Page 19 of An Anomaly of Sunlight

“I don’t see how you can stay there, August. I don’t.” Rifling through the cabinets looking for a whiskey bottle, she snarls behind me. “You have no idea what my life is like! You never did. You were always loved and accepted. But for me, I’ve had to fight for love and acceptance my entire life! It’s all I want. All I’ll never have since…”

I wince at the hurt in her voice. Since the wolf everyone suspected would be her mate passed before they were old enough to find out. She is mostly right. But, “I didn’t ask to be here. And if you think what Dad gave me was love, you need to learn the true definition of the word. I love you unconditionally. Does that mean nothing to you?” August sighs, resting her head on the counter and lacing her fingers together behind her head.

“I know, Sky, I know. I love you, too. I don’t know what I’m doing anymore. Truly. He disgusts me. But I’ve spent my entire life trying to prove him wrong. Show him I can be what he needs to carry on his legacy. If I don’t become alpha, then who even am I?”

My lip curls up in disgust. “Some legacy to carry on,” I scoff, taking a swig of the whiskey. August shoots up, glaring at me. “What is your fucking problem tonight,” she growls. I don’t offer an answer, diverting my gaze instead. Our conversation had gone far differently than I expected. I wasn’t keen on shifting it toward Amethyst.

August stalks closer to me; eyebrows drawn together as she studies me. She begins to pace in front of me. “That’s fine. Don’t talk, asshole. I’ll figure it out myself.”

And she will. Shit.

My eyes glow the slightest bit. An instinctual desire to protect Amethyst coming to the forefront. I squeeze my eyes shut. Not fast enough. August stills, leans closer. Inhales the scent from my shirt. She shoves a tattooed finger in my face. “You found your mate.” A growl rumbles in my throat. “That makes perfect sense! The pent-up frustration, reluctance to me showing up tonight. You knew I’d figure it out!”

My vision becomes sharper as my wolf side tries to take over. “Drop it, August. You don’t know what you’re talking about.” She matches my energy, allowing her canines to elongate. Baring them at me. Her silver eyes shine like twin moons. On the cusp of shifting, she taunts, “Who are they?” With a sinister expression, she pushes further. “If that sweet scent on your shirt isn’t from your mate, maybe they’re mine. I’d love to have a taste.”

With bared fangs I stalk toward her, forcing her backwards. She merely giggles, crossing her arms across her chest as her back hits the refrigerator. She stares at me, challenge in her eyes. “You could tear me apart limb by bloody fucking limb and still I’d never tell you who she is.” I snarl, each word more vicious than the last.

Not only do I want to hide Amethyst from our father, if her location is compromised, that vampire scum from Angel’s Rest may come sniffing around. Her safety is my top priority. August’s entire demeanor changes. She turns from brutal wolf to giddy teenager. “She you say? Interesting.” Fuck. I fist her jacket, pulling her close enough to feel her breath on my face. “If you so much as hint to our father that I have a mate you can consider yourself dead to me, August Ashford.”

She holds up her hands innocently. “Relax, Sky. I know the threats he’s made to you. To her, rather. I won’t tell a soul. Promise.” She crosses her heart with her pinky finger, then holds it out to me. “I have no reason to. I don’t want you to be alpha, anyway. I just want my brother back. For him not to have to worry about finances.”

Taking her pinky in my own, I let out a soft laugh. “I don’t exactly worry about finances, Augs. The Challenger is paid off. And I only have something like five years left on the house. Really, I could pay it off now. I just want to keep that money in savings.” She raises an eyebrow at me, seeming doubtful. “I make a decent salary. Obviously, nothing like what you’re used to. With your new cars every week; but it’s plenty enough for me.”

She sighs in defeat, “I’ll take your word for it, Sky. I just miss you, that’s all.” Pulling her in for a hug, I suggest, “Then come visit more, you know I keep the guest room made up for you. Stay the night.” I gesture toward the stairs. August’s arms wrap around me tighter. “Don’t mind if I do.”

Throwing her arms over her head in a yawn, she turns to head upstairs. “Love you, shit head, goodnight!” I shake my head, a warm chuckle rattling in my chest. That’s more like her.

Pulling my phone out of my pocket, for the first time ever, my heart sinks when there’s no messages. I drag myself up the stairs, through my bedroom, and to the porch, plopping down in my chair and staring out across the lake. It sparkles in the moonlight as I pray to the Goddess that Amethyst is safe.

Twelve

Amethyst

Idon’t see Nitasha’s car when I pull into the GGs parking lot. It’s roughly fifteen till and seeing how she’s always late for work, I wouldn’t expect her to be early to our coffee date. One of my favorite baristas, Jupiter, is behind the counter.

It’s delightful to see them still here after being away from home for six years. They give me a warm welcome as I step inside. I return the gesture, waving again when a woman comes to stand beside Jupiter.

She has the cutest lavender hair. Half is down, falling at her shoulders; the other half pulled into two buns held in place by silver star clips. Dressed in pastel pink, she’s a stark contrast to Jupiter, who is wearing all black with dark curls hanging loosely at their ears. “I’ll be up shortly,” I tell the pair as I head to find a seat.

Nitasha needs to get here like yesterday because a heavenly vanilla latte is calling my name. Instead of finding a table, I end up browsing the tiny shelf of books GGs offers for sale. Some of the titles I recognize from my childhood but three spines on the end catch my eye. They all have small pictures of wolves on them.

Each wolf is a different shade of gray. The first stands behind a woman protectively. Another stands on two legs and has a clawed hand lovingly wrapped around a man’s waist. The last simply howls at the moon. I slide the first one off the shelf, turning it to look at the cover.

My cheeks go hot, and I nearly drop the book after seeing Mated to the Alpha Prince is the title. The artwork shows a woman in a ballgown with a wolf curled around her. She cups its large head, pressing a kiss to its nose. Maybe I should read this. Maybe it can help me understand how being with Skyler would… work. Would he have to mate me in his wolf form? Surely not.

Curiosity still sinks its claws into my mind. What does Skyler’s wolf look like? More importantly, what does he look like under those tight-fitting clothes that always tease me?

Creators!

I clear my throat and awkwardly return the book to the shelf. Walking back toward the tables, I peek out the window to see if Nitasha is here yet. I scan the parking lot, finally noticing her car at the back of the lot. If her car is here then where is she?

I head toward the door, intending to meet her outside when something snags my attention. Is Delilah’s gas tank open? I thought I remembered closing it yesterday, but I guess not. Regardless, I need to fix it.

“Hey, Ame! Sorry I’m late.” Nitasha’s voice nearly startles me out of my skin. “I was sitting in the parking lot for a few minutes talking to Soren on the phone.” Her strawberry body spray overtakes my nostrils. My name is Amethyst. I want to scream. And Soren? Who the hell is that? She was just talking about Jay the other day.

I give her a small wave. “No worries! I hope you’re ready for a drink. I desperately need one after those extra hours tonight.” She laughs, a devilish look in her eyes. “Sorry about that. I really wanted to hang out with Soren,” she adds air quotes around hang out. “He works nights, so I had to see him earlier.”

No fucking way. That’s why I worked over — a booty call? After the night I had with Skyler, though, I should thank her.