With every ounce of willpower I had, I stopped myself from gritting my teeth and plastering a smile on my face. It felt as hollow as my heart had when I’d watch her leave with this guy.
“Yeah,” I said. “Idig.”
54
JUNIPER
The door banged like a shotgun blast as I slammed it shut on my return. Grandpa nearly fell out of his chair in startled surprise.
“Oh, crap, Grandpa, I’m sorry,” I muttered, embarrassment flooding up to replace my anger.
“Dang, June,” he said with a smile, placing his hand on his chest, “you ’bout gave me a heart attack.” When he spotted the look on my face, his smile slipped away. “What’s wrong, baby girl?”
“Nothing,” I said. “It’s… ugh, it’s complicated. That’s all.”
He eyed me for a few beats, then nodded. “Okay. But if it’s anything I can help with, you let me know.” He ran his hand through his silvery hair, and when he did, I saw the briefest flash of what he must have looked like when he was eighteen and courting my grandmother. I’d seen pictures of them, and he’d been handsome. Not an alpha wolf, but still imposing and muscular. He would have been an intimidating force back then. Even now, in his advanced age, I thought he might still have some fight left in him if it came to it.
“Thanks.” Some of my anxiety and shock at seeing Levi in Idlewild had faded already. “I’ll be sure to tell you who’s ass needs to be kicked.”
He laughed hard, clutching his hand to his stomach and patting me on the arm as I passed. “You do that, girl. I’ll make them rue the day they messed with my grandbaby.”
Before heading to my room, I stopped in the kitchen and grabbed a candy bar from the pantry. I could have gone for a shot of whiskey to dull my nerves, but since my grandparents weren’t drinkers, chocolate was my only option.
In my room, I flopped onto my bed and bit into the chocolate bar, staring out the window at the street below. Levi.Here. I’d never in a million years thought he would venture out of the forest. Hell, he didn’t even do supply runs—that was Rainier’s job. Honestly, I’d thought he would spend the rest of his life patrolling the forest and mountains. Now he was here. Not only here, but also meeting with Anders. That was possibly the worst thing that could happen. Two worlds colliding, with me caught in the middle.
I told myself it didn’t matter. If Levi was here for a few weeks, it didn’t matter. I’d made my choice. What I’d told him was the truth. I wouldnotspend my life with a man who was obsessed with another woman. I had more pride in myself than to do that. Even if it meant being with a man like Anders. At least with him, I knew he’d chosenme. He could have easily let me stay in the forest.
What hurt the most was that I knew, deep down, Levi did love me. Yet, Naphele still had a hold on him, and she clearly always would. So, I was sticking by the choice I’d made.
Stuffing the last of the chocolate in my mouth, I opened the book I’d taken from the store. But reading didn’t help. I kept reading the same sentence because my mind kept wandering to Levi. Eventually, I gave up and tossed it aside, deciding to goto bed early. The sun wasn’t even down, and I hadn’t even had dinner, but I couldn’t work up the courage to go out and face my grandparents. I needed quiet, and what better place to find that than in sleep?
Closing the curtains to block out the remaining daylight, I slipped into bed. As I stared up at the ceiling, hundreds of thoughts churned through my head, and all of them had to do with me being Anders’s mate. Instead of the quiet and sleep I longed for, I was making myself more anxious.
I tossed and turned, adjusting myself, flipping my pillow, doing everything I could to get my mind off Anders and my new life. After what felt like an hour, my thoughts finally slid away from Anders, but they locked on a subject that was possibly even more problematic. Levi. He was the last thing I wanted to think about, but now exhaustion dragged at me, pulling me toward the abyss of sleep. When the last vestiges of wakefulness slipped away, I found myself crashing into sleep and slipping into a vivid dream.
“Here,”I said. “Try this.”
Levi leaned forward, allowing me to put the wooden spoon to his mouth. He moaned in delight as he tasted the soup.
“Damn, Naph, that’s amazing. What’s in there?”
I shrugged as though it was no big deal but smiled at his praise regardless. “Wild garlic, stinging nettles, wild carrot, morel mushrooms, and some pork belly from the boar you caught the other day,” I explained.
“Well, it’s fantastic,” he said, reaching for another spoonful.
I smacked his hand. “No, sir. Not until dinner. I’ve got some sourdough baking to go with it.”
Levi stepped forward, wrapping me in his arms, his chest warm against mine. “You really are amazing,” he said. “How did I ever get this lucky?”
Looking up into his face, I was flooded with love. The one person in the world who knew me inside and out, who loved me beyond everything.
“I don’t know,” I said. “I guess it was fate.”
Levi leaned forward and kissed me, but when he pulled back, he wasn’t smiling. Instead, there were tears streaming from his eyes, his face a mask of agony.
“Why did you leave me?” he sobbed. “What did I do wrong?”
I shook my head, confused. “What? I didn’t leave. I’m right here.”
