“I cannot . . . fucking . . .wait!”
I rubbed my temples and just decided to put it out there.
“Did you know?”
He paused in eating.
“Did you know I had magic?” I elaborated, choking up a little with emotion. It was such a big deal for so,somany reasons.
He lowered his spoon slowly. “Do you want a comfortable lie or the truth?”
“The truth. Always.” I furrowed my brow. “Why would someone ask if they wanted a lie?”
“To feel better about a shitty situation. Yes, I knew. Even Tanix can feel it and he’s not an alpha. Before you ask, the reason I didn’t say anything is because it is between you and the alpha. This is his show. I’m just a stage hand.”
Now I put my face in my hands, wanting to cry again in frustration, or joy, or just overall fatigue with this awful and life-altering journey.
“I don’t know how to feel,” I finally murmured.
“Bittersweet, I imagine. Right? Happy and relieved to have it, sad that so much of your life was spent being told you didn’t.”
It felt like those words speared my heart, sending blood seeping down in the wake of destruction. Tears welled in my eyes. That was a pretty succinct summary.
“And then mad, probably,” he went on, resuming his dinner, “because now that you know you have it, and after finding out in mostly a bullshit kind of way, the guy who could help you... won’t.”
Another very succinct summary.
“You know what they say,” I murmured. “If it wasn’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all.”
He bumped my shoulder in support. “What do you plan to do?”
“What do you mean? I’m a captive. What can I do?”
He huffed and said very quietly, so low I could barely hear, “You don’t fool me, love. Just don’t kill him. The kingdom greatly needs him. He brought all the animal shifters together in a way they hadn’t been before. He’s a good man who sometimes has questionable judgment.”
“You think that excuses him?”
“No, so I’m asking as a favor. Beat the shit out of him? Fine. Nearly end his life? More power to you. But as a gift to me, please don’t kill him.”
A while later,when a few people had come to join us, everyone laughing and chatting, telling me how much they liked dinner, I noticed Weston slip into the clearing again. He hugged the tree line, mostly, his great wolf head swinging my way for a moment. When he reached the tent, he shifted into his human form and ducked inside, leaving the flap open. A small pool of light flickered on, spilling across the ground. The invitation was clear: he was waiting for me.
I hugged my knees, looking at my feet. The desire to go to him yanked at my middle, drying up any interest in hanging out with these members of the pack. Part of me hated to leave, though. I felt included right now. They listened when I talked,laughed at my jokes, and told me to stop telling stories because they were depressing, which made me laugh so hard I wheezed. It shouldn’t have been funny, but the way they said it, with dark humor, tickled me.
But as much as I enjoyed having the easy camaraderie, even as a prisoner, I couldn’t deny the overwhelming need to be near Weston. It was maddening. He was the man who kept me hostage and had no guilt about ripping my life apart. He continued to keep my magic from me. I should want to torch the bed he slept in.
Instead, I just wanted to curl up with him and feel his warm skin. To receive his kisses and his attention. To feel his body moving within mine.
Fuck this strange pull.
Is this what love feels like?
It couldn’t be. I didn’t know enough about him to feel love. This had to be something else, another little secret he was probably keeping from me. Ithadto be.
Telling myself it was to strengthen my escape plan, I finally relented. I excused myself and made my way to the tent. Once there, I hesitated at the opened flap.
He sat on the ground next to the cot, using it as a back rest, reading one of my journals with a pencil in hand, making notes. He looked up as I was deciding if I’d leave again and placed his thumb in the spine of the journal to keep his place before closing it.
“Come in,” he said softly.
