Page 20 of Hunted by Them (Primal Desires #1)

“Don’t tell me no. You’ve been missing, you’ve been found, and now your apartment was broken into, and you say it was Connor. Sage, what the hell is going on?”

“The two things don’t have anything to do with one another.” I sighed, running a hand through my damp hair. “Connor is pissed that I won’t take him back and threw a tantrum. I can handle it. I don’t need you flying across the country to hover. I love you, but no.”

Her voice sharpened, part of it fear, part of it fury.

“So let me get this straight. You go from having a stable boyfriend who is quite the catch, talking about marriage and the next stages of your life, to what? You break up with Connor, you disappear without a trace, and ignore my calls. What the hell is happening to you? Is this some sort of midlife crisis?”

I glared at my phone. “It’s pretty hard to have a midlife crisis when you’re still in your twenties, Mom. Unless you plan on me dying at forty,” I snapped, annoyed now.

“You know what I mean.”

“No, I really don’t. I told you that Connor was cheating on me, not once, not a mistake, not an oops or whatever other adjective you want to put on it…an ongoing affair. Might as well tell you I quit my job today as well.”

“You what? You loved your job.”

“No, I liked my job, but my boss is a nightmare, and she has only gotten worse. Margaret is a toxic nightmare, and I’m not wasting my life making her look good anymore.”

“You need stability, Sage!”

“What I need is to breathe.” My voice cracked, surprising me.

“Please. Just…let me figure out what I want for my life. It’s my life, and if I want to travel the world, or decide to live off the grid, or start my own business, then that is what I’m going to do.

I’m not going crazy. I just realized that I’m not going to settle for a life that I’m not happy with. ”

Silence stretched. Then Mom sighed, weary.

“Fine, I won’t fly out. But you text me every morning and every night. I mean it.”

“Deal.”

“I do love you, Sage. I know I’m hard on you sometimes, but it’s only because I don’t want you to end up like me. Choosing the wrong man, working three jobs to make ends meet. My life has always been a struggle, and I don’t want that for you.”

“I know, Mom, and I love that you care so much, but sometimes it’s suffocating. I promise, I’m doing this for all the right reasons.”

When we hung up, I tossed the phone aside, drained the rest of my drink, and grabbed another little bottle. The buzz softened the edges of my fury, but not enough.

I needed something else. Someone else. I glanced at the door, but didn’t think they were going to find me here. It shouldn’t bother me, but of course it did.

Beth. Maybe I needed some girl time. If anyone could pull me out of my own head, it was her. I thumbed out a quick message.

Sage: Hey, girl. I know it’s late, you wouldn’t happen to still be awake?

Her reply was instant.

Beth: Please, you know I’m a night owl. What’s shakin’ my love?

Relief loosened my chest. At least one thing in my life wasn’t complicated.

Sage: Honestly…I don’t know. I don’t feel like myself anymore.

Beth: What do you mean?

I tapped the phone on my chin as I tried to think of how to put this, without giving anything away about what had happened.

Sage: I just feel like I’m living a life that I created for others. It was what I thought I wanted because it was what was expected. But since Connor and I split, I’ve slowly started to realize that the world I built isn’t for me.

Beth: I totally get that. Why do you think I took off on that month-long trip last year? Yes, I wanted to travel, but I needed to make big decisions. Mark had asked me to marry him, and in the end, I decided no.

My mouth fell open.

Sage: Why didn’t you tell me? Oh my God, Beth.

Beth: I know…I just didn’t want to say anything at the time.

Everyone is so happy in their little bubbles of marriage, kids, and working nine-to-five.

I didn’t know what anyone would think if I said I was going to change careers, leave my college sweetheart, and move into a studio apartment above a country bar where I now sing twice a week.

Shockingly, I wasn’t a country singer, but it paid well and people seemed to still enjoy my indie rock vibe.

Sage: You bitch! You’ve been keeping all of this from me?

Beth: I’m sorry. I wanted to tell you, bestie. But I kinda needed to see if I could do this on my own before I announced it to the world.

That I understood.

Sage: I get it, and I’m not angry, but damn, girl, you went all out. I’m so proud of you. I know how much you love writing and singing. Every part of my body is crossed for you.

Beth: Thank you, and I’ll tell you all about it the next time we get together. But that’s not why you reached out, so what are you thinking about for your future?

That was a damn good question.

Sage: Well, I think I’m going to move to a small house outside of the city, closer to Yellowstone, actually. And I want to open my own marketing company.

Beth: Wait…you want to live closer to the forest you disappeared into, the one where you can’t remember what happened? Okay, I’m really starting to think you were abducted by aliens. LOL!

Sage: LOL! Funny. No, I’ve just always loved nature and want to get out of the city.

Beth: Makes sense, and do whatever makes you happy, no matter what anyone else thinks.

Sage: Thanks. So, you want to meet up soon?

Beth: I have my first headliner in a few months. Want to come to Nashville and see what I’ve been up to?

Sage: Hell yes, count me in. I’m so excited!

Beth: Thanks, love.

Sage: I’d better get some sleep. I have to start cleaning up my apartment tomorrow.

Beth: Cleaning up? Why?

Sage: Oh shit, I almost forgot to mention it. Connor destroyed my apartment in a rage because I wouldn’t take him back.

Beth: HE WHAT? Are you fucking kidding me? I’m going to rip his balls off his body and make his mother eat them, cause why not? She’s the bitch who created him.

I laughed out loud until tears rolled down my cheeks and my stomach hurt.

Sage: I love you. Don’t worry, he’ll get what’s coming to him.

Beth: He better. I never liked him. Asswipe. You can do a million times better than that weasel.

Sage: I miss you.

Beth: I miss you, too.

Sage: Talk soon, we need to finalize the plans for me to come out there.

Beth: Can’t wait, bestie. Love you.

Sage: LV U 2

I quickly changed into the t-shirt and underwear that I’d purchased on my way to the hotel and climbed into bed. I turned on the television and set it on the nature channel, smirking when they showed a group of elk running up the side of a mountain.

The city hummed outside the window, but my body ached for something else. I closed my eyes and let sleep take me as I prayed my dreams would bring back the Buck, the Elk, and the Caribou.