Chapter 10 Zale
TEN
ZALE
My wolf wanted to run forever and forget about what we’d left behind.
But we’d picked up Hawthorn’s scent. He’d shifted and was coming after us. My beast said that was a good sign, him following us through the snowy woods, but I wondered if he wasn’t coming to fire my ass.
I couldn’t work with him anymore and with little other available work in Ridgedale, I’d be moving on and out of his life. That was what he wanted and I’d give him exactly that, though I needed to tell him how much he’d hurt me before I got the next bus out of town.
I’d never seen Hawthorn’s wolf but as he was an alpha, his beast was probably bigger and faster than mine. Maybe we should stop and wait for him. He could shift and give me a tongue-lashing and it’d be over.
My wolf wanted to slow down, convinced my boss regretted his outburst. And maybe he was but I wasn’t ready to forgive him, if ever.
No, I decided we have to keep going through the trees and deeper into the woods. Make him prove he could scent and track me before he said what he’d come to say.
His wolf thundered behind us. I caught a glimpse of him as my beast leaped over a stream. I was right in thinking his wolf was huge but he wasn’t powering over the snow. Nope he was letting my beast set the pace.
We darted left around a massive pine and the other wolf did the same. After sailing over fallen logs, he followed, closer than before but not overtaking me.
I experienced a snippet of the cold air that rushed past my beast but his thick fur was designed to withstand this weather.
He thrived on it and maybe if I’d shifted more often since we’d arrived in town, I wouldn’t have slept with Hawthorn or I’d have told him I wanted more than a casual relationship.
I instructed my beast to circle back to where we’d originally shifted because when I took my skin, I wanted to get dressed and not have my dick contracting in the cold while Hawthorn looked on.
He was closer now and that pull I experienced whenever he was near was stronger now we were in our fur. I couldn’t cry inside my wolf but the emotions were similar. I wanted to thump Hawthorn’s chest and tell him what an ass he was and how much I cared for him.
My beast pushed me to say it but I pretended to not know what it was, so he slowed down when we reached the clearing near where I’d disrobed. Hawthorn’s beast padded over the snow toward me. My wolf was gleeful at meeting his counterpart but I sulked, wanting nothing to do with my boss or his wolf.
The huge wolf walked up to my beast. He paused and his tail wagged. I told my wolf to ignore him but he was excited at meeting Hawthorn’s beast. The wolf came right up to us and pressed his nose against my wolf’s. But I was determined to not signal I’d forgiven him.
The wolf nuzzling and now licking us had my heart constricting. My wolf was begging me to acknowledge what he’d sensed since the moment we met but I was pouting and refusing to agree to anything.
Hawthorn’s beast pressed himself onto our side and I told my wolf to ignore it. The other wolf knocked my shoulder and we tumbled through the snow, wrestling and nipping. His teeth grazed my scruff, and my wolf twisted and got his jaws around his front leg, applying gentle pressure.
Our wolves rolled apart and faced each other, both panting clouds of steam in the cold air. He took off running again. This time I chased him through the trees as snow flew under our paws. He led us to a small stream that was half-frozen. A deer had been here recently. I could smell it.
We ran together and moved in sync without needing to communicate.
When I flushed a rabbit from the underbrush, he was already there to cut off its escape.
We didn't bother to catch it but the hunt was enough.
Working together, anticipating each other's movements just as we'd learned to move around each other in the bakery.
Our beasts paused at the base of a huge oak tree. Both of us were panting, with our tongues hanging out. For the first time in days, I felt whole.
My wolf had shown me something I'd been too scared to see. Hawthorn and I fit together and always had.
His beast did something that made my heart clench.
He lowered his head and exposed his throat.
He was submitting to me, an omega. Alphas didn't ever do that. He moved closer and his scent changed. It was still wild, but now it was laced with heat. My own scent sharpened with arousal. It wasn’t the playful energy from before. This was primal.
Instinct prodded me.
He was my mate.
This wasn’t just want or attraction. It was a bone-deep certainty that he was mine and I was his and we were meant to be together. That every moment since I'd walked into his bakery had been leading to this. My wolf had known. His wolf had too. They'd been trying to tell us all along.
Hawthorn's wolf pressed his forehead against mine. His growl vibrated through both of us. I sensed what he was feeling. Not through words but through the connection thrumming between us.
Hawthorn's wolf turned and started back the way we'd come. I followed. We moved faster now, back through the trees, retracing our path through the snow until we were close to the edge of the woods where we'd left our clothes.
My heart and my wolf’s thumped in unison as we reached the tree line. Our discarded clothing lay scattered in the snow where we'd stripped to shift.
I shifted first. The change rippled through me and suddenly I was on two legs, naked and freezing in the winter air. But I didn't care about the cold. I only cared about the man shifting in front of me.
Hawthorn’s dark hair was sprinkled with snow as his eyes locked on mine.
"Zale.”
"I lied." The words tumbled out before I could stop them. "About wanting to keep things simple. I lied because I was scared and I thought that's what you wanted."
"I lied too." His voice wavered. "I pushed you away because I was terrified of how much I wanted and needed you."
"Your wolf knew."
"So did yours."
We stood three feet apart, both of us shaking from cold, emotion or anticipation, I couldn't tell.
"They're right, aren't they?"
“Yes, we’re mates." The word felt right. "We're fated mates."
"Is that what you want?" His hands flexed at his sides. "Because once we mark each other, there's no going back. You'd be tied to me, the bakery and the town. And I know you ran from your family because they wanted you to mate someone else."
They’d insisted I mate an alpha I didn’t love but who had pots of money and an ancient pedigree. But that was the past and this was real.
I stepped closer. "I want it and you."
"You're sure?" His voice cracked. "I can't lose you after this."
"You won't." I closed the distance between us. "I'm not going anywhere. Not anymore."
"Wait. I need to apologize." He fell to his knees. "I was so scared and I hurt you."
"You did but I forgive you. But we need to be honest with one another in future." There was a lot more to say but not here and not now.
Hawthorn cupped my face with both hands. His touch was gentle despite the claws that extended from his fingertips. "I love you. I should have said it days ago instead of being a coward."
"I love you too." I never expected to say those words to him. "Mark me, please."
He pulled me close and I tilted my head, exposing my throat. Offering myself completely.
Hawthorn's mouth was hot against my neck. His tongue traced over my pulse point to my shoulder, making me shiver. The sharp edge of his wolf’s teeth grazed my skin.
"This will hurt," he warned.
"I don't care."
He bit down.
Pain lanced through me, but underneath it was pleasure and connection. He was pouring in love and need through the bite. I was his.
The mark burned as he released me. The clear imprint of his teeth marked my shoulder and it was already beginning to scar. It was permanent and forever.
"Your turn." My voice shook but my hands were steady as I reached for him.
Hawthorn bared his throat without hesitation.
My teeth lengthened. I kissed his neck once, gently, then bit down hard.
Hawthorn gasped and his hands gripped my hips, pulling me closer. I could taste him, could feel the bond snapping into place between us. Not just physical but soul-deep.
When I released him, the mark stood out stark against his skin. The bond settled over me. I could sense him now in a way I never had before. His presence was a constant warmth in my chest.
"I can feel you," Hawthorn whispered. His forehead pressed against mine.
"Me too."
We wrapped around each other, bonded and freezing and completely whole.
"We should probably get dressed," Hawthorn said after a moment. "Before we lose feeling in important body parts."
I laughed. Actual, genuine laughter that bubbled up from somewhere deep inside. "That would be unfortunate."
"Come home with me," Hawthorn said as he pulled on his coat. "Not to the lodge. Home, to our apartment."
Our apartment. Our home.
"Yes."
We walked back through the snowy woods together. The same path I'd run along in wolf form, desperate and hurting. Hawthorn's hand found mine, our fingers intertwining. I couldn’t sense everything through the bond but there was a prickling sensation that gave me a hint. He was as content as I was.
My wolf was smug about being right all along.
We emerged from the woods onto the quiet street as carol singers' voices carried on the cold air.
I'd run to this town to escape and figure out my life.
Instead, I'd found my mate.
And it was better than anything I could have imagined.