Play the song towards the end of the chapter, I think it goes well with the chapter. Enjoy my lovelies!!
P.S. I lovessss me some votes ;)!
•••
"I'm not wearing this to the conference!"
Rayne insisted that he should choose my outfit for the conference, and it was literally the most constricting, mismatched thing in the universe. A doodoo brown turtleneck sweater, slacks, and a pair of nurse shoes to complete this sad look. Where'd he even get these clothes?!
He on the other hand, was dying of laughter on his knees in the middle of the room while I stood in front of the mirror in undiluted horror. He purposely made me look like a hot mess because...why? After I gave him the goodies this morning, I have to say I am offended.
"This is, the hottest, I've ever seen you look!!" He said in between laughs. I rolled my eyes and started to strip off my clothes, throwing them at him as I looked in the closet for a professional outfit.
"Haha, laugh it up now. You won't be laughing when I leave you with blue balls for the remainder of the trip."
And then there was silence. 1 for me, 0 for him.
"That's so cruel..." He squinted his eyes and shook his head, making me giggle.
"That horrible attempt at covering me up was cruel. Now stop complaining and get dressed!" He sighed and bowed his head.
"Yes mother." I shook my head as I laughed, earning a kiss on my cheek as he picked his clothes out from the closet opposite me. Oh no you don't.
"Put those back, I'm choosing your outfit and I'll actually make you look good." He opened his mouth to protest but I cut in by grabbing his crotch.
"Blue balls..." I warned and he stepped aside within a matter of seconds.
"Well then, make me look sexy." He nervously chuckled, making me cross my arms in triumph.
2 for me, 0 for Rayne.
•••
R.
"Come on, we're going to be late!" Ash called out from the hallway. I looked between her and my phone which was ringing off the charts.
Marcus Black is calling.
I had to take this call especially since I haven't heard from him since that night. I've tried out to him, my parents and no one is answering. It frustrated and angered me to the point where I was slowly starting to shut Ashlyn out again. I'm trying my best not to, for we had just mated the night before. I didn't think a connection so strong and solely mine could exist, all until last night. She was officially a part of my soul, and having such a sense of completion and wholeness made my heart beat with glee, but wrench at the thought of losing her.
God forbid anything horrible should happen to her, but I'd go crazy without her. I loved this woman with such a reckless abandon that if she dies, I'll ultimately die too. No one will understand how much I need her by my side.
"Wait for me by the elevator, I'll be right there." She gave me a thumbs up and resumed playing Bejeweled on her phone. I finally answered the call, moving away from the room door.
"How's my little girl?" He said with stress evident in his tone.
"Safe. Why on earth haven't you reached out to me? Keeping this secret of yours almost ruined our relationship-"
"You two are in danger, Ashlyn especially." Those words made me tighten my grip on my cellphone, to the point where I felt it crunch beneath my fingers.
"Apparently, Christian has amazing technical skills and has been been tapping into our telecommunications system. I haven't been able to contact you until the issue was fixed. I have reason to believe he's been doing this since he failed to kidnap her."
"He's tracking her moves isn't he." I said coldly, feeling rage simmer within me. Don't lash out. Don't lash out.
"Apparently so. He was the one in charge of bringing her to Jason and knowing him, he won't stop until his task is complete-"
"Why the fúck does he want her! She's mine goddamn it!" So much for not lashing out, I thought. I couldn't help it though. Task, she's in danger, I just need to know what to do so I can protect her. He sighed and paused for a long moment before he told me.
"Her blood. He wants her blood." I narrowed my eyes in confusion, her blood? Why on Earth would he kidnap her just for her blood?
"We aren't sure why, but we've speculated that there's something more mystical behind this. We found out that Jason has been contacting geneticists from his area who specialize in lycanthropy." He continued. I just stood there in silence, trying to process the new information. Everytime I tried to wrap my mind around it, I came to a dead end. All I could ask myself was why my Mate. Negative feelings swam within my conscious, maybe Blair was right.
No, not a damn chance that bítch was right.
Everything she had said to me was from a place of jealously, misplaced feelings, and spite.
"What should I do? I'll do anything." I brought my voice to a whisper as I cracked the door open a little to check on Ashlyn. She was currently laying down on the lounge chair opposite the elevator, one smooth leg over the other. She looked effortlessly beautiful and I almost lost my breath for a second when she stretched, her dress hitching up in the process. Focus! Can't afford to get a hard on right now.
"The conference should be starting in 30 minutes. Go there and do what a future Alpha is supposed to do. Protect the ones he loves, even if it costs him his life."
"Dad?" I said, as Marcus' voice was nowhere to be heard.
"Yes it's me. The call is on speakerphone. As I was saying," I smiled to myself a little, although it felt strained.
"Do your duty. As for Ashlyn, she's your mate and you know what you must do. You have to tell her because knowing you, I know you haven't said a word to her about it yet. Not telling her endangers her even more."
"How? Dad, if I tell her I'll feel like I'm failing her as a mate if I can't protect her!"
"Just tell her son, explain everything and leave nothing out. She's a strong girl, you must've forgotten that she fought for her life that night?"
"I'm-"
"An asshole for keeping such a huge secret from me." Ashlyn cut in. I had completely forgotten about her heighened senses as she stopped in her tracks several few away from me. I hung up the phone and focused my attention on her. Crap.
"Ash-"
"We have less than 15 minutes to get to this conference, now let's go." I stood still, watching her incredulously. I was expecting her to lash out at me but instead, she brushed it off with that fact that we had a duty to perform. I didn't like it one bit. I wanted her to yell, kick or scream at me because I deserved it. I'd been selfish, overloaded with pride, and in bittersweet denial over the whole situation.
Walking over to the elevator, she pressed the button and put one foot in before turning to look at me with a blank expression. Beyond that blank mask, I could feel and see her confusion, hurt, and fear all at once. If I would've manned up and told her before, this all could've been avoided. Dumbass, my Wolf spat out.
"Are you coming or not." She stepped inside the elevator, and I followed soon after. Once the doors closed, she moved over to the farthest side of the elevator so that now we were across from each other. I felt pangs of pain in my chest and I looked down at the ground as we rode down 15 floors in utter and complete, silence.
•••
I can't believe Rayne would keep such a huge secret like that from me. Jason AND his Beta are after me and I had no clue. I get it if he was trying to protect me but I just don't get how after everything with the Blair drama, mating AND a promise ring, I thought that we'd grown close enough not to keep any secrets from each other. I guess not. We sat far apart, I made sure of that. I was so upset that I couldn't even bear his touch, not until I get my head back on straight. I absent mindedly fidgeted with my ring as I watched the city grow faint.
The car ride was silent, but my head spun as what I had just found out replayed in my head. Fear made my breaths short and labored as they left me in shallow puffs, hurt and dishonesty wrenched my heart, as confusion made it hard for me to accept what was going on.
Jason would never leave me alone would he?
It's like the first night when he had detected a trace of my scent. It's like he's forever engrained that scent into his mind, obssessed with catching his prey. I suddenly felt very sick. The fact that the car was speeding wasn't helping me at all so I clutched my stomach and I opened a window for some fresh air. He'll never leave you alone. Ever.
"Stop the car!" I called out as bile rose up my throat. The driver pulled and stopped off the road and I jumped out of the car, bending over as the bile spilled out onto the grass. Once I was done, I took a deep breath of air. I felt hands in my hair and I straightened up.
"I-I was holding your hair back for you. What's wrong?" I looked into those panicked hazel eyes and then at the ground again.
"I got sick, thinking about everything. Jason, you not being honest with me, it's just too much." A guard exited the car with tissues and a water bottle in hand. Thanking him, I wiped the wetness away from my mouth and took a sip of water.
"Ash, I'll tell you everything just look at me." He pleaded, but my stubbornness won.
"We're going to be late." I responded, pushing past him to get in my seat. He went over to his side and closed the door with unnecessary force. Reaching into my purse for breathmints, I popped them into my mouth and appreciated the cool, icy chill of the peppermint. I glanced over at him and saw that he was running his fingers through his hair, messing it up. Instead of looking professional, he looked like he just rolled out of bed. I sighed and scooted over to him.
"You're ruining your hair. We need to look professional." I reached into my bag for some gel and a fine toothed comb. I easily fixed and styled his messy locks into a sleek, side parted hair do that multipled his sex appeal by 1,000. He didn't help my conflicting feelings as he stared at me the whole time, placing his hands on my hips to steady me as the car hit a few bumps in the road.
"Voila." I said as I applied the finishing touches and loving the outcome. Your girl always comes prepared...but I'm still mad at him though.
"Thank you baby girl." Baby girl. Why'd he have to call me that when I'm upset with him?! I nodded and slid back over to my seat.
"Can we talk about this?" He asked, desperately. I continued to fidget with my ring for a few moments before answering.
"We will but not now." He nodded and exhaled long, and slow before speaking again.
"Alright. Can I ask you something?" I nodded.
"Can you let me hold your hand? After everything, we both need a soothing touch." I contemplated his words. I inwardly smiled at how affectionate he was, especially towards me. That's how it's post to be-wait a darn minute! He needs to know that what he did wasn't okay by any means, but I really did need a soothing touch, the kind only my Mate could provide me. What to do, what to do...
"You can hold my finger. I'm still mad at you, you know." He pursed his lips and I supressed the urge to laugh.
"Fair enough." I stuck out my left index finger but instead he took my hand and kissed the ring. My heart warmed and I bit my lip as I watched his kiss the back of my hand. Stop, you're angry! Be angry!
"Finger not my whole hand!" I snatched my hand away and held it up.
"Okay, sorry. I got carried away." I made a hmph noise and stuck out my finger again, which he took gently this time.
Moments later, I felt calmer and pretty good. I knew that this was only temporary as I know that when we got back to the hotel after the conference, there would be immediate confrontation.
Before we knew it, we stopped outside of Alpha Layton's grand estate. Memories of what happened here quickly flashed within my mind. Blair and the almost catfight and mostly importantly, Rayne told me that he loved me for the first time. I looked at how his large hand encapsulated my narrow finger. Taking a deep breath, I interlaced my fingers with his. Glancing at our hands then me, he smiled and tightened his grip.
"We need to be in this together, no matter what." One of our guards, opened the car door on my side.
"The conference starts in 2."
Someone roll out the red carpet!