Page 51 of Bonding with the Beta (Fated Souls #2)

51

KAYDEN

“ C an you turn down the heating?” Harley asks as she loops her finger into the hem of her hoodie and tugs.

I narrow my eyes. “The heating isn’t on.”

“Then can we turn on the air conditioning? I’m literally suffocating.”

My gaze flicks from the road to the centre console where I flick on the air conditioning and turn it up. It blasts through the vents, and Harley flinches.

“Goddess,” she moans. “Not that high.”

I grip onto the steering wheel. “Then do it yourself.”

“Fine,” she huffs. “I will.”

The journey to the elders' village in the mountains takes hours to reach. I thought having alone time with Harley would somehow strengthen the matebond and allow my wolf to rest after not seeing her for a full day. Except for every single thing I do, she moans about it.

“So…” she trails off. “I’m guessing blondes are your type.”

“What?”

“Your girlfriend is blonde. I’m not.”

I scowl but don’t glance her way. “What has that got to do with anything?”

“Just an observation.” She shrugs innocently before flicking her gaze to the window. “Although dumb surely can’t be your type.”

My jaw ticks. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. You just know what they say.”

Kayleigh is far from dumb. Her insinuation makes my stomach churn sour, and I scowl ahead at the road.

“At least she doesn’t act like a bitch,” I mutter under my breath.

Harley gasps. “That’s rude.”

“So is stereotyping women based on their hair colour,” I bite back. “Maybe you shouldn’t make comments about things you know nothing about.”

She folds her arms over her chest like a protesting child, and I shake my head in disbelief, my finger rolling across the deep frown lines on my forehead. There is no way this woman can be my fated mate when we are already rubbing each other up the wrong way.

The matebond? Non-existent.

Desperation to get out of this car? Off the scale.

My brain? Scrambled.

The car rolls over something, and a loud boom vibrates the seats. I slam on the brakes as the car begins to skid down the long road.

Harley releases a loud scream of fear as I almost lose control of the steering at the edge of the damn cliff. My heart pounds in my throat as I try my hardest not to crash as we swerve from side to side.

As soon as we come to a halt, we both jolt back into our seats and take a low breath. I’m frozen for a minute as my heart pounds in my throat.

“What the hell just happened?” Harley gasps.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, although I wasn’t planning on dying today.”

I unbuckle my seatbelt and climb out of the car to find the front wheel completely burst open. “Fuck,” I grumble.

Harley follows after me and stares down at the damage. “Are you fucking kidding me? Ugh. I knew this was a bad idea.”

My eyes narrow at her. “It was your idea. Full stop.”

“What are we going to do? We’re in the middle of nowhere.”

“Lucky for us, I can change a tyre.” I offer her a quick, sarcastic smile.

Usually, I’d probably laugh at a situation like this, but right now, all I want is answers, not to prolong this agonising journey.

Harley places a hand on her lip and clutches the other over her heart dramatically. “Oh, my knight in shining armour.”

“What is your issue with me?”

“What is your issue with me?”

“Nothing! You’re making this incredibly difficult,” I rasp.

She scoffs, “Yeah, like I’m the problem. At least I’m single.”

My nostrils flare. “I’m sorry.”

“Are you?”

“Yes.” I nod. “Hurting you was never my intention.”

Harley’s eyes soften as she tugs her sleeves over her knuckles and glances around at the trees. “Whatever.”

Silence swarms us for a moment, and realisation suddenly dawns that we are literally in the middle of nowhere on the edge of a damn cliff.

“Do you think there are bears out here?” Harley asks suddenly.

I raise a brow. “You’re kidding me, right?”

“No.”

A low chuckle rumbles from my chest. “You’re a wolf, Harley. I think you’ll be okay.”

“Yeah, but bears are still terrifying, especially the grizzly ones.”

“How about you be on bear watch while I fix the tyre, hm?”

Harley huffs and nods. “Fine.”

The next twenty minutes consist of beautiful silence and replacing the busted tyre with the new one on the back of my Jeep. I wipe my hands down onto my trousers before slipping back into the car where Harley is waiting.

“All good?”

“Yup.” I nod. “Bears?”

“Nada.”

“What a shame.”

The corner of her lip quirks. “Guess it’s our lucky day.”

Or unlucky. But I keep the thought to myself.

As we reach the top of the mountains with the most picturesque view of the district, I park my car. Harley rushes to undo her seatbelt, and I follow suit. Neither of us say anything as we approach the village.

“What is your reason for being here?” a man with bulky arms asks.

“To see Genevieve,” I state. “I called yesterday. She said she would see us.”

The man narrows his eyes before nodding. “She’s in the furthest hut.”

“Thanks.” I nod in return before heading through their village.

When we reach the hut, I knock gently before hearing a muffled voice. I hook my fingers into the woven handle and gesture for Harley to go first, to which she pins me with a blank stare. Goddess. Can I do anything right?

She steps in eventually, and I follow after her. I glance around the room to find a fire roaring in a homemade fire pit. Genevieve steps towards me with a bright smile, the creases around her eyes deepening.

“Kayden.” She grabs onto my hands. “It’s so good to see you.”

“You, too, Genevieve.”

“And who may this be?”

“I’m Harley,” she says as she steps forward.

“Nice to meet you.”

Harley nods with a tight smile. “You, too.”

“Come sit.” Genevieve gestures to the chairs with colourful patterned blankets.

I wait for Harley to sit first before perching beside her.

“What brings you here today?” she asks before sitting down herself.

My eyes flick to Harley, whose expression is unreadable. I take in a breath and nod. “Harley is my mate,” I start, and Genevieve’s face softens. “But I’ve grown closer to someone else because I can hear her thoughts and sense her danger.”

Genevieve freezes for a long moment, her eyes bouncing between the pair of us.

“Why is it that I can hear Kayleigh’s thoughts when I’m mated to someone else?” I lean forward, pressing my forearms to my knees, more than eager for answers.

“Kayden, what do you know about your parents?”

My brows knit together at her question. “What do you mean?”

Genevieve sighs softly. “Do you know that your parents aren’t mates?”

I swallow harshly as I shake my head. “No,” I grind out. “I didn’t?—”

I had always assumed they were mates. They’ve always seemed so in love.

“What does that have to do with this?” Harley asks.

“Well…the mate gene usually only works to the best of its ability when the parents are fated mates. So, when werewolves mate with those who are not their mates, their children’s bond with their mate will be significantly less.”

My forehead aches from the heavy frowning.

“Harley, are your parents mates?”

Her mouth falls open. “I…uh?—”

I turn to look at her and her eyes find mine.

“No,” she admits. “They’re not.”

“What do you mean significantly less?” I shuffle closer to the edge of the seat.

“Because neither of you inherited the dominant mating gene, the Moon Goddess will match you up to those who do not have mates for parents. She did this because your ability to sense and feel a matebond will be significantly less than someone who has mates for parents,” she explains. “Imagine what it would be like if you were mated to someone who felt the bond a million times stronger than you did.”

Harley blinks and stands up. “That’s a load of rubbish. I can’t believe we came here to listen to this nonsense.”

I breathe through my nose. “Sit down, Harley. Don’t disrespect Genevieve.”

“I know it’s a shock to hear,” Genevieve says calmly. “But tell me honestly, Harley, does the matebond feel strong towards Kayden?”

“Yes,” she blurts and then flinches from her own voice. “No. Actually. Not as strong as I thought it would be.”

“The Moon Goddess was limited with her choices of who to mate you with. She tried her hardest—she always does—but she’s not perfect, and she can’t always get it right,” she says as she reaches for her water. “Just because you’re mates doesn’t mean you’re soulmates.”

Harley tuts and turns to face the wall. “So, I have to accept that I’ll be alone because of this stupid gene mutation?”

“You’ve probably been waiting for each other for years. But, no, that is not what I’m saying at all, Harley. Kayden, earlier, you mentioned you can hear someone else's thoughts.”

“Yes,” I say immediately and nod.

She offers me a small smile. “Well, someone has got to point you in the right direction.”

“What do you mean?”

“If the Moon Goddess can’t match you up with someone who is suited to you that also doesn’t carry the dominant gene, then she can bless you with other things.”

My head tilts an inch. “Like?”

“Like a human soulmate.”

Every bone in my body tenses, and I’m seconds from going into cardiac arrest. Did she say soulmate?

“I’m confused.” Harley scowls. “Why would she give Kayden a human soulmate?”

“Not just Kayden.” Genevieve smiles. “You, too. All werewolves who don’t carry the dominant gene.”

“You say dominant.” I lean forward. “Do we have the gene at all?”

Genevieve nods once. “Yes, but a weakened version.”

“And that stops us from forming intense matebonds?”

“Yes.”

“But why would the Moon Goddess give us human soulmates?”

“Because she still wants you to be happy.”

Harley chews on the inside of her lip. “Humans, really?”

“Well, she can’t take away from wolves with compatible mates. It’s only guidance—nothing more. She can’t force you to do anything or be with them. But I trust her judgement. She sees all. She knows all. She wouldn’t just pick anyone for you. It’s someone she trusts will make you a better person than you already are.”

I meet Harley’s eye as she finally sits back down again. “So, there is someone out there better suited to me than Kayden?”

“Essentially, yes.”

For the first time, I see Harley’s face drop a little, her demeanour changing along with the weight on her shoulders. “I mean, I didn’t want to admit it at the time, but I didn’t feel the pull towards you immediately,” she murmurs to me. “I felt the matebond, and my wolf was happy, but it wasn’t as revolutionary as people have made out.”

“Agreed.” I nod.

“What about our wolves?” Harley asks. “Won’t they die from heartbreak if we rejected each other?”

Genevieve shakes her head. “No. Your wolves might be attached to the matebond, but they are more than capable of living without a mate.”

“Because we don’t have the dominant gene?”

“Yes.”

Harley rolls her lips together, studying my face. “Do you really love her?”

“Yes,” I say without hesitation. “She is everything to me.”

She swallows and lowers her head. “It hurts,” she admits. “But I have to be honest and say something doesn’t feel right. I tried to push it to the back of my mind, but it’s nagging at me now. A part of me doesn’t want to accept it and reject the bond because I know I’ll have to start this journey all over again, but at the same time, I know it’s not right.”

“Because you’re not true soulmates,” Genevieve pitches in. “I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but it’s the truth. You’ll find your soulmate one day, Harley. But it’s not Kayden.”

“I’ve been waiting a long time,” she huffs, covering her lips with a saddened smile.

I frown at the pain on her face. “I’m sorry,” I whisper. “But I promise there will be someone out there for you who will give you everything you deserve in this world and more.”

Harley rubs her chest as if to relieve a deep ache. “I know I deserve more.” She straightens her spine. “I deserve a man who will be all for me—nothing less.”

“Completely.” I bow my head. “It’s just not me.”

“It’s going to take a while to get over this.” She clutches her hands together in her lap. “I’m just really glad I didn’t get to know you, other than the fact you’re a terrible driver.”

I bark out a laugh, and she curls her lips at this. “Thanks for the compliment.”

“Trust me, it’s not a compliment.” Her brows reach her hairline. “The burst tyre says it all.”

My head twists back to Genevieve. “Thank you for your time and answering our questions.”

“My pleasure.” She beams. “Thank you for coming by.”