Reaching You

Chapter 22: Paige

I slowly open my eyes to see Ryder, Giana, and her mate peering down at me curiously. A middle-aged woman tuts as she pushes everyone away from me. "How are you feeling? Slightly drowsy?" She questions, gently. I nod and slowly sit up, finding myself wearing Giana's hoodie. I see Ryder reaching out to help me but he realizes and puts his hands away. My wolf whimpers at the way he hesitates to touch us. To my surprise, Giana flings herself onto me and hugs the life out of me. I cough as she squeezes the life out of me. "What the fuck were you thinking? You had all of us worried to death!" She says, her voice shaky. I pat her back and try to take a deep breath. "Look at me!" She says, pointing at her mismatched shoes. I giggled. She rolls her eyes and points at Wesley who is in his boxers. "Even Ryder has leaves and twigs in his hair." She says, softly. Ryder's cheeks turn pink as he removes them from his hair quickly. My wolf giggles at his frazzled state.

"I-Why? Ugh! What were you thinking?" She demands again, angrily. Wesley pulls her back and gives me a sympathetic smile. "I'm sorry. I just-I couldn't." I said, my throat growing dry. Ryder shakes his head. "It's my fault. I should have kept my eye on you." He says, trying to calm my cousin. She turns to him. "You were with Paige?! You let her run off?!" She exclaims, shocked. He looks at me, worried. I stifled a laugh. Just wait. I mouthed. Giana starts sniffing. "You are such an idiot! Running off like that! Imagine if you met a rogue!" She sobs. Ryder freezes, confused by my cousin's mood swings. Wesley affectionately pats her back. "You're the only family I have left!" She says, wiping her tears away. The door slams open and I am greeted by Ashley who whacks Ryder's arm hard. "How the fuck did this happen?!" She says, frustrated. Giana grins devilishly as she whispers something into Ashley's ear. She grins at my cousin's words. Wesley follows along as Giana mind links him. He clears his throat nervously.

"Giana and I want to talk to Ashley about some pack matters." He says, walking out of the room. Ashley and Giana walk out. Giana gives me the you-better-not-fuck-this-up look before leaving with Ashley. I turn to Ryder who scratches the back of his neck. "Well, that was not obvious at all." He remarks. I smiled. I look down at my hands. The air of the room was heavy. "Paige." He says, making me look into his eyes. "I'm sorry for what I put you through. I'm sorry, I fucked up bad." He states, making me surprised. It was a known fact that Ryder hardly apologizes. He takes my hand in his and says, "Please let me make up for my mistakes." My wolf yips in excitement. Silence fills the room before I speak. "What about Ashley?" I asked, scared. He shakes his head, looking amused at my question. "Paige. Paige. It was never Ashley on my mind. It was you." He explains, his grey eyes softly looking at me. "Ashley and I are friends. The Elders were pressuring me to get a mate and we decided to pretend. We were going to pretend until one of us found our mates. She and I are purely platonic." He says, making my heart sink.

I had just realized that I was simply using Ashley as an excuse. I was scared of the mate bond. I was scared of the power that he had over me. He could make my heart soar with just a look my way. He could crush it just as easily. "Paige, I know that right now. It isn't the right timing. You've been through a lot. I understand you need space." He says, calmly. I nod, tears filling my eyes. I wipe them away, embarrassed. "I just wanted you to know how I feel." He explains, his thumb rubbing soothingly against my hand. He takes a deep breath and gives me a determined look. He looks at me in my eyes. "I take back my rejection. I accept Paige Turner as my mate, my equal as my Luna." He says, his eyes turning dark. I gasped as our bond grew stronger. The sparks that I felt from my mate intensified. I pull my hand away, stunned. He smiles and gets up from his chair. "Giana is calling us for dinner." He says, gently. I look at the clock and gaped. How did the time pass? He helps me out of bed and he holds my waist as we walk down into the dining room. I see Wesley and Giana laughing at Ashley who was lying on the floor in pain.

"What the fuck?" Ryder says, taking in the scene. Ashley gasps in pain. She points at the table then at her toe. "I-I jammed my toe against the corner of the table." She says, weakly. I shoot her a sympathetic smile. That was a pain I could relate to. Wesley pulls Ryder aside to complain about Alpha's work and Giana is busy preparing the meal. Ashley pulls me aside. "Luna. I'm sorry. I didn't know that you had the wrong idea. Ryder and I are friends." She says, seriously. I shake my head. It was not her fault. "Please call me, Paige. I just jumped to my own conclusions." I said, giving her a smile. She sighs dramatically. "Please take care of Ryder. He is just a fucking idiot but he really cares about you." She says, softly. She looks like she wants to say more but she holds back. Giana calls us to the table and we all take a seat. She passes plates and I sit across from Ryder.

Despite the support in the room, I knew that I couldn't risk it. I was scared. In my heart, I had already made my firm decision.