Page 4 of The Reluctant Mate (Shifters of the Three Rivers #5)

Chapter four

Sofia

T he alarm pierced through my exhausted haze, making my wolf whine in protest.

You and me both, I thought at her.

Every muscle screamed as I ignored the overwhelming desire to throw my pillow at my alarm and go back to sleep. I had to get up; I had things I had to do today. People were counting on me, and I wasn’t going to let them down.

I could do this.

I dragged myself out of bed, my feet catching on the super-soft purple rug that made me smile every time I stepped on it, the one splurge I’d allowed myself when I’d decorated my room. I nearly tripped over the stack of recipe books I’d been studying for new cocktail ideas, but—go me and my werewolf reactions—I just managed to stop myself from face-planting on the floor.

Silence filled the apartment as I made my way down the narrow hallway. Jase’s bedroom door was open, his bed untouched—another all-nighter at Shaw Investigations. These days, he only came home to crash for a few hours and demolish our food supplies before heading out again.

The mirror in the bathroom reflected back my exhausted face—tangled curls desperately needing conditioning and dark circles under my eyes that even my best concealer wouldn’t hide. To top it off, the faint smell of stale beer and cleaning products from the Bar still clung to my skin despite my shower last night.

I looked like a complete mess. At least the jasmine plant I kept on the windowsill was thriving, its sweet scent helping to mask the boy-bathroom smell of shaving gel and aftershave that seemed to follow my brother around. Empty shampoo bottles balanced precariously on the edge of the tub, telling me Jase had used my products without asking again. I blew out a breath. I’d have to tackle this disaster zone before my shift at the Bottley, but only after I’d had coffee. Copious amounts of coffee.

I gave myself a weak smile as I remembered my date with the spa this afternoon. At least I had that to look forward to. Wally and I had booked it a few weeks ago as a gift to Mai, so she could be pampered before the pups arrived. I don’t know who’d been more disappointed when Mai was put on bed rest and had to cancel, but she’d insisted we go without her.

Then Wally had told me last night that he wasn’t going to make it either. Ben had announced he was joining the football team and needed to go to the after-school training. It was the first time Ben had wanted to do any sports since he and his older sister, Amara, stopped living on the streets and moved in with Thomas and Wally. Wally thought it was a sign that Ben was feeling more settled and wanted to go and support him. Me? I’d decided after last night’s debacle that I could do with some pampering, so I’d kept my booking.

I dragged myself to the kitchen, muscle memory taking over as I pulled out two mugs for coffee before catching myself. The second mug—the one Jase made when he was seven, Dad’s favorite with “Howl At The Moon Responsibly” accompanied by what was either a wolf or a hairy potato drawn on it—went back in the cupboard with trembling fingers. Four years, and I still couldn’t break the habit of making Dad a coffee every morning. I sighed, knowing it was probably because it was his birthday today. Jase had probably forgotten, but then, he was never good with dates.

The memory of the last time I’d seen my parents hit without warning, sharp and clear as the day it happened.

“It’s just temporary, sweetheart.” Mom’s voice had been gentle as she packed. I’d moved out three months before, but living in a dorm house wasn’t working out. I’d come over, planning to ask to move back, only to find my parents packing. My Aunt Lilith had called, saying her daughter, my half-werewolf, half-witch cousin, had decided the Wolf Council’s rules about witches were unfair. So, she’d joined a guerrilla campaign to take the whole Council down. “Your aunt needs us. Once things settle down with the Wolf Council—”

“What about what we need?” The words burst out before I could stop them. Jase’s door was closed, but I knew he could hear everything. “He’s sixteen, Mom. How am I supposed to—?”

“You’re strong, Sofia. Stronger than you know. The Pack will help—”

“The Pack?” I laughed, the sound brittle. “The same Pack that was too scared of Oliver to even glance at us just because I was friends with Mai Parker? That Pack?”

“It’s different now. Jem and Hayley are good Alphas. It is safe here for you.” She came closer, placed her hands on my shoulders. “You never backed down from Oliver, never gave up your friendship with that Mai, even though we ordered, threatened, even begged you to.”

I closed my eyes and said softly, “Fat lot of good that did. She’s gone. I haven’t heard from her in nearly two years.”

Mom pulled me into a hug. “You can’t control what others do, Sofia, only what you do, and you were a good friend to her. You stood up for her, even when it was dangerous to do so. I’m proud of you. We both are. I know we didn’t show it at the time, but this is why your father and I have to go. You inspire us, Sofia, to do what is right, no matter the cost.”

“But the cost is me and Jase!” I whined, desperate for them not to leave. “Can’t we… can’t we come with you?”

I felt her head shake next to mine. “Not now. Let us find your aunt. See what mess your cousin Annabella is in. Maybe after that, okay? This is just temporary. We’ll be back soon, when we get things straightened out.”

I shook off the memory, but my hands wouldn’t stop shaking as I made my coffee. One cup, not two. My wolf paced restlessly, agitated by the remembered pain. Temporary had stretched into years, occasional phone calls growing shorter and less frequent until they felt like obligations rather than connections. My parents hadn’t straightened out anything. Instead, they’d joined the cause, aiming to overthrow the Council to make a better world for werewolves and witches.

An hour later, I hefted groceries up the stairs to Mrs. Patterson’s apartment, my arms trembling more from lack of sleep than the weight. Mrs. Patterson was a human who lived in the block opposite. Her son, Donald, and his wife had moved south to a human-only city two months ago, and she found getting out for food and medicines difficult these days. Takymora Delivery, where Jase used to work, would deliver, but they didn’t unpack it all or stop and chat like I did.

My wolf perked up at the sound of Mrs. Patterson’s shuffling steps on the other side of the door.

“Sofia! You’re an absolute angel.” Mrs. Patterson beamed as she opened the door, her hands clutching the frame for support.

“It’s no trouble,” I assured her, setting the bags on her counter and starting to unpack. “I got those sugar-free cookies you like and that special tea for your joints.”

“Your brother must be proud to have a thoughtful sister like you. Speaking of which, is that boy eating properly? He looks too thin whenever I see him leaving your apartment.”

I laughed. Jase ate enough for three wolves, but Mrs. Patterson had been trying to fatten him up for years.

“He’s fine, I promise. I make sure he eats.” He certainly went through the food in our fridge quickly enough.

“My son was the same at his age. It was like nothing could fill that belly of his!”

“How is Don doing?”

Her face darkened for a split second. “Oh, you know how he is. Still wants me to move near to him. He’s coming up again this weekend to try to talk me into it. He keeps saying it’s not safe here, not anymore, not with bloodlust wolves around.”

My brows creased together. For a werewolf to succumb to bloodlust was incredibly rare. It signified the complete loss of control, where a Shifter couldn’t be reasoned with, couldn’t think logically or rationally. For a werewolf in bloodlust, there was no differentiating between allies and enemies; anyone who got close would be attacked. There was no coming back from it; the only way to stop a Shifter in bloodlust was to kill them.

“Bloodlust werewolves?” I asked, not sure now if I had heard correctly. There hadn’t been a bloodlust werewolf in Three Rivers in twenty years.

Mrs. Patterson nodded. “It’s all over the news these days. That drug—what do they call it? The one that affects you Shifters so badly?”

My heart skipped a beat. I’d been so busy with work lately, I hadn’t been paying attention to the news. “You mean ripple?”

“Yes, that’s the one. They say it causes bloodlust in some Shifters. That werewolves everywhere are losing control. Targeting humans. That you can’t be trusted to live in the same places as us anymore.”

She must have seen something in my face, because she patted my hand. “Not you, Sofia, not you. But Don reckons I should move closer to him, just in case.”

Ripple was bad news for Shifters. It was a new, highly addictive drug that not only affected us, which was unusual in itself, but it prevented us from Shifting into our wolf forms and drove us to break our Pack bonds. Mason Shaw, one of Derek’s brothers, along with his mate Shya, were the new Alphas of the Bridgetown Pack, and they’d been doing a lot of research into the effects of the drug and whether it was reversible. I’d have to ask them if this bloodlust effect was true.

“Mrs. Patterson, even if it was true about ripple causing bloodlust, Mai and Ryan shut down ripple in Three Rivers. They’re keeping a close eye on it. There’s no ripple getting in.”

“Well, you know Don. He says we humans won’t be high up on Mai and Ryan’s list of priorities soon with their babies to think about. He thinks I’ll be safer if I move to his human-only town.” She glanced around at her apartment, her eyes glistening. “But this is my home. All my memories are here.”

Don was an ass for trying to scare his mom into doing what he wanted. There was no ripple, no bloodlust werewolves, and very little criminal activity in Three Rivers; it’s hard to commit a crime and get away with it when werewolves can track you all the way back to your home. I had half a mind to pop around this weekend and give Donald a piece of my mind. I reached out and squeezed her hand.

“Mrs. Patterson, you decide what’s best for you, but Jase and I will always be here for you if you want to stay, you know that?”

“You and Jase have always been so good to me. Stay for coffee?” she offered hopefully. “I just made a fresh pot.” Mrs. Patterson normally drank tea; if she’d made coffee, it was because she really wanted me to stay. Maybe I could rearrange the rest of my errands and do them after work this week instead.

“Sure.” I smiled at her. “That sounds lovely.”

Forty minutes later, I said my goodbyes and stumbled down the stairs and out into the morning air. I don’t know why, but something about Mrs. Patterson showing me photos of Don and his new home had gotten to me. My hands shook as I fumbled with the buttons on my jacket. What the hell was wrong with me? I used to have a lot of these moments of desperately missing my parents after they left, but I hadn’t felt the ache of their absence this strongly in months.

I shook my head. I was fine. I would be fine. I didn’t need my parents to hold me and tell me everything was going to be okay.

My phone rang as I walked back to my car, and my heart sank. I didn’t need to check the screen to know who it was.

“Hey, Sofia!” Shannon’s voice dripped with fake sweetness. “I am so sorry, but I can’t come in today. I’m still, like, really sick. Fever. Cough. The works. You understand, right?”

My jaw clenched. Of course I understood; this was the fourth time she’d been “sick” this month. I could practically smell the river water and Henri’s cologne through the phone.

“Of course,” I said tightly, already calculating how to rearrange my day. “Feel better.”

As soon as I hung up, a groan of frustration escaped me. I glanced at my phone’s calendar, my heart sinking at the spa appointment reminder.

Damn it.

I took a deep breath. It was okay. I’d book another one for next month. It was no big deal. I fixed a smile on my face. Because that’s what Sofia Miller did. She kept going. She kept going as if everything was fine, even if nothing had been fine for a very long time.