to push, but to pull. My nails drag down his back, feeling the muscle shift and tighten beneath them. He groans into my mouth and slams me harder against the cabin door, hips pinning me in place.

The hard line of his cock presses against my stomach, and I gasp when one hand slides down to grip my ass, lifting me just enough to arch me against him.

"You drive me fucking insane," he growls, lips trailing fire down my jaw.

Knock, knock, knock.

His gaze holds mine as his hand slips between us. Claws extend—not all the way, just enough. Just enough to slice.

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