In Fated Mate or Forbidden Love?, Zara Hawthorne flees her fate as the mate of ruthless werewolf king, Dorian Vale. Bound by destiny but torn by defiance, she refuses to be claimed. As war looms and dark forces rise, their passion ignites-will love unite them or shatter Moonhaven forever?
Chapter 1 The Bond That Shouldn't Exist
The scent of pine and moonlight filled the night air as Zara Hawthorne ran. Her heart pounded against her ribs, her bare feet crushing the damp leaves beneath her as she pushed forward, deeper into the darkened forest.
She had been running for hours.
Running from him.
The bond pulsed inside her chest like a second heartbeat, raw and unrelenting. She could feel it-the invisible tether that tied her to the man she was never meant to belong to. It pulled at her, urging her to turn back, to surrender.
She wouldn't.
She couldn't.
Because this bond-the mate bond-was a lie.
She wasn't Dorian Vale's fated mate.
She was his prisoner.
A growl rumbled in the distance, deep and commanding.
Zara staggered to a halt, her breath coming in sharp gasps as she pressed herself against the rough bark of a tree. Her pulse roared in her ears, drowning out the sound of the night creatures skittering away from the predator in pursuit.
A shadow moved in the darkness.
She clenched her fists, forcing herself to stay still, to blend into the night.
Then-silence.
Too much silence.
And that's when she knew.
She wasn't alone.
Before she could move, before she could even think, a strong hand closed around her wrist.
A jolt of heat and power surged through her at the contact, her wolf reacting instinctively to his touch.
Zara whipped around, wrenching her arm free as she stumbled back, her gaze locking onto the golden eyes that haunted her every waking moment.
Dorian Vale.
Alpha King.
Her mate-or at least, the man who had forced the bond into existence.
His broad, muscled form was wrapped in darkness, his midnight hair damp from the misty night air. His wolf burned beneath his skin, barely contained, barely restrained.
She should have felt fear.
Instead, all she felt was rage.
"Let me go, Dorian." Her voice was steady, but her body betrayed her, still trembling from his presence.
Dorian exhaled slowly, his golden eyes glowing with something dangerous, something possessive. "I already let you go once, little wolf. Look where that got us."
Her jaw clenched. "This bond is a lie. It was never real."
His expression darkened. "Does it feel fake to you?"
Zara's nails bit into her palms. Of course, it didn't. That was the problem. The mate bond had been designed to make her crave him, to make her belong to him-but it wasn't natural.
It was forced.
Dorian took a step closer, and her breath caught. He was taller, broader, stronger. Every inch of him radiated power and dominance, the kind that made weaker wolves submit.
But Zara would never bow to him.
"You stole my choice," she whispered, anger shaking through her. "You think because you're a king, you can just claim whatever you want?"
A muscle ticked in his jaw. "I never wanted to steal anything from you."
Her lips curled into a bitter smile. "And yet, here we are."
Dorian's fists clenched at his sides, his wolf on edge, restless. "You don't understand, Zara. You don't know-"
"Then tell me." She dared him, stepping closer, her chin tilted up in defiance. "Tell me why I feel chained to you. Tell me why I can't breathe without you, why every part of me aches when I try to leave."
Dorian's gaze burned into hers, a storm of conflict and longing. "Because the bond is real. Even if it was forged, even if it was forced, it is real."
Her chest tightened.
"That's not love," she whispered.
He didn't deny it.
Because he couldn't.
They both knew the truth.
A mate bond was supposed to be sacred-a gift from the Moon Goddess. But theirs was nothing more than a chain, a curse woven from blood and betrayal.
Zara swallowed hard, the weight of it all pressing down on her. "I'm breaking it."
Dorian's expression darkened instantly. "No."
She lifted her chin. "Yes."
"Zara," he warned, his voice rough. "You have no idea what that will do to you."
"Then let me go."
A sharp silence stretched between them.
Then-
"No."
Her breath hitched as he closed the distance, his body heat searing. "You break this bond, and you break a part of yourself, too. Are you really willing to risk that?"
She hesitated.
Not because she doubted herself.
But because a small, treacherous part of her was afraid he was right.
Dorian's voice dropped lower, almost a whisper. "You think breaking the bond will set you free? It won't. It will destroy you."
Her chest tightened. "Maybe I'd rather be destroyed than belong to you."
Something flashed in his eyes-pain, raw and unguarded, there for only a moment before it was gone.
Then, just as quickly, his mask slipped back into place.
"Then do it," he murmured. "Break it. If that's what you truly want."
Zara swallowed hard.
His golden eyes never left hers.
This time, there was no command in them, no force.
Only a choice.
Her choice.
For the first time, Dorian wasn't taking something from her.
He was offering her a way out.
Her pulse pounded.
Could she do it?
Could she sever herself from him completely?
The answer should have been easy.
But as she looked at him-the man she was supposed to hate, the man who had betrayed her yet still haunted her thoughts, her dreams, her very soul-
She realized something terrifying.
She wasn't sure she could.
Not yet.
Not without knowing why.
Dorian watched her for a long moment, waiting.
When she didn't move, when she didn't run, a slow, knowing smirk curved his lips.
"That's what I thought," he murmured.
Zara's breath hitched.
She hated that he was right.
And she hated even more that some twisted, desperate part of her wasn't sure if she wanted him to be.
Because if this was a lie-
If their bond was nothing more than a curse-
Then why did it feel so real?
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