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“And if I take this off it will look like a bite mark, won’t it?”
He was piecing things together so quickly, almost too quickly. I waited for him to start mumbling about him being in a dream and wanting to wake up now. No humans were this chill with this kind of thing. Were they? Admittedly I had little experience with humans since I had been living with a pack. It was hard to interact with them.
“So you are one of those wolves? The big ones?”
“Yeah.” I reached for his hand and then thought better of it, pulling it back. Or rather trying to. He reached for mine before it could get far. “I wanted to tell you for so long.”
His hand on mine was everything. His touch soothed the anxiety that plagued my wolf.
“You didn’t, though. You left.” He didn’t bother disguising his hurt. “That’s it, right? Why you left. You couldn’t be around… people anymore after you shifted for the first time?”
“It is. Most of the time, people like me are raised in a pack, so it’s not a big deal. But my parents didn’t want to live in a pack.”
“You didn’t think I could understand—that I could accept who you are?” He blinked quickly, his eyes wet.
His tears cut me deep. The hurt he felt ripped me open.
“No. Not that. Never that. It’s… when we get our wolves, we can’t control them. Being around humans is not safe for us or them.”
“But you wouldn’t hurt me.” He squeezed my hand. “You tried to save me from them.”
“They weren’t trying to hurt you, either. That’s the problem… they were just being wolves and you were almost harmed.”
Christopher dropped my hand and turned on his side. “Join me.” He patted the spot on the bed beside him. “You’re too far away. I’ve missed you so much, and if this is a dream I want to soak in every minute. And if this is real, I don’t want to miss a single word from your lips. It’s like my body is craving your touch, so just touch me already.”
It was the mating bond. It might not have been the best idea, since I had so much to explain to him, so much that I had not said, but I slid onto the bed beside him, inhaling his scent and living for the warmth emanating off of him.
“That’s better.” He closed his eyes. “This is so much all at once. And it’s Christmas. My family… I just left. They probably think I fell in a ditch or something and am freezing to death.” That sounded so much like my mother. She would assume the worst of any situation.
“No. They aren’t.” I brushed the hair from his brow. “My mom called to say that I was home and we ran into each other. They know you are here and they won’t be surprised if you stay the night.”
“And that was enough of an explanation for her?” His eyes popped back open. “That doesn’t sound like my mom.”
“My mom maybe said she caught us kissing.” At the time I thought it the worst excuse ever, but it got his mom off the phone quick. “She said something about not missing dinner and to make sure I know I am invited.”
“Are you coming? To dinner, I mean?”
“I guess so. I am your mate.” It wasn’t the way to tell him. But also, what was the way? “It wasn’t on purpose. It was when my bite and because you… I’m not upset about it for me. But for you… it wasn’t—”
His finger on my lips cut me off. “You are not making any sense. Not even a tiny little bit. Is any of this to do with why I feel so at home right now and that even with my head pounding, I’m better than I’ve been in… well, since you left. Is it possible I missed you that much, or is it wolf germs making me hallucinate?”
“No wolf germs.” I ran my thumb along his cheekbone. “At least not in that way. You’re feeling the mate bond. I’m told humans feel it a little different, but you probably even felt the bond before I left. If I had known…” I wasn’t sure what I would have done. Defied my parents? Would they have believed me?
From the sounds of it, he felt the mating call before I did—and he was human. None of this made sense. But if I was right—the pain he must’ve felt over being rejected all those years ago would have been severe, even if it wasn’t actual rejection.
“I’ve always felt a bond to you… like I was meant to be your friend but also…” he trailed off.
“More?”
“Yeah, more. So much more. What does it mean to be mates?”
I sucked in a breath. That was a loaded question. “Mates are the person fate chooses just for you. You are bound to me now, as I am to you. You bear my mark and we can arrange it so that I will bear yours.”
“I don’t have teeth like yours.” He chuckled.
I held him tighter. It was my own personal Christmas miracle to have him in my arms like this. “During certain… events, you’ll be able to leave a mark on me.”
“Events?”
