Page 14 of Protected Promise

Kian came back to my side with two drinks in hand, but my wolf wasn’t having it. He was one of my best friends and I was literally ready to rip his throat out just for brushing up against me.

“Beer or soda?” he asked holding up a cup of each.

I grabbed the beer and downed it in one breath.

“Uh, Kait, are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m not certain about anything tonight,” I muttered then turned on a fake smile. “Fine.”

“Another?” he asked.

“Another.”

Honestly, I just needed him away from me. My wolf was going crazy and didn’t understand why I wasn’t scouring the place for our mate.

Gah! Every time I even thought the word it freaked me out and heightened my anxiety. How could this be happening? Why now?

I knew I didn’t want a mate. The best thing I could do was turn tail and run away as far in the opposite direction as possible. Still, I was curious.

Convincing myself that leaving was the best thing I could do, I decided to not even tell Kian. He’d forgive me later for ditching out on him. It wasn’t like I was going to explain the truth about what was happening, but I’d come up with something believable.

When Damon turned his focus back on his mate, I slipped away into the crowds praying I would bump into my mysterious mate again.

I had almost made it to the door when an announcement was made.

“We’ve added a fun little surprise to the night. There are only two of each mask. That’s why we kept it a surprise. Your goal is to find your match and have a dance.”

A few couples that had picked matching masks to be cute immediately headed for the dance floor. While others just stood around awkwardly.

“Oh come on. It’s only one dance. Now mingle!”

Tiffany huffed as she put down the mic and hopped down from the stage.

“Where do you think you’re running off to?” she demanded.

I knew I was busted.

“Headache,” I lied.

“Well, too bad. You’re a Theta, Kaitlyn. If you don’t participate, are we to expect others to? I mean come on, you picked one of the girliest masks we have. You’ll probably have to dance with another girl, but still, it’ll be fun. Now go find your match!”

I sighed and turned back. She was monitoring the door now, and I heard her tell someone that no one got out without finding their match first.

I was screwed. I figured I might as well get it over with. Then I could continue with my plan and get the hell out of here.

“Hey, I know who your match is,” someone said as they grabbed me by the arm.

“Marie?” I asked.

She laughed. “Duh.”

“Sorry. It’s kind of hard to tell who’s who around here tonight.”

“Yeah, but it’s fun.”

“See, I knew it. Here you go,” she said, giving me a light shove.

I stumbled but before I could right myself, big strong hands wrapped around my body and kept me upright.