Page 98 of The Secret Mate Society

"No!"Calder took another step forward, and I grabbed Jake's scrapbook, holding it against my chest like a shield."Ethan, listen to me.The moment I met you, something happened.Something rare and precious.We bonded… amatebond.It's why everything between us felt so intense, so fast."

"Mate bond?What the fuck are you talking about?"

"It's like...finding your soulmate, but deeper.Biological, instinctual.My wolf recognized you as mine from the first moment."His voice softened."I was going to tell you everything once we caught the rogue.I swear I was."

I shook my head, tears streaming down my face."So all this time, while I was pouring my heart out to you about the monster that killed my father, you were one of them?Do you have any idea how fucked up that is?"

"I know," he said, shaking his head.“But I couldn’t tell you… because humans and werewolves aren’t allowed to be together.”

“Because you fucking eat them?!”

“No!Because if I don’t get proper approval, the council might kill you!”

The moment the words left his lips, Calder’s eyes went wide.He snapped his mouth shut, a look of horror on his face.Clearly that was something else I was never meant to know.Another lie.

My body went cold, a numbness spreading from my fingertips up my arms.The room seemed to tilt around me as I stared at the man I thought I knew.

"They'd...kill me?"I whispered, my voice barely audible even to my own ears.

Calder's face crumpled."That's not what I wanted to say.Fuck."He ran his hands through his hair, tugging at it in frustration."This is all coming out wrong."

"No, I think it's coming out perfectly clear," I said, finding my voice again."Your...council...would kill me for knowing about you.For being with you."I laughed, the sound hollow and broken."And you didn't think that was something I should know before you had me move in with you?Before youfuckedme?"

"It's complicated," Calder said, taking another cautious step toward me."The Elder Council has rules that have kept our kind hidden for centuries.Humans who learn about us are usually...dealt with.But you're my mate, Ethan.That changes everything."

"Stop saying that!"I shouted."I'm not your mate!I'm not your anything!I'm just some stupid human you've been lying to and using for your own entertainment!”

"I was protecting you!"Calder's voice rose to match mine, frustration evident in every line of his body."If I'd told you what I was, would you have believed me?Or would you have run screaming, thinking I was the one who killed your father?"

"Which is exactly what I'm doing now!"I shot back."Because how do I know you're not?How do I know anything you say is true?"

I clutched Jake's scrapbook tighter against my chest.Jake, who had died trying to protect me.Jake, who had seen through Calder's lies when I couldn't.He was the one who’d actually been trying to take care of me, not Calder.And I’d let him die because I’d fallen for the monster’s tricks.

"Because I love you," Calder said, his voice breaking on the words."Because from the moment I met you, all I've wanted to do is keep you safe."

"Safe?"I laughed bitterly."My research disappears, Jake is murdered, and you've been sneaking out at night to turn into a fucking wolf!How is any of that keeping me safe?"

Something flickered in Calder's eyes at the mention of my research.It was brief, but I caught it.It was guilt, maybe, or fear.

"Wait," I said slowly, the pieces falling into place."The research.You took it, didn't you?There was no break-in, was there?"

Calder's silence was all the confirmation I needed.

"Jesus Christ," I breathed, feeling sick to my stomach."That was my life's work.Everything I had about my father's murder...And you just took it?"

"I had to," Calder said quietly."If the Council found it in my house, with your scent all over it...they would have killed you without hesitation.You… You know too much about our world.”

I stared at him in disbelief.“So what you’re telling me is that I’ve got nothing to lose now?”I scoffed.“If I stay with you, you might kill me.If I leave, this mysterious council might kill me.Seems like I’m fucked either way, Calder.And all because ofyou.”

Calder's face crumpled, his shoulders sagging as if I'd physically struck him."I would never hurt you.Never."

"You already have!"I grabbed the nearest object, a lamp on the side table, and hurled it at him.It missed, shattering against the wall."Everything between us was a lie!"

"Not everything," he insisted, taking another step toward me."Please, Ethan.Let me try to fix this?—"

"Fix it?!"I screamed, backing away until I hit the front door."There’s nothing to fix, Calder!You’ve marked me for death because you couldn’t keep your dick to yourself and say you want to protect me?That you want me to trust you?Fuck you!You really are a fucking monster!”

His eyes flashed gold again and I swore I saw his hackles rise.Clearly I’d gotten under his skin.I fumbled behind me for the doorknob, my heart thundering against my ribs.