Page 4 of Mated to Fenrir (Fated Mates Collection #5)

DELIA

The car pulled up in front of the Horus Sanctuary, and I got out along with my friends and their dates. I was a little worried to be heading into an event like this without one of my own, especially because there were likely to be a lot of people who had been at the Jinx Masquerade here.

And that could include the man my wolf thought was my mate.

I pushed the thought aside. Adelaide had asked us all to come to the fundraiser being held at Horus' animal sanctuary, and there was no way I was going to let her down, especially when I couldn't properly explain why I was so reluctant to come.

Besides, he probably wouldn't be here. The chances were high that he'd just been someone's plus one, and that I'd never see him again. That was probably the best outcome for us both.

I straightened out my dress and waited for Chelsea and Baal to come join me. "I hope you're not going to tell me that you have a gallery opening or something," I said to them. "I don't have a third dress."

Chelsea laughed and put her hand on Baal's chest. "A gallery would stop us from travelling for photoshoots."

I nodded, admittedly relieved that I wasn't going to have to dress up again .

I did enjoy it, but considering I was brushing elbows with deities and rich paranormals, I didn't want anyone to actually realise that I only had two dresses when everyone else seemed to have a new outfit for every occasion.

We made our way inside, and I had to admit that the space was more impressive than I expected it to be.

I hadn't been able to make it last time the animal sanctuary had a fundraiser, not that I would have been missed, I was sure the ticket going to someone who could actually afford to donate was preferable.

All around the room, boards about the animals helped by the sanctuary were placed tastefully, while servers went around the room with trays of champagne. I took a glass and drifted over to the board with photos of wolves on them.

My heart ached as I read about how they'd been rescued from a private collection, even if I knew that was what the Horus Sanctuary did, and that it was why Horus rarely let anyone see the animals in person.

I didn't blame him for that, even if it was a little disappointing that I'd never actually seen the wolves that Adelaide often talked about.

Even in the photos, there was something majestic about them, and I felt a kinship with them that couldn't be explained other than by the inner wolf. She was responsible for a lot more of my thoughts than I truly wanted to admit.

My wolf stirred within me as if she'd been summoned, which wasn't a huge surprise, she could probably sense that they were her kind. Except that it almost felt as if she was pulling me in another direction.

I pushed her down, knowing that she was probably just trying to get me into trouble again. Knowing her, she was probably going to locate another mate and make things even more confusing.

People mingled around me, and not for the first time, I found myself wondering which of the people in the room were gods, and who they were. Which admittedly wasn't something I'd spent a huge amount of time doing before my friends started dating gods, but this was what my life had become.

I sipped on my champagne, taking it slowly. This wasn't the kind of event where people would end up drunkenly dancing. It was the kind of place where people took their time, mingled, and talked about how much good the sanctuary did.

Which would be a lot easier if I knew anyone other than my friends.

Someone cleared their throat and I turned around, freezing in my place as I came face-to-face with a man I both recognised and didn't. My wolf woke up immediately, wanting me to pay attention to him, and to give in to her desire to be closer.

My lips parted, and my mouth ran dry as I looked at him. His dark hair was a little unruly, and his blue eyes were filled with a certain amount of mischief. I had no idea who this man was, only that my wolf was compelled to get to know him better.

Without giving it too much thought, I stepped closer. He responded immediately, his body language welcoming me and confirming what I already knew. He was having the same response as I was.

I wanted to say something, but I wasn't entirely sure what the best thing to say was.

He came closer, and there was a part of me that longed for him to close the distance between us. A part that was definitely being controlled by my wolf. Right now, I wasn't sure which of us was going to win in this interaction.

"My wolf has wanted you since the day we met," he murmured, his voice rich with just a hint of an accent.

"Your wolf wanting me isn't enough," I said, even as my own protested against my words and wanted nothing more than to tell him that was all I needed to know. "You haven't even told me your name."

A war started behind his eyes, one that I recognised. My heart went out to him. It wasn't easy to always be fighting against the wolf within.

"Fenrir," he said.

"Like the god." It wasn't the most dazzling thing to say, especially considering where I was.

"I am the god."

"Ah, makes sense," I responded.

"Shouldn't you be more surprised that your fated mate is a god?"

I laughed. "We met at a Jinx event, and we're at another one held by a god," I pointed out. "And my friends are all dating them." Though I had to admit that now he was asking, I was a little surprised that a god was feeling as if I was his fated mate.

"You haven't told me your name either," he said.

"Delia," I responded. "I am not a god."

He chuckled. "I guessed."

"I hate to ask this, but would you mind stepping back? My wolf is...well, I'm sure you can imagine."

He nodded, and moved away, though it seemed to be with reluctance. Which made sense. His wolf had to be making this as difficult for him as mine was for me.

"Better?" he asked.

"Barely," I responded. "My wolf is almost in control right now."

"I know the feeling."

I took a deep breath, ignoring all the people around us.

None of them were paying any attention to us anyway.

It was one of the good things about my friends all being loved up at the moment.

Chelsea and Anise were distracted by their boyfriends, while Adelaide was no doubt helping Horus with his hosting duties, leaving me to deal with my fated mate problem on my own.

Which was probably better. They'd tell me to do something reckless.

"So, what now?" I asked Fenrir. "If you give me a list of places to avoid, I can stay out of your way until this passes."

"Is that what you want?" he asked.

"I..." There was nothing I could say in response to that, especially when the answer was no. I didn't want that. "I don't know."

"We can avoid one another if you want," he said. "Or we can go on a date."

I stared at him for a moment. "A date?"

"It is what people do when they're interested in getting to know one another better and think they could have something."

"You think we could?" My heart raced. It was one thing to be standing opposite my fated mate, but quite another to be standing opposite a god telling me that he wanted something more with me.

"Our wolves certainly think we could," he said.

"And how often has yours been right?" The question slipped out without me meaning it to. That wasn't the kind of thing I should be asking so soon after meeting him.

He chuckled. "Twice."

A strange feeling came over me, but it was hard to identify exactly what it was. "Twice?"

"I'm just about eight hundred years old, I've not lived my entire life waiting for one person," he said.

"Oh, right, of course not." I reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "What happened to your other fated mates?"

A sad expression crossed his face. "They died."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It's been a long time since then, and neither of them would want me to be alone."

I swallowed hard. Could I really do this? Be the fated mate of someone who I knew would outlive me?

"Why didn't you make them immortal?" I asked.

He raised an eyebrow. "I didn't realise you knew that was an option."

"Well, I do."

"For one of them, I was about to make her immortal when she died. She wanted to make it special, and we had it planned. But then someone attacked our village." A haunted expression crossed his face, leaving no doubt about what the rest of that story was.

"I'm sorry." I reached out to touch his arm, half-regretting it the moment my wolf responded. I doubted she was going to listen to me if I told her that she was supposed to be calm in this moment.

"It's okay," he said, looking at my hand as if I were doing something unexpected. "It was a long time ago, I mostly think about the good memories I have of her."

I nodded. "What about your other fated mate?" I asked curiously.

"He didn't want to be immortal."

"Surely if that was the case, he wouldn't have matched as your fated mate?"

Fenrir shrugged. "I think when we first met, he didn't know that he wasn't interested in immortality, and I didn't know that I wanted someone who would be with me for longer."

"And now?"

He raised an eyebrow. "You tell me. What's your take on immortality?"

I swallowed hard. "I haven't spent much time thinking about it."

Everything about his expression said that he didn't believe me.

In some ways, that was fair. If fate said that we were right for one another, then this was the kind of thing that our views probably lined up on.

I was sure there'd be small things that we didn't agree on, but that wasn't going to be the case for the big things.

"It's a fair question if we're going to talk about the fated mates situation," he said.

"Maybe you should buy me a drink before asking me personal questions."

He laughed. "All right, I know an all-night diner not far from here."

"An all-night diner?"

"They do a great milkshake," he said. "It'll make your wolf calmer."

"It might take more than a milkshake to do that," I muttered.

"True. But there's bright lighting, no alcohol, and no romantic music."

I laughed. "Ah, you're trying to get our wolves to behave."

"Something like that. But if you want to stay at the party, I understand."

I shook my head. "A milkshake sounds good." I wasn't going to be able to concentrate on anything else if I knew he was here.

"And then you'll tell me how you feel about immortality?" he checked.

I laughed. "Maybe you should try asking me something more basic first."

He offered me his arm and I took it, smiling as I did. While it was risky for the two of us to touch, it felt a little less so when I knew that we were planning on doing something that would help us stay in control of our wolves.