Kit’s POV
It takes everything in me not to bang my head against the window that my forehead is leaning against in the front seat of the luxury SUV that I have spent the last four miserable hours inside of. Four, painfully awkward hours of Cami and Jody groping each other in the backseat, making gross wet noises while sucking faces.
Not helped by Colin, every once in a while, trying to initiate conversation to distract us from the make out session behind us.
Unsuccessfully, I might add.
Because I have nothing to talk to Colin Anderson about.
I have nothing that I want to talk about with anyone from the stupid High Peaks pack.
Damn them all.
Scrunching up my nose, I resist the urge to cover my ears as I hear Jody murmur, “you’re so hot”, to my sister for the millionth time.
This is hell.
“Oh, thank god, we’re here.”
Colin looks as relieved as I feel as he pulls into a long, circular driveway in front of the same packhouse that I used to spend hours a day cleaning.
Fuck. Am I going to have to clean it again?
Surely not?
With my sister being the Beta’s mate, won’t that be enough to earn my keep?
Not that I plan on staying here.
Especially not in the same house as…well…that one guy who I don’t even want to think his name.
“Get out of the damn car, you two! Go get a room already.”
Colin waves his arms at the two of them to exit and they untangle themselves from each other long enough to scoot out, then instantly reattach to each other.
Shaking my head, I shut the passenger door and lean my back against it to steady myself.
His scent is everywhere.
It’s strong.
And it still has the same stupid effect on me.
“Kit, are you okay?”
Cami turns her head against Jody’s chest to look at me, her eyes out of focus as his hands roam over her back, cupping her bottom as he nibbles on her ear.
“Fan-fucking-tastic.”
“Mmm…good.”
She closes her eyes and Jody literally sweeps her off her feet and practically runs with her in his arms inside of the house.
Don’t worry about me! I’m totally good.
Sighing, I catch Colin’s eye.
He makes an exaggerated grossed out face in the direction that Cami and Jody went, and I give a weak, reluctant laugh.
“Weird seeing him like that. He’s usually really reserved.”
“Yeah, Cami’s never been one for PDA either.”
“Apparently that’s what the mate bond does to you, I wouldn’t know.”
He shrugs, then makes a horrified face.
“Oh shit! I’m sorry…”
“It’s fine.”
I push off the car and wrap my arms around myself.
The only thing worse than getting rejected, is everyone pitying me over it.
Well…maybe that’s not so much worse, just a really, really sucky bonus.
Tucking my loose hairs behind my ears, I lift my shoulders.
“Now what?”
“Um…let me show you to your room.”
Colin points at the pack house, but I shake my head.
“Yeah, I’m not staying in there.”
Colin frowns.
“But Alpha Tate…”
A shiver runs down my spine.
“I mean…don’t you want to be with your sister?”
“Uh, yeah, sure. Because she’ll be in a room with me.”
Colin picks up on my sarcasm and scratches his neck.
“Well, the problem is, that we really don’t have an extra space for you anywhere else. We’re expanding, but the only place where you could have your own space would be in the packhouse. For now, anyway.”
I turn in a circle, as if trying to find some random bed that I can point to and claim as mine.
“Is there a nearby hotel?”
Colin grins and shakes his head.
“Nah. I think you just have to stay here. Don’t worry. It’ll be fine. It’s a nice place and you’ll have a big room in the Beta wing.”
“I’m familiar with the place.”
I mumble as I begrudgingly follow Colin up the front porch steps. Noticing as I do that the handrails look freshly painted.
Colin notices me looking at it.
“We’ve been doing some renovations since Alpha Tate took over and our pack expanded. How long has it been since you left?”
“Seven years.”
“A lot has changed since then.”
I make a non-committal grunt at this.
Colin steps in front of me, his hand on the doorknob.
“It’s true. For one, I’m not as big of an obnoxious asshole as I was in high school.”
I can’t resist grinning guiltily at this.
“Yeah, I know that’s what you’ve been thinking. You wouldn’t be the first person to have called me out for it.”
He winks and pushes the door open.
When I step through, my hands fall to my side as I look around.
It doesn’t even look like the same place.
“Like I said, we have done a lot of renovations. You couldn’t tell from the front, but we even expanded the back out quite a bit.”
Colin gestures in front of him and I look in the direction of the long hallway in front of us.
“Nice.”
“I even stay in here now. I became a healer like my dad.”
I nod.
Of course, he did.
“Since we renovated, the Beta Hall is on the second floor now.”
The moment my foot lands on the bottom stair, a wave of nausea almost makes me fall over.
His scent is so heavy right now.
As if he was just here.
Colin stops on the stairs above me and looks at me in concern.
“You alright down there?”
I nod and clutch my stomach, still feeling sick.
Colin hurries back down the stairs and reaches out his hand, hesitating slightly, moving his hand up and down as if uncertain where to put it, before wrapping it decisively around my elbow.
“Come on. I think I know what’s happening to you. Once you get to your room, it won’t be so bad. He never goes down that hall.”
Giving him a tight smile of appreciation, I let him help me up the stairs and we turn left, the painful scent fading the further we move down the hallway.
“See. Better?”
I nod as I remove my arm from around my stomach, his own hand dropping from my elbow as I do.
Feeling embarrassed, I tuck my hair behind my ears again and look around before continuing down the hall.
“This looks great. Like what they’ve done with the place.”
Colin follows my gaze.
“Yeah. It was Sarah’s doing. She really took to interior design.”
My step falters and I massage my suddenly thick throat at the mention of her name.
Sarah.
The other name I never want to say, hear, or even think.
The blonde who Tate picked over me, his own mate.
Colin looks guilty again.
“Oh, fuck. Sorry…I keep putting my foot in my mouth.”
“It’s fine. Seriously. No worries.”
Colin looks unsure as he leans against a door.
“Still…sorry. Anyway, here’s your room.”
He pats the door behind him and steps aside.
“I’ll give you some space. Um, you got a phone on you?”
I eye him suspiciously.
“Yes…”
He grins.
“I was going to put my number in there in case you needed anything. Or you know, didn’t want to be alone.”
Raising my eyebrows at him, I still feel suspicious as I pull my phone out of the front pocket of my old, frayed jean shorts and hand it to him.
He puts his number in it, and hands it back to me.
“I texted myself so I would have yours as well.”
“Okay.”
I take it back and pull it close, not sure what to say.
“Someone should have your stuff here by tonight. In the meantime, someone has already stocked your room with some essentials. Training is twice a day-”
“Wait. Training? I’m not staying. So, I don’t think I should be a part of training.”
And I haven’t trained in seven years.
I mean, Cami dragged me to all her stupid kick-boxing classes, spin, and pilates to keep in shape after we left, but there is no way I am up to the werewolf training standard.
And I am not about to embarrass myself in front of all these people who watched me get rejected by their Alpha in such a painful public fashion.
“Oh. Well. Okay. I will…let Alpha Tate know. Normally Jody would deal with that, but he’s going to be pretty distracted for a while, I’m thinking.”
He grins and I force a half grin back, eager to get inside my room and be alone.
“Great. Thanks, Colin.”
I reach for the doorknob and start to push the door open.
“Oh, one more thing that you might want to know.”
I look over at Colin who is wearing this forced casual expression.
“Sarah left. A year ago. Mated with a human, an accountant I think, and moved to the city with him.”
With that information bomb, Colin lifts his hand in a wave before putting it in his jeans pocket and striding down the hall while I stare at his back, an odd numbness creeping over me.
Kit’s POV I should move. Right? Or maybe not. Maybe I should just stay right here and never move again. It feels weird to be lying on this plush, over-sized bed that is apparently mine for the unforeseeable future. Inside the very packhouse that I used to scrub the toilets of. Which would have been cool. Would have been a dream come true for me...seven years ago. But now…now as I lay here staring at the revolving ceiling fan above me, all I want is to get the hell out of here. To be magically transported back to my twin-sized bed in my tiny studio apartment. Away from the humiliation of my past. For crying out loud, I am living under the same roof as the man who fate literally wanted me to be with, was destined to be with, was made to be the other half of me, but he rejected me. He didn’t want me. Didn’t think that I was good enough for him. And now he’s single again. Actually, Colin didn’t say that Tate was single, just that Sarah was gone. But with Sarah gone… Oh, fuc
Alpha Tate’s POVLowering my eyes to look at Colin, who looks utterly bemused as he pulls his eyes away from the balcony, I give him a pointed look, then walk past him towards the packhouse.I don’t care what he says about her, she is strange, and always was strange.And there is no way that she turned hot in the seven years since I last saw her. I don’t believe him.She was frumpy. Pale. Greasy hair. Always scowling and looking miserable.I don’t need a frumpy, depressed mate.And I don’t need some freak who rolls around on the balcony…My lips twitch upward at the memory of her feet, toes pointed upward, rolling away, like being rolled up in a carpet.So freaking weird.Even if she does have that amazing scent…I rejected her.But she didn’t reject you.Minor detail.I can easily rectify that whenever I want.I’m an Alpha. I need to be with someone like Sarah…Damn it.The memory makes my hands curl into fists at my side.How could she leave me for a freaking human after I rejected m
Kit’s POVWhere did these clothes come from?Like, whose job is it to run to the mall and pick out clothes for random people?Shuffling through the closet full of brand-new, expensive clothes, tags still on, I can’t help but be impressed.These are so much better than my clothes.They can just throw my stuff in the dumpster after I’ve seen these.Smiling, I pull out a simple black sundress.Not sure there is a reason to dress up, but might as well, right?I’m pulling the straps over my shoulder when there is a knock on the door.I’m halfway across the room to answer it when I notice the towel still wrapped around my head.Yanking it off, I run my fingers through it as I pull open the door.“Hey.”“Hey, Colin.”Colin’s eyes dart down to take in my dress.“That looks nice.”“Thanks.”Still running my fingers through my damp hair, I step further into the room, he follows, closing the door behind him.“So…”I grin and shrug.“Yeah.”He returns the grin.“At least it was entertaining.”I l
Alpha Tate’s POVWatching Colin kissing her from the window of my office, I go through an assortment of emotions.Pushing the anger and resentment aside, I try to feel happy for him.He needs some action.I don’t care if it’s with her.Good for him.I try to turn away, but instead, I step closer to the window, my face nearly pressed against the glass as I try to see what she looks like, but Colin is blocking her from view.The only reason that I know it is her in the first place is because of her scent.It almost smells different though…almost…lighter. Oddly enough, happier.Is this because of Colin?He deepens the kiss, pulling her against his body.Fuck!My fist pounds the wall by the window without me realizing and I extract it from the large hole it created, glancing at the figures on the lawn to see if they heard the noise.Apparently, they didn’t.Maybe I need to get laid.There hasn’t been anyone since Sarah…and even when she was here…Sighing, I rub my forehead.Even when she
Alpha Tate’s POVSlamming my bedroom door shut, I slap my palm against it and hang my head.What was that?What the hell was that?I rejected her.I shouldn’t be feeling this way about her.She shouldn’t be so…so beautiful. Sexy. Soft. Enticing.So fucking desirable.Clutching my hand into a fist, I pound the door with it and push off it.Now that I know what her lips taste like, how her touch sets me on fire, I can’t not be with her again.We didn’t even fully explore each other yet.No.I will have her again.But once I have my fun, I will let her reject me back.Even if she is hot now, she still abandoned the pack all those years ago.She abandoned me.She’s too weak to be a Luna.A true Luna would have stayed, even with my rejection.She would have stayed for the pack.My stomach clenches as I remember that day, how hard I worked to hold in the pain from doing the unnatural act of rejecting my mate.How Sarah’s gentle strokes did nothing to soothe me.How my body had ached to go t
Alpha Tate’s POVFeeling smug, I grip my hair as I hurry down the main staircase.It’s nice to know that I can make Kit desire me, to throw herself at me.What isn’t nice, is her obstinance.I can’t have that.I have worked too hard to make this pack strong.Unbeatable.We don’t need another massacre like that one that took out my parents and so many other of my friends, family, and pack members.Yanking open the door to the training center, Colin instantly tries to catch my eye, dodging a high kick, and jogging over to me.“So?”His concerned look gets under my skin.She isn’t his to be concerned over.Feeling annoyed, I recall him asking permission to pursue her yesterday, insisting that I see her before giving it to him…and I refused.Now I will look like an even bigger ass, or a complete fool, if I go back on it.Or even worse than that…weak.“She’s on her way.”Colin looks relieved as he follows me toward the front of the center while I scan the room, watching everyone’s progress
Kit’s POVSniffing, I internally curse that arrogant son of a bitch.To hell with this place!I’m not staying.I don’t care what Cami says.I haven’t even seen her since we got here!She didn’t even care enough to text me since we got here, let alone check on how I’m dealing with being back in the place that I hate so much.Might as well accept the fact that I have lost her forever.That I am completely and utterly alone now.A tiny sob escapes and I cover my mouth with both my hands.No!I won’t give that jackass the satisfaction!“Kit, I’m so sorry…I don’t know what’s gotten into him.”“I do!” I cringe at how wobbly my voice sounds. “He is a complete jerk, always has been, and always will be! He hasn’t changed one bit!”I look over my shoulder at Colin, who opens his mouth, but then closes it in a thin smile and leans the side of his head against mine.“I’m sorry.”“Whatever.”I sniff again and grab my upper arms.“I’m leaving.”“What?”Colin pulls my shoulders back and steps in fro
Kit’s POVFlopping face first onto the bed with a groan of despair, I leave my arms and legs spread exactly where they landed.Seeing Cami and Jody so madly into each other just makes it so much clearer exactly what I missed out with my own mate bond.I can’t ever imagine Alpha Tate standing there all puppy-eyed with a heart-shaped pillow covering his goods…even though the thought of it does make me give a muffled laugh against my comforter.Just replaying that entire scene with Alpha Tate and I versus Cami and Jody is comical.Alpha Tate is too brooding and grumpy to be so enamored. And I can’t ever imagine myself sticking my lower lip out in that pouty fashion that Cami does.Sighing, I roll over onto my back.But at least they are happy.Whereas I am quite miserable.There’s a soft knock on the door and for a moment, I think that it must be Cami, finally dragging herself away from Jody, but that’s not her scent.“Come in.”Grabbing a pillow, I use it to cover my face before the doo