Page 29 of Trusting Her Mate

I bend my head to her ear. “You did good.”

She looks up at me, and for one raw second, I see it all—fear, want, confusion, and wild hope that terrifies her.

“Boone,” she says, so quiet only I can hear. “That wasn’t acting. Not for me.”

My chest caves in. I know. I know because it wasn’t acting for me either. It hasn’t been since the gate. Since she grabbed my hand and my wolf said mine in a voice I couldn’t silence.

But I can’t tell her that. Not now. Not with Ashstone circling and her mother in danger and the bond so new and raw that one wrong word could send her running.

So I press my mouth to her temple and say, “I know.”

And I hold her while the pack howls and celebrates, the truth burning in my chest like a coal I can’t swallow or spit out. She is my mate. And she doesn’t know it yet.

Chapter Nine

Wren

The cabin door shuts, and the silence detonates.

My hands won’t stop shaking. My lips are still swollen, still burning from the kiss that cracked something open in front of fifty wolves. I can still feel every pair of eyes, every flared nostril, every wolf in that hall scenting us and deciding whether the bond between us is real.

And Boone is making tea.

The kettle, the cupboard, the fucking mug. His back is turned, shoulders rigid, and jaw locked. The same pattern I’ve learned in three days of living inside his walls. Controlled movements. Controlled silence. Controlled everything.

“You felt it,” I say, and his hand stalls on the kettle.

“Wren...”

“Don’t.” My voice comes out razor-sharp. “Don’t say my name like you’re bracing for a car wreck.”

He turns and the firelight catches the hard angle of his jaw. His eyes are locked down, hazel buried under layers of control. “You did well tonight.”

Something inside me detonates.

“I did well?” I cross the kitchen in two strides. “I kissed you in front of the entire pack. I felt something...” I slam my palm against my sternum. “Something happened during that kiss. Something I’ve never felt before. And you’re standing there telling me I did well?”

His throat bobs. “The pack believed it. That’s what matters.”

“That is not what I’m talking about.”

“I know.”

“Then talk to me.” I’m close enough now to see the muscle jumping in his jaw. Close enough to smell pine and smoke and the lingering heat of whatever this is still humming between us. “Tell me why I can feel you right here.” I tap my chest. “Like a second heartbeat. Tell me what that is.”

His fists curl at his sides. “It’s the bond. An awakened mate bond.”

The words hit like a fist to the ribs. I grab the table edge. “You’re telling me we’re...”

“My wolf recognized you.” His voice is stripped raw. “During the kiss. The moment your scent broke through the last of the blockers, everything clicked.”

The room tilts. “How long have you known?” He doesn’t say a word. “Boone.”

“Since the first night.”

The floor drops out from under me. “The first night.” The words come out flat. Dead. “Three days. You’ve known for three days.”

“Wren...”