Chapter 2 #2
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “You can’t just show up now and expect me to—”
“I don’t expect anything,” he said, his voice low. “I needed to see you. I couldn’t be so close to you and not—” He shook his head. “Don’t tell me you felt nothing. I know I shouldn’t have kissed you. But you kissed me back. I didn’t imagine that.”
Yeah, because clearly I’d lost my mind. I glared at him, ready to launch into another tirade, but he shut me up with one single word.
“Theodora.”
Fury rolled through me in a hot, dizzying wave. I closed my eyes and breathed through it. “I told you not to call me that.”
“You used to love it,” he said.
I opened my eyes and stared at him. “A lot has changed.”
“I can see that.”
The softness in his voice, like he still cared, made my stomach churn. I released a long breath, trying to steady my pulse and stay calm. Werewolves tended to lose control when overwhelmed, and I was getting dangerously close. Shifting didn’t bother me, but losing control did.
“What exactly do you want from me, Calder? Because if you’re here to pick up where we left off, let me save you the trouble. I’m not interested.”
He uncrossed his legs and straightened. “I’m not here to pick up where we left off,” he said carefully. “I just thought…” He broke off with a sigh.
“What? You just thought you’d waltz back into town and I’d be grateful? Fall back into your arms because you finally decided to come back?”
“No, of course not,” he said, his voice growing rough.
“You’re not supposed to do anything.” He raked his hands through his hair and blew out a breath.
“There are things I want to say and can’t.
Things I should have said five years ago.
But I came back because… gods, Thorne, I missed you. More than I can explain.”
The sight of him so troubled threw me. Part of me wanted to reach for him. Damn him for still being able to do that to me.
I tipped my chin up, determined not to let him see how much he was getting to me. “Yeah, I missed you too. But you know what? I learned to survive without you.”
A muscle twitched in his jaw. “I came to try to fix things.”
“How?” I demanded, anger deepening my tone. “You abandoned me. Walked away from everyone who cared about you. How do you think you can fix that?”
He flinched but didn’t back down. “I made a choice.”
“Yeah, you did. And it was a really bad one!” I threw my hands in the air, rage finally ripping free as everything I’d imagined saying to him since the day he left came pouring out. “You left me, Calder, five fucking years ago! You abandoned me!”
My heart ached and my breath came too fast.
“I didn’t know if you were dead or alive! I had no idea where you were! If you were okay. If you were safe.” I let out a harsh, angry sound. “And now you just come stumbling back into my life like none of that matters?”
I clenched my fists, and a short, furious cry tore free of my throat. The heat inside me spiked to a dangerous level.
“You texted me tonight,” I snarled. “I didn’t give you my number.”
My gaze shot to him and I watched the blood drain from his face.
“Yeah,” I said, my voice low and vicious, “I made that connection. You’ve had my number this entire time, even though you changed yours.
” My wolf snarled, the sound loud and savage in my head.
“Which means you could have called me at any time. You just chose not to reach out. You chose to disappear. You chose to forget about me. Well, you can just keep moving on, because this time—this time—I’m the one moving on without you. ”
That was the moment my control broke, and the sudden, irresistible urge to shift swept over me. My wolf wanted out, if only to bite Calder on the ass. He deserved it more than anyone I knew, but I really wasn’t in the mood to brush flesh and blood off my fangs tonight.
“Theodora,” Calder whispered.
That sent me over the edge. Like a cracked dam, all my rage came flooding out. My wolf shoved against my skin, desperate to break free. I took a step back, dragging in a shaky breath. My heart pounded so hard I could feel it in my throat.
It was too hot. And my control was slipping. If I didn’t cool myself off, calm myself down, I’d shift right here and now. If that happened, I wouldn’t be able to control her.
I yanked my sweater off over my head in one quick motion, desperate to cool down. But as the fabric cleared my shoulders, cool air hit my bare stomach, and I realized my mistake. My tank top must have ridden up too, exposing the words Trystan had carved into my side: YOU’RE STILL MINE.
I yanked it down fast, my pulse thundering for an entirely different reason now.
I didn’t have to look at Calder to know he’d seen the scars. His pulse had quickened, and the room had gone deathly silent.
Well, fuck.
Slowly, I lifted my gaze to find Calder standing in the middle of the room, his eyes burning with pure fury.
“What the hell was that?” he demanded.
I swallowed. “Nothing.”
“Theodora,” he growled.
His pupils dilated, and his own wolf surged forward as his eyes ignited into pure gold.
“Don’t you growl at me!” I shouted, my control fraying. Panic shot up my throat, bitter and acrid.
Tears pricked my eyes, and I spun away before he could see.
“You… you left,” I said, my back to him. “You don’t get to march in here and pretend you want to fix things. You haven’t been here. You weren’t here…” When it happened.
A sound—raw and ugly—tore loose from my chest before I could stop it. I pressed a shaking hand over my mouth, fighting to pull myself back from the edge. Fuck, not another panic attack! Not in front of him. Please, please, please…
“You weren’t here,” I repeated.
I dragged in a ragged breath and forced myself to stand straight, even as my whole body trembled.
“And I want you to leave now,” I said, my voice thin but steady. “Please.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” he snapped. “Not until you tell me what the fuck happened to you.”
I whirled around, tears blurring my vision.
“Go!” I screamed. “Get out!”
Calder’s jaw tightened, but finally, he dragged in his own deep breath. What a pair we made. When he released it, the gold drained from his eyes, leaving only the familiar green.
“Fine, I’ll go.” He took a step toward me. “But this isn’t over, Thorne.”
His hand lifted, hesitated in the air between us, then settled lightly against my head. He leaned down and pressed a soft, lingering kiss against my brow.
My throat tightened, but I didn’t say a word.
When he straightened, his face was carefully blank, but I saw how tightly he was controlling himself. Without another word, he turned and walked out the door.
Just like he had five years ago.