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Finally done dealing with the pride issue that pulled him away from his mate … Okay, to be fair, Tate had pulled him away from Blair—rightly pointing out that Luke needed to give her the space to get to better know the other females rather than constantly invading said space.
His cat urged him to walk faster, eager to return to their mate. She was fine—they could feel it through the bond. Nonetheless, the feline wanted to be with her. Whether or not she’d be pleased that Luke had returned he didn’t yet know.
Had he sensed that his hovering had quickly begun to grate on her nerves? Yes. It was a wonder she hadn’t clawed him, really. In truth, though, Luke hadn’t really been hovering so much as reminding Havana, Aspen, and Bailey that he was close in case they got the stupid idea to mess with Blair.
He didn’t believe they’d give his mate any shit—so far, they hadn’t been anything but friendly toward her. And the fact that they were attempting to pull her into their circle said good things. But his level of protectiveness had hit an all-time high the moment his bond with Blair partially formed. Pretty much everything felt like a potential threat to it.
That would settle once their bond fully snapped into place—something he believed should have happened by now. He had thought that their sharing of secrets and grief would have been enough to ensure it. However, it seemed that something else was blocking the bond’s frequency, because it remained incomplete. It bugged Luke’s cat just as much as it did him.
He’d ruminated on it for most of the day, trying to understand what the problem could be. Generally, fears, secrets, and barriers were responsible for jamming mating bond frequencies. But he had no more secrets from Blair. His barriers were down for certain, and he felt through their bond that she was not emotionally holding back from him.
All he could figure was that either she had a secret or two that she hadn’t yet shared with him, or one of them harbored fears about mating—perhaps consciously, perhaps subconsciously.
Luke had searched within himself; found no fears. It was possible that Blair worried that mating with him would mean losing her mother for good. Luke was inclined to believe that Noelle would eventually get her act together rather than lose her daughter forever. But if Blair didn’t hold that same belief, it could be interfering with their bond’s development.
It didn't help to know that it was only a matter of time before their bond fully formed, because he'd done enough "waiting" when it came to Blair. For six, long years, he'd impatiently waited to claim her, to bring her to his pride, to move her into his apartment so it could officially become theirs.
Living with Blair hadn’t required any “getting used to.” Mostly because he’d already known her quirks and habits and patterns, just as she had his. But also because it felt easy and natural to have her there, sharing his space and making it theirs. They’d quickly developed a rhythm, totally in tune with each other, their lives merging effortlessly.
“Yo, Luke!” Damian called out.
Tracking his brother’s voice, Luke spotted him standing across the street.
“You got a minute?” Damian asked.
Luke nodded and then turned to Tate and Isaiah. “You two head back. I won’t be long.” After a quick check of the road, Luke began to cross it.
A mechanical roar filled the air, and a screech of tires quickly followed.
Luke’s head whipped to the right just in time to see a car gunning his way. His pulse leaping, he rushed toward the sidewalk.
A hard impact slammed into his leg, making his body roughly spin before he hit the pavement. Pain barreling through his limb, Luke ground his teeth and watched the vehicle speed away.
Damian, Tate, and Isaiah quickly materialized, their faces lined with both rage and shock.
“Jesus,” said Damian, his eyes wide.
Tate squatted beside Luke. “You all right?” he asked, his voice almost a growl.
No, Luke wasn’t all right. It was like a scorching hot force had exploded in his leg. And now it throbbed like a goddamn bitch even as it began to feel numb. He gently prodded it and hissed out a breath through his teeth. Definitely broken. “Could be worse.” Which placated neither him nor his currently raging cat.
Tate flicked the grocery store a quick look. “Get Helena,” he told Isaiah, referring to one of their healers. “She should still be at work.”
Isaiah gave a curt nod and ran off just as several of their other pride mates gathered around Luke to check on him.
Luke’s phone rang in his pocket. Since he could feel Blair’s anxiety and panic spiking along their bond, the sight of her name flashing on the screen of his cell was of no surprise.
