Page 39 of Witchblood

Dylan nodded. “Oh yes. The Volkov was not upset at all. More pleased than anything else. He laid out a dozen territories and let Liam choose, then sent me with him.”

“What?”

“It made sense to me at the time. Liam would become the first gay alpha. It only made sense that I be a part of his pack. He could have turned me away, spurned me for being something he hated in himself.”

“He’s not like that.” I hadn’t known him long and I knew that.

“No. Though it still took me a while to warm up to him. Since he’s not really the gay alpha.”

“Not waving the rainbow flag, you mean. Anyone looks at him and thinks straight.”

Dylan shrugged. “It’s you he wants. Gender doesn’t matter to him. I didn’t know him before all this, but now, women throw themselves at him and he’s unfazed. Men flirt, wolves sneer, yet nothing bothers him. Especially now.” He threw me a wide smile. “His ex-wife called yesterday morning. They fight all the time. We can all hear. Werewolves have good ears. It’s why she lives across the country and Korissa lives with him.”

I nodded because there was no such thing as a private conversation around most preternaturals. My hearing might not be as good, but it was better than ordinary humans.

“She goaded him. Knows how to push his buttons. Only this time it didn’t work. He couldn’t be bothered with her games because he was eager to get back to you.”

“He knows nothing about me. Just what his wolf tells him.”

“And that’s not enough?” Dylan glanced my way. “I’d kill to have a true mate. To feel a call like that and know it had just been for me.”

I looked away, out the window and into the distance, uncomfortable. “I’m not sure that’s what it was.”

“What else could it have been?”

“Desperation. My soul didn’t want to die and he was the closest alpha?”

“Not true. He ran past a half dozen alphas, including Felix that night. No one knew why until later. None of those alphas felt the call. None of them responded. Several of them called out to him as they attested the next day.” Dylan turned into the long rounded drive that made up Liam’s driveway. “And now that you’re here he’s drawn to you. Until you truly mate bond he’ll be clingy and unreasonable about your safety.”

“It can’t be undone,” I reminded Dylan. “The mate bond. If I die, he could too, and vice versa. True love, dying for each other, really is just poetry. In reality it’s very scary.”

Dylan nodded as he pulled up a few feet away from my camper. Toby was gone from the foot of the stairs so I hoped he was somewhere getting much needed food and sleep. Maybe even working out an arrangement with his wolf that would keep Liam from having to kill him.

“It’s early yet for you. Liam has had a year to accept your bond. You’ve only had a few days. Makes sense,” Dylan said. “Give it time. You look like you could use some rest and time to adjust to our pack. We’re a little different than the Volkov’s pack. Not as formal, closer knit. That’s Liam’s doing.”

“He could do better than me,” I told him as I got out of the car.

“We’ll have to agree to disagree on that one. He wants you. Think on it for a while. Ask yourself what you want. Him? Freedom? Love? Maybe you’ll surprise yourself with the answer because maybe it just doesn’t have to be that profound. Happiness is not perfection. In fact, most days I think perfection just gets in the way. It’s more about perception. Sean isn’t perfect, and neither am I, but we work. Liam is not perfect, no matter how much he might seem that way sometimes. In fact, he comes across as somewhat cold most of the time. More like a soldier than a person. I suspect he’s served in several wars, though you won’t hear him talk about it. Your presence has chiseled off the ice. Just be you. I think that might just be what you both need.”

Maybe. “Thanks for the ride.” And the stuff to think about, though I didn’t add the comment. My brain would stew on his words for a while at least. I shut the car door and headed inside. The familiar rush of the camper’s protection made my nerves ease as the wards settled around me. Dylan didn’t leave until I waved to him from the doorway. Robin sat on the middle of my bed, tail curled around him, looking less perturbed than he had the last time I’d seen him.

“Why were you messing with me today? It’s not like you to leave the camper.” He just stared at me, tail flipping nonchalantly like any content cat’s might. I didn’t bother taking off my clothes, just kicked off my shoes and plopped down on the bed beside him. I buried my hands and face in his fur. He purred. For a little while I thought about pushing for answers. Only that’s not what we needed. He needed me, and I needed him. Even if it was just for company. He snorted into my hair, and licked me for a little while. It was gross but familiar enough that I sighed happily. In that moment I knew if there had been any trouble between us, it was forgiven.

“We can be home for a while, yeah?” I asked him.

He chuffed at me.

“Liam isn’t so bad.” I rubbed the fur behind Robin’s ears, enjoying his closed eyes and obvious happiness. “You can share right? If he treats me better? If it’s just Felix all over again, then we leave. I’ll figure out how to take the camper. Even if it means stealing a truck.” It wouldn’t be the first time I’d taken something and run. I just prayed I didn’t have to.

Robin nipped my fingers. I let him go and curled around him. I fell asleep dreaming of Liam’s arms wrapped around me while I baked cookies for the entire population of four-year-olds in the state of Washington.

Chapter 18

Once again it was the silence that woke me. Living on the run had taught me a lot about noise; what to tolerate, and what was normal. People by their very nature made a lot of noise. Animals and bugs made noise. The wind made noise. The world in general was a loud place. The ability to tune out the background sound most people learned at an early age. Being homeless taught me the nuances of each noise. From a sign creaking in the wind to the blast of a car horn, to a particular owl hunting its prey. All of them spoke of life, movement, even a hint of safety. Silence meant danger.

It was dark. Robin was gone, and no sign of Liam, which made sense since I’d have to invite him in again. I hoped he was getting some sleep. He’d promised to stop by when he got home. Was he even back yet? Maybe he’d changed his mind. Either way I missed him badly.

Dylan had said to ask what I wanted. If I went with my gut, it was safety that I wanted the most. Love, lust, and the whole mate thing seemed so grand and romantic in novels, but none of it mattered when you were always running for your life. I’d been in Liam’s pack less than a week and already they’d made me feel more at home and safer, than I ever had in the Volkov’s pack. Liam’s presence? Or just the pack?