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Chapter 11

Xavier

Emily was sleeping peacefully at my side. I slowly pulled my arm out from under her head. Softly and quietly, I placed my feet on the cold fallboards.

Cracking open our bedroom door, I slid through it quietly and then made my way down the corridor. Heading to the laundry room, reaching up to the top of the dryer, I pulled down the clean clothes I kept up there.

Sliding them on, I reached for the spare set of keys I also kept on the dryer. Grabbing my shoes, I cracked open the back door and slid through it. Just like every night. I walked out in the fresh air.

Instead of using the central locking system on my car, I twisted the key in the door. I am accustomed to the little sleep. Most nights I get between three to four hours, but it’s worth it.

Every night I lay in bed with Emily, waiting for her to drift off to sleep and when she does, I wait another hour for her to enter a deep sleep. Then I leave.

Reversing out the driveway, I let the car roll backwards. On the road I crept for a while until I reached my neighbor’s house and that was when I put my foot down.

Every night a rush would come over me when I reached this point. I just couldn’t wait any longer. It was as if all my built up need to see her exploded here.

***

I locked my car and walked along the side of the pack house. I was grateful that Chloe lived in a pack house. My scent blended with all the others. Climbing up the tree, I pulled my body to the top, and once there, looked through her window.

To find her bed empty.

The room was dark. That wasn’t a surprise. It was middle of the night. I was expecting to find her sleeping. But her bed was empty. Where was she?

Groaning, I jumped to the ground, not caring about the impact on my knees. A low growl snarled through my lips. I had a hunch as to where she was and it angered me to no end.

***

I crept along Daniel’s yard and, closing my eyes, searched for my pull to Chloe. She was here and I couldn’t stop the snarl from escaping.

He had slept with her once and I wouldn’t let it happen again. She was not his. He was not hers! They weren’t meant to be together.

SHE WAS MINE!

I growled as I climbed up a large oak tree. It was hard to get a grip around its thick branches. I felt like a stalker. This is pathetic, Xavier, stalking your mate.

Groaning, I looked through the window and my eyes narrowed. There she lay in his arms, in his bed. I wanted to scream. I wanted to break through his window and rip her from his arms. I wanted to take my anger out on him. I wanted to kill him.

I thought about the situation again. Stalking your mate. This was pathetic. I was pathetic. Dan pulled my Chloe closer. I watched her snuggle into his side.

This was my fault. What had I expected? I had denied her. I had ignored her. For what? For Emily? For my children?

I could use those excuses. But there was only one thing that kept me from Chloe and that was my own fear of her and what us mating could mean for me.

I would be forced to face what I hid from.

***

The bell rang and all the students rose from their seats and began to gather their things.

“Chloe, can I speak to you for a moment?” I said out loud, as I watched Dan hover next to her.

He was like her personal lapdog and it was pissing me off. The fact that I didn’t sleep at all last night didn’t help. I couldn’t shut my eyes when I returned home. I had to speak to her.

“I can wait if you want, Chloe?” Dan said softly. I walked around to my seat, trying to put more distance between him and me, before I lashed out.

“You can wait outside, Daniel. Make sure to close the door please,” I ordered.