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“Clay, I think it’s time to go home,” she admitted. “Will you go with me?” She wasn’t sure why but the thought of having Clay with her when she saw Ryan again bolstered her courage and confidence.
“Are you sure? You still have a few days left, you can stay if you want. Julian won’t force you to shift.” She fought the urge to duck her head and blush. She hadn’t realized that she was so transparent. She hadn’t meant to reveal her deepest secrets to Clay but they’d bonded while she was here, and with that bond, they had formed a connection that made hiding things difficult.
“It’s time for me to go home. I miss the pack.” She left the fact that she missed Ryan unsaid, but she could see the sympathy in Clay’s eyes.
“Pack your things little wolf. Let’s get you home.”
BEING HOME WAS bitter-sweet. She knew Ryan would be on his way to see her as soon as he heard she was back, and with a town as small as theirs it wouldn’t take long.
“You need to tell him he’s your mate.” Kelly shook her head denying Clay’s suggestion. “Being without your mate is killing you little wolf. It’s in our physiology, without him you’ll die. Are you willing to die for your pride?”
“Lots of lycans don’t wait for their true mates. I don’t see any of them dying.”
“They’re different they haven’t met and been in close contact with their mate for their entire lives the way you have. Their wolves accept a mate who isn’t theirs by blood because they don’t know any different.”
Kelly clamped her jaw shut, unwilling to argue with him any further. She was saved from having to when there was a knock on her door. It was a loud heavy knock that demanded entrance. Kelly flung the door open, desperate to ignore Clay’s reasoning.
Ryan stood on the doorstep as if summoned by her discussion with Clay. His expression was a mix of relief and anger.
She gripped the door frame to keep herself upright “I’ve been back for five minutes. What could I have possibly done to make you angry?” she couldn’t keep the disappointed tone from her voice. Ryan had clearly shown up as her alpha determined to tear a strip off her for some perceived slight instead of being happy to see her and welcoming her home. She just didn’t have the energy to fight him. She tensed as she felt Clay at her back and caught the dark look that Ryan cast his way
“Cousin.” Clay greeted; the one word held just enough respect to be acceptable but not enough to hide the contempt.
RYAN IGNORED HIS cousin’s greeting, his focus solely on how close he was to Kelly. Ryan fought the urge to tear Clay away from her. He inhaled, hoping to find some semblance of calm but only found rage when he realized that Kelly smelled like Clay. The other man’s scent was all over her.
“Have you brought your newfound mate home to the pack then?” he barely kept the sneer out of his voice. He saw Kelly cringe but didn’t care.
“No.” Her softly spoken denial did more to soothe him than anything else could have. “I didn’t mate with anyone Ryan. I missed home.” He breathed in again carefully examining the scents around him.
She did smell like Clay but their scents weren’t blended the way they would be if they had mated. This mingling was due to their proximity to one another and would go away as soon as Clay did.
He could hear the longing in her voice and it made something ache inside of him. “She’s home safe now. You can go.” He addressed Clay but never took his gaze from Kelly.
It was then that he noticed how pale and frail she looked. She had lost weight in the time that she’d been gone, and all his anger and jealousy faded away. He reached out to cup her cheek but let his hand fall away when she cringed.
“You look tired Kelly you should get some rest.” He turned and the soft snick of the door was like a gunshot as it closed behind him.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
SHE HAD BEEN home for two days when she realized that she’d come home to the Coldridge pack to die. Clay was right, being without her mate was killing her. She struggled to the end of the week but her body didn’t have much left and her soul didn’t have any fight. Her wolf had given up.
She would make one more trip to the lake tonight, but she knew in her heart it would be her last after tonight she wouldn’t have the energy to venture from home. Even getting out of bed since she’d been back had become a struggle.
She was grateful that Clay had decided to extend his stay even though each day he threatened to go to Ryan and force him to mate her. He’d even begged Kelly to allow them to mate if only to save her life but her wolf wouldn’t allow it.
***
Hot searing pain went through her, making her catch her breath she swiveled her head around, surprised to see the shaft of an arrow protruding from her side. Fearful that another would strike her, Kelly slunk down in the grass as low as she could.
WHAT THE HELL was she doing? Ryan had come to her house to talk to her, and if he was honest, to apologize for being an ass when she’d told him she wanted to leave and for how he’d treated her the day she’d got back. He got there just as she was slipping into the wooded area around her home.Where the hell was she going? Where was Clay?His cousin was still hanging around and was normally glued to Kelly’s side any time he’d seen her since her return.
She was slow, her movements sluggish. For that reason alone he would have followed her. They needed to talk though, and for that, she’d be more comfortable if she wasn’t naked. So he grabbed her discarded clothing from the porch and took off after her.
He smelt the danger before he saw the arrow. He watched as it sunk into Kelly, nearly going blind with rage as he smelled her blood. The coppery tang of it spilled out into the night air, enraging him each time he took a breath.
“What the fuck!” he shouted as the stranger prepared another arrow. Ryan came crashing out of the bushes and was on the man before he could get a second shot off. “You’re not supposed to be hunting here.” The words were torn from him, barely human as Ryan struggled to control his raging desire to rip out the man’s throat.
Kelly whined and Ryan reached for her mentally.You’re going to be ok.When she didn’t answer he stole a glance at her, the pain in her eyes hitting him square in the chest like it was his own. He sent a quick message to his brother knowing that he might need Jace’s medical knowledge, but he also warned him about the stranger.
