Leviathan
Irushed after her, heedless of what Anders or Rainier might think.
Just seeing her after weeks without her was like a cool drink of water to a hot and dry throat.
I hadn’t understood how much I’d missed her until the moment she walked in and spoke.
Just hearing her voice was enough to send my heart soaring.
Even as I ran down the steps and reached out to grab her, I tried to shove my feelings away.
“June, please,” I said, taking her arm as gently as I could and turning her to face me.
She spun, not even trying to fight me, but the look on her face broke my heart. A combination of anger, shock, and confusion. In fact, she looked mortified that I was here. Maybe some shame was seeping in? Shame for how she’d left.
She didn’t pull her arm away, and I took that as a good sign.
The heat of her skin beneath my fingers brought back memories of us, our bodies writhing together.
“Why are you here?” she hissed, dragging me from my inner thoughts.
“Don’t worry about that. Why did you leave? Can you at least tell me that?” I asked, desperate for the answer.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” she said, pulling out of grip to shove her hands into her hair, like she wanted to rip it out.
“June, please,” I begged. “You can stay here if you want. I can…I can understand that, but I have to know why you left. Why you walked out when I thought things were good. Why?”
“Naphele,” she said, raising her eyes to meet mine and letting her arms fall to her sides. “It’s Naphele.”
“I don’t understand,” I said, my brow furrowed. “We talked about this. I chose you. I let her go, I don’t—”
“You said her name in your sleep,” June snapped, her eyes shining with unshed tears. “You kept saying her name while you were dreaming. No matter what you say, she’ll always have a hold on you. Even in your subconscious.”
I felt like I’d been kicked in the chest. I’d spoken Naphele’s name in my sleep?
Fuck, I could only imagine how that had made her feel.
After everything we’d been through, after she’d confessed her fears of not living up to Naphele’s memory, after I’d given her Naphele’s necklace without telling her who it had belonged to...
I cursed and raged at myself. There was no way I could have helped it, but that didn’t make things any better.
I didn’t think I’d ever been this angry at myself. Not since Naphele died.
“Your turn,” June said, wiping at her eyes. “Why the hell are you here?”
“Mister Cross came to town to ask a favor,” Anders said from behind us. I turned to find him walking out onto the porch, followed closely by Rainier.
“A favor?” June asked, glancing from Anders to me. “What favor?”
“He came to ask if he could do a little dating around town to try and find this reincarnated mate of his,” Anders said with a shit-eating grin as he leaned against the porch rail.
I closed my eyes, wincing inwardly. It was exactly what June had been talking about. It made it seem like I was obsessed with Naphele. When I looked at her again, there was a look of understanding and hurt on her face.
Just fucking great.
“You know what,” June said, taking a step back. “I’m going to head back home.” She glanced at Anders. “Is that okay?”
“Sure thing, babe,” Anders said, and it was all I could do not to round on him.
Babe? Really?
June gave me one last disappointed look before shifting and sprinting away.
As badly as I wanted to fight or scream or yell, I’d come here for a reason.
June had left me, and from what it sounded like, I’d given her a good reason to.
I couldn’t alienate Anders, not if I wanted any chance at an alliance against the Red Maw and finding Naphele’s reincarnation in town.
With a sigh, I managed to push down all my emotions and turn back to the other alpha.
“Are we still talking,” Anders asked, lifting an eyebrow, “or are you just here to talk to my mate in private?”
There was a cocky challenge to his tone.
At any other time, I’d have taken him to task for it.
The man was barely an alpha. He was undersized, had a pathetic aura, and reminded me of kids who liked to bully others.
If you punched someone like him in the mouth, he’d cry that he was the victim.
The fact that he’d managed to take control of Idlewild surprised me, though some generations simply didn’t produce high-powered alphas.
“We can talk,” I said, and I saw Rainier’s shoulders sag with relief.
“All right, then,” Anders said. “You were saying something about this evil, all-male pack?”
I stepped up onto the porch and stood beside Rainier.
“Yeah. They’re called the Red Maw. They’ve been hiding in the forest for years.
Mostly just benign pains in the ass, but over the last couple years they’ve grown bolder, and now they’ve begun to get violent.
They killed a friend of our pack a few days ago.
I want to form an alliance with your pack, so we can defend ourselves if something worse happens. ”
“Our scouts found their tracks near Idlewild,” Rainier added. “Looks like they’ve got their eyes on you guys too.”
Anders curled his lip in disgust. “Fuckers can try,” he said, spitting on the grass. “Fuck it. Fine. Let’s do it.”
“Excuse me?” I’d assumed it would take a lot more to convince him.
“I said, I’m down,” Anders said. “Let’s partner up. Show these pricks they can’t fuck with us.”
Glancing over, I shared a look with Rainier, who looked equally perplexed.
“Besides,” Anders said with a chuckle. “Imagine how badass everyone within a hundred miles will think Idlewild is when we’ve formed an alliance with the goddamn Demon Wolf himself.”
There it was. The real reason he’d accepted so fast. My reputation over the decades had spread. All the stories were bullshit, but I didn’t give a damn if it helped me protect my people.
“Good,” I said. “And…uh, the other request?”
Anders waved toward the street and the town beyond.
“Have at it, big man. You’re free to stay in Idlewild as long as you want to find this Naphele chick.
Date around, do whatever.” He held up a finger.
“But you stay away from June. Got it? This here”—he gestured to the spot where June and I had been talking—“whatever you two might have had? Whatever bullshit that happened between you and her out in those damn woods? It was a one-time thing. She’s mine now. You dig?”
With every ounce of willpower I had, I stopped myself from gritting my teeth and plastering a smile on my face. It felt as hollow as my heart had when I’d watch her leave with this guy.
“Yeah,” I said. “I dig.”