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ChapterFourteen
DONOVAN
Icould barely walk, but I made it out of the inn in one piece.
Holding on to the sketch, I made it into the shadows between two buildings before I let the final bit of control slip from my fingers.
I’d only ever heard rumors or stories about the mate magic, wondering if I’d ever realize when it engaged. Nothing had happened with Everleigh. And neither had it done so with the women before her. But it had happened with Savannah.
The moment I’d laid eyes on the sketch she’d drawn of me, the pulsing, too fierce to deny, waves of something unforgiving, weaved up from the ground. The mate magic had risen, boring into me to a point where it became too much to feel, too much confusion, so much I needed to touch in order to find satisfaction. Something I’d only find with her.
She’d seenme.
That’s all I could keep thinking as I tried to steady myself.
She’d seen the wolf in me. On a whole other level, the woman had looked deep into my soul and seen my wolf. But not only that, she’d captured the soul in my eyes, the way I looked for something, sought my purpose, a small part inside craving a sensation I couldn’t quite catch. But now I knew what it was.
It was her.
My mate.
The animal inside me howled to the moon at such a revelation, even if the sun still shone.
‘You’re a natural leader to your people here, but sometimes, you’re as caged as I am.’To have someone understand me on a level I barely understood myself…
I’d wanted to claim her as my mate there and then, my wolf craving her beyond belief. But her reasons for being here stopped me from doing so. That’s why I’d pushed, and asked her what she’d planned to do before leaving the creek. I needed her to play her hand, desperate to know her intentions and end game. I had to make her show her true self so I wouldn’t drown in the potential of her tearing my heart free from my chest.
If Savannah needed help with Gideon, then why wouldn’t she ask me for it? Why continue the pretense? And how could I trust her not to go running to Gideon once I’d confronted her? I couldn’t. But I couldn’t keep her prisoner here either. I had to let it play out, to see how far she would go to sell me out, and I needed to protect the town from her next move.
Heading toward the garage, I sought Grace, steadier now the magic didn’t hold me so hard by the goddamn throat. When I got there, I found her tinkering in the Mustang's bonnet.
“Grace!” I shouted, the sketch still rolled up in my hand.
“Ow!” Grace shrieked, having hit her head on the hood from me bellowing at her. She rubbed at her forehead with a frown on her face at my approach. “What the hell, Donovan?” But then she saw my face. “What’s wrong?”
“Fix Savannah’s truck. Now.”
“Okay. I will. But how about you take a seat first and tell me what’s got you so riled up like this?”
“I don’t need a seat. I need her truck fixed, and I need you to call Savannah and tell her it’s done. After that, she’ll play her hand. And I need her to play it, Grace. Without her telling me, I need to know her intentions. I need to know what she planned on doing when she drove out here. I need to know—”
Grace cut me off by grabbing my arm and leading me to a seat in the corner. She disappeared for a moment to grab a Coke. She thrust it at me. “Drink this.”
“I don’t want—”
“Drink it. Take a breath. And tell me what’s happened.”
“Nothing has happened.” I opened the can, but I had to put the sketch on my lap to do so. Grace snatched it up before I could grab it back. “You’ll get marks on it!”
“I washed my hands when I grabbed your Coke. I’m good.”
But I didn’t want her looking at it. I didn’t want her handling it. It was personal. And I—
“Oh Donovan,” she whispered, tears filling her eyes. “It’s you. She seesyou.”
I snatched it back, needing it in my hand once more. Taking a swig of the drink, I blurted, “She’s deceiving me. That’s what she’s doing. I took her on a date the other night, and she went along with it. I met her for coffee today, took her to the brook, and still nothing. She shows me this. Makes me vulnerable but doesn’t confess a damn thing. She’s working for Gideon Fletcher...” I almost choked on the anger. “I want to punish her, Gracie. I want her to feel as conflicted as I do.”
“And how do you know she doesn’t?”
