100. Summer
Chapter One Hundred
Summer
I manage to get through my last class, but instead of going home, I go straight to the forest. I pace in our clearing, trying to work out how to tell him. How could I have let this happen?
The magic shifts a few hours later, but I’m so lost in thought that I barely notice. The meadow is now shrouded in darkness, and the flowers have closed their petals for the night.
“Princess.”
I gasp and jump in surprise, spinning to face his large form looming at the mouth of the clearing.
“Did you not feel me arrive?” he asks, cocking his head.
“I . . . Fuck.”
Words, Summer, use them now.
He moves in closer and tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear, obviously feeling my anxiety.
“How are you?” I manage to spit out, but my voice is tight with tension.
“Interesting greeting,” he says, lifting an eyebrow.
I feel heat creeping up my cheeks, and I look away, but he pinches my chin and forces my eyes to meet his. Nervous energy dances through me, and I feel it fluttering wildly beneath my skin.
His fingers tighten on my chin, and I can feel his unease. “What’s happened?” he asks, cold danger frosting his voice.
“We’re friends, right?” I ask, barely breathing.
“Friends,” he grates out, the intensity around him swelling .
“Right.” I take a steadying breath. “Well, something happened, and I?.?.?.” Fuck. “I need you to stay calm.”
His fingers tighten more on my chin, and it’s borderline painful. “What. Happened?” he asks, his words short and clipped.
I swallow down the bundle of nerves lodged in my throat. “Max. Well, he?.?.?. We?.?.?.” Fuck, fuck, fuck.
His other hand wraps around my arm, and he grips tight, pulling me against him. His rising fury lashes at my skin, making me tremble. “You what?” he asks through gritted teeth.
“He kissed me,” I say, my words barely a whisper.
His hand tightens around my arm, the bone aching. He’s going to break it. “You?.?.?. kissed?” he asks, the venom in his voice sending terror through me, the pain of his grip splintering down my arm.
I whimper. “Stranger . . . I didn’t?—”
His snarl silences me. “You asked me to wait. You said you would too. You?.?.?.” His chest heaves. “ Lied .”
I shake my head, a warm tear tracking down my cheek. “No I didn’t. I didn’t kiss?—”
He yanks me against him, releasing my chin to grab my throat, his fingers digging in and starving me of oxygen. He’s going to kill me.
“I granted you patience, and you know how impossible it was for me to offer,” he snarls. “And still, I clearly mean nothing to you. Your words mean nothing,” he says, and suddenly, the pain in my arm, around my throat, is nothing compared to his pain.
“Stranger, please . . . You’re hurting me . . .” I croak out, spots sparkling in my vision.
He stares down at me, panting. His fingers flex a little before he suddenly releases me. My knees hit the ground hard, tears blurring my vision. I gulp at the air, choking on my sobs.
“I’m sorry?—”
His cruel scoff cuts off my apology. “Why bother giving me your word? Why bother asking me to wait?”
I reach for him, wanting to beg him to listen to me, but he’s already gone, and I am alone in the forest again.
A fork of lightning splits the sky, turning night to day for a split second.
Thunder rocks the ground, the trees shivering in response as the heavens open and rain lashes down on me.
My arm throbs, my throat feels hot and swollen, and I know I’m going to be bruised from his hand.
From his grip. From his words. From his hatred.
I struggle to my feet, tears running down my cheeks to mingle with the rain. My steps are unsteady as I start toward the house and the safety of my family. My heart feels like it has been ripped from my chest, and I don’t even know if I deserved it.
I didn’t kiss Max back. I didn’t kiss him back, but if the situation were reversed, and he told me someone kissed him?.?.?. My darkness stirs, rising threateningly at just the thought.
A loud howl has my head snapping up, and I look around, noticing the dark blurs moving through the forest. Reflexively, I look up, watching as the clouds roil and split, exposing the horrifying truth that tonight is a full moon.
This is the night the shifters own the forest, and I should not be here.
A menacing snarl pushes me into a run as the forest vibrates with life, with danger, and it’s completely different from the threat the stranger poses.
I bolt through the trees, realizing when I hear the snap of brush and sticks beneath heavy paws that I am completely surrounded.
The stranger must not be watching. If he were, I know he would be here with me.
He would protect me, wouldn’t he? But I might be as good as dead to him already.
A fresh spike of fear pierces me as I hear someone rushing toward me, but they are not the heavy pads of an animal. When I turn to face this new threat, I see Leo running toward me, ducking between the trees. Barely slowing, he grabs me, forcing me into a run again.
“Leo?” I ask breathlessly.
He doesn’t answer me, gliding through the forest so fast that I have to lean into my fae powers to keep up with him. I glance over my shoulder and see the flash of a red mane, only then realizing that he is running from his own pack.
Leo picks up his speed, urging me to go faster.
He skids to a stop a few steps past a cave and backtracks to pull me into it.
A visceral terror nearly freezes my muscles.
While I’m almost certain this is not the cave where I was held captive, it’s similar enough that my body is rebelling against the memory. The smell, the feel of damp.
A roar echoes off the stone as the pack runs past the mouth of the cave, the sound reverberating through every crevice it can reach.
Leo pants, both of us pressed against the craggy rock walls.
When he’s sure they’ve passed, he turns a glare on me.
“Why are you in shifter territory during a full moon? A full orange moon no less?” he whisper-shouts, his tone harsh.
“I-I didn’t realize.”
Leo gives me an incredulous look. “You’re one of the top students at -Avalon,” he says, glancing cautiously at the mouth of the cave again.
“I was distracted.”
Leo gives me a dark look, and despite his slim, barely muscled form, he’s never looked more grown-up. “It should be safe in a moment. You need to get out of the forest. As soon as they’ve lost your scent, they’ll lose interest.”
“What about you?”
Leo looks away and checks outside again. “Let’s go.”
“Come with me. You can stay with us,” I say, taking his hand.
He glances at me over his shoulder. “It won’t work for me.
I go through this every month.” Leo starts to run, pulling me along behind him again as we move into a sprint.
We run hard for a solid five minutes before he slows to a stop.
“Okay, here. Go right and run to the tree line and don’t look back,” he commands, his tone all alpha.
“Leo . . .”
“Go,” he snarls, the still dormant lion within him taking over his voice.
“Shit,” I curse, but follow his instructions. I leave the forest, but unfortunately, I can’t leave my broken heart behind in it.