“Hyacinth,” Shane says, and his voice shocks me out of my frozen state.
How long was I semiconscious for? Feels like ten minutes.
“I spoke to the other alphas, and they told me that Sadie and Trina did not begin to come into their powers until after they had sex.”
The words filter through slowly, and understanding comes even more slowly. “They said… that we have to have sex?” I choke out.
“That’s right,” he says, sounding a bit relieved. “That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
A great tongue of flickering heat rises inside me, blooming from a place deep between my legs and rushing through my blood. Images flash through my mind, so clear I can taste them, and all I want to do is hurl myself across the table and into Shane’s lap.
No! You felt like this before, remember? With Dan—
“No!” I shout, standing up and slapping the table. “You’re lying!”
“I’m not,” he protests. “I swear that’s what they said.”
“Bullshit,” I cry, my voice tearing my throat. “You’re just playing me. How dare you do this to me! You rip me away from my life, force me into your crazy world—now you’re making shit up just to make me sleep with you?”
“Hyacinth,” he says, a look of regret on his face. “I told you, I didn’t think I should share it yet. That is what they told me.”
“I don’t care,” I mumble, tears pouring down my cheeks. “You can go fuck yourself for all I care!”
Before he can say another word, I turn and flee from the kitchen, hammering down the hall to my room. When I slam the door behind me, the walls rattle, and I kick the door for good measure.
He has to be lying. What a fucking jerk—why would he pull a trick like this, especially now when the health of his pack is at stake?
As I back away from the door and collapse into bed, I know the question contains the answer. I don’t know muchabout Shane, but I know he wouldn’t risk his people’s lives just to get laid.
That means my greatest fear and my secret fantasy are one and the same.
Chapter 11 - Shane
After Hyacinth flees the room, I sit in the sudden silence, feeling almost as shell-shocked as if I just survived a disaster or car crash.
I lean forward on the table and put my head in my hands, rubbing my scalp. I feel like an asshole for saying that to Hyacinth, and I know I could have delivered it much better—but so far, it’s the only thing we know for sure that is supposed to work in coaxing out a witch’s powers.
What if she said yes? Would we be tangled together on this table right now?
Details threaten to invade my head, and I get up quickly, refusing to let myself dwell on it. I can only hope that we find a different way to break the curse—and that I haven’t absolutely doomed all of us by bringing Hyacinth here.
Tentatively, I creep down the hallway, stopping by her door and listening intently. I immediately notice that my ears aren’t as sharp as they used to be, and I can’t even hear her breathing on the other side.
I touch the door lightly, wanting to open it and check on her, even if all I do is confirm she’s safely inside. The idea of invading her privacy and scaring her dominates that urge, though, so I end up turning away and creeping back up the hall.
When I reach my own room, I feel wrung out and exhausted. I sit on the edge of the bed, seeing nothing but problems stretching out in every direction.
I’ve never felt so lost. For the first time in my life, I truly don’t know what to do.
My body begins to ache, and I collapse on the bed, letting myself relax. I don’t expect sleep to come with my mind churning so hard, but my thoughts begin to blur, and when the dark wave of unconsciousness comes, I’m grateful for it.
***
The first shred of dawn light wakes me, and I sit up immediately, scowling at the window where the faint silver glow peeks through the curtains.
It’s like my anxiety awakened with the rising sun. Even worse, I feel like I didn’t sleep at all.
When I get up to change my clothes, I’m truly alarmed by the weakness in my body. It takes effort to pull out the drawers of my dresser, and my feet feel too heavy to lift.
