“No one in the pack,” she says as she blows out a breath. “I’ve dated guys and girls before, but mostly humans and never seriously. I guess I wanted to wait for my mate before any real feelings developed. And I’ve always kept my dating life totally secret because Ryan and Luca would have flipped.”
“So, what happens if your mate is female?”
“I guess I’ll have to deal with that when the time comes. But the thing I’m most afraid of is that I don’t think my mate is in Lunar Eclipse. And that means I might have to leave at some point.” Her knuckles whiten as she grips the steering wheel and stares out towards the road. I reach out and place my hand on her knee while she drives. I hate how she has to worry about this, but I love getting to be there for her for a change.
“How long until you turn twenty-one?” I ask.
“A little over a month, September twentieth.”
“Okay, well, that’s a minimum of five weeks before you can identify your mate and know either way; no point worrying about something that might never happen. And I don’t know your brother, but from what you’ve told me, you guys are super close, right?”
“Yeah, we always were, but we’ve gotten especially close over the past few years after Mom left us and never looked back, and Dad, well, he’s still around, but he might as well not be.” Her voice is flat when she mentions her parents and I make a mental note to check in more about them in the future. But right now, they aren’t what she is worried about.
“I’m sorry about your parents,” I whisper. “Do you think Ryan would let you go somewhere bad?”
“I don’t know. He’s more obsessed with the mate bond than anyone I’ve ever met,” she groans and then goes quiet for a beat. “Thanks for listening. It probably seems like such a minor issue compared to your experiences.”
“No, not at all! It’s not small. It’s real. And I get it—you love your home. It’s not easy to leave a place where you finally feel like you belong.”
“I just can't see myself as a luna, you know? It's fine helping Ryan out until he finds his mate but it just doesn't feel like me. And the thought of doing it for another pack is so far from the future Iwant.”
“Makes sense. Even if I do think you would be amazing at anything you do. Plus Lunar Eclipse does seem pretty great, I can see why you wouldn't want to leave.”
“Soooo, does that mean you're considering staying?” Sofia asks, her voice laced with optimism, and I can’t help but smile at the feeling of being wanted.
“Um, I don’t know. I really like it here, but I’m afraid to settle down any more than I already have in case I need to run again. And I hate the thought of leaving you already, so it’s scary to think of getting closer to you… or Jackson.”
“Wait,” she says, noticeably perking up. “Did something happen between you two?”
“Um, yeah. A couple of things might have happened,” I say while staring upward at the car’s roof. I inhale deeply, trying to calm the nerves that erupt when I recall this morning’s events. “We might have been a little naked together and maybe he might have kissed my neck a bit,” I blurt out.
“WHAT?” Sofia shrieks while slamming on the brakes so hard that we’re thrown forward. “Way to bury the lead girl! Jeez.” We both dissolve into a fit of giggles until I remember that I’m going to have to face him again tomorrow.
“Um, yeah, so I’m going to need you to come to training with me tomorrow and run interference.” Sofia agrees instantly, and I suspect she is enjoying this way too much. But I won’t question her; I’ll take the backup whatever way I can get it.
Chapter 17
Jackson
I stretch out my burning muscles as I finally let the warriors finish training. “Fuck, what was that about?” Luca pants beside me.
“I needed to burn off some steam.”
“You usually do that solo. And actually,” he smirks, flopping back on the mats of the training room with his legs stretched out in front of him. “You haven’t had to burn anything off lately. Anything to do with a certain pint-sized blonde omega?”
I don’t reply to him. I don’t need to. Luca is well aware of my building obsession. The warriors skirt out of the training area quietly with their heads down. They don’t want to draw my attention. And I can’t blame them. I ran them—as well as myself—into the ground today. Burpees, suicides, squats, deadlifts, and weighted planks. On repeat.
For nearly five hours.
And I still feel wired. Coiled. Like my skin doesn’t fit.
I stopped by Emily’s room yesterday, but she was out. A mindlink to the warriors I had tailing her let me know she was with Sofia in the nearby town. I had gone on patrol by the time they were back, so there hasn’t been a chance to discuss what happened yesterday.
“Weren’t you leaving?” I ask Luca, who laughs before clutching his side, still sore from our training. Good.
“Why, worried about your omega spending time with other males?”
I snarl at him, and he grins at me. He's trying to piss me off. I’m about to recount yesterday’s events to him when the creaking door swings open, releasing a tantalizing aroma that pierces through the thick musk of warriors’ sweat.
