AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Cass’s brow is drawn in confusion, head tilted to the side, he utters, “I don’t understand. You met Sophia... five years ago?”
“Yes, I did. Has she told you how old she is, Cass?”
He takes a few seconds to think. “Yeah, she said Saturday was her birthday, she turned nineteen.”
“Do you understand what that means, Casper? She was only fourteen when we found each other, fourteen, still a child. She hadn’t even shifted yet. I don’t understand how I knew she was my mate. I’d never heard, shit, I still haven’t heard of a Mate being found before their first shift. Michael and I have scrubbed every text we can find and nothing, no mention of underage Mates...ever.”
He shakes his head in disbelief. “Holy shit man, that’s crazy.”
I run my fingers through my hair. “Believe me, I know! I followed her and her parents’ home that night. Found out everything I could about them. Her dad was a local doctor, her mom stayed at home with her or worked with her husband at his practice. They had lived in the same town, same house for thirteen years. She was loved and well taken care of. So I did what I thought was right. I came home and waited. I waited three years before going back. I know now that was wrong. At the time, I just wanted her to grow up, have time with her parents. I was afraid if I saw her again I’d make her parents bring her here, where she would constantly wait to shift so I could claim her. That would probably scare a child. I wanted her to be old enough to understand. I thought I was doing the right thing giving her time.”
I drop my head to my hands. “When I went back, she was gone, along with any trace of her or her parents, just gone. I’ve visited every pack in the United States and most in Canada trying to find her. I knew she felt something for me, but I didn’t know if she recognized me as her Mate. She was so small. I thought she was maybe twelve, thirteen at most. I mean, how would she even know, right?”
Still holding my head in my hands, pulling my hair. “I never found out what pack she belonged to. I didn’t want to raise the question, have some rogue or wannabe Alpha take her and use her to get to me. I thought I was doing the right thing.”
God my chest hurts, I don’t think I’ve cried since I was a pup. Now, I want to cry for the second time today. “Casper, she's gonna hate me. All the stuff you told me she’s been through and some of it, fuck, most of it, was my fault.”
“What about you calling her? No one? Who was with you that she thought you chose your girlfriend over her?” Cass asks kindly.
“I don’t know what I said that night, brother. I was out of my head. Michael and Sid were there, a few others. It took everything I had to walk away, not to take her with me. As for the girlfriend, that would have been Roxanne back then. I loved her or thought I did, anyway. That’s why shit’s been different with her and me for so long. I knew my Mate was out there somewhere. I just thought she ran from me.”
Cass looks at me with pity. “She ain’t gonna like it, man. You leave her and go with Roxanne five years ago. We pull up today, and she is standing on your front porch practically announcing you guys just had a nooner.”
I know he’s right. What was I thinking, being with anyone else? I still feel the need to defend myself about today. “We didn’t have a nooner. She showed up here right before you guys, playing innocent. You know what she’s like, she wanted whoever the new female was to see her here with me and assume I was taken.”
Cass rubs the back of his neck and asks, “What now? How are we going to handle this?”
I look down at my beautiful Mate and answer truthfully, “I’ll tell her the truth, hope over time she understands I never meant to hurt her. Then spend my life trying to make up for my mistakes.”
CHAPTER8
Sophia
Istart to wake slowly. My body is sluggish, content to sleep. My mind, however, is playing catch up with the events that led to me fainting, in the front yard... of my Mate’s home with his girlfriend and brother watching the whole thing. Lovely.
I lift my lids and see a pair of eyes staring right at me from about six inches away from my face. I scream and launch myself back into the corner of what must be a sofa. “Good God, what is wrong with you people? Do any of you know what personal space is?” My chest heaves as I try to catch my breath. Hand over my heart, I will it to slow down. “Between you and Sniffer, I’m owed about ten years of my life back. Thank you very much!” I need to calm down. I’m just distracting myself from the real issue. My Mate, who I now know is the Alpha, is sitting three feet away from me, and even after five years, I want to crawl into his lap and hum with satisfaction.
He’s stock-still and he hasn’t moved a muscle since my backward jump to the other end of the sofa. It’s freaking me out. His eyes are still staring right into mine. I start to squirm. I’m wringing my hands together. Oh shit, is he mad? How the hell do I get out of this room?
“Ugh, where’s Sn... Casper? I’m sure he’ll show me out. I’ll just be going, and you can finish... whatever it is you do. You know the Alpha stuff and the being busy stuff. I don’t even need him to show me out. Really, I can just... you know walk out, to my Jeep that is, and then drive out so you can get to all that stuff...” I ramble. Yeah, and I should probably grab a mop for all that word vomit I just spewed onto his lovely hardwood floor. I mentally slap myself in the face. Shut up, I think, just stop talking.
Oh God, he’s still motionless. I finally take a good long look at him. Dark brows arch over his eyes that are such a transparent blue they almost look clear, and right now, they’re giving nothing away. His black hair is short on the sides and longer on top. He runs his hands through it, pushing the mass back, leaving him looking like a dark James Dean, holy shitballs. I’m in trouble. Shit, shit, I’m in trouble. One side of his full lips starts to turn up, his eyes soften like he knows I think he’s devastating.
He finally speaks. “We have much to discuss, little one. I’m sorry I frightened you. I promise I won’t hurt you.” His eyes look pained for a brief moment. “Please relax. Can I get you a drink? You’ve been out for almost an hour.” His voice rolls over me, and I do exactly what he said and relax. My shoulders fall, and I take a deep breath.
“Yes, please, water would be good,” I softly reply, only now noticing my dry throat. He unfolds himself from the sofa, slowly. Oh baby Jesus, he’s huge, like mammoth size. His white t-shirt looks like it wants to hulk out, barely holding at the seams of his biceps and wide shoulders. It just reaches the top of his dark wash jeans. A thick black belt holds them low, oh so low on his narrow hips. As he moves toward me, his heavy black boots make no sound. Now, I’m the one frozen. He bends close to my ear and breathes out, “I’ll be right back little one, don’t leave this room.” His warm breath on my neck almost makes me whimper, but I’m able to lock my throat down. However, the tingle that makes its way down my spine and the resulting shudder can’t seem to be stopped. When he walks away, I let out the breath I didn’t even realize I was holding.
I can’t let him see how he affects me. I’m embarrassed enough by how I reacted to him earlier. Will he make me leave school? Town? Where is that devil woman? Is she still here? In his room? Maybe she’s with him in the kitchen.
Stop this, Sophie. You will be fine. We’ve been through this before, we’ll get through it again.
Deciding I need to loosen up, I get up to walk around the room. One whole wall is windows. It must face the back of his property because I see a large pond with a wooden raft dock planted in the middle, a small silver ladder leading up to the top. The multicolored trees of the forest far beyond the edge of the pond makes a beautiful backdrop. It’s just about perfect, I muse sadly.
Turning to look at the rest of the room, I see a massive stone fireplace that I could probably walk into with a gigantic chair pulled close. There’s a small round table with a beautiful crystal lamp next to it, creating a cozy nook. Is that Roxanne’s chair? Does she sit by the fire and read while he works or watches TV? “Stop it,” I grate. The room is large and holds three sofas all matching the one I woke on. It’s masculine with dark woods and deep colors, the only touch of softness is the squishy looking behemoth of a chair and the reading lamp.
I notice a bar running along the opposite wall of windows. There are stools in front and liquor lined up behind it. Getting closer, I see a small fridge with a clear door filled with bottled water, juice, and small gray tubs. Glasses line the underside behind the bar. There is even an ice chest and sink. “Why did he leave to get water?”
I walk closer to the door and hear raised voices. I can’t make out what’s being said, but they sound angry. I round the door slowly looking left and right trying to decide where the shouting is coming from. Once out of the room, the voices are clearer, and I easily hear it’s coming from the left. Tiptoeing, I make my way slowly toward the noise.
