“Stay away.” And then I remembered everything right before darkness took me in that forest, before the pain had been too intense and I’d let it drag me under. “What do you plan on doing with me? How long are you keeping me here?”
I didn’t expect an answer, and he didn’t say anything at first, but right after I said those words aloud, I remembered the last time I heard him talk… in the woods.
He’d told me I was his and no one would ever take me away. And judging by the handcuffs that bound me to his bed… he very much meant those words.
16
Caelan
I closed the door too hard. Too fast. Too… final.
I spun around and gritted my teeth as I stared at the scarred wood, the most perfect female I’d ever laid eyes on right on the other side.
My female. My mate.
I had to get out of there, away from the sweet scent of her, the way she called to the very male part of me. I hadn’t wanted to frighten her, and as I remembered inhaling deeply, I’d been proud—and even more aroused—that it wasn’t me she feared but her circumstances.
But still, I was the reason she was in this situation.
I started pacing, knowing if I kept this up, I’d make a tread in the scarred, old wooden floor. I kept stopping and looking at that closed door, every primal instinct in me demanding I go back to her, to show her she was mine. No one else's. Mine!
I’d felt so unstable being around her, knowing I’d end up scaring her with my wolf because the bastard wanted to make its presence known even more. So I forced myself to leave before I fucked things up even worse.
Fuck, I hadn’t even answered her questions, hadn’t explained anything.
With my head a little clearer than it had been—now having my mate safely hidden away—I’d been able to siphon through everything and decipher what that other aroma I’d smelled on her was.
My little mate was a hybrid. Half-Lycan/half-human.
And I had a feeling she had no clue, no idea half of her DNA makeup was part of a world she’d only read about and seen in movies. The human world was like that, twisting and changing facts and legends to instill fear and to create entertainment. They got some things right. But most were wrong. So fucking wrong it had a low snarl leaving me.
Was my mate’s mind so poisoned by that world that I’d never be able to make her understand and see she was born to be mine and I was born to be hers?
I ran a hand over my hair, the short dark strands no doubt standing up on end. I felt feral and uncontrollable, and although I would never hurt her, would rather plunge a knife deep into my heart and twist the organ out, I knew until I was able to claim her, put my mark on her neck, that I’d always feel this intense wildness inside me.
But letting her roam free, trusting her this early clearly wasn’t possible. I didn’t want to travel far from the estate to gather food for her, and even though there were hundreds of acres that surrounded us, not another living soul anywhere near, if she did run, she’d get hurt. The property was rocky and uneven, hills and crevices that were tucked under thick blankets of overgrown flora and dead underbrush. There were cliffs on two sides and a massive body of water.
So as much as I hated keeping her locked up, I couldn’t let her free yet. I was born to protect her, to provide for her. I was born to spoil her, to bring her pleasure.
I curled my hands into tight fists, my nails—more like claws at the moment—digging into the flesh of my palms. I sliced open my palms, the scent of blood coating the air in a coppery aroma. I forced myself to turn around on a growl and stalked toward the kitchen.
The black duffel was on the dilapidated kitchen island, and I unzipped it and started pulling out the contents.
Three black T-shirts and jeans. Flashlight, matches, Mylar blanket, serrated hunting knife tucked away in a leather sheath. I kept pulling out the supplies without taking note. My gaze kept going to the small hallway that led to where my female was.
Once the bag was empty, I started on the cupboards, rummaging through them and finding any empty containers I could use to get water from the well. I needed to focus on providing for my mate. She needed water, food, and heat to keep warm.
And although going to a grocery store would be convenient to pick out all her favorite items—which I craved doing simply because it would please her—I had to fall back on a more primitive way of living for the time being.