Page 16 of Cursed (Blood Moon Pack #1)

R yland’s eyes pop open to light streaming in through his windows and the sounds of panicky breathing coming from the next room. The Mate Bond kicks into high gear. With a powerful need to protect her, he jumps out of bed and runs to the sitting room.

Ryland finds Nori sitting straight up on the couch, looking around confused, knees pulled into her chest. She’s sucking in deep, ragged breaths, clearly frightened. Trying not to scare her, he gently says, “Nori, you are in the Blood Moon Castle in my chambers.”

Nori’s eyes land on the Prince, standing at the entrance to his bedroom in an attack stance, his chest rising and falling rapidly. A pale blush creeps over her face, and she throws herself back down on the couch, covering her head with the pillow.

Ryland hears a muffled chuckle and then, “Shit. Sorry. Didn’t mean to wake you.”

He breathes out loudly, and his shoulders sag with relief. “It’s OK. Are you all right?”

Nori moves the pillow back behind her head and blows some stray hairs from her face. “Yeah. I’m fine. It’s been a few weeks since I’ve slept indoors. Still getting used to it, I guess.”

“How long were you in the forest?”

Nori raises her eyes to the ceiling, calculating. “I guess it was about a month. It was my fault we were lost for that long. I neglected to grab a map before we…” Suddenly realizing she’s giving him too much information, her mouth snaps shut.

“A month? You were wandering aimlessly in the woods for a month?” Ryland’s heart beats faster, amazed that she’s still alive.

Hoping the Prince doesn’t notice that she didn’t finish her sentence, Nori tries to cover her mistake. “Yes, well, my wolf is an excellent hunter. We survived pretty well, except for the recent heavy snow. We went a few days without food after that. ”

His head tilts to the side, and he asks, “Before you, what? You neglected to grab a map before you, what, Nori?”

Frowning, she decides to tell him the truth. “Before we left. Took off. Ran. Escaped. Take your pick.”

“And what were you running from?”

Luckily for Nori, her stomach picks that moment to growl loudly.

Ryland suddenly has a powerful urge to feed her, to take care of her. Frowning at the Mate Bond sensations, he walks over to the phone on his desk. “I’ll have breakfast sent up. We can pick up this conversation after we eat.”

“Breakfast sounds great. Would it be alright if I use your gigantic bathroom to freshen up?”

“Sure, go ahead.”

Nori smiles at him and gets up off the couch, folding the blanket. “Thank you!”

Ryland groans inwardly to his wolf, “ That smile of hers is going to be the death of me! ”

As soon as she closes the doors to the bathroom, Nori puts her face in her hands. “ Damn. Why am I such a freak, waking up utterly terrified? I had the stupid dream again about Beta Mal…I mean, our former Beta coming after me.”

“I’m so sorry. You haven’t had that one in a while.” Aylin’s tone is full of sympathy.

Nori heads to the toilet, wringing her hands. “And never let me answer questions from the Prince as soon as I wake up. I gave him way too much information. He’s certain to ask me for my Packname at breakfast. I’m gonna have to figure how to keep from answering that question! ”

“ You covered nicely, I thought. Did you see how he ran into the room? He thought you were in trouble. ” Nori can sense her wolf’s happiness.

She attends to her business, then washes her hands and splashes some water on her face.

After she uses a hand towel to dry off, Nori holds it out in front of her, studying it.

“ This is seriously the softest towel I have ever touched. They must be wealthy here. You think he was concerned or freaked out? ”

Aylin chuckles at her human. “ Any place would seem like a palace compared to where we have lived. I definitely think he was concerned. ”

Nori yells out to Ryland, “Any chance you have a new toothbrush I can use?”

Ryland calls back, “Sure, second drawer on the left.”

Aylin laughs loudly in Nori’s head. “ Getting comfortable? ”

When she opens the drawer, Nori finds toothpaste and a new toothbrush. “ No. I’m certain he’ll kick us out as soon as he finds out Draven is our Alpha, and that’s the best-case scenario. ”

“ Way to bring down the mood. ”

Brushing her teeth, Nori says, “ Sorry, but you…me…we are getting ahead of ourselves. I know the Mate Bond is caus ing all these feelings, but we have seriously got to keep it together. ”

“ Yeah, you’re right, I know. Holy shit! Is that bacon I smell? ”

Nori hurries out of the bathroom into the dining area, where Ryland is already sitting at the table, drinking coffee.

She breathes in the various smells of breakfast and smiles. “ Yes, Aylin, that is bacon. We have literally died and gone to heaven! ”

Ryland looks up at her, stunned by that smile again. “I didn’t know what you liked, so I ordered a variety. Have a seat.”

“I’m not picky and thank you.” Nori slides into the chair opposite the Prince and starts scooping various foods onto her plate.

Aylin gasps and says, “ Whoa there, slow down, Nori. It’s not a race; he’s not going to take it away. ”

Nori immediately slows down and tries not to put too much food on her plate. “ Right, right. Of course. Let’s keep the crazy to a minimum. ”

A hint of a smile forms on Ryland’s mouth as he watches Nori load her plate. He gets up and moves to the drink table. “Juice?”

“Sure. Yes, please.”

After handing her the juice, he pours himself another cup of coffee and holds up the coffee pot. “Coffee? ”

Nori glances up and sucks in a sharp breath. Her silverware falls from her hands, and she leaps from the table, knocking the chair to the ground. She backs away from Ryland and freezes in the middle of the room, staring at the coffee pot in his hand.

Aylin has taken complete control of Nori’s body and is looking at Ryland through Nori’s eyes, growling.

Startled, Bade yells, “ What the fuck just happened? She was fine. Where is the threat? Damn Ryland, look at her eyes. They’re golden. Are they glowing? What the hell is she? ”

Ryland freezes in place. He glances around the room, but is not able to find the threat. “ I don’t know. Let’s just wait for Nori to regain control. ”

Nori screams at her wolf. “ Fucking hell, Aylin! Didn’t I just say keep the crazy to a minimum? ”

Aylin has lost all coherent thought and is yelling, “ Coffeepot! Enemy! Run! ” over and over in Nori’s head.

Nori looks at Ryland with huge, wide eyes, frozen in her spot by her frantic wolf. She struggles to speak. “Puh-Please put d-down the coffee p-pot.”

Ryland’s eyebrows narrow, and he slowly sets the pot back on the side table, never taking his eyes off Nori. He holds his hands out in front of him, indicating that he is not going to harm her.

Nori tries again to get Aylin to calm down. “ OK, he put down the damn pot, now let me go! ”

Aylin still won’t let her go and continues to spiral in her defensive mode.

Nori closes her eyes and yells out loud, “Calm the fuck down!”

Aylin immediately releases control. Nori bends over, hands on her knees.

She puffs out a relieved breath, looking down at the floor.

When she has the panicky feeling under control, she stands, rakes both hands through her hair, and glances at Ryland.

He’s as still as a statue, staring at her with a deep frown etched into his face.

A nervous laugh slips out, and she covers her face briefly, shaking her head. “Sorry. Sorry. Minor freak out. We promise to get through breakfast without any further drama.”

Nori sighs to Aylin, “ I’m not gonna yell at you for that because I remember the last time someone offered us coffee. But damn! You broke a rule by looking at him. Not to mention, he’s gonna think we are totally nuts. ”

“ Sorry, ” Aylin replies, still slightly unnerved.

Nori’s breathing returns to normal as she slowly walks to the overturned chair, sets it right, and sits back down. Ryland, in turn, takes his seat across the table from her. Blushing from embarrassment, Nori forces herself to look at the Prince to gauge his reaction.

Bade asks Ryland, “ Any thoughts on how to proceed? Clearly, no touching the coffee pot. Ever! ”

Ryland ignores Bade and gently asks, “Can you explain what just happened, Nori?”

She shakes her head. “How about we don’t discuss the horror show that my life has been over breakfast? Let’s simply sit here and eat like normal people, OK?”

Nori smirks. “ That last bit was for you, Aylin! ”

“ I am not a person, and we are definitely not normal. ”

Nori frowns at her attitude. “ Well, pretend for the next twenty minutes, so we can eat! ”

“ Fine. I said sorry, ” Aylin whines.

Ryland nods, his eyes still boring into her. “OK, Nori.” He’s concerned about her use of the words ‘horror show’ to describe her life.

Trying to act as normal as possible, Nori smiles slightly and picks up her fork. “The food looks amazing.”

Ryland gives her a moment to calm down. When she resumes eating and he hears her heart rate return to normal, he asks, “So, your wolf’s eyes are golden? What’s her name?”

Nori has the briefest moment of panic before looking up at the Prince. “Her name is Aylin, and yes, her eyes are golden. Your wolf’s eyes are black.”

“Yes. His name is Bade.”

Nori frowns and murmurs, “Bade.” She sits back and drinks her juice. “It means ‘battle,’ right?”

Bade whispers to Ryland, “ And Aylin means ‘moonlight.’ ”

Ryland nods, wondering how she knows the origins of his wolf’s name. He’d assumed she was uneducated. “I’ve never seen a wolf with golden eyes.”

Nori’s eyes widen briefly. Knowing her mom told her to keep Aylin a secret from everyone, she keeps a tight grip on her emotions. “My eyes are amber. I always just assumed it was the reason hers were golden. They're complementary, like yours and your wolf’s, right?”

“Yes, you are correct; most wolves have complementary coloring.”

Bade sighs in Ryland’s mind, “ So, her wolf must be white. I told you she was lovely. ”

Ryland frowns briefly. “ You are losing it, wolf. ”