She looked up at him in confusion and watched his heart-stopping white smile spread across his face. “Zach and Tonya told me about you … my little mate.”
“Why are you lying beside me?” Lucie forced herself to sound agitated even though she wanted to burrow deeper into his chest.
“You were clinging to me so tightly, I didn’t have the heart to separate from you.” He grinned and winked at her.
Lucie groaned and raised her hand to her forehead. “How unbecoming …”
“Why? I’m your mate. It’s natural you would seek my comfort.”
“I’m sorry, but I can’t be your mate,” Lucie said, bringing herself up on her arms very slowly. She felt his hands come up to her shoulders, and she gazed at him as he helped her into a sitting position.
“Well, you can be, because you are.” The man chuckled, looking at her with amusement.
“Hey, Ryan … Oh Lucie, you’re up. How are you feeling?” Tonya asked, entering the room.
“Ryan?” Lucie looked at the man beside her, who smiled warmly. She then looked back at Tonya. “I feel like I have open wounds all over me that aren’t healing.” Lucie looked over her body and smirked. “Well, would you look at that? I do have open wounds all over me that aren’t healing.”
Tonya chuckled. “I like you. We’re going to be good friends. It’ll be nice to have another girl among us.”
Lucie opened her mouth, then bit her lower lip. She shook her head slowly. “I can’t stay here.” She looked over at Ryan. “I’m sorry. I’m engaged already.” She expected him to look angry, but instead, his eyes flickered in amusement.
“But Ryan here said you two are mates,” Tonya said with a frown.
“It appears that we are. And nothing against you, Ryan. But I can’t.”
“Do you love your fiancé that much?” Tonya asked quietly. She was disappointed because she really liked Lucie.
“Well … no … I guess. I mean, I don’t really know him that well.”
Tonya gave her a strange look, and she didn’t dare make eye contact with Ryan.
“I don’t understand. If you don’t have feelings for him and you’ve found your mate, then what’s stopping you?” Tonya looked at Lucie like she was crazy. Who wouldn’t pick their fated mate?
“Well, it’s a long story, but my father … OH NO … my father is going to burn the world down trying to find me. I have to get back.” Lucie started to get up, but a set of strong hands landed on her shoulders. She felt electricity shoot down her spine from his touch. Gosh, she wanted him. She turned to meet his amber eyes.
“You can’t go anywhere in your condition. Not to mention we can’t disclose our location. We can’t risk going out right now because it’s too dangerous,” Ryan said, rubbing her shoulders gently.
“You don’t understand. My parents are not your typical parents. He’s going to be so hard on the pack. Ugh,” Lucie said, rubbing her forehead. “Oh! I know.” She started looking around the room, searching for a sign. “Is there a room where things get moved or go missing?”
Tonya quirked an eyebrow. This girl was a weird one. “Actually, that does happen, in the main room. But I think it’s just the men being forgetful.”
“Perfect. I need to go there.” Lucie started to sit up but was once again confined by a set of large arms.
Ryan chuckled. “You’re such an eager one. You’re going to make those wounds worse.” He slid over and scooped Lucie into his arms, against his chest. She squirmed a bit in protest but quickly stopped when he gazed at her. “I’ll take you out there, but you are not walking.”
Lucie blushed as he held her against his bare, sculpted chest. His sweet scent made her heart beat faster, her body being pulled to him. The mate pull was so intense in a wonderful way. Well, it would be wonderful, if she could actually enjoy it.She hadn’t done anything wrong, but it felt like she was being unfaithful to Derrick. Her body was definitely being unfaithful. It desired this man, and her heart rate was cheating on Derrick for sure.
Her eyes widened as she looked out into the open room. It was like a well-decorated cave. The stone walls had pictures hanging, even lights. The only thing the place lacked was windows.
“What is this place?” Lucie said in awe as she took in the sights. A large brown fuzzy rug was laid in the middle of the room surrounded by long couches. A television hung on the wall where a couple of guys were playing a video game while they sat on bean bags. Her eyes lit up in amusement as she watched them, remembering her brother and Justice playing games. She frowned slightly, thinking of Aedan. He must be so worried.
“This is our hideout, in a manner of speaking. We are in a modernized, underground cave,” Ryan said as he stared down at her. She went from awe to smiling to frowning. He was curious about her emotions and what was going through her mind. “It has a barrier in front of it to keep it undetectable and hidden. Plus, there is a strong illusion that makes the cave look like a dead end.”
Lucie nodded slowly as she continued to look around the room. It was amazing that this was all created in a cave.
“Are you kidding me? You just happened to get a seeker shell on the last lap?!” one of the guys growled near the television. A glass of water tipped over next to the other guy, spilling over them both. “Now look what you did!”
“What I did? You tipped it over!”
