Lucas watched his mate process the floodgate he'd opened on her. To her credit, she didn't collapse from the tidal wave of emotions that had been released when he removed her pendant. He was actually pleased by the magnitude of feelings the pendant had been repressing.
She tore her gaze away from his and focused on his pendant. Resting against his sternum, it hung above eye level for her.
"So..." She drew a deep breath. "You've known this whole time?"
"Yes," he answered. "I could tell you weren't ready, and I didn't want to pressure you."
She lifted a hand and touched a fingertip to his pendant. "And this?"
"It has your scent on it," he explained. "Like you, wearing this helped me stay calm. It stopped me from actively pursuing you."
Her gaze returned to his. "How did you get my scent on it? We've never talked before."
"Your parents gave me something of yours. I was able to—"
"My parents know about us?" she gasped. "Since when?"
He stepped a little closer and cupped her face in his hands. Delicious sparks skittered through his veins. "I talked to them before we left that day. They agreed that a mate pendant was far better than most alternatives."
Her eyes widened. "A mate pendant?"
"Our wolves have been bonding without us. The pendants made a sort of block between us and our wolves, but allowing our wolves to connect."
She closed her eyes. "This is a lot."
He rubbed his thumbs on her cheeks and sighed. "I know. I understand if you need to take some time."
His heart jumped as she opened her eyes again. "Where do we go from here? What comes next?"
Maybe she didn't need time...
"Well," he drawled, "preferably you move in with me. We mark and mate each other... figure out what we want to do."
She blinked at that. "We just started talking to each other, and now I'm supposed to move in with you? Why would I do that?"
He didn't need a direct invitation. He ducked his head and captured her mouth with his. She hesitated only briefly before melting into him. He curled one hand around the back of her neck and wrapped his other arm around her waist. She whimpered and let him pry her lips apart.
He hungrily kissed her for a good few minutes before letting her up for air. Her glazed eyes and swollen lips told him that she didn't have any more objections.
"Why now?" she whispered. "Why did you come to me now?"
He smiled and rubbed his thumb on her neck. He must have been close to where he'd mark her because she quivered at the touch.
"You walked into my birthday ball, remember? But on top of that, I couldn't have you running off to college. It was just the best time."
She pouted for a second. "What if I want to go to college?"
He planted a gentle but deep kiss on her mouth before asking, "Do you?"
Her gaze flickered from his eyes to his mouth and back again. He knew that their wolves were too bonded to bear the separation. After battling with herself for a minute, she slowly shook her head.
"No. I don't want to leave you."