Page 6 of The Wolf Guard’s Mate (Marked Beneath the Moon #3)

six

OLIVE

Hunter wordlessly returned my phone a few hours later. It was the first time I’d seen him since we were in his bedroom that morning. I’d explored again after leaving him, and I’d been a lot more awake and aware, so it didn’t take long to figure out where everything was and how to get there.

I was the most interested in the pool, so I headed there after I had a mental map figured out. I didn’t have a swimsuit, so skinny dipping was the only option.

The pool was awesome. The whole thing was designed to look tropical, with bright tiles that made the water look insanely blue. Between the hot tub, the gigantic rock waterfall, and the live plants placed strategically around the room, it felt like paradise.

More importantly, swimming gave me time to think about my situation.

Given everything that was happening with the humans, Hunter’s mansion was the best place I could be at the moment.

Minus the part where he was also living there.

My wolf didn’t seem as obsessive or demanding as his was. Maybe because she and I were still adjusting to being a pair, or maybe it was just a personality thing. She liked being around him, and definitely loved the way he smelled, but she had no problem letting me go to sleep when he wasn’t nearby. She didn’t push me to find him when we were apart, either.

Which was good, because I was so pissed off about him lying to me that I wasn’t going to deal with any more of his shit.

I would make my own food.

I would wear my own clothes.

I would sleep in my own bed.

I would keep myself company, and call my sister if I really got lonely. Though I could technically call Aspen and Sydney too, I wasn’t sure how I felt about them potentially concealing the truth about me being in danger.

Though I could understand that everyone wanted to give me a chance to heal and enjoy life after barely surviving cancer, I didn’t want to be treated like I was made of glass.

I texted Nova back and forth all morning and into the early afternoon. She was pissed that the Savages minus Clay had kept the truth from us too, and apparently already sent Syd and Aspen very strongly worded texts about it.

According to her, Clay had spent all day on the phone with the human government officials, politely debating a few things in the contract between us and them.

When two in the afternoon came around, I finally sent Hunter a message. His number was in my phone, and it seemed safe to assume he was the one who had put it there.

Me

If we’re staying here for a while, I need a bikini

And clothes that fit me

Groceries too, I’ll send a list

He replied immediately.

Hunter

You don’t need groceries. I’ll take care of our meals.

Me

I’m handling my own meals so we can eat separately

My phone rang about two seconds after I sent the text.

After a quiet sigh, I answered it in a sugary, upbeat voice.

“What do you want, Honey Bun?”

He sounded tense. “You don’t trust me to cook for you?”

“Why would I trust you? You lied to me less than an hour before we hooked up.”

“Fine.” I could tell it took a lot of effort for him to get the word out. “Text me if you change your mind.”

He hung up.

I didn’t know why he cared so much about it, and sent Nova a text.

Me

Any idea why I almost just got my head bitten off for telling Hunter I’ll make my own food?

Nova

Ohhhh

Food is a sensitive subject for the Savages

You’ll have to ask Hunter for the story if you want it, but there’s a legitimate reason

Me

He’d tell me if it was that big of a deal

Nova

You sure? He’s super private. His wolf was determined I was his mate for more than a year, and I still know less about him than I do about any new clients I met this week

The words made my wolf prickle and growl

She did not like that her mate had wanted her twin sister. Not even a little.

But was I sure he would tell me?

No.

I wasn’t.

Me

Regardless, that fucker lied to me while I was opening up about my cancer. If he wants to share meals, he’s going to have to get down on his knees and beg for forgiveness

Nova

Hahaha

He deserves it

And he’s probably reading these messages right now, so he’ll know how to make things right ;)

Me

What an asshole

Nova

Lol

Maybe next time don’t bite someone you barely know underneath the full moon?

Me

Pretty sure Hunter’s going to murder anyone else I try to bite at this point

My abstinence streak will return

Nova

So will his

Me

What?

Nova

He didn’t tell you?

Me

Tell me what?

Nova

Shit

Me

What???

Nova

Nothing

You heard nothing

I was sworn to secrecy by my mate

Me

Bitch

Nova

Yup

Clay’s calling me, gtg

Me

Liar

Despite my message, her obvious lie made me snort.

I scrolled back up to the messages and read them again.

Me

My abstinence streak will return

Nova

So will his

The meaning was pretty clear. It would take a lot to convince myself otherwise.

Like me, Hunter also hadn’t had sex in a long time.

He had said something about not wanting anyone, but I hadn’t actually thought about that. If he hadn’t wanted anyone, had he legitimately not slept with anyone?

I had said something along the lines of him bringing a bunch of other women to the hotel with him—why hadn’t he corrected me?

Maybe he’d still been with people, but he was doing a short-term abstinence thing, and there was a reason for it?

My wolf was getting prickly again, growling quietly.

The movement of a camera on the ceiling in my line of sight caught my eye, and I jerked my head toward it, watching closely.

Definitely a security camera.

I hadn’t seen it move on its own earlier, so Hunter must’ve been watching. Maybe listening to me growl, too.

Asshole.

There was one place I knew his cameras couldn’t see, and an idea to use it made me fight a grin.

He was going to be pissed.

I dove back beneath the water, swimming across the pool until I made it under the waterfall. There was a seat back there, built into the wall, so I got comfortable on it and closed my eyes.

A nap would be nice.

I dozed for a while, until a splash sounded in the main part of the pool.

Though it took everything I had not to grin, I forced my eyes to stay closed.

A pair of gigantic hands were on my face a moment later, and I let my sleepy eyes open to meet Hunter’s furious ones.

“Stay where my cameras can see you,” he growled, releasing my face when he realized I was okay. Unlike me, he had on a pair of boxer briefs.

“This is the best lounge spot in the pool,” I murmured.

He clenched his jaw.

I moved away from him slightly, and he grew even more tense.

“Are my groceries here?” I asked.

A furious growl rattled his chest. After a few minutes, he gritted out, “Yes.”

“Great. Thanks.” I slipped off the bench and swam back to the steps I’d used to get into the water.

While I was climbing out, I realized one tiny problem:

I forgot a towel.

And the only piece of clothing currently in my possession was the black T-shirt Hunter had put on me before he abducted me.

Lovely.

I heard my mate’s feet on the pool deck behind me, and his hand brushed my hip. I stepped away quickly, preventing him from touching me.

He definitely lost that privilege when he lied to me and walked away without even bothering to apologize.

“Here.” He held a soft-looking gray towel out toward me. I didn’t want to accept his kindness—or the fact that he must’ve realized I didn’t bring one.

After a moment’s hesitation, I decided covering myself up was the best call in our current situation, so I accepted the towel and wrapped it around my middle. Then grabbed the black t-shirt, along with my phone.

“I labeled the cabinets and shelf where your groceries go in my kitchen,” Hunter said stiffly.

“I’ll just take them to the kitchen you don’t use. That one can be mine.”

“No.” He didn’t elaborate.

It didn’t surprise me, either.

I strode toward the door. “I wasn’t asking permission. Your house is big enough for us to live separate lives, so that’s what we’re going to do.”

Hunter stifled a snarl. “My wolf isn’t going to accept that.”

“You convinced your wolf not to mate with my twin sister, so I’m sure you can talk him into leaving me alone while you have me locked in your house.”

A gigantic hand caught my wrist and spun me around with a light tug. With two large steps, Hunter had me pinned to the wall, his gigantic body towering over me.

His eyes were dark amber, and the look in them was more dangerous than I had ever seen. “What did I say about comparing this situation to the shitshow with Nova? She was nothing to me. You are my mate . This isn’t a matter of misplaced animalistic obsession. We are bound together for the rest of our lives, whether we like it or not. It may not have been planned or intentional, but our worlds now revolve around each other.”

“I can sleep without you,” I countered.

“Your wolf will demand my presence in her own way.” Hunter seemed certain, but I wasn’t convinced.

“I guess we’ll just wait and see if that’s true.”

“It is.”

“Then it won’t hurt you to let me live the way I want for a few days, will it?”

He clenched his jaw.

I tipped my head back and lifted a hand to Hunter’s neck. When I pulled him down toward me, he didn’t put in a shred of effort to stop me.

Our lips were only a breath apart when I whispered, “You still owe me an explanation for what happened this morning, Hun. Not the lying. The sex.”

His jaw clenched harder for a moment before he forced out the words. “It takes a while for my mind to wake up after my body does. I don’t know why. I thought you were a pillow.”

My eyes narrowed. “You thought you were screwing a pillow ?”

“I didn’t think anything. I was hardly conscious,” he growled. “I don’t have sex. I haven’t spent the night with someone in a century and a half. It’s too risky. I’m entirely useless after waking up. I smelled your arousal, and everything that happened afterward was instinct.”

“So you used me.”

“I wasn’t aware enough to call it that.”

“You thought I was a pillow, Hunter. You thought you were humping a pillow while you were coming inside me,” I argued.

He clenched his jaw again.

“Fuck you. I’ll put my groceries away myself. Where are my clothes?”

“In our closet. We’re mates. Everything is yours as much as it’s mine now.”

“I’ll take them out of your room and put them in mine myself.” I released the back of his neck and turned, striding away as I gripped my towel tightly.

Part of me waited for Hunter to call out for me to stop—but he didn’t.

And I wouldn’t have listened anyway.

My anger faded as I moved the new clothes Hunter had bought me from his closet to an empty one near the other kitchen.

The clothes were nice, the sizes were right, and the style was what I liked. He must’ve sent someone to check what clothes I had back in Crimson River or something.

I’d expected an outfit or two, but the man had purchased an entire wardrobe’s worth. It was more clothing than I had at home, and everything was significantly better quality.

That didn’t erase the lies he’d told me, though.

I had time to process his revelation about screwing me unconsciously that morning while I transferred my groceries over and organized everything. He had a duplicate set of seasonings, cookware, and dishes in the kitchen I was claiming, so I didn’t need to worry about any of that.

The more I thought about the accidental screwing, the more I felt bad for blowing up at him about it.

It clearly bothered him that he couldn’t help his actions when he woke up. The man was an absolute freak about keeping things organized, and it seemed pretty clear that staying in control was massively important to him too.

All of that meant it had probably been difficult for him to share a bed with me at all. And he probably felt like shit for using me without realizing it.

But honestly?

Now that I understood what had happened, it was pretty hot. The man wanted me so badly that even when he was barely conscious, the smell of my arousal drove him to hump my ass.

And technically, I was the one who had pulled out his cock. I thought it was hot when I woke up with him thrusting between my ass cheeks. And I changed the angle of my hips, too, so he could take me easier.

So I wasn’t innocent.

If one of us was, it was probably him.

I wasn’t opposed to waking up like that every morning, either.

But there was still one problem:

His lies.

I couldn’t move past those. I just couldn’t. He owed me a massive apology, and there would never be anything between us until he gave me exactly that.

So, I texted him an apology for blowing up at him about the morning sex, but I didn’t try to fix any of the other shit between us.

The mate bond might connect us, but it didn’t magically create trust.