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ChapterNine
KINGSTON
The cool air of the late fall evening did nothing to settle my overheated nerves. I paced back and forth at the lake’s shore, working to control the sense of unease that coursed through me, anxious energy prickling at my skin like a swarm of angry wasps. I’d never felt this before.
I hadn’t seen Sunday since class a few days ago. I’d been trying to respect her request for space, especially since she clearly hadn’t been feeling well, but I was going mad from the separation. When I’d tried to see her, Moira had been worse than a damn prison guard denying me visitation. She sent me packing every single time.
My wolf needed his mate. The longer we went without seeing her, the more unhinged I became. My control over my body was fraying. My wolf was ready to take over and succeed where he thought I was failing. At least, that was what I assumed was happening. I’d never been mated before.
The breeze picked up, sending a faint tease of her scent to me, just enough to make my already aching cock harder. Fuck. I’d always craved her, but now that I’d had a taste of what being with her was like, it was as if I’d lost my fucking mind. She was all I could think about. Was this what it’d be like day after day? Me wanting her, her hiding from me, only for it to end with me losing my shit in a fucking forest at twilight.
Without warning, my wolf let out a howl of denial. The sound ripped from my throat with a savage desperation I didn’t understand but could hardly deny.
Why won’t she see me?
I had to get to her. For myself and for my wolf. I could taste the pain in her scent. The hunger. The call. My mate needed me. Something was wrong with her. Or maybe something was wrong with me.
I pulled my phone from my pocket with trembling hands. Everything in me was strung tight enough I worried I’d snap. Palms clammy, I struggled not to drop the phone. Shit. Did I have a fever? My head was heavy, my thoughts clouded. Fuck. What if I had whatever Sunday had?
Shifters were supposed to be naturally immune to these kinds of things. But what if this wasn’t a normal illness? What if this was something else? Something sinister? We’d just dealt with a hunter attack on the school. Could this be the next way they infiltrated? By poisoning us or dosing us with some new supernatural drug?
Or, fuck... what if it was somethingI’dcaused by marking her when she’d already been claimed?
There was only one person I trusted enough to ask. He answered on the first ring.
“King, what’s up?” Dylan’s voice was filled with concern. I never called. Technically, I wasn’t allowed to. Dylan had left the pack and become a lone wolf after his mate and firstborn died in childbirth. No one blamed him for needing the space, but rejection was still rejection. And he’d chosen a life that didn’t involve us. Which meant we were supposed to do the same.
I’d never been a fan of following the rules. Especially not when it meant I’d have to shun the man who’d always been like an older brother to me.
“I found her. She’s here at Ravenscroft.”
There was no need to explain who I was referring to.
“Shit, King...”
“We’re mated.”
“What? Are you fucking kidding? She changed her mind? Of course she did. What am I saying? No one can resist the pull.”
I ran a hand over the back of my neck, my palm coming away slick with sweat from my burning skin. “I guess.”
“When did this happen?”
“A few days ago. She’s fucking perfect.”
“So why do you sound like you ended up on the wrong end of a jumpy horse?”
I snickered at the expression. “All those years on the ranch are showing,cowboy.”
“Yeah, you’re right. I guess you pick up a thing or two working alongside lifelong ranchers. But this way I can still run, even if it’s only on horseback.”
“I’m just surprised the horses can stand to be around you. Don’t they sense that you’re a predator beneath all that sunburned skin?”
“If I started shifting again, sure. But it’s been so long, they can’t tell me from a human now.”
My heart ached for my cousin. I couldn’t fucking imagine what it must be like to lose your entire world in one fell swoop—actually, I could, which made it worse.
“But you didn’t call to shoot the shit. Something’s wrong. What’s on your mind?”
