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When it became clear that I was not going to answer, Gabe filled the silence again. “I’ve always heard that you shouldn’t tell people your wish, but I don’t think that applies to us. True mates shouldn’t have secrets from each other.”
I felt, rather than saw, his long sideways glance. “But then that begs the question, mate, of why you decided to lie to me tonight.”
My chest constricted. “I don’t know what you mean,” I replied evenly.
“You don’t think I know about some of Mariam’s sordidtales? The names of a few of herfriends? We lived together for a month, Ella. She’s kind of my best friend.”
“Oh.” I should have come up with some different names, some random werewolves back home. I hadn’t thought Mariam would tell Gabe anything about her past lovers, but it was too late to correct the mistake now. I was caught.
“Yeah. Oh,” Gabe repeated. “Mariam also mentioned that, unlike her, you have always been extremely chaste. Thanks for that, by the way. I think every male hopes his true mate would wait for him.”
“No problem,” I mutter under my breath. He kept going like he hasn’t heard me, though I’m sure his werewolf hearing picked up my response.
“But now we have a problem, and I’m not sure how to handle it, Ella. If you would just accept our bond, I would already have you over my knee for telling a lie. You would have your punishment, and then we’d be done with it, but you’re still insisting that we’re not mates. Going as far as to make up ridiculous stories, as if that would make me not want you.”
I sucked in a breath. How was I supposed to respond to that? My wolf had a few ideas, one of which included me crawling onto his lap and stripping off all my clothes. I wasn’t going to entertain those thoughts, though. I banished the images from my mind.
“Listen, Gabe,” I started. “I’m sorry I lied to you, but it doesn’t change anything. I’m leaving as soon as Mariam’s ceremony is over. We aren’t a good fit, and this conversation proves that more than anything.”
Gabe didn’t answer, which all but confirmed my line of thinking. I didn’t want a mate who was afraid to throw meover his knee. Gabe, with his calm, cool, boyish looks, embodied everything that made for a good friend, but that was all. If I ever did mate with someone, it would be because there was something raw and powerful between us. It would be with someone I could actually see myself submitting to.Just like Mariam and Trace, I thought again, for maybe the hundredth time that day.Just like Mom and Dad.
__________
When I first arrived at Tumblewild, I had been dreading all the mating ceremony preparations and bearing witness to my sister sucking the face off Trace Everett, but it really wasn’t all that bad. Face-sucking aside, being in the ceremony kept me busy enough that there wasn’t really time to think about Gabe or the eerily quiet ride home.
Okay- that’s a lie. Italmostkept me busy enough not to think about it. It wasn’t my fault that Gabe’s face kept flashing in my mind. My wolf was restless and agitated; every time I pictured him, she turned a little wilder. Finally, somewhere between helping Mariam with her dress alterations and having Justine practice doing my eye makeup, I couldn’t ignore the urge to shift any longer.
“I’m sorry. My wolf…I just have to go.”
My rushed exit would have made no sense to a human, but everyone nearby seemed to understand that I was on edge. Justine even gave me a knowing smile as I bolted from the room, almost like she knew why I had to shift and had been wondering how long I would be able to hold off on doing it.
I barely made it to the woods lining the yard of the alphahouse when she came bursting forth. My clothes were completely shredded, but there was nothing I could do to avoid it. I had ignored the animal for too long, especially considering the whole true mate situation, and now I would pay for it in new clothing.
My senses exploded like they always do during a shift. My heart beat in time with the wolf’s footsteps, racing faster as she gained speed and zigzagged through the trees. I could feel her savoring the feel of the dirt beneath her paws and her delight in the open, unfenced space around us. Back home, pack lands were surrounded on all sides by housing developments, leaving only a compound of homes, buildings, and empty land for pack members to enjoy. Jeremy had forbidden anyone from shifting and running through human territory because he was afraid someone would mistake one of our kind for a regular wolf and kill it. But that didn’t stop some younger, more adventurous wolves from sneaking out and letting loose anyway. I had never understood their desire to run outside the community gates, but now I could absolutely see the appeal.
My wolf made the loop around the alpha property a few times, investigating the scents other Tumblewild pack members had left behind. From the array of fresh tracks, it was clear that the alpha property was available for others in the pack to use as they pleased. My wolf gave a rumble of happiness at how communal this pack seemed. Dark Claw wasn’t the most conservative pack, but Jeremy would never allow other pack members around his home without an invitation or reason for being there.
The thought fled from my mind as I was assaulted witha new scent. Or, rather, a scent that was becoming more and more familiar over the last twenty-four hours.
A nearby bush rustled, and out from it sprang a brown wolf with grey markings on its chest. My wolf recognized him at once and folded herself into an embarrassing puppy bow. Her tail swung in the air, trying to tempt him into playing with her.
The invitation worked, and Gabe’s wolf leaped at her. She dodged him easily and took off deep into the wooded hills. She did her best to outrun him, and when that didn’t work, she tried to outsmart him by doubling back on her trail. To her surprise, he managed to stick right behind her, not once falling for her sneaky tricks.
When it felt like the air was going to burst from her lungs and she couldn’t run any longer, my wolf collapsed beneath the shade of an old juniper tree. Gabe’s wolf wasted no time nuzzling up to her and lightly clamping down on her exposed throat, an act of dominance that surprised me. Maybe his wolf wasn’t as passive as the man himself.
Chapter 4
I hadn’t meant to fall asleep. It had just been so comfortable in the shade of the tree that I had completely lost myself in relaxing under it. And so had Gabe, it seemed.
I woke with a start at the realization that the sun was setting, and the air was growing cooler. I sat up, horribly human and naked, with leaves sticking to my butt and twigs in my hair.
“Just when I thought you couldn’t get more beautiful,” a voice rumbled behind me.
I gasped and covered myself with my hands. I had naively hoped Gabe was still asleep, allowing me to shift back without being noticed. Of course, he was staring at me instead, with an intensity like he was trying to memorize the entire landscape of my body.
“Can you just look somewhere else, please?” I hissed. “I’m going to shift and leave as soon as I can.”
Gabe laughed, causing me to frown. “There’s no way I would miss a chance to see you naked, mate. Especially when I have a feeling that it might not happen again for a while.”
