“Oh my. That’s… very cool.” Katie’s voice was faint, but she still encouraged Eli to continue. “Your wolf is a natural.”
“My wolf is great. He?—”
I knocked, hating to interrupt and possibly ruin a rare moment of openness for the teen, but I was unwilling to delay this.
The door swung open, and Katie moved to block my view into the room. “This isn’t a good time.”
“I have something important to say to Eli.” When she didn’t soften her stance, I lowered my voice. “Please.”
She studied my expression. I wasn’t sure exactly what she saw, but it must have convinced her, because she stepped back, allowing me to enter the cabin.
Eli glared at me and slouched on the couch, arms crossed tightly.
“I owe you an apology.” I met the teen’s gaze head on. His eyes flickered, and some of his bluster melted away, but he still fought it. As if he didn’t know how to handle receiving an apology. A thought that caused my heart to crack open. “I shouldn’t have blamed you. I won’t make excuses for whyI did, because the reasons don’t matter. What matters is my accusation was uncalled for. I hope you can forgive me.”
The weight of Katie watching settled on me. I wanted her approval, but at the moment I was more concerned about Eli. I didn’t want to set him back.
Eli’s mouth twisted as he considered my words. Eventually he shrugged, as if it didn’t matter. “Whatever.”
I motioned to the chair. “May I sit?”
He nodded reluctantly.
“I heard you as I came onto the porch. Your wolf caught a rabbit? That’s impressive for your first run.”
His chest puffed up, and he tried to hide his smile but failed. “My wolf is fast.”
“Must be. There’s nothing like that first hunt.”
His eyes lit. “When my teeth sank into it?—”
I raised a hand and tilted my head toward Katie, whose face had paled. I spoke in a loud whisper. “Humans don’t always appreciate the killing details.”
He grinned, a small laugh escaping him.
“Why don’t I let you two talk about the finer points of hunting?” Katie raised a brow as she crossed the room toward the front bedroom. “I have some paperwork to do.”
With Katie gone, Eli shut down a little again, but I prodded him for details, and his enthusiasm for his wolf overrode his reticence. I promised him we would work on his shifting every day and suggested having Declan’s mate Chloe, who was a professional photographer, take pictures of his wolf for him to have.
Soon the excitement of the day caught up with him, and he yawned. He was resistant to sleeping this early, but I convinced him it was normal for a new shifter. He trudged to his room, yawning as he went.
After he closed the bedroom door, I walked over to Katie’s room and knocked. I should probably put distance between us, but after having her in my arms earlier, there was no way I could let her walk away. Plus, if my father had sent the cattle her way, I needed to keep her safe, and the best way to do that was to keep her close and claim her.
Katie
I closed Eli’s file as a knock sounded on my door. I’d updated my notes and started a list of options for after he learned to control his wolf. Nothing felt right, though.
“Come in.”
Luke stepped inside, his large frame filling the small room. “Eli’s gone to bed. He needs rest to recover from his adventure today.”
“Thank you for talking to him.” I twisted on the bed to face him. “I tried to be supportive, but the rabbit made me a little squeamish.”
The corner of his mouth raised in a half-grin. “It’s definitely not for everyone. Most of my brothers’ mates pretend we never hunt in our animal forms. Emily’s less bothered by it, but she grew up on a ranch.”
“Mates?” I remembered Emily calling Austin her mate when she showed up at my office, but we were a little busy then for me to question her word choice.
“Can I sit?” He motioned toward the bed. I nodded. “It’s a shifter thing. We have something called a fated mate. It’s like a soulmate on steroids.”
