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“How the hell do you put on a shirt?” Anthony asked, confusing me by the change in topic.
“What? Same as you. What the hell kind of question is that?”
“Well, with that big ass head of yours, I wasn’t sure,” he said as I punched his arm, his laughter mixed with a groan. At the sound of his mother and sister bickering over what clothes were deemed necessary, Anthony straightened his back and looked at me.
He was still rubbing his arm, but his face was back to a serious expression. “You better take care of her, Nyte. I know she and I talk a lot of shit together, and I think she’s the most annoying little shit alive, but that’s my baby sister. And best friend or not, if you hurt her, I’ll kill you.”
I smiled, patting his shoulder reassuringly. “I won’t hurt her,” I promised.Not in any way she wouldn’t like. I added silently to myself.
When Paige returned from her room carrying a suitcase and a duffle bag, I took the bags from her and led the way out to my car. I packed everything inside, looking back at the porch to find Mrs. Ramirez coming out with a third bag, holding it out to a confused Paige.
“I’ve been saving this for you, Mija, for when you find your true love. As a girl, my mother gave me what she called a Hope Chest. It was filled with so many things she hoped for in my life. She gave it to me on my wedding day. This is my Hope Bag for you.”
“Mom,” Paige gasped, trying to return it to her. “Don’t give it to me; I’m not getting married yet.”
“Marriage is a human construct, Paige,” she said, pressing the bag into Paige’s hands. “A mate bond is deeper than marriage; it is timeless. It is the purest form of true love that you will ever know, rivaled only by your love for your future children. I am giving this to you now because there is no better time than when you seal a bond forged by fate.”
I smiled at her mother’s words, even though I knew they hurt Paige’s heart. She didn’t know how accurate her mother’s words were for her now. She thought she was lying to her family and it would break their hearts when they learned what she thought was the truth. There was also fear in her scent because she believed whoever chased her last night was her mate. She also feared that her mother’s words about the bond would bind her to him no matter how hard she fought against it.
Paige forced a sad smile, turning from her mom with the bag in hand toward my car. I took the Hope Bag from her, placing it in the back with the other two bags, but as she began to open the passenger side door, I stopped her, her eyes turning up to me in question.
“One more thing,” I said.
“What’s that?”
“This.” I pulled her head to the side, dropping my mouth down into the crook of her neck. My teeth sank into her skin, her voice gasping in surprise as the mark shot fire through each of our veins. She wouldn’t understand what I had done. She would think it was just to add to our show of pretending; I would allow her to believe that, for now.
I lifted my head from her neck, smiling at the mark I left behind and the shift of her scent. My scent began to mix with hers. Not as much as a fully sealed bond, but enough that any wolf who smelled her would know who she was and who she belonged to. My pack wouldn’t be happy about this. They may even demand that I be removed from the pack entirely, but I didn’t give a shit what they thought or did. Paige was mine, and I wasn’t going to let some obsessive stalker try and take her away.
Paige reached up to her neck, pulling back her hand as she expected to see blood. There wasn’t any. The mark was different from a typical bite. It wasn’t the same kind of bite that would turn her into a werewolf or leave a physical mark for just anyone to see. It was something that only other werewolves would notice: a scent marker between mates. And while it can be reversed if two people are only lovers and not truly fated mates, this mark would stay on her for the rest of her life. If she thought she would find some magical remedy to get rid of my mark, to get rid of me, she was going to be in for a rude awakening. Once I take what I want, I never let it go, and that was precisely why I held back until she was ready.
I smiled as she glared up at me, her hand dropping to her side. I stepped out of her way, opening the door wider for her to slide into the seat before closing the door. Anthony’s glaring gaze met me from over his mother’s shoulder, Mrs. Ramirez smiling and waving goodbye to Paige through the window.
This wasn’t exactly how I wanted to take Paige as my mate. It wasn’t the right time or the right situation, nothing like what I had promised Anthony when I revealed to him that his sister and I were mates. But the fates have a funny way of pushing for what they want, and they knew just what strings to pull with Paige and her sight abilities. What better way to influence a seer’s decisions than to give her a partial premonition that forced her right into her mate’s arms for protection?
Well played, you devious bitches. Well played.
I slid into the driver’s seat of my car, buckling my seatbelt and revving the engine before pulling away from the curve.
“Did you really have to bite me?” Paige demanded, scowling at me from across the middle console.
“Come on, Paige,” I teased, looking back at her with a wide smile. “You know you liked the way it made you feel.”
She turned away quickly to hide the blush peaking beneath her cheeks, but she didn’t deny it. It was a fact that only served to widen my grin as I turned my head forward to keep an eye on traffic as it picked up around us.
“But yes,” I added. “I had to give you my mark before we get to the packhouse. It’s the best way to sell our mate bond to other wolves.”
Paige stiffened in her seat, realizing what it was I was telling her.
I smiled.That’s right, little darling. No going back now.
Chapter three
Paige
“Is it permanent?” I asked, touching my neck where Nyte had marked me.
I kept thinking that it should be wet: I should find blood on my neck. His teeth had felt so deep in my skin, but each time I touched the spot, it was as dry as the rest of my body. Smooth even, the indention of his teeth already faded from my skin.
