Page 7 of The Wolf Guard’s Mate (Marked Beneath the Moon #3)

seven

HUNTER

I couldn’t sleep that night. Olive’s scent on my pillow wasn’t enough to soothe the anxious wolf prowling in my chest. I ended up spending most of the night watching her sleep through my cameras like a fucking creep.

The next day, I watched her swim, watch movies, and cook.

I didn’t sleep that night, either.

My wolf was fucking savage by the time the next morning finally came around. I had to lock myself in the office connected to my bedroom to make sure he couldn’t hunt our mate down in case he took over.

She wanted space.

Clay’s mind met mine around lunch time.

“Hey, I hear you and your mate aren’t speaking. How’s that going?” His voice was lighthearted, but Nova had obviously told him to talk to me. I certainly hadn’t told my brothers details about what was going on.

“Fuck off.”

Clay snorted. “That well, huh?”

I didn’t respond.

There was nothing to say.

“Pro tip—usually if you apologize and make a joke, your mate will forgive you and move on. Life is better when you’re getting along,” he added.

“You knew your mate and chose her. This is different.”

“According to the enforcers, you’ve been obsessed with Olive since she came to town. You weren’t just protecting her—you were keeping other guys away from her. You and I both know you haven’t slept with anyone since Corrine, so I’m sure you realized you were taking a risk when you spent the night with her.”

“She was going to spend heat with Jake,” I gritted out. “He didn’t deserve her.”

“The fact that you care what she deserves says a lot.”

“Shut up.”

Clay laughed. “Fine. I’ve got to get back to the contract for the humans anyway. Just think about this—you made your choice when you took her to bed, knowing you were obsessed with her. And if she was the one who had lied to you about your safety, you would be livid. Either way, you’re mates. You can work it out now, or you can keep suffering until you do.”

I pushed him out of my head, and he didn’t put up a fight.

My wolf snarled and snapped his teeth at me—then took control of our body. It didn’t take him long to shake my clothes off, or to break down the locked door.

Wood splintered as he stepped through, bounding toward the theater room.

Olive was already in the hallway when he found her.

She’d probably heard what he did to the door.

Her expression brightened when she saw my wolf, and when he rubbed up against her side, she stroked his fur.

“Got tired of waiting for your human to stop being an ass?” she teased.

He licked her hand and arm. And her bare hip, left exposed by the cropped tee and cotton shorts she had on. Both were damp, and the image of the bikini she had on beneath it was burned into my mind.

She was so fucking gorgeous.

“I’m in the middle of a mystery show. Want to watch?” she asked.

He nudged her toward the room, and she laughed as he made her walk back to the place she’d been sitting. It was a loveseat, so he didn’t hesitate to hop up right beside her and drop his entire upper body on her lap.

She rubbed his head and ears as she started the show again, and my wolf only managed to stay awake for a minute or two before he was out like a light.

We needed her more than I wanted to admit.

The sound of Olive’s stomach growling woke my wolf up. He still had a strong hold on our body, and I was too exhausted to fight him on it.

He gave a drowsy growl at her abdomen, apparently angry at it for being hungry. He wanted to take care of her, and her hunger was a clear sign he was failing.

“I need to make dinner,” Olive said, her expression a little tired too. “You can sit by my feet if you want.”

My wolf growled at her.

Her forehead creased in confusion.

He pushed down on her thighs with his paws. I was pretty sure he was telling her to stay put, because a moment later, he was trotting through the house.

After a quick stop in the kitchen and a small struggle with the refrigerator, he went back to the movie room with a large Tupperware held between his teeth. Olive was already on her feet and about to leave when he got there.

He put the plastic container in her hands, and she took it with surprise. “You want me to eat the food your human made?”

The wolf bumped it with his nose.

“I’m supposed to be independent until he apologizes,” Olive said.

He bumped it again. Harder.

“Alright.” She held up a finger. “Only once. He still lied to me.”

The wolf seemed satisfied as he stepped back and nudged her toward the door.

She walked down to the kitchen she’d claimed, transferring the food to a plate and reheating it. When she sat down at the dining table alone to eat, my wolf took the chair next to her, once again dropping half his weight on her lap. She smiled, and didn’t push him away.

While she ate, I couldn’t stop myself from thinking about what Clay said.

About how I would feel if she was the one who had lied to me about my safety.

If she had…

I’d be absolutely livid.

Olive wasn’t me, but she was clearly furious about my lie. And when I looked at it like Clay did, I couldn’t blame her for that.

Maybe I deserved her anger.

After she finished eating, she padded back to the theater room and plopped down on her chair again. My wolf retook his seat too.

“You need to leave if your human isn’t going to apologize,” Olive murmured to my wolf, her eyelids sagging a little. I wasn’t sure what time it was, but it must’ve been getting late. “It’s not your fault he was a jackass, but he still was.”

I knew what it was going to take to make things right between us. She had told Nova, and I had read the messages.

It was ridiculous, but if it meant making peace with her, I’d do whatever she wanted.

Not having to hide in my office anymore would be nice.

Sharing meals would be, too.

And…

Well, fine. There were a lot of benefits to having a mate. Benefits I’d never been interested in before. But now that Olive was mine, what was the point in avoiding any of those things? Why not figure out how to make our relationship work so we could both enjoy the benefits?

Yeah, it wouldn’t be easy. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t worth it.

As soon as the wolf gave me the chance, I would fix things.

Probably.

Assuming I could figure out how to do that. I knew less than nothing about relationships.