Her throat felt thick.
Pain flooded her body.
She had never been so confused in her entire life.
“So, with everything okay with you now, I think it’s only fair that we head back home.”
“Home?”
“Yeah, everyone knew we were out here. They were giving us space to you know, bond,” he said.
“David, I’m so sorry.”
“No worries. I just … I don’t want anything bad to happen to you, Heather. You may not have feelings for me, but I do care for you.”
“I do have feelings for you,” she said. “I’m just confused.”
“Right, just not strong enough feelings to give this and us a chance. I get it. Don’t worry.” David glanced over her shoulder. “We’ve been gone a week. It’s time we headed back. We can make it for breakfast.”
The last thing she wanted was to be back home. They were all going to hate her.
“You’re right.” She turned on her heel and started to walk back to the house. In the back of her mind, she thought about the rogue bear. The one that had come and taken so much from her. She had never known such fear until he had invaded and killed.
The rawness gripped her throat, and she put a hand against her chest, almost as if she felt him crushing her now, telling her what she would and wouldn’t do. His orders filled with so much rage, echoed inside her head.
“I’ve got you, Heather. Breathe. In and out. Slowly. Deeply.”
Heather didn’t realize straight away that she had collapsed to her knees and had started to struggle to breathe. David had a hand on her back and one on her chest. He looked worried. The frown between his brows seeming more pronounced than ever before. She wanted to press her thumb to it, to wipe it away, but she didn’t touch him.
Instead, she focused on getting oxygen into her body, thrusting the ghastly memories behind and ignoring the fear taking over her body.
The rogue bear was gone. He was dead.
But she had a horrible feeling he’d left a permanent scar deep within her.
****
“Do you want to talk about it?” Caleb asked, coming out of the house just as David brought the axe down on a fallen tree stump he’d gathered for firewood.
“Nope.”
“You were gone a week.”
“I know.” Returning home after a spell of mating heat might not have been the best idea for him. While Heather was back with her family and seemingly so fucking happy about it, he struggled with the men. Caleb was practically a mated wolf, but seeing other men touch her was driving him crazy. It angered him, filled him with a rage he didn’t know he possessed.
His only outlet was running in his wolf form. Ever since Caleb mated, the rest of the pack had been able to shift on will rather than with the power of the full moon. It was liberating, another perk of having their alpha claim a mate.
Caleb sighed and leaned against the far wall.
David brought the axe down four more times, hoping to pretend he couldn’t sense his alpha’s disapproval.
“What?” he asked, looking up and meeting Caleb’s eyes.
He raised one of his. “After a mating heat, there is supposed to be a honeymoon period between the couple, and yet you’re out here, and let me put this politely, you’re in a shit mood.”
He laughed. He couldn’t help it.
“Yeah, well, the honeymoon period is for those that accept each other. Heather doesn’t accept me. We even missed the full moon. The mating isn’t even completed.”
His wolf wasn’t happy about it, but they were putting on a brave face, acting all nonchalant as if they didn’t care. The truth was, it fucking hurt big time. Their mate had all but rejected them, and they wanted to go and lick their wounds.
Throwing the axe to the ground, he stepped back. “I need some air.”
“You’re outside, David.”
“I need to be away right now. Will you … will you keep an eye on her for me?”
“I think you need to come in and talk to us.”
David shook his head. “What I need is to be left alone.” He turned on his heel and ran toward the forest. The moment he broke through the tree line, he stripped off his clothes, feeling the freedom of the ground. All he wanted to do was run.
The mating heat still touched his body. The scent of her still wrapped around him, mocking him with his need.
His wolf was close to the surface as he thought about her, and he allowed himself to turn, to feel his wolf roam freely as it split his skin, bringing about his creature.
Charging through the night, he ran, basking in his pain, not allowing himself to stop, but to keep on going. To not give up.
His thoughts were dominated by Heather. The way she said his name as she came, the feel of her nails as they sank into his back.
The tightness of her virgin pussy. The way she tasted as he licked her even after he’d come inside her.
They hadn’t used protection.
During the mating heat, there was no point. No condom would stand up to their need. It was impossible.
The mating heat was designed to bring mates together and to have babies. Heather could be pregnant. Even as that was a joyous thought, it was also one filled with sadness. Heather wasn’t ready to be his mate, and she certainly wasn’t ready to have his babies.
Coming to the edge of a cliff, he brought himself to a stop, changing back into his human form and taking a seat to look over the beautiful view.
The steep drop didn’t bother him, but he didn’t risk hanging his legs over the edge. The fall might not kill him, but his wolf was only capable of healing so many wounds at one time.
“What the fuck am I going to do?” he asked.
There was no answer.
His heart and body belonged to Heather. She may not know love, but he did.
He understood her hesitation when it came to mating, he honestly did. But her rejection of him, of them, was the worst feeling in the world.
“I thought I would find you here.”
David turned to see Mika, Heather’s sister, coming out of the forest edge. She was completely clothed as she took a seat beside him.
“I didn’t want any company.”
“I know. I heard.”
“You’re sneaking around listening in on conversations that don’t concern you?” he asked.
“Always.” She sighed. “If I don’t sneak around, I never learn the truth, and that sucks big time. People are always trying to keep me safe.”
“That’s because you need to be kept safe.”
“Do you love Heather?” Mika asked.
David took a deep breath and turned to look at her sister. “I don’t think that’s a question you should be asking me.” He didn’t want to talk to her sister.
She tucked some hair behind her ear and nodded. “I know. There’s a lot of stuff I shouldn’t get involved in, but I feel like I should be the one to tell you things anyway.”
He wasn’t in the mood for talking. “I didn’t come all the way out here to talk.” The fact he was having to attempt to hide his nudity was more than enough for him.
“Oh, I know. You want to be alone. I’ve noticed a lot of people want to be alone when they’re miserable.”
“So why don’t you head back to the house? That would be great.”