The Alpha King's Human Mate by HC Dolores

The Alpha King’s Human Mate

Chapter 71

Chapter 71

“Romantic love is an addiction. A perfectly wonderful addiction when

it’s going well, a perfectly horrible addiction when it’s going poorly.” )

Helen Fisher

The hollow feeling in my chest never dissipated.

If anything, it only seemed to get worse the farther Griffin got from me. Every time that I thought about him – which was

quite a lot – the claiming bite on my shoulder pulsed. Like it yearned for Griffin’s touch.

Deep down, I knew it was the mate bond making me feel this way. It had to be. As little attention as I paid in my werewolf

education classes, I’d remembered that. Once you completed the mate bond, it became stronger. It got harder to spend

time apart.

But hearing about in a classroom couldn’t compare to how it actually felt. As cheesy as it sounded, it felt like Griffin had

packed my heart into his suitcase. \”)

And even thinking that felt embarrassing.

Even with the mate bond, I’d hardly known Griffin more than a month. Amonth – that’s all the time it had taken for him

to burrow his way Chapter 71

into my soul like he’d always lived there.

You survived eighteen years without Griffin, surely you can stand another month.

So much for wanting to be independent.

The worst part was the nightmares that started a couple of days after Griffin left.

I dreamed of Alpha Liam and Griffin in a stand-off, like one of those old Western movies. Instead of guns, their claws were

unsheathed.

I always woke up at the same part ~ right when Liam sliced Griffin’s head clean off his body. I usually woke up gasping in

a cold sweat too, and it would take me a moment to realize that the dreams weren’t reality. That was Griffin was still alive,

and had he died, | would’ve known. Not only would the castle be in an uproar, but I was sure that I would’ve felt it

through the mate bond.

Suffice to say, I wasn’t sleeping that well these days. There wasn’t even a reliable way for me to contact Griffin either. He’d be traveling, meeting with Beta Williams, and possibly walking into a fight. That didn’t leave a lot of time for casual

texting, although it’s not as if I had a phone to text him on.

phone is still sitting cracked on

didn’t want to wallow in the anxiety of Griffin’s absence. I knew

one of the few distractions |

nothing else, Ivan’s sharp criticism kept

a punch today?”

hardly seemed to move it anyway. “You look

too.”

of sessions with him, Ivan’s comfort level with me seemed to dramatically increase. I’m

to tattle to Griffin

like I’m half-asleep,” I said, reaching for

“Are the king’s quarters not luxurious enough for you? Can’t get

sarcastic, but I’d learned that was

these days. He

me, afraid they’d

“It’s these…well, can I ask you a question?”

“What is ii

you’re mated, right?” Ivan’s

you guys ever been separated before?” I asked, “Like, for

— he knew where I was going with this

to settle pack disputes.

did you deal with

something awful. “It is… not easy,” he said, “There are no shortcuts

mate. You must simply

I asked. I wasn’t sure why

just felt like I

pity. Or, at least, the closest that Ivan could get to

of my mate dying in odd ways,” Ivan confessed,

in

just in a mundane way, like of

it’s not just me. Is this just a mate

part of the

the mate bond.

made for some long nights,” Ivan continued, “But eventually, I found the

“The source?”

of trying to force you

won’t want to leave your mate’s side

was silent for a moment and then he

but he’d been

losing,” I said, “Getting killed.” When

talking. Every anxiety

over the past few days spilled out of me. “I know that

and Alpha

the victor. But it still keeps me up at night. The

head.”

the mate bond,” he said, “The moments together are euphoric. Addicting.

apart all

most humans would that call that withdrawal, which

of love is heavily skewed,” Ivan sneered, and then after a

eyes. “Well, say what you want, but I can tell you that most humans don’t

love is very

independent. They don’t feel the overwhelming need to be