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He blocked my path. “I’ve decided it is.”
“Then that’syourissue.” I pushed him, knowing on some level that I was venting all my anger and frustration in his direction. I didn’t mean to, but it was bubbling over, and I couldn’t afford to let it loose where I wanted to direct it.
He stepped back. “You’re right. It’s my issue.”
There was something about those words, that tone, that should’ve given me a warning. If I were smarter, I would’ve heeded it, but he wasn’t the only one that was on edge and ready for a fight. My adrenaline was acting like blinders in that moment, and I could only see what was coming right at me.
I walked past him, back into the group, who seemed to all be waiting for my return.
Kicks didn’t follow right away. I wasn’t sure where he’d gone to, but I was alone, and I could actually see the tension smoothing out in the concerned faces of the pack. They might not be overjoyed with me at the moment, but that didn’t mean they wanted Kicks to take me away. I was their guide, and they were like kids with a toy.
I was sipping on some ale, deciding how long I had to suffer through this night, now alone, when Kicks walked back.
“I thought you left,” I asked, my tone not quite apologetic, but close. Or maybe it was relief in my voice.
“I almost did. Then I decided one of us had to do the sane thing.” He was staring at me so intently that it felt like the entire crowd had disappeared. Kicks was about to go rogue, and I wasn’t sure I could stop him.
He dipped his head close to my ear and whispered so softly that even shifters would find it impossible to hear. To onlookers, it appeared more like an intimate moment.
“You’re not thinking logically anymore. You’re operating out of fear, and that’s going to get you killed. I’m not going to let that happen, and no one is going to stop me. Not even you.”
His words hit me like the red flag they were, and I lost the ability to speak as reality hit me harder than someone slamming a rock into my skull. My words were swallowed by fear. What was he going to do?
Before my mouth had a chance to catch up to my head, Kicks had a hand at the small of my back, steering me toward a picnic table. He took my mug of beer and put it down before hoisting me up on top of the table. He leapt up to join me.
“Hey, all, listen up. I’ve got an announcement to share,” he yelled into the crowd.
Kicks pulled me into his side. The crowd that had already begun turning toward us now looked as panic-stricken as I felt. We all knew some version of what was about to come. I should have jumped off the table, made a joke of it, but I didn’t. I stood there, letting him put on this show, knowing what the finale would be.
“I wanted to announce to everyone that Piper has agreed to be my mate.” Kicks lifted me up and swung me around as if this were a celebration. Or maybe it was to distract from the shock on my face. There was expecting something and then hearing it, seeing it, experiencing it.
There were only a handful of cheers, and those from a few of Kicks’ pack at the edge of the clearing. They hadn’t been here earlier. Had he expected trouble? There was definitely a lack of smiles. No well wishes to be heard. I looked out on a crowd who appeared stunned, and that looked to be wearing off quickly, as foreheads began to furrow.
Then the calls began.
“Is she leaving?”
“What does that mean?”
“She’s going?”
“She’ll be residing wherever I am,” Kicks said. “She’s my mate. Now, if you’ll excuse us, it’s been a long night, and we’ve got a lot of planning to do.”
I hadn’t put a face to most of the questions, and I didn’t want to try. I let them blur, taking the easy path. There were a few faces I couldn’t seem to avoid. Duncan was looking at me like I’d ripped his heart out of his chest. The guys were watching on almost as if they’d resigned themselves to this ending, sad but accepting the inevitable.
“I gave you my favorite French press and everything,” Gillian said as we walked past her.
“Gillian, I’m not…”
She walked away, her hand up, as if she couldn’t bear to hear another word.
“They’ll adjust,” Kicks said, wrapping his arm around me.
He was steering me through the crowd, while my head was still wrapping around what he’d done, when I found myself in front of Groza and Duncan.
“Congratulations,” she said, not appearing as happy as I’d expect her to be. She’d just rid herself of me. She should be doing cartwheels.
Duncan merely nodded, staring at me like I’d somehow wrongedhim.
