My father has come all this way hoping that the bond has been made. The pressure that lies at my feet to rebuild a past that was destroyed weighs heavy on me. Day after day I know the time is growing near, the deadline for Taryn to accept she is mine before our window is closed. The key to our world, to our future, lies in our hands, and at this point, she is terrified of me.
“Yes,” I finally respond knowing already he will have many questions that I can’t answer.
“And?”
I lift the small glass of brandy to my lips, dreading the conversation that is about to take place.
“I’m giving her time,” before the words are completely out of my mouth I hear his footsteps pounding against the hardwood flooring. Turning in my chair slowly I am met with the man who since I was a boy I referred to as powerful. Six foot six, hair that at one time was dark as coal, but has now begun to gray, and a strong broad frame, he was and still is a powerful man. The difference is now I too possess that same power, if not more.
His large hands slap the desk and he leans over ensuring that we are eye level. “We don’t have time.” His nostrils flare, the muscles in his neck tense and I know the strength it is taking not to transform. Aggression, fear, dominance—those are just a few things I can envision dancing in his eyes at the moment. But mixed within is a little bit of fear, the idea that our world is so close to being overtaken and lost forever.
The chosen one.
I didn’t like it when I was younger, and I still don’t like it now. With that title comes much responsibility and the fate of the rebirth of the pack, the fate of the world and all that entails rests on me. I’ve been told Taryn was chosen for me, she holds the keys that unlock the next generation and together we will restore everything that was lost to us. Seems amazing in a way that we are the ones that have the gift but also it means that we are not safe, that our children are not safe. Our people were once attacked, targeted and it could all happen again. I could lose it all, I have never in my life felt an emptiness like I did when I thought of a world without Taryn in it.
“I know how important this is.” Leaning in closer I square my shoulders and fight against the rage I feel inside, threatening to take over. “She’s just been told that a fantasy she thought she lived as a child was not truly a fantasy but her reality. She learned the wolf in the forest that she thought she dreamt was real. And that the same wolf is a man she met for the first time weeks ago in a city hundreds of miles from her. That very same man is now in the forest, standing in front of her family vacation home, telling her that I’ve been waiting for her since she was a child.” I take in a calming breath. “She needs a couple of days to absorb it all. She’s not going anywhere, she’s intrigued, but the interest is drowning in a sea of fear and disbelief. If I go to her now she will run.”
“Then we will be forced to go after her.”
We?
“There is no we, it is just her and I.” I refuse to spend my life watching Taryn fall apart after being forced to be in a world she does not want. I need her to desire me the way I crave her. I need her to love me and feel the need to protect me as much as I do her. With this life comes many secrets. Living among those that think we are normal and being forced to live that charade, it's often overwhelming. “You need to stand back and let me handle this because if you don’t it will be in your hands when this all falls apart.”
I understand my father's desire for revenge, he’s lost a lot, we both have. But Taryn is mine, she is all mine, and I will protect her no matter the cost, against any person or thing that got in between us, including my own father.
I have to show her that the life I can give her is worth walking away from the life she lives now. There is nothing I won’t do for her, nothing I won’t provide. She is my world, the basis of my purpose, it all surrounds her.
She is the key.
I walk up the front steps to her small cabin and pause near the door. Leaning in, I listen quietly for any sounds on the other side. The sun has begun to set and the yellow-orange glow illuminates everything in its path. The reflection on the windows makes it hard to see inside but I know she is here, I can feel her. I can always feel her.
Lifting my hand, I knock against the thick wooden door and then place my palm flat against it. I’ve never wanted to touch anything or anymore more than I want to touch Taryn. To feel the warmth of her skin, to taste her lips, I crave her to the point of possessiveness.
“Taryn,” the sound of her name inflicts a desire in me that is hard to control. “Please,” my heart pounds, the heat of my body rises. “I would never hurt you, you have to believe me. I need you,” I rest my forehead to the door and close my eyes. “I’ve loved you from the first moment I saw you, and each day since I’ve been unable to stop myself from falling in love with you more.”
I hear a shuffle on the other side of the door, so I pause, listening for a sign that she is there. Then I feel it, that closeness, the completion I’ve felt every single time she’s near, even if I can’t see her.
“I know you’re confused, that you fear me, but I need you to know that never would I harm you. More than anything I need you to know that you can trust me. You are and always will be the purpose of my existence.” I grow silent, almost willing her to accept what I’ve said. I know I am taking a chance coming here, she could run and though I would find her I know that I may never truly reach her. I could be risking my future and the future of everyone that is looking to us to save them. But if telling her all the things I need to, if being here on her porch now triggers a downward spiral then it’s something I will have to live with. Because staying away from her any longer is impossible.
“Why didn’t you tell me? Why spend so many years at a distance, letting me believe it was nothing more than wild dreams? Why?” I can hear the desperation in her voice.
I trace my finger over the space I imagine her head to be resting, taking a moment to weigh out the words that are swarming around in my mind. “Had I come to you ten years ago, or even five, would it truly have made a difference?” She doesn’t respond. “Would you have feared me less, or more?”
I wait, and the longer I am met with silence the more restless I become. Until, after what feels like forever, I heard the sound of the door unlocking. Leaning back I place one hand against the frame of the door and wait with anticipation as the door slowly creeps open. I want to move forward, I want to hold her close and get rid of this ache inside of me that has been there since the moment she ran from me three days ago. Only I hold back, knowing that I am on shaky ground and at this point, anything can happen. I want her trust, I need it.
“I don’t fear you,” Taryn’s voice is so soft and I was desperate for her answer, but now I’m somewhat relieved. “This all seems crazy. Like at any second I’m gonna wake up and I’ll be tucked in my bed in Chicago. It’s surreal, maybe not for you, but for me, it doesn’t seem possible.”
“I understand.”
“Do you?” the look of distress on her face is killing me.
“Yes,” I reply, but she doesn’t seem convinced. “Because to me, you are a dream, a fantasy that I’ve dreamt of for so many years and now you are here, standing before me. I’m terrified too, but for completely different reasons. I’m afraid that you can’t see me the way that I’ve always seen you.”